The last few years have seen a revolution on the Delhi food scene. With modern Indian cuisine taking centre stage, it has paved the way for several regional food restaurants to set up shop and thrive. Gone are the days when it was either Mughlai or Idli-dosas — today, you have some real gems: Yeti for Nepalese and Tibetan food, Sana-Di-Ge for coastal cuisine with an emphasis on seafood, Chor Bizzare for Kashmiri food and Bagundi for finger lickin’ Andhra cuisine.
Joining this star-studded list is Monsoon by Café Lota at Aerocity. Those of you who have eaten at Café Lota at the Crafts Museum will be familiar with their concept — regional dishes, using different cereals and unusual combinations, served without any fuss. Monsoon is its ‘grown up’ version and is open for both lunch and dinner. In addition to absolutely novel and delicious food, it also and serves mocktails (which deserve a separate review) and alcohol. Most dishes on the menu are things you’ve not had, but you want to order immediately. Luckily, the kitchen delivered, and how! Absolutely delicious stuff and I cannot wait to go back.
The vibe : Concrete floor, louvered windows, potted plants, yellow stucco walls — it is old-fashioned, simple and charming. Completely different to its OTT neighbours!
The tamarind fish
Do try : The Khapli (wheat) and Bandel Cheese (similar to smoked feta) Salad. As you bite into the salad, the crunch is the first thing that grabs you — both from the wheat and the pomegranate, but it is the cheese (which feels as if it’s a perfume that wafts through each bite) that is the real star, complemented perfectly by the kasundi and sugarcane vinegar vinaigrette.
The Kala Channa Kebab is an exact replica of a galouti sans the mutton. Vegetarians rejoice! The Prawn Pepper Stir Fry is has loads of pepper and the caramelized onions were the perfect shade of Marmite brown and full of flavour.
If you are still a meat eater (considering vegetarianism is gripping the country) then the Jau (barley) and Meat Stew is divine — a big bowl of hot dal with generous amounts of well marinated goat meat. Eating this, I understood the name of the restaurant, Monsoon. I wanted to be transported to a hill station, be under a blanket, watching the rain fall, with a bucket full of the stew.
The Tamarind Fish with a Moilee Sauce was beautifully delicate and I mopped it up with appams (which unfortunately felt like hybrid pitas).
Skip : The Tinda Mattar Curry and the Coorgi Jackfruit Stir Fry — both were pleasant but not wow. I would give the desserts a skip too: the Kheer was terrible, poor texture and way too sweet. The chocolate torte with mango leather was also disappointing: The texture was perfect, but it again was extremely sweet.
Go with : An empty stomach and bladder.
Spacebar : 42 covers spread over 1,165 sq feet
How much : ₹2,250 for two excluding drinks
Getting there : Worldmark I, Aerocity. By now you know how to get to the food hub that is Aerocity — cab it.
