Delhi Streets – Indian Street Food Galore!

Kitchen at Delhi Streets

Inside Delhi Streets

Artwork at Delhi Streets

Artwork at Delhi Streets

Artwork at Delhi Streets

Table Numbers

Chairs at Delhi Streets

Delhi Streets

Prep work at Delhi Streets

Pani Puri – Hands on Street food – Crispy lentil cracker balls stuffed with potatoes, chickpeas, onions, tamarind chutney and spiced water_

Close up of Pani Puri

Chicken Frankie Wrap

Dahi Vada

Tandoori Chicken Pizza Naan

Chocolate Naan

Menu:
        

The newly opened Flinders Lane food precinct – The Archway (located on Katherine Place) – is all the buzz right now. Already home to 5 & Dime Bagels, T by Luxbite and Altius Coffee Brewers, there are three more new food venues that have recently opened – Hunters Roots (which provides a clean-eating experience, serving cold-pressed juice, smoothies, and healthy breakfast and lunch options), Delhi Streets and Mr Huang Jin.

On this Friday lunchtime – a few friends and I decide to try out Delhi Streets. I had heard the night before at a blogger’s dinner that this Indian food was “next-level” so of course I had to check it out!

Delhi Streets is owned by Charan Singh who says that this isn’t your typical Indian restaurant; instead there is a main focus on Indian street food which most Melbournians are yet to experience.
Delhi Streets makes use of its small space really well – peppered with colourful street art posters featuring Bollywood Films and film stars. It seats 28 people at its wooden tables and has a modern street vibe to it – completed with a view into the kitchen where you can watch chefs preparing your food as well as table numbers that sit into Indian refreshment bottles such as Thums Up (Indian version of Coca Cola) and Limca (Indian version of Lemonade and Lime). I love that the chairs have different Indian brands printed on the seats – further adding to the nice personalised touch to the décor.

The menu consists of five sections – beginning with dishes titled Street Chaat which include dishes such as Bhel Puri (Puffed Rice Indian Salad), Aloo Tikki and Samosa Chaat. Next on the menu are a great selection of Wraps and Burgers – including a Paneer Pizza Naan and Aloo Tikki Wrap. I am not sure where the burgers are on this menu – maybe they are the to be items in a future upcoming menu? Classics are followed next on the menu which include dishes such as Chicken or Vegetarian Biriyani, Thalis (which are plates that can house a ix of curries (can either be vegetarian or meat filled depending on what you want – together with rice, raita, pappadum and salads) and Uttapum (Savoury crispy pancake filled with veggies). The menu ends with a choice of four Sweets – Chocolate Naan, Gulab Jamun (Small syrupy donuts), Carrot Halwa (Carrot Pudding garnished with Almonds and Pistachios) and Pistachio Kulfi (Ice Cream).

It was extremely busy on this Friday Lunchtime – and I needed a table for 3 – and was told it would be around a 10 minute wait. I spent this time to try and figure out what I wanted to order – which was really quite difficult as I wanted to try everything!
It was less than 10 minutes and we were shown our table – where we had a clear view into the kitchen. It was refreshing to see the chefs smiling and enjoying preparing food for the patrons.

I had heard great things about the Pani Puri – Hands on Street food! – Crispy Lentil Cracker Balls stuffed with Potatoes, Chickpeas, Onions, Tamarind Chutney and Spiced Water – so had to order the dish to start. The Pani Puri comes served with five pieces on a silver round tray together with a bottle housing the spiced water – a great presentation. The way you are meant to eat this dish is to pour the spiced water in through the hole in the top of the Pani Puri and then eat it all in one go – almost like a shot – but with food! The flavours are delicious and it provides an explosion of flavours in your mouth. The spice of the vegetables together with the sweetness of the tamarind chutney is complemented by the spiced water.

For my main meal I ordered the Chicken Frankie Wrap – Fusion Burrito – Tender Juicy Chicken Tikka wrapped in Indian Bread along with Salad and Mint Chutney. The serving size of these burritos is quite large and I could only finish one half of the wrap (and took the other half away!). I loved the Naan – it was fresh, hot and crispy around the edges – just the way I like my Naan. The Chicken was spicy, full of flavour, tender and worked well with the Mint Chutney.

T ordered the Dahi Vada – Skinny Girl Choice – Feather light Lentil Dumplings served with Yoghurt and Sweet & Tangy Tamarind and Mint Chutneys. Despite looking like a small dish it was quite filling. The Dumplings were semi cold and had a soft cake like consistency which worked well with the smoothness of the yoghurt. I love the combination of the sour tamarind and the distinct flavouring of mint.

