Hitchki - Indian cuisine with a firangi twist
The name Hitchki means a hiccup in Hindi; and in the Indian tradition is also associated when someone remembers you. So this resturant basically aims to serve food that you'd remember for a long time even after going back.
The concept itself is something interesting. It is a restaurant within a restaurant - located inside Bazxar - but a separate entity in itself. They're a chain from Mumbai and are opening soon (as of writing this blogpost) in the Dubai market. They serve Indian fusion cuisine, but keeping in mind that the main essence of the dish isn't lost and retains a desi flavor to it. We were invited here for the pre-launch and were glad to try out this concept.
We started off with the cocktails, one of which was called "Geeta Babita" and the other one being Drunken Nimboo Soda. I loved the drunked nimboo soda. It is zesty, and you'll feel like you're having the refreshing Indian lemon soda, but with a twist of rum and a hint of orange bitters to it.
The "Geeta Babita" has a taste of Indian spices to it. It has got cumin along with some gin, and the base being kokum. My friend really liked it, but for me personally, it wasn't something I'd like to indulge in.
For the soup, there was Rasam Minestrone. At first thought, it sounds like a weird combination, but when you have a spoonful, you wouldn't stop. The flavors of the minestrone as well as the famous south-Indian curry (Rasam) were eminent. It is served with a piece of fried rice-crisps that complements it well.
Moving on to the starters now; one of which is a dish which I liked the most among all that I ate. The chocolate chilli chicken. When I first read that I was skeptical about it, but when I took a bite, all my preconceived notions vanished. The chicken isn't dipped in chocolate; instead, it is made the way one would make the honey-glazed chicken. It tasted just like chilli chicken, but with slight chocolate overtones. I definitely recommend this one. [Unfortunately I couldn't get a good picture. The one below does not do justice to the dish at all.]
Then we tried the charlie chapli kebab. These are pashtun style kebabs made of lamb and are extremely soft. It's like they almost melt in your mouth. They're delicious. After having a few though, they leave a sort of a sour after-taste.
The next one was the Bhatti ka Paneer. It is paneer cooked in a tandoor (pit). It does not taste dry like it does at many places. It is moist enough and soft too.
We were interacting with their chef - Dominic - and getting to know more about the dishes and the ideology behind them, when he suggested to try out one of his specialties - the pahadi chicken. The chicken was succulent and coated with a cilantro-based paste. This one was really irresistible.
Now comes the main course.
Aubergine Burrata - it is a baingan bharta (mashed eggplant) topped with a burrata. The baingan bharta tasted just like it was home-cooked. The burrata too was made really well. Both of them together didn't seem to complement each other too well though.
Then we had the Mangalorean Chicken Curry. For those of you who may not be aware, I can describe it as a butter chicken cooked with south-Indian spices. It had an authentic taste to it, and was served along with a Kerala parotta. We thoroughly enjoyed this dish.
Another interesting fusion dish among the mains was the paneer lasagne. It consists of mixed vegetables cooked Indian style on a bed of paneer. This too was something which I really liked. It tasted just like a lasagne should, but with an Indian twist to it.
How can rice be left out while speaking of Indian cuisine. We had the Very Berry Biryani. This has mutton cooked yakhni-style. The mutton is juicy and does not have too many spices in it. It is mixed with rice and also has berries in it along with a mild fragrance of rose. I found this dish to be a tad bit bland.
Let's get to the part that got us bowled over - Desserts.
We all love truffle, and this one was a Gulab Jamun truffle. Gulab jamuns are a hot favorite among Indian desserts and these were coated with chocolate. I could feel the cocoa powder lingering in my mouth and the melted chocolate only made it better.
We were eagerly waiting for another dessert - the Kunafa Shrikhand. It is the sweet and sour preparation made from strained yoghurt (i.e. Shrikhand), served in a kunafa basket. The shrikhand wasn't bad but the kunafa basket was hard and didn't quite go well together. It was a bit of a let down considering the high expectations we had from it.
The last dessert was not just a treat for our taste buds but for our eyes too. It is called "baratiyon ka swagat", i.e. welcoming the guests in a marriage procession. At the bottom was a chocolate cake so rich, that I just couldn't get enough. This was topped with a paan-pasand flavored jelly and the real icing on the cake was the candy floss which cannot be described in words.
For a place whose primary focus is food; not just any food, but visually appealing Indian fusion food, I found it to be a bit loud and noisy. Also, the regular chairs that they have aren't very comfortable to sit for a longer duration and the rest are bar chairs. However, there were some good bits too, like this waitress Lucy, who was courteous, attentive, and friendly, and made for a memorable service experience.
