Soam

Location: Soam is located bang opposite the religious landmark of Babulnath Temple, and absolutely impossible to "not find". I had wanted to eat there ever since it opened, almost a decade ago. Finally visited there for lunch and here's my take on it:

Ambience: Clean, pleasant, compact but not cramped. They can seat about 30 people at a time and have a small waiting area inside the restaurant. It's buzzing during lunch hours and you are advised to go between 12pm-12:45pm to get immediate seating.

Service: The waiters are courteous and know the menu well. Ask them for any clarifications. The service is quick and efficient.

Food: The menu offers an interesting range of classic standalone Gujarati preparations and no thali. Some popular Marwari dishes like Dal-Baati-Churma and Gatte ki Sabzi have also found a place in between the quintessentially Gujju fare.

 For starters we had Guava Panna and Paanki. The panna was fresh and nicely flavoured with rock salt. The Paanki is a steamed preparation of rice flour paste being flavoured with masalas and spread in a thin layer between two banana leaves. It was soft and delicious.

Our mains : 

Dhansaak with Steamed Rice and Kebabs

Dhansaak is a Parsi speciality of minced meat cooked in vegetable gravy along with a secret combination of spices. The vegetarian version here has been adapted by replacing meat with lentils. It is served along with steamed rice that is supposed to be brown by combining it with caramelised onions. There are deep-fried kebabs to go with this. Their Dhansaak didn't have any distinct taste, but the kebabs were well-prepared. I ordered this to get an idea of what’s ‘the big deal’ about this Parsi dish and was left utterly unimpressed.

Gatte ki Sabzi with Satpadi roti

The Gatte ki Sabzi, ordered by my companion was finger-licking good! The gattas were soft and the kadhi was mildly flavoured. None of that typically Rajashtani style of overpowering red chillies’ taste in it. It was served along with ‘Satpadi’ roti, which is essentially seven layers of dough rolled in a go!

What caught my attention was a special “Low Cal” section on the menu. It has a small collection of dishes which are higher on the “healthy” quotient, not exactly a strongpoint of the traditional Gujarati/Rajasthani dishes which take pride in piling on the calories! High on “health” does not equate with low on “taste” and I look forward to having their Nachni dosa.

Price: All the items are priced between Rs. 100- 200. A meal for two will be around Rs. 600/-.

Verdict: Excited about going again for trying the other dishes!