The Nawabi Way

The royal journey starts the moment you glance at the menu card.

Pride of Hyderabad offers delectable Mughlai food, with dishes ranging from Biryani to the Mishtan, in all its authentic sumptuousness

The royal journey starts the moment you glance at the menu card. Adjacent to the list of the menu on each page are pictures of Nizams and Princesses, of their art and architecture, tombs, food, jewellery and so on. Promising the original taste and splendour of the shahi food, Pride of Hyderabad has opened its first branch in the city.

Located in Camp on Geeta Society Road, the restaurant has its two other outlets in Hyderabad. Opened recently, it claims to introduce some of the rare preparations with a live kitchen as well as demonstrations. 8220;The idea behind introducing this outlet was to maintain the taste of biryani as it is supposed to be. In fact, the list of dishes is the same as those in the other two restaurants, including the prices. In addition to the Hyderabadi specialities we also have south Indian, continental and seafood,8221; says Feroz Attar, proprietor of the Pride of Hyderabad.

The name of the dishes too are appealing enough, with noble titles like Gosht Paya Shorba, a royal Mughal speciality soup, Macchi Gulmohar, stuffed filets of pomfret, Potli kebab that is their chef8217;s speciality and so on.

The Hyderabadi murgh and gosht dum Biryani are the major attractions. On some days during the week, it8217;s a complete indulgence as the biryani is cooked in the traditional way on coal and in sealed clay pots that is unsealed on the table, giving its customers a presentation that is rare in the city.

With all the ingredients sourced from Hyderabad, the food is carefully prepared with relatively less spices by chefs, who also come from the city of Nawabs. The other specialities are the Qubani ka MeethaRs 85, a popular Hyderabadi sweet made from apricots and served with ice cream and the oldest ones, Bagara Baigan Rs 115 that has aubergines in thick Tamarind gravy and Double ka Meetha Rs 75 another Hyderabadi dessert. While the Biryanis are pretty reasonable, from Rs.130 to 145, the striking Samundari Daawat Rs 650 is an assortment of seafood delicacies. The restaurant soon plans to have breakfast menu, a brunch and a buffet with over 25 dishes.

What works for this joint is even though the ambience is nothing to write home about, the authenticity of the fare more than makes up for it. So, if you are the kind who savours a leisurely meal, and appreciates the subtlelities of Hyderabadi food, then this is definitely the place to head to. Drop in on a weekend and make sure you have enough time to revel in the flavours and aromas of delectable Mughlai cuisine.