Dum Pukht

#Dumpukht #biryani Does it makes any sense to go to such famous places and wait like beggars for 90-120mins for a table and in return what you get such food. For a family dinner I planned to go to #bukhara at ITC #Maurya the waiting on Thursday was approx 3Hrs. But the guest with an approach were seated without any waiting. The lady on desk was carrying a small phone in her hand got a call & she said Kaha say baithau there is no space & the person on the other hand said jaise bhe ho make them sit in the restaurant fast. She repeated the words in anger. Anyways after approx 75mins i got a seat in Dum Pukht restaurant, when I Entered in the restaurant 35% of tables were empty but still there was a waiting for 90mins. Even a gentleman came before me got the table with in 15mins as he gave refrence of some chef or so. Limited option one has in Dum Pukht. I ordered kakori seekh which was nice but little warm was Nt served Hot then I ordered Gilafi chicken seekh which taste good but as it got little cold was really chewy…. The flop show stopper was there mutton biryani…. The line from the Waitor was before eating pls smell the aroma of the biryani…. “Chaley woh bhe kar liya humney” but the quality of mutton was horrible… one can puke after watching it. It’s visible in the picture. It was blood pink in colour. When I call the waiter first guy thought I am a fool he said it’s a saffron colour … LOL I laughed & said I started buying mutton from ₹60/-kg & today’s it’s ₹700/-kg so don’t teach. Then second Waitor came & said there is a problem will change the biryani & get a new one for you. Second biryani was again same with the same quality of mutton. I waited for almost 15-20mins but chef was so so so busy that he didn’t came to my table. As a bribe they offered me a Firni complementary from there side but i left it untouched… I refused & tell them to take firni away… they said sir pls pack kar dete hai n all….I asked for the soft copy of my bill but still it’s not delivered on my mobile…. Do such high end places are worth the hype? I gone with high hopes but it’s all useless. It’s a horrible pathetic hospitality that a chef who is working with such a reputated name doesn’t have a time to come on his guest table. Anyone who is reading this must Check the food over there before eating… for me it’s a BIG FLOP SHOW👎🏻 after getting out from there had a biryani from Alkauser mughlai foods 🤣🤣🤣 mast thi 👍🏻

Good ambiance, delicious food. Our pulao was superb and fluffy, and the chicken curry tender and well spiced. Service can't be faulted, albeit a tad overt attentive. Overall, a great value and pleasant experience.

We came just for dessert after an underwhelming dinner experience at Bukhara and we were blown away! Food - tried the kulfi and gulab kheer. Both was outstanding Service - Right from the staff at reception (Lakhoub - sorry getting name wrong) to Gautam who attended us were extremely warm and courteous. The staff overall walked with a smile and were cheerful - they seemed to enjoy what they are doing unlike Bukhara Atmosphere - Fitting for a 5*. We had live music with the pianist playing away classic Hindi music, in a hall reminiscing of Awadhi court. The space was well-lit and had a charm in itself Will totally come back here for dinner/lunch. The team leading the service and front desk - you are amazing!

Dum Pukht specialises in the ancient art of ‘dum’ cooking, where food is slow-roasted in a sealed pot called a ‘handi’. Dum pukht does a fabulous job of presenting the royal Lucknow food. The Biryani was awesome in general, the kind that creates lasting memories. The best I ever had. It was poetry on the plate. The rice was long grain, aromatic, independent strands that were super soft and melt in the mouth. The taste was beyond perfect. The kabab was super soft, melt in the mouth, bursting with flavours in every bite. The Dal was also excellent. The restaurant has grand Lucknowi decor and ambiance.

It was with great expectations that we planned to reserve a table at Dum Pukht online more than a week back to celebrate important milestone Birthday. The reason was clearly mentioned in the booking form & also received a written confirmation about them organising a Cake for the occasion. Getting connected over a phone to the restaurant was Herculean task as it just keeps ringing & no one bothers to receive the call. I could finally get connected only once after 3 attempts made at different times as I wanted to reconfirm our table reservation & also the Cake for special occasion. We reached on time despite heavy traffic & were instantly allocated our table. We ordered Long Island ice tea which was quite average, Jhinga Dum Nasha which was prepared & served in style and was very nice with subtle flavours. Main course was Dum Pukth Biryani which unfortunately was subpar & disappointing… now the best part was they completely forgot about the Cake that was pre intimated & also reconfirmed over phone which was so disappointing, hence we decided to call it a day. To summarise, overall experience of Dum Pukth didn’t leave a good taste in spite of all the hype surrounding it.

Great place and ambience and obviously limited options for vegetarians but still worth it !

This place used to be all heart for decades but service has gone down hill. For visitors - must haves: kakori kebabs, lamb chops, mutton biryani, gulab ki kheer, sheermal For management - we reached restaurant at 11 pm on 15th Dec for dinner, the host at entrance said that there are 8 tables waiting ahead of us and he can't accommodate. He from first instance was not ready to host us, we insisted that if people don't come then let us eat here. I was traveling from US and definitely wanted to eat before leaving. The host was rude and didn't budge, we stood there for next 30 mins and not a single table walked in. We pushed the jost again and can easily see that plenty of tables were available. It clearly showed that the restaurant was not ready to provide service even with tables available. After pushing the host continuous he eventually gave us table, it took us 45 mins for to get table. No one before or after came to occupy any table (see pic of empty restaurant) Dum Pukht was never like this, we have so fond memories when servers here used to go above and beyond, it used to be memorable but not any more. We just come here for food, nothing else.

They were kind enough to curate a meal for one that included both vegetarian and meat options. Everything I tasted was unique and delicious, but a special mention should be made about the lamb biryani. Simple yet spectacular flavors that made this Hyderabadi vouch for it being the best he has ever had. I look forward to coming back...