Hi foodies, today I’ll be doing a food review of an artistic restaurant near Anurag Chowk, Kanwali Road. They are well known for their authentic dishes, artistic décor, serving size & focused menu.
Come, let’s take a closer look!
Location
Anurag Chowk, Vasant Vihar, Mohit Nagar, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248001
The restaurant is located in an arcade; hence finding a good parking spot should not be an issue here as the restaurant had ample parking space around it for both two-wheelers and four-wheelers alike.
The restaurant is usually more crowded in the evenings and on the weekends, but never crowded enough to cause any major parking-related issues.
Timings
Mon-Sun: 12:00 PM – 10:30 PM
Cuisines Offered
Veg & Non-Veg
Lebanese, Mexican, Fast Food, Pizza, Shakes & Beverages.
Average Cost For 2 (Exclusive of Taxes & Other Charges)
Rs. 500/- approx.
Zomato Rating
Menu
Ambience
The ambience of the restaurant was extremely trendy, modern, and artistic and although the overall area of the restaurant was quite cozy and compact in design as compared to other similar food outlets, it was nevertheless very tastefully decorated and everything looked well maintained and super hygienic.
The use of vibrant colors in the interiors of the restaurant was an inspired choice, and the addition of the artistic wall art designs, the aesthetic lighting options, and peppy music, only went on to add more life to the already lively and youthful appeal of the outlet.
Additionally, the restaurant had set up a couple of tables outside the restaurant too, for customers who preferred to have their meals in a more open ambience.
Quality Of Food (Taste, Service & Presentation)
The service of the restaurant was quick and efficient. All the dishes that I had ordered were presented beautifully and were prepared in very good time.
The service staff were in the restaurant’s trademark black uniform and looked great.
Moreover, they were very warm and courteous towards me, especially my server for the day Mr. Rahul, who was always on hand to answer any of my queries regarding the dishes or the menu and was also patient enough to give me an in-depth view into the makings of the varied sauces they had provided with the dishes.
Dishes Ordered
From their thick shakes section, I ordered one of their highly recommended shakes, the Brownie Shake.
For my main course, I ordered one of their most popular Lebanese dishes, the Chicken Doner Kebab.
Brownie Shake
First up came one of their best varieties of shakes, the brownie shake.
The thick shake was served full to the brim in a tall, stylish-looking, bottle-like glass container, styled with some chocolate art on the insides as well, along with a paper straw.
The brownie shake was super thick and creamy in consistency and tasted absolutely delicious. From the surface, it wasn’t as chocolaty in appearance as most chocolate-based beverages are, but in terms of taste, one could clearly get the distinct, chocolaty flavor, as well as the granulated texture, of a premium variety of blended brownie in every sip, which helped in giving the shake a delectable, premium flavor.
A great beverage to complement any meal and a highly recommended drink for all chocolate lovers out there.
Chicken Doner Kebab
For my final course of the day, I was served one of their best Lebanese main course dishes, the chicken doner kebab.
The doner kebab was pre-portioned into 2 equal halves and served on an aesthetic, blue-colored, textured ceramic plate, garnished with a modest quantity of fresh coriander(dhania) leaves. Moreover, the kebab was accompanied by three small matching-colored bowls as well, which contained 3 vibrant looking, authentic, Middle-Eastern accompaniments to help complement the dish better.
The chicken doner kebab itself was quite soft in texture, was jam-packed with lots of intricate and robust flavors, and was truly finger-licking delicious. It was not prepared and served like a regular kebab dish, instead, it was prepared more like a traditional Lebanese version of a grilled wrap.
The dish was made by combining a few flavorsome ingredients like a generous amount of delectable roasted boneless pieces of chicken, an assortment of some finely chopped fresh vegetables, and a dash of a tangy and slightly spicy Middle-Eastern sauce as well, which were all then loosely wrapped and held together with the help of a soft and moist variety of pita bread.
