Spoil Your Taste Buds At Zaika
Correspondent | Tuesday January 18, 2022 06:00
It is a cosy setup boasting a very elaborate menu that caters to palates of assorted preferences. Visiting this best kept secret of a gem is an amazing experience.
The diverse offerings encourage one to keep visiting so as to try something new on the menu at every opportunity. Tough COVID-19 times meant the restaurant had to become a bit more innovative to stay afloat and they not only established themselves but diversified and grew their client base, expanding the restaurant offer with a traditional foods take away section open Monday to Fridays, while the main restaurant is open throughout the week.
Zaika caters to meat lovers and vegetarians who are spoilt for choice by a segmented Indian, Chinese and Mediterranean menu, the latter which boasts serving the biggest and best King Size Grilled Prawns and Beef Ribs.
If you are an individual on the move or are simply looking for something light, then the Chaat Menu is for you. Chaat or chāt is a family of savoury snacks that originated in India, typically served as hors d'oeuvre or at roadside tracks from stalls or food carts across South Asia in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
At Zaika they are prepared by a professionally trained Indian chef. By the end of this month, Indian and Continental breakfasts will also be available. Zaika is a sit-in restaurant that also offers take aways with portions as big as the owners’ heart. There is also a delivery offer for those who want to wait for their palate experience in the comfort of their homes.
I had an opportunity to sit at Zaika with a guest, received by a warm welcome from the staff who are pleasantly well versed with such a diverse menu. The owner is at the heart of the warm reception, making an effort to give every guest a homely greeting once they have settled in. We had some experiential meals today, starting off with Mutton Angara Sizzler, boneless pieces of mutton with a hint of charcoal flavour. It is equally spicy and smokey.
The dish it comes in is so hot, you have to be super careful. The Tandoori Prawn starter leaves you wanting more so the portion sizes really come into play here, you can never feel like you didn’t have enough. Our main comes with the option of, Chicken, Mutton , Seafood or Vegetarian, the Matka Biriyani. The pot it is prepared in, the Matka is a Nkgwana, a traditional clay pot. In order to support other local business, they were sourced from Thamaga Pottery. I have always known that Nkgwana was used as a storage vessel.
It was refreshing to see it used in such a versatile way. This traditional way of cooking the Biriyani is cooked and served in the clay pot, the pot helps enhance flavours and is aesthetically pleasing. We found this chicken dish to be unique and definitely fancy. If you are not a huge fan of spicy food, I would recommend that you ask about the level of spice with every order so as to not get disappointed. To finish of the amazing food adventure, we shared a Sizzling Brownie, it cannot have been a regular brownie. It comes on a steaming dish, brownie stays warm and the ice cream melts as you dig into the molten chocolate centre. After a good meal, it’s not unpopular to have tea, I look forward to trying the Smoked Charcoal tea next time for the mere fact that I know charcoal has many health benefits.