Restaurant Review: Mr & Mrs Somani

Mr & Mrs Somani is a signature restaurant of The Grand Bhagwati named for the promoters of this hotel group. The first Mr & Mrs Somani was started in Surat, and the second was opened in Ahmedabad.
Decor
Located just off the lobby of The Grand Bhagwati Ahmedabad, Mr & Mrs Somani has striking Italian marble pillars, rich brocaded table linen and heavy dark coloured curtains in keeping with its status as the owners’ signature restaurant.Though the curtains give diners privacy from the comings-and-goings in the lobby, net fabrics have been used to ensure that some light from the adjacent hallways filters into the restaurant. The restaurant is fairly long and spacious. A stairway leads to a private dining room that can be booked for small gatherings.
Food
Mr & Mrs Somani has some interesting takes on popular Indian and international dishes, replacing chicken, fish or lamb in non-vegetarian dishes with soya chunks or paneer cubes. One of the signature starters is Patrani Paneer Aur Mushroom. Paneer and mushrooms are coated with tulsi and coriander chutney and wrapped in banana leaves like the classic Parsee Patrani Machhi. The chutney coating is superb and the paneer is really creamy. Similarly, the Aani Basar which is a popular Sindhi dish of gramflour dumpling cooked with onions has the punch of bell pepper added to it. The Hyderabadi Patthar Kebab gets its vegetarian version here in the Pathar ke Paneer grilled on lavastone and served in true-blue Hyderabadi style with salan and sheermal. Thai Paneer and Pepper Grill, Pesto Paneer Tikka, Mandarin Singada (water chestnuts), Paprika Pepper Potatoes are other popular starters. For those who like soya, they have an Amritsari Soya Tak-a-Tin which is a take on the non-veg streetfoods of that city in Punjabi. Lucknowi Subz Tundey Kebab with Warqi Paratha is inspired by the streetfood of Lucknow. They even offer a Somani’s Caesar Salad with lettuce dressed in a cheesy sauce with chunks of paneer.
Among the mains, Dughar Paneer is their house specialty — the paneer has the smoky charcoal flavor of the tandoor, while the curry is subtle with a saffron flavor, and this combination is slow-cooked in dum style. They have two special dals — Dum ka Urad which is a dum-cooked black dal and the Tuar Tarannum which is a tadka dal. The Indian breads also include their house specials like Mixed Herb and Olive. The Somani Handi Biryani is another of their top offerings with chunks of paneer, soya and veg koftas served in a ‘handi’ sealed with roti.
For dessert, try Taster’s Choice which has small bowls of four different fusion desserts of the day or one of their fusion takes like the Boondi Brûlée and Khubani ka Phirni. Their desserts are not oversweet and usually quite light. The restaurant usually gives a hot and spicy tikki as the welcome appetizer and a ‘paan shot’ (digestive and mouth-freshing beverage in a shot glass) at the end, and often coconut chocolates to finish on a sweet note.
Plus and minus
A special feature of Mr & Mrs Somani is that they pay much attention to the side dishes and accompaniments — the achaars and chutneys kept on each table are delightful. Since it is open till late, this is a good option for those who want to come for a leisurely meal without worrying about having to wind up quickly at closing time or getting there in a hurry before orders are closed for the night. As they serve fusion foods rather than authentic dishes take care to read the descriptions of the dishes before ordering as you may end with ingredients you don’t like or you are allergic to.
Mr & Mrs Somani: The Grand Bhagwati, S.G, Road
Meal for two: 1,500
Timings: 12 noon – 3 pm and 7 pm – 1 am
Rating:
Food: 3.50
Service: 3.50
Décor: 3.50