I remember the first time when, as a young teenager, I tried Moti Mahal’s tandoori chicken. It simply blew my mind. This was back in 1980 and the venue was their newly opened branch in the (then) posh neighbourhood of Vasant Vihar in Delhi. Believe it or not, I have carried that original taste with me throughout these past decades and have used it to benchmark all tandoori chickens and butter chickens against. If one is to believe the story, it was Moti Mahal which first created tandoori chicken and then added pieces of it to a tomato sauce to create butter chicken. The marketing blurb also takes credit for daal makhani (which I somehow always attributed to Bukhara). With that tidbit of culinary history behind us, I was delighted to find that Moti Mahal had opened a branch in Business Bay, Dubai.
A view from Bay Avenue
It was, therefore, a no-brainer that I chose Moti Mahal (@motimahalmiddleeast) as my weapon of choice when the butter chicken gauntlet was thrown down at our weekly foodie lunch meet-up – the best butter chicken and daal makhani – that was the challenge. Moti Mahal does not deliver in small parcels. So I had to physically go to their restaurant in Bay Avenue to collect my order. Although originally miffed at having to drive all the way there, it actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise as I got to meet their genuinely friendly manager, Raman Gurang – very, very nice guy. My takeaway safely on-board, I drove off to @streetery in JLT where our meet up was taking place.
Packed and ready to go 
Inside the bag 
Wrapped tight and clearly labelled 
Butter chicken 
Daal makhani 
Pieces of tandoori chicken in the butter chicken sauce
The food was very well packed and was still nice and hot when I got there. Without getting into too much detail, both butter chicken and daal makhani were amazing and just the way I remember. They came a very close second to @carnivalbytresind. I am so disappointed I didn’t add a tandoori chicken to my order (for the memories and nostalgia). Next time. Moti Mahal is one of India’s oldest and most famous restaurants and, if they don’t delivery to where you are, well worth a detour for take away or, better yet, dine in.
#1 Blogger on Zomato Dubai in 2018 and 2019 and beyond…
Xerxes physically dines at, or orders from, each and every venue he reviews. He pays in full for whatever he and his companions eat, drink, take away or occasionally throw at each other. Xerxes accepts no money, gifts, discounts or free meals in return for reviews or favouritism. What you have read was NOT influenced in any way by the venue. Join me on Instagram @ravenousxerxes or email me on xerxes@dellara.com.