"One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well" —Virginia Woolf
The next best thing to eating food is talking about it and that's exactly what we are doing in this special food issue.
It is a great part of our culture and all things Indian begin and end with food, be it the incessant cups of tea with samosas or glasses of lassi or even nimbupaani. We love our food and never seem to have enough of it.
As we move away from our own country and settle in faraway lands, we slowly begin to experiment with other cuisines. The relationship between Indians and spices is well-known and documented but what’s impossible to document is the vast number of spicy cuisines from the subcontinent. The Indian palate has changed and evolved with inclusions of other flavours from different cultures that we are exposed to in a multicultural melting pot such as New Zealand.
So why not try it the other way round? Off late, there is a growing trend in the Indian circles to experiment different cuisines. At last, it seems like we are opening ourselves to new ideas on the dining table.
We explore some cross-cultural adoptions of cuisines by the Kiwi Indians. We feature here some of the popular hangouts for Kiwi Indians for a great evening of fun, food and friends.
The Old Fort, Auckland
Life can surely feel heavenly when there is music in the air, wonderful food served and a glass of wine taking you beyond the worldly pleasures. This is how it feels when you step in Old Fort.
This weekend, when we walked in towards the restaurant, we were welcomed by the voice of Coke Studio artist Jashan Singh, who had specially flown in from India. Somehow, the live performance seemed to have added something extra to the atmosphere. In an unknown manner, it just increased our craving for the food that we had ordered. The concept of live music is not just different but also charismatic.
The artwork around also creates ambience, which creates a whole new world. There is music everywhere and the theme is nature. There is also an empty wall, which is waiting in the restaurant to be glorified by a Gond artist who is flying to Auckland in March. The artist from Madhya Pradesh will reveal his magic for two days in the presence of the audience enjoying the food.
Food served was probably as good as it gets. The taste though is slightly for the Kiwis, but if you order your food right, your taste buds won’t complain. The menu consists of a good variety from different parts of India and there is plenty for vegetarians too. Cocktails and wine collections are also good.
Overall, you must visit this place if you are looking for a nice outing with family or friends and want to enjoy evenings to foot-tapping music.
Sid Sharma, manager of the restaurant says, “We want to make this place as pleasurable as we can. We have designed our menu in such a way that it suits everyone’s taste. We place special importance on the ambience and music. We have also had live jugalbandi, ghazals, etc. here.”
Food: 4 stars
Ambience: 4.5 stars
Customer service: 4.5 stars—the staff are extremely pleasant but service is slow, which is not necessarily a bad thing for a leisurely evening
Cost: Approx. $90 for two
Address: 7 Bacons Lane, Chancery Square, Auckland CBD, Auckland
Opening hours: 11:30 a.m. to midnight
Cassia, Auckland
One look at Cassia and you will be awed by the grace and the elegance with which its interior stands out. There is a stamp of sophistication on every prop in the restaurant and the place just embraces you in a style that makes you feel come back to the place more than once.
We had heard that food in this place was special and our sources were not wrong. We also had an opportunity to meet Head Chef Sid Sahrawat. He is one of New Zealand’s most exciting chefs, famed for his fine dining restaurant in Ponsonby and revered within the industry and amongst the locals and international diners for his innovative and inspirational cooking.
Cassia is a concept close to the heart of both Sid and his wife Chand, who have always wanted to showcase their heritage through contemporary cuisine, resulting in Auckland’s first restaurant to offer Modern Indian dining. Sid marries his creative culinary skills with the traditional dishes he has grown up watching around him in India—classic spice and flavour combinations reworked with contemporary and local New Zealand ingredients.
The service is excellent and gives a person personal space. Tailor-made options are available on the menu. It is an ideal place for someone who wants to enjoy true international flavours.
Food: 5 stars
Ambience: 4.5 stars
Customer service: 5 star
Cost: Approx $70 for two
Address: 5 Fort Lane, Auckland, CBD
Opening hours: Open for dinner from Tuesday to Saturday and offers an a la a carte and five-course tasting menu. Open for lunches from Wednesday to Friday.
