Street Style Punjabi Fare at Pind da Dhaba

Went on a culinary ride tonight at this modern dhaba styled restaurant – pind da dhaba – and came back absolutely stuffed with all the authentic Punjabi delicacies they had to offer. Thanks to its quirky decor, that imitates the streets of Punjab villages, with wall art, old movie posters, thatch benches, rickshaw tables and faux street food stalls, pind da dhaba give you the feeling of being transported to a different time and place, albeit a livelier one.

This creamy and rich specialty at pind da dhaba is a must. No matter how stuffed you are, you have to have the authentic Punjabi lassi. The creamy blend of yoghurt in these refreshing drinks soothe your taste buds so beautifully, one sip will never be enough.
We ordered one sweet lassi topped with almonds which was pind’s classic offering at its best.
The other one – pan flavored – was a true delight. I miss the pan flavors so much, that having them in a flavored lassi – all that minty coconut accents – instantly justifies the purpose of ordering it.
Also, the lassi is served in rustic earthen glasses, or matkas, just adding that touch of true dhaba style.
They have saffron and mango flavors as well, so go crazy!

You cannot possibly go to an Indian restaurant and not munch on the papad basket. These roasted papads at pind da dhaba were slightly different though. They were spicier, which made them even more better, and the crunch was perfect.
Served with spicy green chutney, pickles, lemons and onions, they kept us busy while waited for the kebabs.

The very essence of North Indian Punjabi cuisine – kebabs and tikkas – were in abundance at pind da dhaba.
We were very graciously offered an assortment of some of their best selling non veg kebabs.
The green ones on the top left are the Chicken Pahadi kebabs, which come in a spicy green mix. Right under these are the house special grilled Murg Hungama kebabs, which are marinated in a spicy soya, fennel and black pepper mix. On the right are the absolutely flavorful and melt-in-your-mouth fish Ajwaini tikka. And at the bottom is the tender and perfectly spiced classic mutton seekh kebab.
These tender kebabs were an absolute delight, but that’s not all, we were offered a veg assortment too.

It was not just the non-veg ones, but even the veg kebabs took us by surprise. The succulent cottage cheese grilled in tandoor made a wonderful Paneer tikka. The extremely tender dahi kebab captured soft creamy hung curd and cheese inside. The veg cocktail kebab brought together more cottage cheese along with vegetables. Makki de kebab were filled with golden fried corns in true pind (village) style.

This one really gets you to the heart of pind. A sip of this warm and spicy Tamatar Dhaniye ka shorba with the accents of onion, garlic and chillies in the air at pind da dhaba takes you to the chilly Punjab evenings, where diners, wrapped in shawls, sit around a fireplace at dhabas, gathering some warmth from fire and some from this warm soup.
Have this. You will thank me.

There’s no meal like a Punjabi pind meal. Experiencing the best of everything at pind da dhaba, we sampled the very classic and absolutely delicious makki di roti and sarson ka saag, Punjabi kukkad and tandoori roti, and dhaba meat and butter naan. All of these chefs specials not only exceeded expectations, but really left us wanting for more.
The saag was creamy and makki roti tender and soft. It was served with butter and jaggery for that authentic dhaba touch. The freshly prepared tandoori roti was fresh too, and the butter naan was as buttery as it could get. The Punjabi kukkad, cooked in a homestyle gravy combined chicken pieces with mince. The dhaba meat was an absolutely flavorful serving of tender mutton in gravy.

The final leg of pind da dhaba had to end on a sweet note. And what better than the classic gajar ka halwa. We asked them for a small portion of this delicacy because even though we were stuffed, we didn’t want to miss out on the warm and creamy taste of this set dish. Garnished with pistachio and almond slivers, it was authentic pind style.

They also serve the signature kulfi which I am definitely going to try out next time along with some pindi chana and Amritsari Kulchas.