Royal Rajasthan delights diners

A menu unlike any other in Sydney, five star chefs and friendly service make a memorable night

As soon as we entered Rajasthan Delights we were greeted with colourful wall photos of Rajasthan, including its monuments, people, costumes and more, lanterns and other colourful and cheerful decorations. Our ears were greeted with authentic music and we were seated by friendly staff. We knew immediately that this was going to be a memorable dining experience.

Chefs Ganesh Bisht and Ravinder Singh were going to be cooking up a feast for us. Both Indian born chefs have a background working in top class hotels, with Ganesh having worked at Sydney’s Shangri-La, and Ravinder having worked with the Oberoi Hotel Group. This could only mean good things, and we had never experienced the authentic Rajasthani experience in Sydney before.

As most of us know, Rajasthan is famous for its rich heritage, vibrant colours, and of course, its exquisite cuisine. It was the latter that we were excited about. We couldn’t wait to taste the cuisine with its hardy ingredients that reflects both the desert and tropical rainforest landscape. But most importantly we couldn’t wait to try their food because its made with friendship, which can be seen in the care of the careful preparation of each and every dish.

After being seated we started with the Aloo Tikka.

The combination of chutney and yoghurt worked perfectly with the dry nuts, peas and potato patty. It was a great starter. Next up, the Jaipuri Seekh Kebab delighted our tastebuds. The minced lamb was infused with chopped chillies, ginger, garlic and coriander, skewered and cooked in the tandoor. The Murg ke Shooley was incredibly tender, and you could tell that it had been marinated, boneless in yoghurt for a long time. Unfortunately we couldn’t get the chefs to reveal their secret blend of spices.

And then it was time for the Rajasthani specials, which are the traditional dishes found only in this restaurant. Although if you’re in the mood for something else they have a wide range of other

Indian dishes, including IndiaChinese, and many vegetarian offerings.

And there’s no need to worry, because they can adjust the spices in terms of heat for each diner.

We were served up Lal Maas (a royal fiery lamb dish), Kesari Safed Morgh, Gatta Curry (vegetarian) and Dal Batti (vegetarian). Each dish had a different texture, and if you’ve never had authentic Rajasthani food before, they are all must tries. The Dal Baati is wholegrain dough balls, served with ghee and light Dal over the top. The Dal and the Kesari Safed Morgh were the first to disappear on our table, quickly followed by everything else.

And to finish with we had the mango and chunky fig ice cream, which was the perfect end to our delicious meal. We knew we were going to be back some time very soon to try the rest of the menu.

Melissa Twist

280 Pennant Hills Road, Thornleigh www.rajasthandelights.com.au Contact