L ordered the Tandoori Chicken Pizza Naan – Chicken Pizza – Open face Wrap with a secret Masala Sauce and Chicken Tikka, Baby Spinach, Cheese, Capsicum and Onions. L isn’t a fan of coriander so opted to have none on his pizza. The Pizza Naan is such a simple yet unique idea and L enjoyed his meal.

If you are a follower of this blog you will know that I always check out the dessert menu first and I couldn’t look past the Chocolate Naan – Chocolate Delight –Indian Naan Bread stuffed with Chocolate M&Ms. We decided to share this dish as we were all so full from our savoury dishes. It was simply delicious – crispy on the outside, soft, gooey and scrumptious on the inside with a touch of crunch from the M&Ms. It is one of these dishes that you have to try to believe how good it is.

The service is very friendly and even though they are still finding their feet in some aspects such as some orders being misplaced and forgetting to bring us the drinks we ordered – you will soon forget these minor issues once the food arrives.

Delhi Streets is definitely a place that I would recommend to all my friends and a place that I would go back to – especially to eat the Pani Puri’s again. The prices are very reasonably especially for the serving sizes of the dishes. Delhi Streets is a great way to experience and enjoy real Indian street food – “Chai pani” or “Let’s go out to eat”!!

Also something to note is that the do catering as well and can cater for functions – just get in contact with via their website or phone number.

Rating : 5 Pandas
Price: $
Menu – Refer to the menu pictures above or visit their website delhistreets.com.au
Fullness: 100%
Atmosphere / Ambience: Vibrant, Lively and Happening
Standout Dish: Pani Puri’s!!!
Service: Super friendly and welcoming
Online Booking: No
Restaurant Details and Location:
delhistreets.com.au
The Archway
22 Katherine Place, Melbourne
Tel No: 9629 2620

Opening Hours:
Lunch
Monday to Friday: 11.30am – 2:30pm
Saturday: 11:30am – 2:30pm
Dinner
Monday to Friday: 5:30pm to 9:30pm

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DelhiStreetsAU?ref=hl
Instagram: DelhiStreets
Twitter: @DelhiStreets

Tonka – Indian Malaysian Fusion Food

Tonka Restaurant

Inside Tonka

Pani Puri, Crispy Parcel filled with Spiced Potato and Lentils, Date and Tamarind Chutney with Aromatic Water

Close up of the Pani Puri

Dinner at Tonka

Goan Fish Curry with King Prawns and Mussels

Hiramasa Kingfish from the Tandoor

Spanner Crab Salad with Puffed Rice, Green Mango, Peanuts, Coriander and Green Chilli

Dessert at Tonka – Tonka’s Gulab Jamun with Saffron Syrup and Silver Leaf and Saffron Baked Meringue

Saffron Baked Meringue, Strawberry, Pistachio and Rose Water

For Dad’s birthday I decided to take my family out to a new restaurant called Tonka. Being of a Sri-Lankan background I was so excited to hear about a new restaurant that was specialising in Sri Lankan flavours. Tonka comes to you by the team behind the fantastic restaurant – Mykal and Kate Batholomew together with Adam D’Sylva. The location is in one of the iconic laneways of Melbourne and is where Honky Tonks used to reside. The team has transformed this space into an elegant and modern space (and the name even pays tribute to the former venue).

The venue itself is split into three separate areas – there is a bar – allows people to sit on high tables where you can order a drink from the extensive drink menu and have bar snacks., followed by the formal restaurant area (where you can make bookings) and then a more casual restaurant style bar area, with large windows which over look Flinders St – where restaurateurs don’t need to make a booking to enjoy the full menu. Despite these three different areas, they are all seamless and you really don’t feel the difference in any of the areas.

As you walk into the restaurant you are greeted by friendly staff that are very happy to assist you. We had a booking in the formal restaurant which was located in the middle section. We walked past the open kitchen which was lined with colourful jars of spices and other condiments. There is a real wow factor that you get as you step in the doors of Tonka. There are distressed walls and the definite wow factor is the art installation by Naomi Troski – which his featured on the ceiling – white twists of mesh that remind you of clouds in a dramatic sense.

The menu is inspired by the unique range and variety of flavours from southern India, Sri Lanka and Malaysia. The executive chef is Adam D’Sylva and the Head Chef is Michael Smith together with Mumbai born sous chef Ved Navghare. The menu is accentuated by two tandoor ovens which definitely add and enhance the brilliant flavours of each dish – such as tandoori meats, fish and naan.

