Once upon a time, when I lived in Central Delhi, a government-run hotel called Kanishka was quite a favourite of ours. Those were the days when a bowl of soup with a basket of bread cost Rs. 20. That was a lot of money then, but we did manage to go there for an occasional dinner consisting of either soup or a club sandwich in the coffee shop,
Since then, much has happened. For one, I no longer live there. And two, the hotel, near Ashoka Road, has changed hands over the years, and is now the glitzy Shangri La’s-Eros Hotel. And another development makes me happy. My friend Neeraj Tyagi is the executive chef there. I went there twice in two months, and discovered that the hotel’s restaurants have really started buzzing. I had a delightful Italian meal several weeks ago, and this week, I had a memorable dinner at its Chinese restaurant called Shang Palace.
The Peking duck I had was excellent –– the best I have eaten in recent times. The duck had been dried and then marinated with spices, herbs and sauces for 48 hours. It had been roasted to perfection, with a crispy skin and tender and moist meat. A chef carves it for you, and then pieces of sliced meat, cucumber and green onions are placed in a thin wheat pancake, which is rolled up and served with sauces. You dust the crispy skin in powdered sugar and eat it. It was truly heavenly.
Regular readers know that the meat that I love the most is pork. So, of course, I had to try out crispy pork belly which was again soft inside and crispy outside. You forked a piece, dipped it in mustard and then powdered sugar and popped it into your mouth. I could have made a meal out of that.
The restaurant has cooks who have either come from China or been trained there. So the menu is comprehensive, and includes many specialities from disparate regions. You’ll find Yunnan food, Schezwan food, Cantonese and so on. I had a very hot and interesting chicken dish that had been cooked with Schezwan pepper that had come from China. Go there only if you love your chillies!
Another dish that I enjoyed was the fried cod in golden garlic salt. Cod fillets had been dusted with panko crumbs and garlic and then deep fried. I also tried out the Chef’s signature sizzling lobster mapo tofu, served with fried rice that had been put together with some sauces on a hot lava stone. However, the rice didn't appeal to me much.
Did I have anything vegetarian? Yes, I did –– a bowl of marinated cucumber with garlic, which was nice and sharp. But there is a large section for vegetarians with dishes such as shredded crispy spinach with dry chillies and sesame seeds, Schezwan asparagus and spring onion pancake, wok tossed okra with shitake mushroom and pickled chillies and sizzling broccoli, water chestnut, black pepper glazed in a stone pot.
There is a vast dim sum section, too. I had a delectable prawn dim sum, in a very, very thin casing, served with various kinds of Chinese sauces.
I am glad that Shang Palace is going places. It’s like seeing an old friend make it big.
The writer is a seasoned street food connoisseur