PepperJacks, Auckland
If you can take a regular banquet night with a black and white movie in the open courtyard along with jambalaya and blackened fish, Pepperjacks is the place for you. Add to the menu, crawfish pie, onion mumm and fillet gumbo, the place becomes a must go for every foodie in the town.
Located at the Pine harbour Marina, the restaurant sits in the middle of a picturesque location. The view of Pine harbour during the sunset is enough to freshen up the mood and to treat your taste buds to exotic food. The place has a relaxed and a friendly atmosphere thanks to the fresh lease of life added to it by Yash and Sunita Narula who took over the restaurant a couple of years ago.
“I wanted to bring Cajun/New Orleans flavours that have been missing from the local food scene for some time. While there were new additions to the menu, we kept the favourites of the regulars intact,” says Yash Narula.
Everything about the restaurant is precise and perfect. The service, as expected, is outstanding and the presentation too should get a special mention. The place is easy on the eyes and is adult, kid and dog-friendly. There is also an outdoor fireplace, which makes post-dusk time special.
Food: 4.5 stars
Ambience: 5 stars or more given the backdrop of the harbour
Customer service: 4.5 star
Cost: – Approx. $70 for two
Address: 190 Jack Lachlan Drive, Pine Harbour Marina
Opening hours: Open on Tuesday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and from Wednesday to Sunday from 9 a.m. till late night. Happy hours from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. from Wednesday to Friday.
The South island is no different and indulging in good food features way up on the list of favourite things amongst the Kiwi Indians. A quick look at the favourite food joints by our South island correspondent, Gaurav Sharma.
Maharaja Indian restaurant, Christchurch
Started in 2000 by Head Chef and owner Vijay Biala, Maharaja Indian restaurant on Christchurch's Papanui Road is known for its North Indian or Punjabi cuisine. Although day-to-day affairs are managed by his son Rajiv now, Biala—a chef with more than 45 years experience—still has the final say in what goes inside Maharaja's kitchen. Catering to patrons looking for an Indian fine dining experience within a decent budget, the restaurant is most famous for its speciality—butter chicken tikka masala.
A favourite of Kiwi Indians and the wider community, the dish was an innovation by Biala, who combined the spicy masala-rich flavour of chicken tikka masala with the sweet tangy aroma of butter chicken. "Hence came the butter chicken tikka masala," says Rajiv. "Now that Maharaja is a known brand, we have expanded our culinary expertise to serving Delhi's street foods such as dahi bhalle and Indian-style chowmein, which was being sorely missed by the ever-increasing Indian population in the Garden City—in our new venture Delhi Belly Restaurant at the Victoria Street," he informed.
Food: 5 stars
Ambience: 4.5 stars
Customer service: 4.5 stars
Cost: Approx. $60 for two
Address: 452 Papanui Road, Christchurch
Opening hours: Open every day from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Arjee Bhajee
A joint venture by Snehil Bhatnagar and Bhupender Bijalwan, Arjee Bhajee's— an intelligent take on the British slang argy-bargy meaning a lively and disputatious discussion—culinary experience is exactly what the owners like to call it, “Indian with attitude”.
While Snehil manages the administrative operations, Bhupender is the Head Chef in Arjee Bhajee's kitchen, which over time has come to be known for serving out the best fusion dishes in Christchurch including Euro-fusion curries such as Venison and Portobello Mushroom (Denver leg pieces), Goat Supreme, and Lamb Bhutuwa. Inspired by the Nepali cuisine—a testimony of Bhupender's Himalayan roots in India—the restaurant's Nepali variations such as the Gurkhali Chicken is also a signature dish.
"Our focus is to serve the food in its natural form without any food colouring or preservatives. For the health conscious, we also serve the 'stripped' options where we remove all dairy products from our curries reducing the fat content,” informed Bhatnagar.
Food: 4.5 stars
Ambience: 4 stars
Customer service: 4.5 stars
Cost: Approx. $50 for two
Address: 13 c Riccarton Road
Opening hours: Open every day from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m.