Bikkgane Biryani is a takeaway / delivery only biryani restaurant, its name kinda gives that away. The Indian original claims to specialise in authentic, Hyderabadi biryani so I’m assuming the same applies with the three branches in Dubai; Silicone Oasis, Al Nahda and the Barsha one I ordered from. For some reason I was unable to place my order through the Zomato app and had to call them. I got through to a call centre where I spoke with a pleasant Filipina who had surprisingly limited knowledge of the menu. Thankfully I had almost memorized it trying to get the app to work earlier.
I was promised my food within 45 minutes. It took an hour. Not a big problem. The food was hot when it arrived. I liked that they use cellulose based containers rather than plastic (lids are plastic). I love a good biryani and was very excited to see (and taste) what a 50+ Dirham mutton biryani tastes like, especially since my favourite Hyderabadi, the Zaffrani Mutton Biryani at Biryaniwalla & Co only costs 24 Dirhams. I ordered a Veg Biryani for my wife and a Chicken Curry for good measure. Now let me explain how they price their biryanis at Bikkgane (or at least my understanding of how they price their biryanis). A biryani (for one) is called a “full” and costs roughly what my mutton biryani cost. Then they have something called a “single” which is like a half portion of the full. It costs around half (duh). The veg biryani I ordered for my wife was a single and therefore (seemingly) a more reasonable 18 Dirhams. Until you realise that the mini (half portion) mutton biryani at Biryaniwalla costs 15 Dirhams.
This is what a 50+ Dirham Mutton Biryani looks like …and a 37 Dirham Chicken Curry Veg Biryani
Well, Bikkgane’s mutton biryani is good, I’ll give it that, but it’s not a patch on Biryaniwalla in terms of flavour nor is the mutton as tasty or as soft and tender. I actually liked the chicken curry more than the biryani although at 37 Dirhams it’s ridiculously expensive for what it is, a very basic chicken curry. Remember, this is a delivery kitchen not a proper restaurant. Just to put things into perspective for you, a similar chicken curry at a restaurant like Karachi Darbar is just 20 Dirhams, Chicken Masala at Delhi Darbar is 32 Dirhams, even the amazing Butter Chicken at Sthan is a Dirham cheaper at 36. So, I’m surprised that we have some reviewers commenting on how pocket friendly it is. It’s not. It’s actually stupendously expensive for what it is, mediocre food. I will not be ordering from them again.
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