One area of Delhi where I love to have my lunch is Malcha Marg, with its calm and serene environment. The restaurants are clean and soothing with food made out of the best possible ingredients. Recent addition to the market is Schengen, which is a Deli, Bistro and a pub. A brainchild of restaurateur Bhanu Nehra, who has given Delhi some great places to hang out, , Schengen is an interesting addition to his kitty. As its name suggests, Schengen serves food from the Schengen region. It is prepared by very talented but under-rated Chef Piyush. I like the way Piyush presents his food, and with a little tweak the dish becomes wonderful and much more presentable.
What impressed me the most at Schengen were its interiors and space allocation, done by Bhanu himself. Ground floor is a deli offering some delicious desserts and breakfast options while the first floor has ample seating for a sun-kissed lunch both inside and in their beautiful al fresco area. The second floor and terrace is the place to chill out and party after a long day at work. I was there for lunch so decided to settle on the first floor.
It was a bright sunny day and I started with a tangy chicken ball vegetable soup and a portion of smoked chicken and garlic soup. Both according to their flavours were made pretty well and went really fine with the fresh breads prepared in-house. Rocket, apple and walnut salad with grilled chicken breast followed the soup and I felt that perhaps there was too much healthy food on my table, though for a change it was good and I liked the use of spiced walnuts in the salad. Knowing my taste buds, Chef Piyush got me nicely grilled saffron and sumac crusted chicken skewers with lemongrass hummus. Skewers were juicy but could have had a little bit more of sumac.
For mains, I had pan grilled salmon with lemon tobiko cream and one of Bhanu’s favourite, Hungarian import chicken goulash. Salmon was delicious and cooked to perfection while the Goulash was not as viscous as I would have liked. It was tasty but I would have liked it more if it would have been stewed for some more time to giveit a better texture, though it went well with the rice.
One suggestion , always leave Schengen after you’ve tasted their Tiramisu or the Red Velvet cake as both have a wonderful after taste.
Meal for two: Rs 1200 plus taxes
