Punjab Grill, Juhu, Mumbai

Punjab Grill is an attempt to fill one of the most obvious need gaps in the culinary land scape of Mumbai. The city (at least the suburbs) really has relatively few options (discounting the 5 star chains) if you want to sample high quality North Indian / Punjabi cuisine and to a large extent Punjab Grill manages to fill that rather glaring culinary hole.
Punjab Grill is a fine dining restaurant aimed at bringing you the best flavours of the undivided Punjab and as soon as you enter the restaurant, one gets the impression that the evening will be an enjoyable one. They have two layouts, an air conditioned interior as well as an adequately fanned outdoor option. The outdoor option is very classily done up, so much so, that we decided to sit outdoors inspite of the Mumbai heat. What I particularly liked from a customer experience perspective is the outdoor bar they have set up near the entrance which can and was being used by guests while waiting to be seated.
What also strikes you is the amazing level of service you experience, the waiters are all smart and knowledgeable. Service is paramount and their is no division of tables or zones at least visibly, in case the waiter allocated to you is busy, others are most willing to pitch in. What I appreciated from the waiters was also their honesty with the items on the menu, we were very clearly informed when we were ordering some aam-panna that the same was not original Mango and so might not be as authentic as some other available options, especially the shikanji.
The food at Punjab Grill is something that they take a lot of pride in and not without reason as we experienced. We sampled their kebab platter, the galouti kebabs, Daal Punjab grill and Kheema naan. The Kebab Platter had servings of Mutton Chaap, Chicken Reshmi Kebabs, Chicken Tikka and Fish Amritsari. The chicken was soft, well flavoured and very tasty, the fish was authentic with the flavour of ajwain standing out. The star of the platter was undoubtedly the mutton chaap, well chosen pieces and cooked so that the mutton adequately stays attached to the bone while perfectly cooked. The melt-in-your-mouth Galouti kebabs were also very good, among the best I have sampled in Mumbai, the only negative being the way they were served, on a small bread with an onion slice. It looked great and tasted okay but it was almost presented too well to be interfered with. I like a little bit more freedom in the way I want to have my Galouti.
The Daal - Punjab Grill was as good as you expect in any high quality Punjabi restaurant and did not disappoint in the least, I however felt that there was room to improve with the Kheema Naan as I felt that the flavour did not really come through and got a bit awkward to finish and reduced me that I had opted for the Garlic Naan. Overall, while I would have to say the food was very good but did not floor me and make my mouth water. Call it being spoilt but the food of undivided Punjab makes me yearn for food I have sampled in Amritsar, Chandigarh and Ludhiana. I expect the food from present day Pakistan to be as good as the kebabs in Lucknow. While Punjab Grill does a fantastic job, those levels of culinary experience are never quite achieved. To be honest I have sampled similar culinary excellence only at the ITC Grand Maratha in Mumbai so the comparison might not be fair.
Punjab Grill however won my heart with the little touch at the end. I absolutely adored the complementary Paan shots. Served in Tequila glasses and with all the flavours of a good paan the Paan shot made me rank Punjab Grill as one of the restaurants I would definitely go back to, inspite of the slightly steep price.
A meal for two at Punjab Grill without drinks will cost you approximately Rs 3000/-
How to get there: Punjab Grill is opposite the Costa Coffee in Juhu. If you enter Juhu through Juhu Gali and turn right towards Juhu Circle, it will fall on your left. The gate falls to your left, after you take a left past the restaurant boards visible from the main road.