Colonel Saab introduces brilliant new menu
Earlier this month, the excellent Restaurant Magazine www.restaurantonline.co.uk published an article called Spice Market: the UK’s Subcontinental Restaurant Sector.
The article listed several of the largest or most influential Indian restaurant groups to have emerged in recent decades.
It includes Dishoom, Mowgli, Akbar’s, and MW Eats which incorporates Masala Zone restaurants, Chutney Mary, Amaya and Veeraswami.
The list also includes Atul Kochhar Restaurants (Benares, Kanishka), The Cinnamon Collection and JKS Restaurants (Trishna, BiBi, Gymkhana).
There is little doubt that all of the above mentioned groups run exceptional restaurants that have helped to change the perception of Indian, Pakistani, Bangladesh and Sri Lankan cuisine in Great Britain.
And whist the list is by no means definitive, it is surprising that Colonel Saab is not amongst it.
To me Colonel Saab should not only be included on such a list, it should rate alongside the best.
There are two Colonel Saab restaurants in London, one in the former Holborn Town Hall and the other off Trafalgar Square in Charles IV Street.
Both are designed with Indian bling to the fore.
The interiors glisten with bejewelled glass and crystal chandeliers, the walls are adorned with authentic Indian treasures and both sites feature several monochrome photographs depicting members of the owner’s family.
Roop Partap Choudhary created the restaurants in honour of his father, who served in the Indian army, and became known as Colonel Saab.
During his army career, he travelled the Indian continent and when, decades later, Roop Partap Choudary retraced his father’s footsteps he collected dozens of lesser known recipes from around the country.
Colonel Saab restaurants have engineered these recipes into a menu of delicious dishes, many of which are introduced to the UK market for the first time.
Chapter of Flavours
The latest additions to the Colonel Saab menu are currently appearing as a new Chapter of Flavours. These include:
Banarasi Amrood Ki Chaat, crispy guava cones filled with spiced cream, layered with tangy tamarind and raspberry sauces, finished with crunchy noodles.
Pineapple Jalebi, with rabbi Chantilly cream, pistachio kulfi, crisp tule and pistachio infused oil.
Hummus, Beetroot & Orange Salad, a refreshing and unusual blend of earthy beetroot, chickpea, orange segments and a subtly flavoured pine nut, lettuce and oil topping.
Jimikand and Beetroot Tikki, crispy Calcutta-style tikkis with Tamarind and beetroot, paired with lime chilli pickle, sweet beetroot murabba and kasundi sauce.
Celebrity Following
Several new dishes have been added, a majority of which are light and suited to summer dining and all are packed with flavour.
These restaurants have gained a celebrity following, so don’t be surprised to find yourself sitting next to personalities from film or television when you visit.
More relevant perhaps is that Colonel Saab restaurants are extremely popular with London’s well-heeled Indian community and this hints towards their honest use of original flavours and cooking techniques.
An authentic taste of the homeland, with a modern twist.
