GK II’s new kebab, cricket and tikka place

GK II’s new kebab, cricket and tikka place 

Restro review: Zebaa (restaurant-cum-lounge)

The newest place in GK-II M block market to watch a cricket match in massive LED screens with a gang of friends while smoking 'herbal' hookah and tucking into juicy satays is Zebaa. 

At the far end of the market lane, spread out over three storeys, the restaurant-cum-lounge, offers guests a choice between fine dine restaurant (on the ground floor) and lounge (on the first and second floors). The arrangement on the second floor works better for a private gathering, allowing you to even get rid of the makeshift roof subject to the weather.

Decor
The fine dine area is more aesthetic complete with brick walls and cosy couches drawn close together, and a glass wall to keep out the din of the lounge upstairs. As you emerge on the first floor it's a whole new world. The television screens blare out cricket commentary, with more intimate groups gathered around them taking long drags of hookah and digging into tandoori dishes as they root for their favourite teams. Do not be perturbed already if you were expecting some soothing lounge music to ease you after a hard day's work, for ambience is not one of their strong suits. You would, nonetheless, find yourself comfortable on their gigantic low couches arranged neatly around low coffee tables. At the heart of the room is the decently stocked bar, again without any frills.

Starters & main course
Lounge: The lounge menu is an interesting smattering of Asian Tapas such as coriander ginger shrimp with tropical salsa, steamed sole roulade with mango and herbs, to runaway Indian favourites with a twist of flavours like red wine ki boti, broccoli ki shaami, to the local vegetarian and non-vegetarian favourites like fish tikka, galouti kebab, and murg malai tikka among others. You are also offered a selection of European starters such as prawn peri peri, skewered fish lemon paprika among a choice of Oriental salt and pepper prawns and crispy fish dishes. Despite the eclectic assortment, guests here still prefer a regular tikka or a kebab to go with their drinks, which is unfortunate. Perhaps a few changes to the lounge decor and the ambience in general can go a long way in refining the gentry. It's not quite about the helpings not being large enough, or the meat bites not being sufficiently juicy, but something to do with the overall atmosphere, or perhaps the sluggishness of the staff that lends the place an air of monotony. The presentation needs to be more upfront with a definite focus on food rather than an occasional cricket match on LED screens.

You can safely try out the Oriental-style dry shredded chicken smeared with black pepper and served on a bed of crispy fried spinach. The spinach lifts the flavour of the hot and tangy chicken pieces, and goes extremely well with a glass of mojito with cranberry juice. Sheesh Touk is another interesting Continental offering for chicken loving folks comprising skewered chicken chunks served with a dash of greens and a creamy hung curd dip. But if seafood is your weakness and you find yourself instinctively opting for the deep sea delights, this may not be your haven, for the options in this category are only a handful with an apparent bias for prawns. Though, the restaurant deserves full credit for doing justice to prawns by either cooking them in a delectable peri peri sauce or by simply serving a salt and pepper portion spruced up with sauteed greens like broccoli, snow peas, green beans, and mashed potato with a helping of butter garlic sauce. The Mezze platter too is humble complete with hummus, pita bread, falafel and a crunchy vegetable salad. Though, it is of some note that there aren't many cold options in the platter.

Restaurant: The restaurant menu is only an extension of that of the lounge with an additional category called 'Dilli se Lahore tak' which has specialties from the North-West frontier province such as the gosht Awadhi korma, Bhatti ka murgh, mutton rara, and lamb/chicken kadhai from Pakistan among other Mughlai favourites. Noodle fans too can have their fill of hakka, pan-fried noodles apart from spiced rice with soy garlic.

Desserts: Blindly order the date and fig pie served with a big scoop of vanilla ice-cream. The portion is pretty humble, and the temperature and sweetness of the pie are just right allowing it to crumble with every bite. And if all's not well without an ice-cream, ask for the hazelnut and nougatine ice-cream which is sweet, crunchy and ever so creamy.

Service: The staff is friendly, though may not be overtly forthcoming. They genuinely help you pick your dishes, and even make intelligent recommendations. Service can definitely be more prompt.

Overall, a decent eat-out option in South Delhi provided you are a larger group.

Rating: 7/10

Venue: Zebaa, M 31, GK-II, M Block Market, New Delhi
Meal for two: INR 2000 (without alcohol) taxes extra
Timings: 11 am to 1 a
m