Meghalaya House
The lunchtime trip to Meghalaya House marked our tenth state canteen outing. It also marked our worst.
The entrance to Meghalaya House's restaurant was nice, with a well-swept brick path lined by well-pruned trees leading to a room filled with floor-to-ceiling windows. But the agreeable part of the experience ended there.
Despite having a man at the desk and another waiter standing nearby with only one other table of eaters present, no staff approached us for the better part of ten minutes. Finally, PJ was forced to approach the man at the table, who handed her a worn menu listing various north Indian standards and Meghalayan dishes.
After we had settled on a number of distinctive dishes to order, still no waiter approached our table. So finally, PJ again headed up to the desk to order. Upon arriving, however, she was informed that in fact the menu was not accurate and that instead they had only a few dishes of the day available.
Among those, the only distinct plate from Meghalaya, she was told, was pork kappa (a light curry cooked in the style of Garo tribe). In addition, we unexcitedly ordered chhole (North-Indian style stewed chickpeas) alongside white rice.
Once it arrived, the pork kappa was one of the spiciest things either of us has ever eaten in India. Furthermore, the taste of the pork was so gamey that PJ couldn't even bring herself to eat more than a few bites. Feeling a sense of duty, I trudged through the firey, potent pork, sweating through more than a few paper napkins in the process.
To make things worse, the chhole were unremarkable and overly salty, tasting almost as if it had come out of a can (although we assume it could not have been given the rarity of canned goods in economical Indian kitchens). The white "basmati" rice, too, proved less than ideal with stale, dry bits to be found throughout.
By the end of the meal, my nostrils, throat, and belly were all burning. But we couldn't leave just yet, as it took another fifteen minutes to get the attention of a staff member (despite the waiter walking past our table various times as we called for him in a number of different languages—the man at the desk had long since disappeared).
The bill came to less than 300 rupees. Yet that was the only good news of the afternoon.
Price of lunch for two: ₹270
9 Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Rd,
The entrance to Meghalaya House's restaurant was nice, with a well-swept brick path lined by well-pruned trees leading to a room filled with floor-to-ceiling windows. But the agreeable part of the experience ended there.
 |
| A pleasant exterior masks the indifference within |
Despite having a man at the desk and another waiter standing nearby with only one other table of eaters present, no staff approached us for the better part of ten minutes. Finally, PJ was forced to approach the man at the table, who handed her a worn menu listing various north Indian standards and Meghalayan dishes.
After we had settled on a number of distinctive dishes to order, still no waiter approached our table. So finally, PJ again headed up to the desk to order. Upon arriving, however, she was informed that in fact the menu was not accurate and that instead they had only a few dishes of the day available.
Among those, the only distinct plate from Meghalaya, she was told, was pork kappa (a light curry cooked in the style of Garo tribe). In addition, we unexcitedly ordered chhole (North-Indian style stewed chickpeas) alongside white rice.
Once it arrived, the pork kappa was one of the spiciest things either of us has ever eaten in India. Furthermore, the taste of the pork was so gamey that PJ couldn't even bring herself to eat more than a few bites. Feeling a sense of duty, I trudged through the firey, potent pork, sweating through more than a few paper napkins in the process.
 |
| The spice begins to set in |
To make things worse, the chhole were unremarkable and overly salty, tasting almost as if it had come out of a can (although we assume it could not have been given the rarity of canned goods in economical Indian kitchens). The white "basmati" rice, too, proved less than ideal with stale, dry bits to be found throughout.
 |
| Too salty, too stale, way too spicy (from left to right) |
By the end of the meal, my nostrils, throat, and belly were all burning. But we couldn't leave just yet, as it took another fifteen minutes to get the attention of a staff member (despite the waiter walking past our table various times as we called for him in a number of different languages—the man at the desk had long since disappeared).
The bill came to less than 300 rupees. Yet that was the only good news of the afternoon.
Price of lunch for two: ₹270
9 Dr APJ Abdul Kalam Rd,
Aurangzeb Road,
New Delhi, Delhi 110011
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