Ok, this one is a first, a food/restaurant review on iRohit.com. And the restaurant doesn’t get bigger than the Mystic Masala located at the Taj Blue Diamond, Pune. So we; A, V and myself were all very excited as it’s not everyday that the “common man” goes to The Taj for dinner.

We reached there at 9 pm. The Maître d’ announced that we might have to wait for a while as place was full. While we waited, we had a look at the decor and it was a very mystical mix of the traditional and the contemporary. It had bags of spices placed at the entrance, to create an illusion of traditional Indian kitchen to the firangs, I am sure. Ok, after waiting patiently for 20 odd minutes we were informed that out table was ready and we were lead to our table by a very pretty Maître d’. The term, waiter, some how doesn’t sound right. Grouping these people with their untrained counterparts that serve people like you and me at the next door Udipi joint every other ‘ordinary’ day is unfair considering that these people must have been trained in the art of waiting on customers by some very good trainers at some premier hotel management institute. Our very pretty Maître d’, offered to serve us Evian. Ofcourse, we very gracefully declined being ripped off and asked for plain water instead. The waiter then brought us their wine selection. Since we were not particularly comfortable with the right-most column we asked for the usual beverages menu instead. After skimming though our available choices, we decide on a round of cocktails. Caiprojka for V, Cognac Alexander for A and Long Island Ice tea for moi, the very reluctant host for the evening. For starters, the sheer curiosity made us order Galauti Kebabs. For entrée we were recommended Murg Lazzatdhar with A’s ordering Roomali rotis. And I suggested we try the Kacchi gosht ki biryani. And then the wait began. We waited and waited and waited a bit more. After about 15 mins the waiter informs us that there is no fresh mint for the cocktail… Ya right! I had to pinch myself to see if I was actually dining at India’s most celebrated of hotel chains. I am pretty sure by now it must have dawned upon you that mine was not a pleasant experience at this most glorified of restaurant in Pune. And I shall give you my reason.

So we munched on the papads and the fried wafers to kill the time. After what seemed like an eternity waiting for the drinks, they finally were served. After the cheers, I gulp a sip…. so to utter disbelief, I could not feel a tinge of the four promised spirits that the Long Island Ice Tea is crafted from. And that was it! I mean, I may not really understand the finer points of critiquing on food but liquor, that’s my area of expertise. How dare this bartender take me for a ride but filling a glass with coke and ice? Just to be sure I asked A to taste it and he too confirmed. So since the waiter was close by I complained and he was quick to take back the drink and get it back with more alcohol in it. But by then the whole evening was spoilt. You may think I am being harsh, but let me say this. It not everyday I go to The Taj for dinner. And When I do go, I expect the most supreme of experience that any restaurant can offer. In any other restaurant I would have been kind enough to overlook this blunder but not at The Taj. The Taj boasts of nothing but the best, everytime! Add just for record, my cocktail still was awful.

The Galauti kebabs were different. The kebabs were served on what I assume were wheat based biscuits. The kebabs seem to be made from minced gosht and fried like pancakes, and served with some green salad. It was pretty good. The chicken gravy for the main course was ordinary, and it being suggested by the waiter really was disappointing. The Kacchi gosht ki biryani though was good. It had a mild mix of spices, with really well marinated, tender mutton chunks. V, who had a second round of cocktail requested that they put generous amounts of vodka this time around. Now to touch upon the cutlery, well it was again ordinary; the ambience didn’t really stand out. They had live band singing old Hindi song. The singer had a really soothing voice but I think the place being so small, the music actually proved more of an inconvenience while chatting amongst ourselves. The waiters though well trained didn’t really seemed polished. A summed the whole evening very well and to quote, “we were not made to feel special”.