Tag: Zambar

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South Indian with a Twist

Zambar, Gurgaon

When sushi burritos, ramen burgers and cronuts made an appearance on the food scene over the last few years, the sceptics and purists were appalled. But these eccentric dishes soon found their groove, primarily among Instagram hungry millennials. Food mashups are here to stay. And luckily, they’re tasty!

Zambar has swooped into a very traditional market to deliver a modern interpretation to south Indian food. It is upbeat and fun. There’s a colourful wheeled cart with alcohol and coconuts balanced on it at one end. Next to it, on the wall, a volley of pictures and videos depicting the backwaters of Kerala, traditional dances and markets are projected. The opposite wall is a window into Char Minar and other famous sites (paintings of course. If only Char Minar was actually visible from the 3rd floor of Ambience Mall). A little further is a well-stocked and pretty looking bar with a black board menu in the new Instagram font. The restaurant staff wore flowers in their hair and traditional sarees which was endearing.

Kaffir Lime Rasam was served first as a palate cleanser. The kaffir lime elevated the humble rasam dish, giving it a fresh and light citrus kick. I lapped up every bit of that hot concoction. I always want my rasam with kaffir lime in it now. The next dish, Zambar Net Dosai was stuffed with chicken and layered with delicious spices. The Goan Prawn Curry lived up to its name and heritage but the lamb in Achamma’s Lamb Curry was a bit chewy. Egg lovers will have a field day with Zambar’s rendition of utthapam and appam with a sunny side up perched on each of them. By the time we reached the dessert segment, I found myself loosening my belt, in a desperate bid to make more room. I tried the Coconut Jaggery Pudding which was their take on a mishti doi. It had a comfortable level of sweetness, with the coconut shavings adding a crunchy texture to the dish.

Zambar’s menu has cute drawings of lungi clad men playing tennis, women balancing pots on their heads and Super-Hot Man giving poses (his super power seems to be cooking hot food) along with historical excerpts and blurbs about southern Indian states – because education is important, wherever you may be! So go visit, for a tasty, playful and educational meal all packed in one.

 

Location: 3rd Floor, Ambience Mall, Gurgaon
Meal for two: Rs. 1400 (without alcohol)

Anjora Sarangi
Anjora cannot resist a good prawn preparation, finds home in Chinese food anywhere in the world but will eat almost anything if it looks appealing. She is a Potter head and has recently discovered pottery as a hobby (excuse the pun).
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Holi Celebrations @Zambar

Holi Celebrations @Zambar

With a Scrumptious Rainbow Holi Thali and Chocolate Bomb Ghujiya!

By Bhuvaneshwari Sivakumar

Date – 5th and 6th March 2015

Timings –12 noon to 11 pm

Outlets – Ambience Mall, Gurgaon and DLF Cyber City, Gurgaon

Zambar – The Coastal Kitchen has come up with a special thali to celebrate the festive occasion of Holi. After the wild and crazy holi celebrations, an afternoon meal at this famed south-Indian restaurant is the perfect choice!

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Our trip to Zambar on 5th March was filled with wonderful surprises. The afternoon started with a glassful of hot rasam – a soup that south-Indians are accustomed to eating with rice in between a three-course meal – and a basketful of appalams (Papad). To serve the rasam an appetizer was not a bad idea at all. It had the right amount of tanginess; just enough to whet your appetite. Plus, drinking it out of a glass is always fun!

What followed was a treat to the eyes and to the taste buds as well! The Rainbow Holi Thali (Non-Veg), with a Malabar parotta bang at the center surrounded by a host of delectable dishes from across the South, was a culinary delight.

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The sambhar tasted brilliant. It was exactly how one would prepare it at home – balanced flavors, and perfect consistency. The only downside was that there was nothing to eat it with. A bowl of white rice would have been perfect.

The parotta was as authentic as the sambhar. It would have been better if it was a little thinner. It was well-roasted otherwise.

There were three dishes that you could team with the parotta – Chettinad Mutton Curry, Nilgiri Korma and Paneer Curry. The Chettinad Mutton Curry was the best dish on the thali, followed by the Nilgiri Chicken Korma, which is a famous Hyderabadi cuisine. With its delicious curry and succulent paneer cubes, the Paneer Curry was a close competitor to these two Non-veg dishes.

The next amazing dish on the plate was the Vegetable Thoran. It is a stir fry dish from Kerala made of finely chopped vegetables, famous for its simplicity. This particular thoran was prepared with beans, carrots and grated coconut. We were bowled over by its minimal yet incredible taste.

The lemon rice was a stand-alone dish. It was neither lemony nor was the choice of rice used correct. Using basmati rice for preparing lemon rice is an absolute no. A bowl of white rice in its place would have worked wonders for the thali. The same goes for the Chicken 65 which was dry and unsavory. Both these dishes were the weak points of an otherwise brilliantly-prepared and wholesome thali.

 Our afternoon meal ended with a plate of delectable Chocolate Ghujiyas and a cup of filter coffee. After such a heavy meal, we were unsure if we would be able to eat the ghujiyas. But one bite was enough to put an end to our suspicions. They were absolutely light and left you feeling pleasant! We even got a few packed to take home with us. Well, we just finished eating one each in the course of writing this review. Get up and head straight to Zambar! Now!

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Anubhav Sapra
Anubhav Sapra
Anubhav Sapra is an avid foodie! He is a Founder but proudly calls himself a Foodie-in-chief at Delhi Food Walks. He is also a street-food and Indian regional cuisine connoisseur and loves to write about street-food.
http://www.delhifoodwalks.com