That there is a world outside Old Delhi is a fact that I am sometime reluctant to accept. My friends in South Delhi crib that I ignore their neighbourhood. They are not all that wrong. I do tend to overlook that part of town, but only because I don’t often dine out there. But once in a while when I do so, I always write about it if I like a place. And I must admit I quite liked Kylin Experience when I went there some days ago. A friend is getting married, and his friend had very kindly planned a bachelorette party for the bride and her female friends. When it transpired that the (male) host, the groom, the bride’s father and several men were planning to hang out at the all-female party, it was turned into a pre-wedding bash. And, in the process, I found myself making my way to South Delhi.
The restaurant is in the Basant Lok complex of Vasant Vihar (also known as the Priya Complex). The phone numbers are: 9911159546/011-41669799 and 9582001010. The building houses its two restaurants — Go Kylin and Kylin Experience.
Our host, who is a professor in IIT, had booked a terrace for his party. The evening was pleasant, and it was nice to sit out on the terrace, though it did have a roof. The place had been nicely done up with red curtains that had been tied up to allow the breeze to waft in. And we all sat around a long table.
I liked the look of the place. The servers — from places such as Darjeeling, Manipur and Etah — were not just polite, but smiling. And the food was truly good. Before going to Kylin, I had dropped in at our cousin’s place in the neighbourhood and eaten a roti with a very nice and hot potato, pea and cabbage sabzi. So I was under the impression that I wouldn’t eat much. But I surprised myself.
That’s because the snacks were indeed delicious. I particularly enjoyed the garlic fish (Rs.345). The fish was tender, the crust was crisp, and the spices were just right. We had some crispy veggies in a teppanyaki Thai platter and baby potatoes with crushed pepper. The potatoes — soft and spicy — were excellent. The vegetarian starters are mostly for Rs.250-295. The sliced chilli lamb (Rs.375) was delicious. And the crispy chicken in dry red pepper was spicy and juicy.
When dinner was served, I took a few small helpings (don’t forget the roti-sabzi that lined my stomach!) and loved the lamb salad, that a server said had been cooked with coriander and cumin (Rs.395). I was told the fish would be served in a mustard sauce, but I think it ended up with Vietnamese herbs. The fish, with its very mild yet flavourful sauce, was truly inspired. There were some Asian greens in chilli coriander sauce diced chicken black pepper and mint. Most entrees are Rs.445.
All in all, it was a lovely party. If I’d known the food was that good I would have avoided the cousin’s roti-sabzi. And if the good professor had decided to go ahead with an all-woman do, I would have gone there with ribbons in my hair.
