The newest addition to the fold of Smoke House Deli restaurants comes to Saket in New Delhi. The interiors of this Smoke House Deli are furnished like a dainty tea salon, with a décor based on colonial history; a mix of woven cane, wrought iron and floral upholstery. Smoke House Deli also offers outdoor seating. The food is essentially the old menu with some new additions. While the restaurant looks remarkably good, the spell is broken by the underwhelming food and service.
It is an informal launch, with food writers from various media organisations and websites are present. I seat myself with some old friends I meet here, as we wait for things to start. The snacks and cocktails from the menu are circulated first. The best dish is tangy and spicy prawns on a stick. Despite the overall quality of prawns in land locked Delhi, the dish is an addictive one – you just can’t stop at one. Meatballs are too dry to be fun however. The other two dishes being circulated are ordinary too.
For the main course, one has to choose from the menu. Since there are three of us, we order some representative dishes from the various sections. Smoked beetroot & tangerine salad with arugula has a fresh, citrusy bite with the pepperiness of the arugula leaves adding to the enjoyment. The rest of the dishes are not too good. Spinach and artichoke risotto has a vibrant green colour, and a taste that would go well in a khichdi though not sure if the liquidy, extra creamy gruel can be called a risotto. Beer and cheese burger faces the same problem as meatballs – too dry to enjoy the burger. A less lean mince would have been tastier. Grilled steak with creamed mushroom and pepper sauce suffers from a rather tough meat that is difficult to cut and even more so to chew.
I sincerely hope these are starting hiccups and the restaurant will get its food act together soon. It will be great if the food can keep pace with the décor.
Disclaimer This review was done on an invitation from the restaurant. Due judgment and care has been applied by the author to remain objective and unbiased in the review, but readers need to consider this review keeping this fact in mind.
Ratings (Out of 5)
Food: 3.0 | Ambience: 4.0 | Service: 3.0 | Overall: 3.5
Meal for two: Rs.2000 including alcohol | Alcohol: Yes | Credit Card: Yes | Wheel chair friendly: Yes
Address: Shop 252/253, DLF Place Mall, Saket, New Delhi | Tel: 011 40612823, +91 7838520899