I would say, overall this place is worth giving a shot. Hitch-hike your way to this place right away.
The concept itself is something interesting. It is a restaurant within a restaurant - located inside Bazxar - but a separate entity in itself. They're a chain from Mumbai and are opening soon (as of writing this blogpost) in the Dubai market. They serve Indian fusion cuisine, but keeping in mind that the main essence of the dish isn't lost and retains a desi flavor to it. We were invited here for the pre-launch and were glad to try out this concept.
We started off with the cocktails, one of which was called "Geeta Babita" and the other one being Drunken Nimboo Soda. I loved the drunked nimboo soda. It is zesty, and you'll feel like you're having the refreshing Indian lemon soda, but with a twist of rum and a hint of orange bitters to it.
The "Geeta Babita" has a taste of Indian spices to it. It has got cumin along with some gin, and the base being kokum. My friend really liked it, but for me personally, it wasn't something I'd like to indulge in.
For the soup, there was Rasam Minestrone. At first thought, it sounds like a weird combination, but when you have a spoonful, you wouldn't stop. The flavors of the minestrone as well as the famous south-Indian curry (Rasam) were eminent. It is served with a piece of fried rice-crisps that complements it well.
Moving on to the starters now; one of which is a dish which I liked the most among all that I ate. The chocolate chilli chicken. When I first read that I was skeptical about it, but when I took a bite, all my preconceived notions vanished. The chicken isn't dipped in chocolate; instead, it is made the way one would make the honey-glazed chicken. It tasted just like chilli chicken, but with slight chocolate overtones. I definitely recommend this one. [Unfortunately I couldn't get a good picture. The one below does not do justice to the dish at all.]
Then we tried the charlie chapli kebab. These are pashtun style kebabs made of lamb and are extremely soft. It's like they almost melt in your mouth. They're delicious. After having a few though, they leave a sort of a sour after-taste.
The next one was the Bhatti ka Paneer. It is paneer cooked in a tandoor (pit). It does not taste dry like it does at many places. It is moist enough and soft too.
We were interacting with their chef - Dominic - and getting to know more about the dishes and the ideology behind them, when he suggested to try out one of his specialties - the pahadi chicken. The chicken was succulent and coated with a cilantro-based paste. This one was really irresistible.
Now comes the main course.
Aubergine Burrata - it is a baingan bharta (mashed eggplant) topped with a burrata. The baingan bharta tasted just like it was home-cooked. The burrata too was made really well. Both of them together didn't seem to complement each other too well though.
Then we had the Mangalorean Chicken Curry. For those of you who may not be aware, I can describe it as a butter chicken cooked with south-Indian spices. It had an authentic taste to it, and was served along with a Kerala parotta. We thoroughly enjoyed this dish.
Another interesting fusion dish among the mains was the paneer lasagne. It consists of mixed vegetables cooked Indian style on a bed of paneer. This too was something which I really liked. It tasted just like a lasagne should, but with an Indian twist to it.
How can rice be left out while speaking of Indian cuisine. We had the Very Berry Biryani. This has mutton cooked yakhni-style. The mutton is juicy and does not have too many spices in it. It is mixed with rice and also has berries in it along with a mild fragrance of rose. I found this dish to be a tad bit bland.
Let's get to the part that got us bowled over - Desserts.
We all love truffle, and this one was a Gulab Jamun truffle. Gulab jamuns are a hot favorite among Indian desserts and these were coated with chocolate. I could feel the cocoa powder lingering in my mouth and the melted chocolate only made it better.
We were eagerly waiting for another dessert - the Kunafa Shrikhand. It is the sweet and sour preparation made from strained yoghurt (i.e. Shrikhand), served in a kunafa basket. The shrikhand wasn't bad but the kunafa basket was hard and didn't quite go well together. It was a bit of a let down considering the high expectations we had from it.
The last dessert was not just a treat for our taste buds but for our eyes too. It is called "baratiyon ka swagat", i.e. welcoming the guests in a marriage procession. At the bottom was a chocolate cake so rich, that I just couldn't get enough. This was topped with a paan-pasand flavored jelly and the real icing on the cake was the candy floss which cannot be described in words.
For a place whose primary focus is food; not just any food, but visually appealing Indian fusion food, I found it to be a bit loud and noisy. Also, the regular chairs that they have aren't very comfortable to sit for a longer duration and the rest are bar chairs. However, there were some good bits too, like this waitress Lucy, who was courteous, attentive, and friendly, and made for a memorable service experience.
I would say, overall this place is worth giving a shot. Hitch-hike your way to this place right away.
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