
Over the years, Aangan Indian Restaurant has firmly established itself as a leading establishment for high end multicultural cuisine in and around Kampala, with its main stock in trade being Indian cuisine.
Alox Badoni, the brainchild behind the establishment has been on the Kampala food scene for more than 25 years and counting.
He cut his spurs with Haandi Indian Restaurant at Plot 7 Commercial Plaza, where he was the general manger and held authority in that position, until his departure.
Under his stewardship, Haandi was in the top tier Indian restaurants in town, with a good measure of their success owed to Badoni and this is not a lie.
Unbeknownst to many, he thirsted to have his own place and come the year 2009, he deiced that the time was ripe to cut loose and venture out on his own.
The name Aangan has its genesis from the Hindi saying Aanganwadi, which is a courtyard of a house and a gathering for friends and family to get together and chew the cud, munching on good food, accompanied with drinks.
While Aangan Indian Restaurant remains successful and popular as an ethnic entity, unlike Café Javas model, of the smart casual dining, with a menu that appeals to a much broader spectrum of diners, and can afford to replicate branches on a much broader basis. If Aangan was to copy this format in its original form, they would be shooting themselves in the foot.
For that matter, Aangan situated at Lugogo by Pass, offers on the menu several items that are unlikely to be considered wholly legitimate in terms of Indian fare and I think this is a fair game, since it is not done at the expense of the main school of cooking.
In order to maximise the best returns in his restaurant, it was not cost-effective to have a singular cuisine of just Indian food, with branches elsewhere and hope to make ends meet.
Badoni’s latest venture is Aangan Delight situate in the Kisasi Bukoto area in a busy location, which used to be a somewhat of a watering hole, with no food of distinction of which to write.
He was quick to seize the opportunity and following a much needed renovation job, a month ago, they opened. Wisely, along with the Indian fare, they have added several items that are cosmopolitan and multicultural in nature.
These include inter alia, popular items such as fish fingers, with chips or a sublime grilled Tilapia fish fillet, pizzas and sandwiches, among other items. The pizzas are as good as any that one might expect and there is also the full English breakfast.
But for the Indian lover of good and authentic fare, do not despair, for the very best of that much loved cuisine is yours to enjoy at Aangan Delight. In fact, if one was engaging an Indian cook, what test would I ask him to test as a test of his ability and none other than Roghan Josh, a Kashmiri specialty comes to mind. This mutton preparation in which the masala, or spices, is particularly tricky.
Chef Sanjeev, who is a master chef, ably demonstrated his prowess of mutton preparation, based on his use of spices. From my understanding of this particular dish, that would test a cook’s familiarity with special Kashmiri cooking methods, as well, one would have to pound rather than grind some of the spices such as coriander seeds, ginger root and dried red chilies.
Keeping these separate he would have had to have on hand, a mixture of powdered aromatic spices, commonly referred to as garam masala comprising cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, fennel, mace, cumin seed, turmeric and nutmeg.
It is the variety, the combination and the myriad uses of spices that distinguish Indian cooking from any other cuisine in the world.
The good news is that in one fell swoop, those many devotees of the Aangan Indian Restaurant, who live in the precincts of Bukoto, Ntinda, Kisasi and the likes, no longer have to trek to the central business district in order to enjoy their favourite types of food.
Place: The Aangan Delight Restaurant
Address: Tenex Apartments, Kisasi Road, Kampala
Smoke-Free Zone: Not allowed
Recommended items: Rogan Josh
Service: Exemplary
Ambience: Alfresco and informal
Open: Daily 7 days a week till 10:00 pm
Menu: Breakfast served with coffee/tea/juice: English breakfast delight Shs30,000, African chapatti combo shs Shs25,000, Spanish omelet and toast Shs15,000, omelet on toast, Bites Delight bruschetta shs 12’000spring roll veg shs Shs2,000, spring roll chicken Shs3,000, samosa veg Shs2,000 French fries Shs10,000, honey chili potatoes Shs15,000, cheezy fries shs Shs15,000, cheezy garlic bread Shs15,000, cheezy naan Shs12,000, chicken strips shs 22’000, honey sticky wings Shs23,000, assorted pizzas ranging from Shs25,000 to Shs30,000 Indian Delight combos such as chicken curry Shs30,000, butter chicken Shs30,000, mutton curry shs, dal and subzi combo shs Shs28,000, fish tikka Shs28,000
The Crowd: locals from within the neighborhood
The Bar: Soda, water, wine and beer.
The damage: A couple can get by with at least Shs80,000 and above including a starter
Sound level: Good
Rating: Worth a visit
Parking: Available and secure
If you go: Daily
RATINGS: Not to be missed, worth a visit, OK/so so, don’t waste your time.