Restaurant Review - Scrumptious Sizzlers At Salsa
After a delightful gastronomic experience at their Kabab & Biryani festival a few months ago, I was recently invited to Salsa - the multicuisine restaurant at the Corinthians Resort and Boutique, to try out their impressive range of sizzlers, which are perfect for the pleasant weather in Pune, now that we've finally bid adieu to one helluva long and scorching summer.
Now I don't know how popular sizzlers are around the world, but in India, they are a very popular choice of restaurant goers. A sizzler is basically an assortment of veggies or meats served on a sizzling hot iron plate placed over a wooden platter, served with veggies and french fries or rice/noodles. They are usually made in Continental, Chinese and Indian styles to suit the palates of people here. The sizzler menu at Salsa has a variety of options for both vegetarians and non vegetarians.
As I've mentioned before, I'm a total carnivore so my friend and I chose to have two different non vegetarian sizzlers. The food took a bit long to arrive, but the wait was worth it. For an appetizer we ordered the Sizzling assorted non-veg kebabs, which was way more generous than its menu description and consisted of Chicken Tikka, Lamb Sheekh Kebab, Chicken Sheekh Kebab, Fish Amritsari, Chicken Malai Kebab and Chicken Haryali Kebab and they were little bits of heaven, I swear :) I don't really prefer Indian food but when I appreciate it, that means it was REALLY good!
Okay so to explain what is what, the Chicken Tikka is on the extreme left of the photo above and consists of spicy chunks of marinated chicken which are baked in a clay oven, it's also a popular dish in the UK. Hariyali means green, those are the green kebabs marinaded in a mix of coriander, mint and spinach. Above and below the Hairyali kebabs are the Chicken and Lamb Sheekh kebabs which are made of minced meat and spices and grilled on skew. On their right are the Chicken Malai Kebabs - tender chunks of chicken marinaded in yogurt and mild spices. Even though I love spicy food, these were my favorites as they literally melted in my mouth and were bland and yet full of flavor. Last, but on the least on the extreme right is the Amritsari Fish, which consists of deep fried fish fingers coated in spices.
These delicious kebabs were served on a sizzling platter, as you can see from the smoke in the picture above, along with an assortment of Makhni (the same gravy used for the sweet and spicy popular North Indian dish called Butter Chicken) and Pepper sauce. The bright orange gravy in the bowl is the Makhni. And the green sauce in the bowl is known as Chutney, which is a mix of minced coriander, mint leaves and green chillies and goes perfectly with North Indian Kebabs.
I wasn't kidding when I said the food was delicious. This is what was left of our platter in about five minutes -
For main course we decided to have the Captain's Mixed Grill Sizzler, a medley of fish, chicken steak and tournedos in pepper sauce, topped with a fried egg and served with french fries and vegetables. The steak was nice and tender and so was the fish. This dish could have been better if they were a bit more generous with the pepper sauce. However, the fries were perfectly crunchy and salty and the sauteed veggies were delicious too.
Overall, I had a great experience at Salsa once again, and really enjoyed their sizzlers. Their staff is polite and courteous and the ambiance is nice and relaxed. I look forward to going back there soon. Oh, and did I mention the best part? Its just a five minute drive from my house :)
Have you ever had a sizzler? If not, what's your favorite food?