Starting with the boneless chicken pieces in the kebab: the pieces were marinated in a flavorsome yogurt-based, spiced marinade and were roasted to perfection in such a way, that it not only gave the pieces a delicious charred texture but also kept them super moist and juicy on the insides.
Additionally, semi-cooked vegetables like tomatoes, pickled jalapenos, onions, cucumbers, and red cabbage were expertly sliced into thin juliennes and were mixed in with the roasted boneless pieces of chicken, to help give the filling of the doner kebab a much fresher and crunchier taste, as even though the vegetables were cooked, they still had a bite to them and were not mushy at all.
Lastly, the tangy and spicy flavorsome Middle-Eastern sauce that they had added to the filling of the doner kebab was nothing but the same leftover marinade of the boneless chicken pieces which had been cooked through till it had developed a thick, saucy consistency, before being added to the filling, to thereby give a meatier flavor to the overall taste of the dish.
Finally, to finish off the preparation of the dish, the entire chicken wrap was lightly grilled on a grill, which not only helped enhance the overall taste of the dish even further by giving it a more sumptuous, roasted flavor but also gave the wrap a delectable, grilled exterior, which only went on to add to the overall presentation of the dish.
Coming to the 3 accompaniments that were provided with the dish: the 1st bowl contained a rich variety of Tzatziki sauce, garnished with some mint leaves. It was extremely creamy in consistency without being too heavy and had a delightfully mild taste of fresh cucumbers coming through it.
The 2nd bowl contained arguably one of the most popular Middle-Eastern sauces, the hummus sauce. The hummus sauce was thick in consistency and one could clearly get the subtle flavors of chickpeas shining through it beautifully. Additionally, the hummus was garnished with some smoked paprika and a segment of olive too, which only added a more robust flavor to an otherwise mild hummus sauce.
The 3rd bowl on the other hand contained a middle-eastern inspired salad which was made by combining a selection of some finely chopped cubes of onions, jalapenos, and tomatoes, which were then dressed in a quite creamy, tangy and spicy salad dressing, to give the salad a hot and sour flavor. The salad was garnished with a large leaf of red cabbage as well, to give it some theatre.
I tasted the chicken doner kebab with each of the 3 accompaniments separately and although I like them all, personally, I felt the subtle flavors of the tzatziki and hummus sauces complimented the meaty taste of the doner kebab the best.
Regrettably, I also found a small stone in the doner kebab which was served to me, and although it wasn’t a big issue, I did mention it to the head server so that he may convey it to the chefs. It was a stark reminder for the restaurant to always maintain absolute hygiene in the kitchen during their operations and always double-check and triple-check their dishes before sending them out to the guests, as the hospitality line is as brutal as they come and small mistakes like these will cost them precious goodwill in the long-term if not rectified at the earliest.
[More to follow…]
To Eat or Not?
To Eat, absolutely.
With their beautifully decorated, aesthetic and colorful ambiance, sumptuous & authentic food, focused menu, and courteous service, I found this restaurant to most definitely be one of the best restaurants in the city today to visit with your loved ones to not only chill & relax but to also enjoy some truly mouth-watering and authentic Lebanese, Spanish and Continental delicacies at reasonably good prices.
Although I found the restaurant to be super hygienic and well maintained from top to bottom, I still felt the restaurant could definitely work towards fine-tuning and taking more care in the preparation of their dishes a bit more, to make sure that their customers get the best possible experience.
Overall, I had an immensely enjoyable visit to this artistic, lively-looking, cozy restaurant and I can’t wait to go back and try a few more delicious, authentic dishes from their well-curated and focused menu.
Food Critic Anmol Rating
Ambience
Quality Of Food
Value For Money
And that’s it, folks! Thanks for reading and I’ll see you again later with another amazing food review tailored just for you! If you have any feedback or suggestions regarding this review, feel free to contact me anytime!
Take care & Happy eating!