The Dum Pukht Jolly Nabobs at ITC Windsor is perhaps an ideal restaurant for anything to do with the days of the Raj. As such, their food festival ‘Oudh ka Dastarkhwaan’ fits just perfectly.

Awadh or Oudh was the ancient name for the present Lucknow and surrounding regions. Dastarkhwan literally means a meticulously laid out ceremonial dining spread.

The menu features dishes from the Raj days and even the names of the dishes are a mixture of traditional Awadhi and colonial names.

The menu is laden with kebabs, curries, rotis, rice preparations and desserts. For the non vegetarians the Dariyaee Jhinga Belatty which is prawns cooked in a gravy of sesame, peanut and coconut temprered with tamarind, mustard and curry leaves, stands out. A perfect blend of spices, the dish is a must try.

For the vegetarians, the Khumbi Thumbi which is fresh mushrooms cooked with a number of spices and sauces is worth a try. But if you don’t prefer mushrooms, then there isn’t much of a choice for vegetarians.

Because oddly enough out of the three other vegetarian dishes, one is made of eggs. So strictly speaking for the average Indian vegetarian, you can go in for the George Watts Aloo Bharta, which is merely mashed potatoes, which doesn’t really qualify in one’s tummy as a ‘delicacy’.

The other non vegetarian dishes as are the rotis,  are average and have predictable tastes and nothing really stands out. Even the Amrohi Biryani tastes more like veg pulao and is filled with paneer which numbs out the taste of any other vegetable.

Of the desserts, the one that sounds the most interesting is the Tipsy Laird which is neither a laird nor does it make you tipsy. It isn’t as exotic as it sounds but it is a fairly good fruit salad.

Unfortunately the festival’s food does not impress as much as the decor and ambience which definitely get a thumbs-up.

The food, though not exotic doesn’t taste bad, it is merely very familiar and in some cases tastes a bit home made, go in for the experience. The festival is on from July 27 to August 12 at the Dum Pukht Jolly Nabobs in the ITC Windsor.