Eating at Matamaal has become a ritual on my/our trips to Delhi. We first ate there (twice) in January 2023 and then in March 2024. When I was in Delhi by myself in December, I dutifully went and ate there again by myself. And now that I’m in Delhi again by myself, it’s no surprise that I was back there again. That was yesterday. Here is a combined report on that lunch and my meal there in December (which I’d forgotten to previously report on).
By the way, as I’ve noted before, I use the name “Delhi” in my restaurant reports to refer more broadly to the National Capital Region, which includes the contiguous cities of Gurgaon (in the state of Haryana) and Noida (in the state of Uttar Pradesh). Matamaal is located in Gurgaon in the City Court mall. Or rather, that’s where the flagship location that we visit is located. At some point in the period since our first visit they’ve opened locations in Greater Kailash I in Delhi, in Noida, and even one in Pune. As to whether these locations are branches or franchise operations, I’m not sure. My reports shouldn’t be seen as indicative of the quality of the food anywhere other than at the flagship location. At that location I’m yet to have a bad meal, as my recent lunches in the last three months demonstrate.
In my previous reports I’ve referred to the food at Matamaal as Kashmiri. That is not inaccurate, but I should be more specific and say that what they serve is Kashmiri Pandit cuisine. The menu has expanded a bit from our first meal there. Many of the dishes that were on a separate street food menu in March 2024 are now part of the menu proper. Prices have also risen between each of my/our visits. The non-vegetarian thali cost Rs. 1500 in January 2023, Rs. 1600 in March 2024, Rs. 1750 in December 2024; yesterday, I paid Rs 1895 for it. I note this not to complain but merely to record it. Even at the higher prices, the food remains a very good value.
Even as prices have risen and a few new items have been added, the core of the menu remains the same. The best situation to be in there is to be in a group of at least four people. That way you can get a range of dishes to share. That’s not to say that the solo diner is going to have a bad time: they offer four different thalis, which include broad cross-sections of the menu. In December I ate one of those thalis and yesterday I ate another. I enjoyed both but actually found them to be a bit overwhelming: the first included seven separate meat dishes and the second included five. Even as dedicated a carnivore as I am, I found both to be a bit much, especially given the richness of most of the curries.
Alright, let’s get to the meals. I’ve divided the report into three parts. First up is a gallery that shows you what the restaurant looks like now (pretty much what it looked like on our first visit). Then a quick look at my first lunch in December, followed by a quick look at yesterday’s lunch. Scroll down to the end to see what’s coming next from Delhi.
Restaurant
Lunch 1, December 2024
At this meal I ate their Wazwan Thali. Wazwan refers to elaborate meals prepared by traditional chefs named Wazas and this thali features a number of dishes from that repertoire: a mutton seekh kabab, kabargah (double-cooked mutton ribs), methi maaz (mutton curry with fenugreek leaves), mutton marchwangan korma (a spicy curry made with Kashmiri chillies), waza kokur (chicken curry), and two dishes made with mutton pounded to a paste and formed into large spongy meatballs: goshtaba (which features a tangy yogurt and fennel-based gravy) and rista (which features a spicy red gravy). This thali does not include any vegetables of any kind beyond the radish and onion chutneys served with it. It also comes with a large bowl of rice and some of their delectable phirni (made with ground rice, milk etc.) at the end.
Everything on the thali was very good but I particularly enjoyed the kabargah, methi maaz and goshtaba. And, of course, the phirni. For a closer at this thali and the menu as it was in December, launch the slideshow below. Scroll down for a look at the second meal.
Lunch 2, March 2025
At this lunch I ate the Non-Vegetarian Thali. This has one fewer dish on the whole and includes an actual vegetable dish. On the thali were: kabargah, mutton yakhni, mutton rogan josh, tchok charwan (little cubes of liver in a tangy tamarind-based curry), masc (quenelles of ground mutton in a rich red curry), haak (boiled greens with stems) and radish and onion chutneys. Plus a large bowl of rice and more of that phirni at the end.
The highlights were the kabargah (again), the yakhni, the masc, and, as always, the phirni. I also very much appreciated being able to cut through the richness of the meat dishes with the simple greens. You could actually get a second veg dish on this thali if you opt to get forgo the tchok charwan and get Kashmiri dum-alu instead. I do wish though that both these meat-heavy thalis included some of their sublime Kashmiri rajma.
Take a closer look by launching the slideshow below. Scroll down to see what’s coming next.
The restaurant was not very busy when I was there for lunch in December. Yesterday, there were more tables occupied. There was one amusing episode when an older (by which I mean older even than me) couple trundled in, sat down, desperately tried to make sense of the menu (which does not include any non-Kashmiri dishes), failed to find vegetarian dishes of interest, and then left.
Even having eaten there four times in the last two years and change, there’s a fair bit on the menu that I have not yet tried. I expect I will try some of those dishes on my next visit, which will likely be in the summer (aging, ailing parents means more trips to India every year than ever before). Next up from this trip, however, will be a report on a very different meal in Gurgaon, eaten at a pan-Asian restaurant. That will probably go up later this week.