The recently opened Saket outlet of Smoke House Deli offers more variety and a special menu for kids, too. Rupinder Kaur reports
It is much more different than its popular Hauz Khas Village counterpart, we realised as we entered the new outlet of Smoke House Deli in DlF Saket Mall. As you will enter through the arched gateway, you will be transported back to the British colonial era.
Antique tea cups and kettles along with boxes of Oolong, earl-grey and lavender tea, vintage hat boxes among other British tea merchant household essentials, hand-drawn on the walls hold the attention.
After ensconcing ourselves on the floral upholstered sofa, we launched our taste-off with the assorted vegetarian starters along with the sangria rossa and a kiwi cantaloupe lemonade cooler. On a wooden platter we were served hash browns with jalapeño and two cheese melts, the crisp and refreshing paprika puffs with wasabi salsa, bruschetta with tomato and feta cheese. All three were clear winners though the wasabi salsa failed to add the punch.
This was followed by the non-vegetarian appetisers, of which the grilled chicken and the lemongrass skewer was brilliant, followed by the fiery grilled prawn sambal skewers.
Since we’ve always played it safe when it comes to ordering a salad, this time we let our host pick for us and we were served a roasted beetroot, tangerine, asparagus with guava and star anise topped with balsamic, feta and roasted pine nuts. The tangerine went surprisingly well with the crunchy iceberg lettuce and the beets but the basil was a bit overpowering.
Next in line was the mouth-watering chilli crusted cobbler (basa fish) with citrus thyme veloute laid on turmeric risotto, which was cooked al dente. We also tried the sundried tomato artichoke and spinach risotto topped with black olives. The spinach gave the risotto a lovely green hue, a delicious healthy option, and left us wanting more.
By the time we finished our mains, we were bursting at the seams but no meal is complete without desserts. We got the creme brûlée which delivers exceptional satisfaction as one cracks the caramel top which also has a hint of tangerine. The hot chocolate fondant served with a dollop if vanilla ice cream, oozes out heart-warming melted chocolate as one breaks open the cake mould.
The Deli has revamped its menu which will be introduced in its other outlets soon. Executive chef Shamsul Wahid said, “Our pasta range has increased and we’ve also introduced ‘create your own pasta’ section. Then there is the steak pit and we have tried to offer all variations like the tenderloin steak which is served with asparagus and potato wedges, peppercorn crusted filet with mushrooms, beans and hollandaise sauce, grilled steak with creamed mushrooms as well as the sautéed tenderloin strips with shiitake. We have added our own twist to it and tried to work with flavours that people are familiar with so that it is not very confusing for them. Steaks are very difficult to find in the city restaurants especially because the imported cuts have been banned. We have the same process of selecting the meat. Steak is always a good protein to work with.”
They have also introduced an interactive menu for kids. Each kid gets a booklet with stickers of the food they want to order and it also doubles as a colouring/craft booklet. He added, “Kids are loyal customers so we came up with this menu that would appeal to them and even the grown-ups can order from the same.”