Its said that the three things that make a restaurant a success are location,location and location. In that case,Chowk Akbari in Noida should rake it in. Located in the heart of the commercial district of Sector-18,a stones throw from offices and BPOs,Chowk Akbari will have a steady stream of business during lunch and dinner hours. The Mughlai restaurant has a spartan set-up - a few simple wooden tables with stainless steel chairs,a laminated and limited menu and,finally,a distinct lack of a door between the restaurant and the kitchen. We decided to start with the kebab platter two pieces each of shammi kebab,galouti kebab and paneer tikka; one seekh kebab; and one piece each of chicken tikka and kakori kebab. Due to the absence of the connecting door,and the fact that,at the time,we were the only clients in the establishment,we sat through the entire prognosis of our meal including the chefs lament about there being no kakoris and about our waiters general ineptitude. Prepared for the worst,we were,however,pleasantly surprised. While the chicken and paneer tikkas were average,the mutton items were quite good. The seekh was well seasoned,and the galouti was decent if a trifle charred. What really shone was the shammi which had a very unusual and subtle flavour. The next dish brought us down to earth. The chicken biryani was disappointing. Under-seasoned and not even warm,with chewy rice,this was a write off. Finally,we had mutton korma with roomali and tandoori rotis. The rotis were nice and soft,and the kormas gravy was excellent; it was,in fact,among the better curries in Noida. Sadly,the meat pieces,though well-butchered and meaty,were under-cooked and rather chewy. Chowk Akbari has a dessert choice with three options so we decided to end our meal with jal jeera. After 15 minutes of waiting we were informed by the tandoor chef there was no jal jeera on the premises. The service,though polite,is quite slow,which is surprising as,at least at the beginning of our meal,we were the only patrons. Gradually,the restaurant filled with young professionals looking to grab a bite. There was only one waiter who took our orders and served us our biryani and korma. The tandoor chef served the kebabs and the rotis a la gueridon ,though,instead of carving anything,he just dumped our dishes on the table. The cashier-manager served us our bill (Rs 530 inclusive of taxes). If the management gets its act together and puts a few essentials like a kitchen door in place,appoints more waiters and pays attention to the finer nuances of cooking,Chowk Akbari could become a prominent eatery in the area. Meal for two: Rs 400 (with tax),Address: D1,Sector 18,Noida,Contact: 0120-4281222
