A Rich Taste of India: Royal Indian Curry House

Indian cuisine is not very popular here in Manila. You’d seldom or barely see an Indian restaurant in the malls or foodie havens. But when you do, more often than not, it would give you a distinct gastronomical experience. And that was what I experienced when I went to Royal Indian Curry House.

Hello, Royal Indian Curry House.

Our foodie godfather, Foodgrammer.ph, invited R and I to join him in an Indian feast last week. As curious foodies, we quickly said yes and crawled (literally because of the traffic) our way to Makati and was greeted by an impressive five-storey restaurant across A.Venue Mall. 

The first and second floor have the same interiors while the third floor is more of a bar or pub with billiards. The fourth floor is dedicated for private functions and the fifth floor is yet another bar with a cute jeepney as the cocktail bar. 

Our generous host suggested most of the dishes we were about to feast on that night. I just chose Sweet Lassi (PHP179) for my drink and went with whatever everyone’s getting.

First served were the Vegetable and Non-Vegetable Samosa (PHP149 and PHP199) and Sharaabi Chana (PHP249). 

At first, we were confused with how the server got to know which samosa is which. She let us in the trick and told us that the puffed pastries with lines on the edge are the ones with chicken meat while the ones without are just with vegetables. I liked the non-vegetable ones more as the chicken meat gave the dish more flavor compared to the ones with just potatoes and peas. 

Everyone loved the Sharaabi Chana but the rough chick pea like texture made my throat itch so I stopped after munching on two balls.

My First Bite: The Kebab Factory

(A prequel to the Mega Mall Food Sale entry)

Some colleagues and I went to SM Mega Mall to have lunch as one of them needed to shop. We had several options. There’s JiPan, Sbarro, The Kebab Factory, and Pho Hoa. We decided to consult the powerful and all-knowing eenie meenie miney moe to help us decide and the finger landed on JiPan. For some reason though we wanted to eat somewhere else so we decided to choose one and say at the same time where we want to eat… The Kebab Factory won.

*Off to The Kebab Factory*

It was my first time to dine there so I read the menu “Curious George” style. The dessert G’ulab Jammu (sugar milk balls dipped in syrup) got my attention as my friend gave it her seal of approval. I didn’t order it though since I was saving up for my ultimate food galore trip next month.  I promised myself that I will try this in the near future. I heard that it has a bit of herbal taste. Dessert? Herbal? Interesting…

Since I was on a tight budget, I decided to order C2, Chicken Mast Kebab (PHP180) and Papadum Masala (PHP95) but what I really wanted to order were M1, Chollo Sultani Chicken Mast and Beef Kebab (PHP275), Spinach and Feta Cheese Dip (PHP200), Mango Kulfi—The Kebab Factory ice cream with pureed mangoes and hint of cardamon flavor (PHP150) and Sweet Lassi (PHP120). My bill would have reached PHP745 (exclusive of tax and service charge) if I gave in to my tummy’s request. 

Anyway, featuring my affordable picks!