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The charisma of kakori
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Allowing his heart to melt, Rahul Verma enjoys a melt-in-the-mouth experience at Alkauser in South Delhi
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The meat was tender, and the masalas were just right. I am told that they cook this kabab with 52 spices
Some of my friends in South Delhi are a bit miffed with me. One gourmet professor of economics, in fact, has quite a few nasty things to say to me every time we meet. His grouse is that I focus on the Walled City, thereby ignoring the hapless inhabitants of the southern parts of Delhi. But what can one do when the best eating stalls are mostly in Old Delhi?
Still, being a man with an open mind, I have always been on the lookout for good restaurants in South Delhi. And that is why, when I heard that the much-loved Alkauser was flourishing in R.K. Puram, I was quite happy. I had gone to a relative's house in South Delhi. He is supposed to be on a strict diet, which is why he looks forward to visits from friends and relatives. For that means an opportunity to eat what he wants to. It was there that we ordered food from Alkauser.
We had some of their kakori kababs and mutton korma. The korma was good, but I found the mutton pieces a bit too soft. Later, I was told by the cooks that Delhiites like their korma somewhat mushy.
Least chewing
But speaking of soft, there is nothing like the kakori kabab - introduced over 100 years ago by a master-chef called Nabbu Mian. Legend has it that a nawab had lost most of his teeth but not his love for kababs, and wanted to eat something that called for the least bit of chewing. He was presented with the kakori. And the rest was culinary history. A few days later I went back to Alkauser, which is in the Vasant Place Market, Sector 6, R.K. Puram.
I asked for a few plates of kakori kabab (Rs.65 for two pieces). The meat was tender, and the masalas were just right. I am told that they cook this kabab with 52 spices. No, I have no idea what the 52 spices are. All that I know is the kabab tasted good.
Alkauser has the other popular kababs as well. Four pieces of galauti kabab come for Rs.110, while mutton burra kabab is for Rs.125. The kormas - chicken and mutton - are all there. The food is Awadhi, so the Lucknawi dum handi mutton biryani (Rs. 120) should be good. And they have kabab wraps, seemingly the latest fad among kabab-eaters. I would have liked to eat their nahari, but that's cooked only on Sundays.
Two branches
It has two other branches - one in Punjabi Bagh and the other on Kautilya Marg. The owner is in Dubai right now, busy opening up a restaurant there. I was of course glad to have rediscovered Alkauser. The kababs are good, but, more importantly; it will keep the professor happy for a while. Or so I hope.
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