Zomatos foodie meet- Smoke House Delhi, Hauz Khas

Having been Invited for a Zomatos foodie meet, is probably one of the baby steps in the direction of creating a name in the Foodie circle of Delhi - Critics, Bloggers, Restaurant reviewers & critics, Chefs, Bakers & the ever growing community of Zomans , as they call them -- Zomans refers to the Zomatian community - employees, customers, reviewers - Not wanting to miss this opportunity to interact with the foodie community, I was well set to go , the venue helped seal the decision faster

The Venue - Smoke House Delhi, Hauz Khas Village - An Upmarket, Restaurant specialising in the Grills & Continental fare, Oh so European - The location, adding greatly to the overall experience - Situated opposite the Hauz Khas, Lake - yes there is a lake, which runs across Hauz Khas - many of us in delhi, may not even have heard about it, not to mention seeing & experiencing it at all --- Our Hostess, Prerita Chugh, a bright, young lady, who later it turned out, was quite an impressive foodie, herself - tackling the meats, & cuts, quite much like pro --- With the formal introduction & meeting up with the other foodies, we took our seats, in a specially reserved enclosure, for us, the Zoman foodies

The Start off with a Bread Basket, with Butter & Pepper Cheese - dashed with Mustard oil- was a good start for the conversations to begin --- Breads, Butter, some conversation & more ---We had the youngest foodie & reviewer, I have known in a long time, Ulhas- all of 20 years old, and a forcibly converted vegetarian (for reasons bets known to him)

Then we had the First course of Appetisers, comprised of the following :
"Balsamic Beetroot + Feta Salad with Guava Emulsions" -
 Not a great Veggie salad lover, this was all lettuce, plain cheese & the guava, added to sweetness - which didn't go too well with me -- an extra dash of sauces,  would have added the zing to this sweety of a salad - Not my personal favourite

Chicken Satay+ Green Bean Salad --- A better upgrade of the Veggie salad, with one satay - I always believe, that Non Vegetarian Salads, should have bite sized chunks of the meat thrown in evenly, rather than having single pieces - which need to be torn, broken or shared - as once the Satay is over, all you are left with is lots of Lettuce, again with mild spices - The Satay, however was quite nicely done, tender, nicely smoked & chewy

Smoked Chicken + Goat Cheese Tart - This one took the Cake for me - The best starters for the evening ..  Perfectly, thin, crisp & crusted tarts, loaded with a nice filling of smoked chicken, melted cheese & infused with Herbs, spices & baked to glory --- The perfect starter for me--- & Like Lays, No One can have Just One


We then headed to the Bar for a drinks session - Basically this, helped couple up as a smoke break as well -- The Conversations were in full flow by this time, with another Zoman reviewer, Vigya, mentioning about her foodie experiences - She seemed, quite a foodie, of a different genre, than yours truly --- more of High end & fine dining restaurant reviews, while yours truly is more of a street food, QSRs, light on your wallet , food exploration - I ordered the Green Apple, Martini, which was too sweet for my tastes & having recovered from the sweet punch, I ordered for the Orange Capriojka, which turned out to be a better Cocktail ---- fresh chunks of Orange, placed in the base

There was another dish - which was Chicken steaks, dipped & loaded with Green sauces -- The Satays, were soft, juicy, tender, perfectly spiced & chewy - Great appetiser

Now was time for a Main Course ---- While we had a variety of options to chose from in both Veg & Non Veg --- I ordered for the "PeriPeri rubbed smoked chicken + Smoked Pimento Redux with Saffron Potatoes" - For Godsake don't ask me, what a Pimento Redux means, as I was a bit high to ask the waiter myself for that --- However, the PeriPeri chicken, was just right for me ---- I like my meat to be a bit chewy - too soft is quite a put off for me - The Chicken bites, had the perfect juice, spice & moisture, in each of the bites --- The Potato served as a good condiment for the spicy boneless chicken


I also tried, the Marinated Roast chicken with Sour cream potatoes -- While the Chicken again scored in terms of being tender & juicy - The sauces , added somewhat of a fusion taste -- the sauce tasted more like a strong Garam masala flavour

Overall, a great experience at Smoke House Delhi. To sum it up, a motley group of strangers, from different walks of life, different paths, different destinies, but one Common passion - Love of Food & taking the pain to write about that food ---

Thanks team Zomato for this Opportunity --- Let the Zomans rock