If you're yearning for an authentic Indian cuisine here in Cebu, then you have got to try
Firozian Indian Tea House. It is a newly opened Indian restaurant located at Don Jose Avila St. (at the back of Cebu Doctors Hospital). They've just opened last April 25 and we went there a few days after that to have my first ever taste of authentic Indian food. Comfortable and cozy, this cute little restaurant is owned by an Indian guy named Firoz, who also happens to be the chef!
It was a great dining experience indeed! The restaurant has the ambiance of colorful walls and curtains with low tables and chairs and throw pillows such that the customers can get to try what it's like to dine the Indian way. Firoz actually explained to us why eating this way is better than what we normally do. First, he said that in the old days, eating on the floor was a natural thing such that even kings enjoyed lying or sitting on the floor while eating. The Greeks and Romans do this too. Second, eating in a lotus position (or as what we usually call the cross-legged sitting position), helps the body absorb and digest the food faster as the blood flow is concentrated in the stomach area. It is also beneficial for the back. Finally, the third reason is that it shows a symbolism of no hierarchy system while eating this way. Everyone is equal, rich or poor. Pretty cool, huh?
So anyway, as I mentioned, I've never tried authentic Indian food before and I tell you, the first time I tasted it at Firozian Indian Tea House, it was love at first bite!!! My personal favorite was the
Dal Makhani. It's a healthy Indian staple food made primarily of whole black lentils (
urad) and red kidney beans (
rajma). You can eat it alone or with rice, or you can also add a little yoghurt on it for an extra kick.
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| Dal Makhani |
Another favorite of mine is the
Durum, or as what they call, "
the real shawarma". As you can see, it is indeed a shawarma and I must say, the best shawarma I ever tasted. It's so much different from the shawarma sold in food stalls. I guess it's because Firozian's Durum has just the right amount of sauce and spices to it.
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| Durum |
I also like the
Aloo Paratha, a popular breakfast/snack dish in India which is made of whole-wheat Indian flat bread stuffed with mashed potatoes. You can eat it with butter/yoghurt or
Lassi, also a popular Indian yoghurt-based drink made of yoghurt blended with water and some Indian spices or sugar.
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| Aloo Paratha |
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| Lassi |
Other snack items that we ordered were
Roti (a flat bread made of stoneground wholemeal flour known as
atta flour) and
Samosa (fried or baked pastry stuffed with potatoes, ground meat, and other spices). The Samosa is much like the Empanada, the only difference perhaps is the stuffing and/or how the pastry was made.
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| Roti |
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| Samosa |
Other main dishes that we ordered were
Aloo Keema,
Butter Chicken, and
Chicken Masala.
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| Aloo Keema |
Aloo Keema, also known as potato and mince curry, is actually a traditional dish of South Asia. It is made of potatoes, ground meat, and spices.
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| Butter Chicken |
Butter Chicken, also known as
Chicken Makhani, is one of the best known Indian food (and also, another one of my favorites).
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| Chicken Masala |
Chicken Masala is a creamy spicy chicken dish made of roasted chicken chunks (also known as
tikka) in a spicy sauce called
masala.
Aside from Lassi, we also had
Chai (also known as Indian Tea) for our beverage. It is a spiced milk tea served with sugar, which they had shaped in cute hearts.
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| Chai (Indian Tea) |
What's interesting about Chai is how it is served. I can't really describe it in words so you can just refer to the picture below, heheheh!
This is actually the traditional way of serving tea in India and Firoz told us of three reasons why it's done this way. First is that it creates a natural foam on the surface of the tea, it mixes the tea well, and lastly, it helps cool down the tea a bit so it wouldn't be too hot while you drink it.
So of course a meal wouldn't be complete without dessert, right? So for that we ordered
Besan Laddu and
Gulab Jamun.
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| Besan Laddu (sorry about the teeth marks! hehehe!) |
Besan Laddu, also known as Indian sweet chickpea flour balls, is a popular Indian dessert made of
bengal gram flour (or chickpea flour), sugar, ghee, and powdered nuts (can be almond, pistachio, etc) formed into balls.
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| Gulab Jamun |
Gulab Jamun, also known as milk balls in sweet syrup, is another popular dessert in the Indian subcontinent made of milk solids, mostly
khoya (an Indian milk product), and some flour rolled into balls and then deep fried. It is then put into a sweet syrup flavored with different spices and natural flavors. Looks yummy, doesn't it?
Well, that's all we ordered! I really had a wonderful dining experience at Firozian Indian Tea House. I can definitely say that Indian food is surely one of my cravings now! And not to mention that their prices are so budget friendly. Based on what we ordered, their meals range from PhP120 - 150 and their snacks and desserts range from PhP40 - 80. Not bad, huh?
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| Firozian (right most), April and their lovely staff) |
I've seen in their
Facebook page that they still have a lot of delicious Indian food that I haven't tried yet. I just can't wait to go back!!
Well, thanks for dropping by you guys! Till next post!
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