Farzi Café Gurgaon And The Art Of Surprising Gastronomy!

Bold flavours, quirky plating, and recipes with a twist—at Farzi Café Gurgaon, we were in for a delectable ride and we loved every turn of it. By Sushmita Srivastav

Farzi Café—the modern Indian bistro isn’t a new kid on the block; it has been around for quite some time now, getting its share of fame and creating a fan base. But even five years and numerous outlets later, the word Farzi kindles curiosity, thanks to its many connotations.

However, the café chooses to go with the one that translates to ‘creating illusions’, and rightly so. Traditional Indian cuisine wedded with twisted culinary art and blessed by interesting alchemy—the food served at Farzi Café seems like a mystical marriage. The menu changes with every season, but one thing that remains constant is innovative ways of presenting modern Indian food.

Dark wood textured furniture, quirky artworks on the walls and chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, huge bar at one corner and a stage set for live band performances on the other—the décor is chic and breezy. Moreover, the wide menu will leave you spoilt for choice. Simply put, there’s just so many fusion foods to choose from. But if you enjoy variety in food, this is sure to be your happy place.

I pick Edamame Hummus with Kori Roti Crisps to start my early lunch, and what a start it turns out to be! The rich green hummus is so smooth in texture, the crisps so crunchy—the two are dished out perfectly complimenting each other. While you are loving the fresh edamame in the hummus, the ingredient is placed before you in yet another form: as a filling of a samosa. Not just another samosa though—in the Pin Wheel Samosa Chaat, the famous deep fried pockets are rolled and diced into circles, and later, topped with yogurt, mint and tamarind chutney, making it probably the most fusion chaat dish ever. The Paniyaram Scotch Quail’s Eggs are fried to golden hue and cut into halves before been served over dashes of assorted dips. More pleasing on the plate, the dish is less appealing on taste as compared to the others.

With fresh guacamole and tangy salsa on side, and sour cream and nachos on top, Mexican Rice Bowl is everything that I ask for (well, almost). Do try the Hyderabadi Haleem Risotto, which is slow-cooked for 24 hours and is finally served piping hot with mutton pickle and Gujarati khakra! The traditional Mangalorean curry dish of Fish Pulimunchi has fish fried to crisp and the thick gravy poured hot over it. I find the onion ghee pulao to be just the right thing to serve it with.

For dessert, I decide to go desi and pick Balushahi 2.0, and am glad that I did, as it comes rolled with vanilla ice-cream filled in, and chopped roasted nuts peppered on. Just like the amazing start, it was an ending I wasn’t expecting but certainly looking for.