Food

Darbaar by Abdul: Review

Image of Abdul for press

The Head chef behind the renowned Cinnamon Club, Abdul Yaseen, has launched his latest venture: Darbaar, an expansive 220 cover restaurant in Shoreditch. Featuring an open kitchen with counter seating, a wood fired oven (for the artisan bread, Nanza), a charcoal Robata grill, 20 cover private dining area and a 12 cover Chef’s Table.

Darbaar is the brainchild of Abdul Yaseen, head chef of the renowned Cinnamon Club. Arriving in Britain 15 years ago from Jaipur, Abdul is well known for being a dynamic, creative and innovative Indian chef; his style a combination of the highlights of the East and best of the West. As his patrons of the Cinnamon club will be aware, he pushes boundaries, experimenting with different flavours and reinterpreting staple traditional dishes.

Darbaar by Abdul

For those who have experienced India hospitality, Darbaar has all of that and then some. We walked into the restaurant and the staffs were polite and friendly, even with what I think was a computer malfunction that meant they lost their bookings; the staff remained polite and smiling. It is a testimony to a well run restaurant when you can walk in and the “poo has hit the fan” but they still remain calm and welcoming.

The mouth-watering menu features an array of healthy grills, street tapas dishes, spit roasts, and sharing dishes. We decided to try the Dawaat menu for £35 per person, can I tell you from the onset it will be the best £35 you spend and you will leave full up! The Dawaat menu is a selection of the Chefs favourite dishes and is perfect for sharing, you will love the flavours that fill each selected dish.

The Dawaat menu consists of the following dishes:

Abdul Website Pictures 24478

Light (mini starters)

Hariyali Date and Samosa Chaat (Tangy potato stuffed samosas dressed with green spices)

Tandoori salmon tikka with kokum berries (Organic salmon with tandoori spices and finished with hokum berries

Sufiyani lamb seekh Kebab (Spice minced Kentish lamb with pomegranates and herbs)

Let me pause here for a minute, all the dishes were amazing! My favourite were the samosas, the sauce that it they were covered in was perfect and refreshing with what tasted like yoghurt. The spices in the samosa were the right balance so whether you like spicy food or not you can eat each dish happily, the spices in the samosa did not over power you which made it easy to taste the flavours in the other light dishes.

Next dishes (told you there is ALOT of really good food)

More (what we call mains)

Kadhai spiced paneer

Kerala spiced shrimp (stir fried shrimp with coconut and curry leaves)

Kasturi butter chicken (Free-range tandoori chicken things simmered in silky tomato and fenugreek sauce)

Kaali daal, naan bread and pilau rice was served for the table

Another food pause. Can I say OMG!!! Everything was out of this world, by far I loved the butter chicken the most. Quite interesting enough I am a total prawn girl normally and the prawns were amazing, but the chicken, oh my goodness that chicken. The chicken was so good I wanted to build it a little house and ask it to live with me – Simply put just try the chicken.

Darbaar by Abdul

For desserts we were given as part of the menu carrot cake with a royal Indian Chai tea. The carrot cake was warm and served with cardamom shirkhand and lemon figs, it was the perfect ending to what was an amazing meal. I love Indian food and this was by far one of the best restaurants I have been too. Make sure you just try and taste for yourself, your pallet will be the best witness for what is really good food.

Darbaar

1 Snowden Street, London, EC2A 2DQ

W: www.darbaarrestaurants.com

E: [email protected] /[email protected]

Tel: 02074224100

T: DarbaarbyAbdul