RollMaal
By Aisha Bhattacharya
What is in a Roll you ask? Here at RollMaal – That is the question!!! ‘Roll ke andar kya hai?’ Located below Mocha in Defence Colony Market, RollMaal is as easy to locate as a BMW parked among 10 Santros. Okay, Bad joke, But, seriously so easy to find.
The entrance is this fascinating display of ‘Belans’ or Rolling Pins to the uninitiated. Yes, Floor to Ceiling sheets of Glass with Belans stacked in between. Very unique and so original.
The place is small and can probably seat 20 – 25 people at a time comfortably. The waiters are all dressed in kurtas and caps (Anna Hazare movement type) in khaki colour. The outfit is inspired by Rajesh Khanna’s role in the film ‘Bawarchi’. I’m not sure how many of you reading this, have even seen the film. Nevertheless, it has music to match. Old Bollywood songs that would make our parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents… (You get the hint) feel nostalgic.
The menu is easy to go through and is extremely well divided into sections like First Class Rolls i.e. the signature items of RollMaal, Doosra Maal i.e. Gravy items , Side ka Maal i.e. accompaniments, Peenay ka Maal (yes! You guessed it!) – Beverages, Meetha Maal – desserts naturally and my Favourite part RollMaal Classics – Make your own Roll. How cool is that??! Choose your Roll – The roti or parantha you like and choose your Maal – The filling – Veg, chicken or Mutton. So easy and so much fun!
We started with the Chicken Chettinad Southy “Mind It” Roll (Rs. 150) – A spicy Chicken laced with curry leaves wrapped in a wonderfully flaky Malabari Parantha. The Jalandhar Boneless Chicken Makhani (Rs. 180) with Ulte Tawe ka Parantha (Rs. 35) was nice. A regular Butter Chicken by any standards.
I ate the highly recommended Rollu’s Mutton Keema Pav (Rs. 185) – Such a good decision! They serve a ‘Churmuri Papad’ as a side dish with everything – crushed papad with salt, pepper and a little fresh coriander. I topped the Keema Pav with this crunchy little titbit and it tasted out of this world. Keema Pav took me to a third dimension that day!
All this food was washed down with Rollu’s Desi Remix (Rs. 50) – A Lemon, Jaljeera, Soda mixture which actually tasted pretty good! Rollu’s Iced Tea (Rs. 50) is not your usual packet-wala Iced Tea so that might be disappointing for some. For me it was a great drink – fresh tea, ice, lemon and just the right amount of sugar.
Watch out for Rollu – he’s coming around the corner to Gurgaon soon! Try and get your hands on the adorable story about Bade Rollu Saabh from Rollisthan, his grandson Rollu, Rollu’s pet Saandh – Pinky and his quick-witted love interest Rumaali who coins the phrase “Roll ke Andar kya Hai?”
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good info!