A vegetarian restaurant that features specialities from all the primarily vegetarian cuisines of India - the menu is quite novel for Lower Parel.
With bright pop colors and interesting wall decor this place stands out as surprisingly young for its food "genre". The menu which is faintly inspired from Swati and maybe Soam has some interesting twists to its dishes. Firkee is experimenting with the texture and form of its food - giving it the appearance of fusion without truely changing the taste.
Thus youngsters, foodies and puritans alike are kept happy.
The Dabeli Brushetta for example -seems to fancy and sanitized but one bite and you feel the contrasting flavors of the chutneys and textures of the crunchy pomegranate and sev.
In its essence it's almost updating their food for this century but maintaining the most important thing - it's flavor. The taste is the same as the original with no major deviation
We had the Pav bhaji fondue which frankly looks gloopy despite its fancy presentation but man its amazing twist to the cheese pav bhaji we get at Shiv Sagars.
The Khasta kachori was my least favorite thing on the menu - too salty for my liking but the Vatana kachori made up for it. I loved the little Makai Toasts which are creamy and peppery.
The Panki was as good as Swatis ( yes that's the bench mark). We tried the plain one though they had several varieties.
The Paniyaaram handvo was shaped like a Paniyaaram but with the batter of handvo which makes it crispier and less doughy than handvo
The Mini batata wada were kickass - like really better than a stalls. The
Paneer lifafas were delicate Frankie's with an almost fried-wanton texture.
When it came to mains they really meant business. They plan to rotate their menu by having daily specials so as to give a variety to their regular clients.
First up was the Rajasthani Satpadi roti n gatte ka saag. Normally I'm not a fan of msrvari food but the gatta was spicy and thick and cooked ver well. It paired really well with pastry like roti even if it was too salty.
I've had better Thalipith and pitla - though it was tasty but nothing to write home about.
The Fada ni khichdi was very simple and tasty.
The hero of the meal was the Palak khichdi. Buttery creamy with the right amount of spinach - this isn't the khichdi your mum gives you when you are sick but who cares. For me it made my day and I would rate it higher than any biryani.
We also had the Baked khichdi which was a layered khichdi with a cheese topping. Interesting presentation meant to appease a generation that wrinkles it nose at the mention of khichdi.
Even though we were bursting at the seams we greedily agreed to have dessert. Gulab Jamun slices with a dollop of good old vanilla ice cream. Could anything be more perfect.
Over all it was a good experience. Even though it's in an odd location for the type of food it serves , Firkee gives Swati and Soam a run for its money with great vegetarian innovative fare and modest fare. A special mention also goes out to the white rose sherbet which is just what the doctor ordered on a hot day - the masala chaas like some of the other food was a tad salty.
*Dishes I still want to try*
Thepla wrap
Masala dosa dumpling
Sev puri tacos
Kathiyawadi know suey
Muito bom. eu estou de agua na boca
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