The chefs of Hyatt Regency set the dastarkhan for you to feast.
KATHMANDU, July 21: Food enthusiasts in Kathmandu will be excited to know that The Café at Hyatt Regency is putting up a promotional menu of kebabs and curries from July 22 to July 31. The menu includes Mughlai delicacies of kebabs, biryani and curries, deriving itself from the authentic Awadhi culinary style of Lucknow. The Executive Chef Gopi Nandakumar from India and his team that includes Nepali chef Bhanu Aryal set the dastarkhan for you to dine like nawabs.
The starters menu lures you with the ‘murgh lasooni tikka’ which is chicken slowly cooked inside a tandoor and tossed with garlic. The chicken is mild and rich in garlic flavor. As the style of cooking is from Lucknow, the texture of the tikka is whitish and doesn’t overpower the taste with layers of spices like in the case of regular orange tikkas being served in most of the places in Kathmandu. The blend of flavors and the balance of whole spices go perfectly in this dish.
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Also in the starters is Hyatt’s old favorite –the ‘lamb galouti’. As the story goes, an old Mughal nawab had lost most of his teeth and had difficulties in eating his favorite kebabs. Concerned, his bawarchis innovated a kebab dish that would just melt in the nawab’s mouth. Thus the galouti kebab was invented (galouti literally translates to melting in the mouth). In the lamb galouti, the minced meat is shaped in a patty and fried on a tava (large Indian frying pan). It is then served with a crunchy base of coin shaped baked paratha. The vegetarian variation of the kebab is the ‘mushroom galouti’ that has mashed mushroom, onion paste and chopped raisins, adding a little hint of sweetness.
The main course offers a combination of biryanis and curries. Everywhere biryani is made with chunks of meat but the ‘lamb seekh biryani’ on Hyatt’s menu is prepared from a different method. Here, biryani masala is applied on the seekh kebab beforehand and then the kebab is grilled on the tandoor. So, instead of being just isolated chunks of meat, the seekh kebab is cooked for the biryani and compliments it. During the event, the chefs plan to introduce more varieties of biryani on a daily basis. The ones that can appear on the menu are ‘sea-food biryani’, ‘keema biryani’ and ‘parda biryani’.
As for the curry section, the highlights are the ‘bauli handi’ and ‘vegetable anda curry’. The bauli handi is one of a kind mutton curry because in no other mutton curries you will find potatoes, carrots and mushroom together in the gravy. “It’s the influence of Pakistan over Lucknow,” says chef Gopi. The ‘vegetable anda curry’ on the other hand is chef Gopi and his team’s own innovation. After much experiment they were able to mould paneer in the shape of egg to go with creamy gravy.
Because this is a nawabi dinner buffet, the dessert will be incomplete without paan (betel). And keeping that in mind, the chefs present you a strange culinary fusion - ‘paan ice-cream’. If that’s not enough you also have ‘chocolate jalebi’ at your way. While the paan ice cream has a distinct betel flavor leaving a soothing aftertaste, the jalebi made with chocolate sauce and batter is recommended only for the ones who don’t shy from trying out new tastes.
You can try the dinner buffet of ‘Kebab & Curries’ promotional menu from 6.30 PM to 10.30 PM at Hyatt Regency in Bouddha. The rate is priced at Rs. 2000.
