The Kebab Factory - Radisson GRT - Chennai

Yesterday was a great day to begin the new year - with a lunch at The Great Kebab Factory at the GRT Radisson, Chennai.

The gracious Mr.Vikram Cotah, VP, invited me (and others) over to have a special New Year treat at their speciality restaurant, The Kebab Factory. It was indeed a memorable experience.

Being a vegetarian my choice was obviously for the vegetarian kebabs. They have two different tawas for the veg and the non-veg Kebabs.

Had a tough time adjusting myself to the all-encompassing aromas of the non-veg stuff in the closed atmosphere BUT only until the items started being served onto my plate one by one at regular intervals.

Had a sip at the starter - an almond thandai which was cool and good.

All the kebabs without exception were a melt-in-the-mouth, made using different herbs for each kind - like the paneer tukda, the aloo, the stuffed mushroom and corn, the pineapple, the yam-bengal gram dal with a soft roti to stuff n roll it into. My favourites were the pineapple Kebab and the paneer tukda.

The waiter was reeling off the ingredients quite efficiently (kasoori methi, saffron, saunf, ajwain, etc) which went into making each one of those with a suggestion of what chutney to have them with - there were four of them - the tamarind sweet and sour, the mint, the coconut and one other which I dint try at all as I was enjoying the experience of these three too much!

The Kebabs were all served hot, just off the tawa/grill and were really good to taste.
There was this nutty bun which I dint want to fill my stomach with, as I was waiting for the vegetable biryani to arrive. When it finally did, I could get the aroma of the kevdaa essence wafting subtly with the long grains of basmati rice so well cooked, using a good amount of saffron going into it. Reminded me of the Zaafraani Vegetable Biryani in Hyderabadi hotels.

And then there was a glass of thick and creamy lassi sprinkled with some chat masala and fresh corriander leaves. Its always good to have some curds or lassi to aid the process of digestion.

The deserts were a good mix of rabri, malai, mini jamuns and special halwa (of dates and nuts) made especially for the new year and of course, the matka kulfi which could have been a bit thicker. The sweet (meetha) paan at the end of the meal was good too.
It was a great way to start the lunch on the first day of the new year.

Though I have read the history of Kebabs, also seen chefs making it on most of our TV cookery shows, but somehow never brought myself to taste them anywhere until yesterday. I was well equipped with the theory part, so to say.

Now for some history. Kebabs were invented by the Lucknawi bawarchis (the royal cooks) to please their (toothless) elderly Avadhi royals who could not enjoy the meat, etc which were hard for them to eat and digest. So they hit upon the idea of grinding to a soft paste, be it the different meats or different lentils or vegetables. At the heart of these Kebabs were wonderful fillings which were again soft, aromatic and fresh so that neither the taste nor the aromas of so many herbs and spices were lost in the process of grinding into a paste.

It is from the royal kitchens of Avadh that Kebabs have originated and is the product of a lot of experimenting by dedicated chefs. A Kebab being so soft could have given sleepless nights to these ingenious chefs to look for a good way to keep the whole piece together while deep frying or shallow frying with clever mixing of some subtle binding agents.

Now they are being served as specialities all over India. Natural teeth or dentures - do dig into these succulent and soft kebabs if you get a chance!
I could see and hear others at the adjoining tables enjoying the non-veg kebabs so much and many of them, repeatedly ordered for the soft boneless chicken kebabs, besides the fish and prawn kebabs.

The service too is quick here with the staff taking good care to mention the Kebab's name, the ingredients which go into every Kebab to each diner who is being served (this is an important and also a very interesting way to serve a dish in a hotel) and the kebabs are freshly made and served immediately - right from the hot tawa to the plate. Just like the steaming dosas mothers make and serve their doting kids at the dining table at home!!

For a fixed rate the offer of unlimited Kebabs should tempt one to go for it at least once at the Radisson GRT - Chennai.

Bon Apetit!

Cheers!

Mahalakshmi aka Rama Gopalakrishnan