Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Restaurant review: Kailash Parbat, Singapore


So, my overzealous attempts at photo-taking finally took a toll on my poor Canon 40D DSLR camera and it is currently sitting at the service center recuperating. Without any thoughts of food, recipes or cooking to occupy my mind, I thought I'd focus on completing a restaurant review that I'd been wanting to post on my blog for a long time but never got around to doing.

Kailash Parbat is an Indian vegetarian restaurant in Little India in Singapore, known for their chaats (especially Pani Puri & Ragda Patties), assorted varieties of Bhatura and Sindhi delicacies. There are two restaurants - one on Serangoon Road (next to the Indian temple) and the other one at Syed Alwi Road (opposite Mustafa Shopping Center). 

Kailash Parbat was heavily recommended by one of our good friends and since then, me and hubby have been to both outlets. That being said, we have been to the outlet opposite Mustafa more frequently because after a grueling session of shopping, it offers the nearest solution for a hungry belly and aching feet.

The outlet on Serangoon road is larger than the one on Syed Alwi road but the interiors are similar. Right now the construction on Syed Alwi road is quite an eye sore (evidence in pic). Both restaurants are well maintained and tastefully done. I have not seen either restaurant crowded as yet but that's maybe because I always happen to go on weekdays. I avoid going to Little India over the weekend like the plague. I'm sure most crowd-weary Indians living in Singapore would agree  😊


The menu offers choices such as - Chaats, Soups and Starters, Rice and Rotis, Flavors of Punjab, Tandoor, Oriental dishes, Sindhi specialities and Desserts. I may be mistaken but I felt that the outlet on Serangoon road has a broader range of choices on their menu.


I've compiled this review based on two separate visits with my hubby (to the outlet on Syed Alwi road) and the reason I'm saying that upfront is so that I won't get judged for eating so much 😄

Some of the photos were snapped with my camera phone and hence not so good. 

Kailash Parbat @ Syed Alwi road (opp. Mustafa Centre)

Whenever I look at the thirst quenchers at an Indian restaurant, my eyes immediately wander over to lassi. Who can resist a tall glass of refreshing lassi? Lassi when done right is the most soothing drink. I ordered the Salt Lassi and hubs ordered the Mango Lassi. I've tried the Sweet Lassi here too (very sweet) but I still would classify it under good lassi. 


I am a huge fan of Ragda Patties (I make it at home all the time) and the Ragda Patties over at neighboring Bombay Cafe is my favorite. I was curious to see how this one would compare. The first thing that came to my mind when the waiter placed the plate in front of me was how different it looked from the Ragda Patties I was used to. Not to say that I didn't like the look or taste of it (I did) but I prefer a gravy of white peas to channa and the consistency of the gravy at KP was too thick for my liking. I also missed the garnishes that usually are associated with Ragda Patties. All in all, it was good but definitely not the best Ragda Patties I've had. 


This is the Regular Channa Bhatura. The bhatura was delicious. The channa gravy tasted different from the one they served with the Ragda Patties (I was wondering if they were the same). It was good but then again, maybe not the best I've had. 


The Pani Puri is supposedly one of Kailash Parbat's signature dishes so I was eager to try it. I liked the presentation....a string of puris arranged linearly and served alongside a spicy and sweet tamarind chutney. It was really good and something I would definitely order again. 


Ok, so Paneer Tikka being my favorite food in the world, how could I possibly not order it? I ordered the Paneer Pudina Tikka which is paneer marinated in a yoghurt mixture infused with mint paste. I'm very biased when it comes it paneer....I think anything containing paneer tastes good (as long as the paneer is not rubbery) so my opinion really doesn't hold much credibility. While on the subject of paneer, I noticed that the menu has a LOT of paneer-based dishes so if paneer is your thing, you will be spoilt for choices. 


I ordered the Apple Mint juice which I thought was great - just the right amount of sweetness (the fruity kind and not the sugary kind) and the fresh mint gave it that nice fresh touch. A drink I would order again.


Hubby ordered the Bhel Puri, a chaat that he usually orders at any place that features it on the menu. It was light, crunchy and slightly more on the sweeter side. We would have liked it spicier (but then again, we should have conveyed that to the waiter). Next time maybe...


I ordered the Dahi Puri because I love anything and everything that is yoghurt-based. Again, the balance between the sweet and spice was tipped more in favor of the sweet. I thought it was good but I guess this particular chaat is not for everyone. Hubby felt it was swimming in yoghurt whereas he would have preferred just a nice dollop on top. 


We ordered the Crispy Spicy Potato which consisted of julienne cut potatoes mildly coated, deep fried and tossed in hot garlic sauce. Looking back, it was an unusual choice to order but we badly wanted something spicy to combat the sweet overdose from the chaat and drinks. It was fine but not remarkable. There was some heat to it (which I started to feel only towards the end) but it also had the unmistakable element of sweetness *sighs*


The Shahi Dum Ka Paneer was ordered as a take-away (anything to lessen my cooking burden on a weekday).  This is a mellow curry of malai paneer cooked in a rich cashew and cream gravy. I knew this one would be subtle and aromatic and it tasted just like I thought it would. I had this curry with some homemade rotis for lunch at my workplace the following day and made for a pleasant lunch indeed. I took some photos of it but they are rubbish so I'm not posting here 😊

Kailash Parbat: Go-to place for Indian street food in Singapore 
To sum it up, Kailash Parbat is a nice restaurant that offers good Indian vegetarian food. They also have catering services and host banquets for special occasions. I have previously attended a little boy's birthday party hosted at the Serangoon outlet banquet hall and it was very well organized. The only complaint I have in general about the food is that the dishes are a bit too mild for my liking. I am left yearning for a little more spice/kick. The location, restaurant size and menu options of the outlet at Serangoon is better but the quality of food probably is better at the outlet on Syed Alwi road. I would recommend this restaurant for their chaats. The service has always been attentive and efficient during the times we have been there but I cannot comment on it when the restaurant gets crowded. The price is typically mid-range with an average price of 18-25 S$ per person. 


I would recommend this restaurant for vegetarians, families, chaat-lovers and non-Indians looking for an introduction to Indian food. 


My rating for this restaurant is




Kailash Parbat Restaurant
Address: 3 Belilios Road #01-03, Hilton Garden Inn,
Singapore - 219924.
Working hours: 11 AM to 10:30 PM.
Tel: 6836 5545

Address: 93 Syed Alwi Road,
Singapore - 207669.
Working hours: 11.30 AM to 11:30 PM.
Tel: 6291 5545

**New Branches**:

1 Changi Business Park, Crescent, #01-10/12/13 Plaza 8, Singapore.
Working hours: 11.30 AM to 10:00 PM.
Tel: 6636 5545

80, Airport Boulevard, # 03-20, Terminal 1, Singapore - 819642.


Cheers,
Megha



Note: This is not a sponsored review. The comments and opinions in this post are solely my own.


1 comment:

  1. 28 December 2016 around 3:30pm - Just visited the syed alwi road restaurant. Ordered dish called Ragda Patties which is basically fried potato cutlets with chick peas on the side. The potato cutlet is enjoyed best when it is freshly fried to a nice crisp bite (like with any other cutlet). I got the dish in less than 2 minutes of my order, and as I suspected the cutlets were pre-fried and totally cold and soggy. I would not recommend this restaurant at all, as the basics like a cutlet is also not fried fresh to order.

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