Bukhara: It’s old but it works

Sometimes it takes an anniversary to remember and celebrate a great restaurant. Bukhara dates from a different era but its food is great. And this one has a soul, writes Vir Sanghvi.

By a complete coincidence I turned up at a friend’s birthday dinner at the Moti Mahal Deluxe in Greater Kailash and found that among the other guests were Monish Gujral and Anil Chaddha. Monish is the grandson of Kundan Lal Gujral, the founder of Moti Mahal and the inventor of butter chicken. Anil is an old Maurya hand who is now back in Delhi as general manager of the Maurya, the hotel where he once looked after the food and beverage portfolio.

Columnist-Vir-Sanghvi

Camellia Panjabi said that Bukhara (above) perfectly captured the ethos of Delhi: no fancy décor, no cutlery, mainly stools to sit on, and aprons on offer if you made a mess of your dinner

Bukhara’s first chef Madan Jaiswal’s (above) food came from the Hindu tandoori tradition. The kebabs were not fancy but Jaiswal got the mix of meat and masala just right