Launch of Sunday Brunch at Durbari @ Swissotel

To begin with Durbari at the Swissotel, Kolkata is my actually my son's most favourite restaurant. So whenever we find ourselves craving for that creamy Dal makhni and soft fluffy Naan we head there. The fact that it is close to where I live only adds to the cause! In the last 2 years we have lost count on the no of times we've been there. So when KFB got an invite from Swissotel asking us to be a part of the launch of their Sunday Brunch there was no saying no. On a Sunday afternoon, myself along with  fellow bloggers Kamalika, Amrita,Anwesha, Sayantani,Pritha and Sammya Brata, we found ourselves comfortably seated in the private dining area of the restaurant ready to sample to delicacies on offer.

We started with the usual fresh lime soda and soon the array of dishes started arriving at our table. The very first dish served to us was the Dahi ke Kebabs. Crunchy on the outside with cold youghurt mix oozing out from inside did wonders to the taste buds.I have tried this out a couple of times on my earlier visits and enjoyed it thoroughly.

Dahi ke kebabs
 

From now onwards there was a steady trickle of dishes - appetizers and starters and each dish stole the show. Chef Pranay and Chef Aditya was constantly by our side explaining the essence of the dishes. The Gondhoraj Mahi Tikka was the show stealer for sure. I am not much of a fish eater but totally loved this dish. Soft pieces of bhetki delicately flavoured with quintessential Bengal's gondhoraj lime and its Asian counterpart Kaffir lime leaves was a perfect match. Or take the Naaza ( Naan - Pizza) so innovative,so tasty! Butter chicken spread over naan base topped with some generous dollops of cheese - my god it was fantastic. Next time I am going to go back for just this!

 

Gondhoraj Mahi tikka

Naaza

Another of Chef's creation for the afternoon was the Murgh Balai Kebab( Chicken breasts stuffed with cheese,onions and pomegranate) grilled to perfection. Personally I would have liked a little less onions as the stuffing but it was good nonetheless. A special mention of Aashish - the restaurant manager here who shared his vision of the food they present at Durbari. You will find a little of everything here - Mughlai , Bengali as well as South Indian. They ensure that they are open to feedback and customise the dishes to suit the palate of business travellers mostly visiting the city from other countries. To make sure that they get a taste of India they are open to modification which is a wonderful gesture.

Murgh Balai kebab

No my friends this was not the end! The entire buffet spread replete with more starters, salads and main course awaited us. The spread was awesome and they would have a new menu every sunday. How could I go to Durbari and not eat their Dal Durbari and Cheese Naan(stuffed with swiss cheese). I was full up till my neck but the greed got better of me! In the meanwhile I will leave you with some images.

Dalcha Kebab
 

Cheese Naan

All these yummy dips are in house made

Well what more can I say. The dessert counter was calling out to me and my love for Indian desserts got the better of me. So I promptly filled up my plate with Mango Ras malai , Rabdi and my most favourite Mihidaana. For the uninitiated what mihidaana is, please refer to the picture below! There was a balanced mix of traditional and modern desserts as you can see.

So there! Once again the food ( not to forget the hospitality) at Durbari stole my heart away and I ended the meal promising myself to be back very soon with the son and husband in tow.

Functional from Tuesday to Sunday between 1900 hrs to 2300 hrs,the restaurant is open for lunch from 12:30 hrs to 15:00 hrs on weekends as well. Mondays are closed.
 
The Sunday Brunch is available every Sunday and the packages start at INR 1000 plus taxes.

For people living in New Town/ Rajarhat and Salt Lake it is imperative that you visit them atleast once for their Dal Durbari - they make it the best in town. And for those of you who live in the other side of the city - one trip can surely be made soon!

Disclaimer - This was an invited review and no compensation monetary or otherwise was involved.

Love on a plate - Bacon Wrapped Feta Stuffed Chicken

Since they say "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach" I decided to play it up totally this Valentine's Day. While we are not the really the mushy type of couple , we do bond big time over good food. KFB gave an impetus when they announced their latest online event Love on a Plate - Dinner for Two and I started planning something nice for V day dinner. But it had to be something easy and something that the husband enjoyed eating. I struck upon a brilliant idea! Why not make Bacon Wrapped Feta Stuffed Chicken and serve it up with roasted veggies and his most favourite mashed potatoes. Thus I got to work!

Talking about 'Not' being the mushy type of couple I was totally stumped when the man got back from work with a bunch of 11 roses (since it's our 11th year together..sigh...) and a slice of Mango Mousse from my favourite patisserie. This was unexpected and surprising and shocking and too cute and  heart touching - all at the same time.
I too decided to go that extra mile and set up a pretty table for dinner with roses and wine and candles.

Now coming back to the recipe. My effort has always been to share with you recipes that are easy to make and scores full on to the taste. And this one had bacon too...enough to make any dish taste good.

Ingredients:

Boneless Chicken Breast - 2 pieces

Streaky Bacon - 6 strips

Feta cheese - a handful crumbled

Olive oil - 1 tbsp.

Salt - to taste

Pepper - to taste

For the roasted veggies:

Mixed vegetables - 1 cup - I used mushrooms ,carrots and cherry tomatoes.

Balsamic vinegar - 1 tsp

Chili flakes - 1 tsp

Oregano - 1 tsp - or any other herb of your choice.

Salt & Pepper - to taste

For the mash:

Potatoes - 2 large - boiled and mashed well

Milk - half cup

Butter - 1 tsp

Garlic - 2 pods - crushed.

Salt - to taste

Pepper - to taste

Method:

Take the chicken breast pieces and make a pocket by cutting through the centre of the fillet. Fill it up with crumbled feta cheese and season with olive oil , salt and pepper and keep aside for an hour.

In a baking tin , take the mixed vegetables ( whatever you are using) and marinate with balsamic vinegar , oregano,chili flakes and salt and pepper. Keep a check on the quantity of salt used.

Take out the marinated chicken breast fillets and roll it up with bacon strips.

Place the fillets on top of the vegetable bed and  cover the tin with aluminium foil.Bake in a pre heated oven at 200 deg C for 20 mins.

In the meantime , heat butter in a non stick pan. Tip in the crushed garlic and the mashed potatoes. Saute for 5 secs and add the milk, whisking it well so that there are no lumps. Season with salt and pepper and keep side.

Serve the bacon wrapped chicken with the roasted vegetables and mashed potatoes on the side.

I am sending this post to the ongoing Kolkata Food Bloggers event - Love on Plate - Dinner for Two