I arrived before the rest of my fam, so I ordered the Tonka take on the traditional Lassi drink (there are two options the alcoholic version which has Rum as well as a non-alcoholic version) – I opted for the non-alcoholic version which consisted of mango, rose and the addition of pistachio nuts. The lassi was one of the better lassi’s that I have tasted – a great starter drink!

Once the rest of the fam arrived we settled on our order – we ordered two entrée’s, two mains, a side, naans and rice.

The first entrée we had was the Pani Puri – crispy parcel filled with spiced potato and lentils, date and tamarind chutney served with mango infused aromatic water. For some reason the idea in my head of what a Pani Puri was, was different to what arrived at our table. These Pani Puri were cute (yes, I know it’s a weird way to describe food, but seriously that’s what they were). Our waiter presented this dish to us and then poured some of the aromatic water and said that was to enhance the flavours and not to leave it to get too soggy before you ate it. These were delicious and the only downside was that the dish was so small. The potato and lentils were perfectly flavoured and the data and tamarind chutney added the sourness. The aromatic water on its had a pleasant sourness taste to it as well. The next entrée we ordered was the Spanner Crab Salad with puffed rice, green mango, peanuts, coriander and green chilli. This was another stand out dish that all the fam enjoyed! It had a bit of a hint of what a Thai dish would represent and all the flavours were infused together really well. My only criticism was that the puffed rice to me didn’t have as much crunch as I would have liked it to have.

For mains we ordered the Goan Fish Curry and Hiramasa Kingish from the Tandoor. The Goan Fish Curry when it came out was this richly coloured curry that came not only with fish, but had additional seafood as well – King Prawns and Mussels, as well veggies (beans). This was a great surprise as we weren’t expecting this. The Kingfish from the tandoor was hands-down my favourite dish. The kingfish was perfectly cooked and had the smoky tandoori flavours with the right salt levels and spice added to it. It was served with another asian influenced salad that added to making the balance of flavours complete. This is a definite must try dish when you come to Tonka. We also had the Fried Cauliflower, Garam Masala Salt, Fenugreek and Yoghurt Dressing as a side – yet another winner of a dish. The mix of cauliflower, garam masala and fenugreek had a strong taste to it, yet it wasn’t overpowering and the addition of the yoghurt lightened these flavours.

When you get your mains, you are also given the Tonka version of a Raita (Yoghurt Sauce) where they have added pomegranate pieces. I loved this idea as one of my favourite yoghurts is pomegranate yoghurt =) You also get a chilli sauce if you need more spice added to your dish. I wasn’t a huge fan of this second sauce.

Next up was dessert – we orderd the Saffron baked meringue, strawberry, pistachio and rose water and orderd Tonka’s Gulab Jamun with saffron syrup and silver leaf. I must say that I wasn’t too impressed with either of these desserts. I have eaten Gulab Jamun’s better and say your local Indian takeaway restaurant and at $6 per ball, I expected much more. I didn’t like the texture or the flavour of the Gulab Jamun. The other dessert we ordered was the Saffron Baked Meringue and I was expecting the meringue to be crunchier on the outside than it was. The flavours however were quite nice – the mixture of the strawberry, pistachio ice cream and rose water together with the tang and sourness of the pomegranate seeds.

Tonka is a great addition to the Melbourne laneway culture, and the team have created a warm, welcoming and cosy area that overlooks some of the great tourist spots. The food is flavoursome and hold true to the authentic flavours together with a modern twist. The use of the tandoor ovens definitely needs to be tried out by one and all. If you are a fan of Coda (or even if you haven’t tried out Coda) you will definitely find a new favourite in this place.

Rating : 3.5 Pandas
Price: $$
Menu – A la Carte menu – can be viewed at http://www.tonkarestaurant.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Food-Menu-10-4-13.pdf
Fullness: 100%
Atmosphere / Ambience: Has a wow factor, and is a great place to catch up for a drink with friends or have a celebration dinner. The lighting and decor makes the place feel warm, cosy and comfortable.
Standout Dish: Hiramasa Kingfish from the Tandoor
Service: Friendly, Attentive and Helpful.
Online Booking: No, but you can call up the restaurant to make  a booking in their formal sit down area, or you can just walk-in
Restaurant Details and Location:
http://tonkarestaurant.com.au
20 Duckboard Place, Melbourne
Tel No: 9650 3155

Opening Hours:
Open for Lunch Monday to Friday
Open for Dinner Monday to Saturday