Can a North Indian restaurant survive without a butter chicken or dal makhani in its menu? Why does North Indian food in general refer to only Punjabi food? Why is no one focusing on some of the locally available fresh ingredients or our old cooking techniques and blindly copying the West?
Perhaps, with these thoughts Taj Hotel came up with its new dining North Indian concept called Loya replacing Masala Art at Taj Palace, New Delhi. From the foothills of the Himalayas and snow laden Kashmir and Himachal to the flat terrain of Punjab, Loya brings it all together. We were served by a very confident yet humble, Srishti, who informed us that the name ‘Loya’ comes from a Pashtun term, ‘loya jirga’, a grand council of tribal leaders, who convene over a feast. And indeed we were in for a feast. But, let’s talk about the interiors first.
The beautiful and chic interiors have everything going in their favour. Planned beautifully to compliment the food theme.
Kitchen has huge glass partition to show what’s going behind and the large open bar has a counter with flowing water.
Servers dress in different attire like Pathani from Kashmir, salwaar kameej from Punjab and so on. There are huge brass chandelier, handmade cutlery and much more. The place has a rustic feel but still manages to spell luxury justifying its existence in a 5 star hotel.
Our food journey began with Loya Kachori Chaat (Rs775) where a small crunchy kachori filled with spices moong dal was topped with vatala (safed matra), chopped onion and sauth etc for a chatpata start. Timbri Jhinga (Rs1475) was marinated with shrub seed and served with pahadi bhaang jeera chutney. These prawns were tender and cooked well while the small serving of pea shoot salad on the side lifted their flavour many notches up. We were in good hands.
Our starter journey ended with masala pork ribs (Rs1675) where I was told that Loya doesn’t use any tenderiser. The well coated spicy masaledaar pro ribs with that slight sweet flavour that is essential in a pork along with smokiness was so soothing. But for me that bit (without going overboard) of tenderiser would have made the meat softer while retaining the bite.
Since it was afternoon and we had the entire working day ahead of us, we chose just one cocktail to be shared amongst both of us. We chose Mulethi (Rs925) that came from their authentic section. These cocktails and menu are very well curated. Going with the philosophy of ‘Paanch’ and bifurcating the cocktails further on 5 moods whose acronym spells as HEART – Harmony, Experience, Authentic, Revered and The Spirit, I came back very impressed with the balance and innovation. Mulethi is licorice and is known for its healing properties during sore throat. In this cocktail gin is infused with mulethi, mixed with house made citrus blend and topped with a beautiful black honeycomb tuille that sits confidently on a large ice cube. The botanical profile of gin is further accentuated with mulethi and leaves a lasting impression. I will definitely try more of their cocktails when I visit them for dinner. Btw, dinner service has a bigger menu and includes some of Loya signature dishes as well which I missed during lunch hours.
For the main course – kathal baingan bharta (Rs1175) was something new for me. This was the first time I had both baingan and kathal together. Kangra Khodiya Gosht (Rs1675) gets its beautiful dark colour from ink made with charred walnut shell. Loya Murg pyaza (Rs1575) uses 3 types of onion to justify its name – Madrasi pearl onion, local pink onion, and spring onion. Dal Jhakiya (Rs875) was very comforting. Here moong and arhar dal are mixed together and cooked with tempering of pahadi Jhakiya seeds. Dishes went well with Gola Parantha (Rs285) that is made just like a bun parantha available in south of India. The only difference is that the latter is made with refined flour and this one was made with whole wheat flour.
A meal can’t end without a dessert and nor did ours. Doodh Jalebi (Rs525) had 3 small crispy jalebi served on top of 3 different flavoured milk – Chhuara (dry dates), saffron and pista. Gud ke Maan (Rs525) is Chef’s grand mom’s recipe that has badam kheer served with gud-atta roti drizzled with honey.
One also has an option of ordering a tasting menu at Rs3800 or Rs5000 instead of going ala carte. This will be especially beneficial for small tables who want to try more dishes without wasting food.
Ambience is great, cocktails are innovative, service is attentive and the food is delicious. Loya will certainly be a place to watch out with many more outlets coming up at Various Taj properties in India.
Address: Loya, Taj Palace, Diplomatic Enclave, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi | Phone: 011 26110202
