Hyderabad is home to some of the most exotic and authentic cuisines in the world. Be it the famous Biryani or the Paaya (Hoof), the city has a lot to offer for foodies. And I being a true foodie, am not missing out on anything that is on offer.
Today I’ll be talking about the world famous Hyderabadi Biryani. This is the signature dish that puts the city on the world food map. Just like any other person, I was told to try out the Biryani at various locations in the city. Well, not surprisingly the locations were Paradise and Bawarchi. Well, I have been to both the places in the past week and now its time to decide : Bawarchi or Paradise – Who’s got the best Biryani ?
Bawarchi Biryani Hyderabad – RTC X roads
To start with I’ll talk about Bawarchi. The restaurant is located at RTC crossroads, which is kindof off the necklace road. I was out along with my friends and decided to walk up to the restaurant. The restaurant is right at the crossroads and is a 2 storey building. A dining room on the ground floor, an A/C hall on the first floor and an open air sort of dining area on the 2nd floor. Note: there are many Bawarchi restaurants in Hyderabad, but this is the original one. Well, that’s what they said !
As soon as we reached, there was a long queue waiting outside the restaurant. This was the first sign which confirmed that we were at the right place. The wait wasn’t long before we got to the table.
Menu ? Who wants a menu ? We straight away ordered Veg. Biryani and Chicken Biryani. The Veg. Biryani costs 100Rs while the Chicken Biryani costs 150Rs and all of this INCLUDING taxex – which is very reasonable. The time from the order to the service was ted long – but then again it was worth the wait. Soon we were served the signature Hyderabadi Biryani.
Well, Veg Biryani too exists
Starting off with the Veg. Biryani(coz I’m a vegetarian 😛) – the amount served was way too much ! I could finish it, but my friends couldn’t, so guys make sure you go empty stomach if you wanna finish that platter ! The Biryani was amazing, with great spices, slightly high on chilly – but that was okay. The vegetables were perfectly cooked along with the rice and the smell itself confirmed the same. The Chicken Biryani too was amazing as told by my friends – there was a single big piece of chicken in the biryani.
So, all in all, the Biryani here is amazing. The taste, the style of cooking and I mean everything – just perfect. And the value for money ? Its very high ! You won’t find this amount of rice for this price ! You can’t miss this at any cost !
Update (22/10/2015): Went here for Dussehra lunch and once again had Biryani, apart from this ordered Paneer Butter Masala and Roomali Roti. The Paneer was fresh and tasted amazing and the rotis were hot and soft. However the service was slow, I mean by the time he got the second service for rotis,it was late, I mean I had already finished the curry, so moral is order everything at once !
Paradise Biryani Hyderabad – Paradise, Secunderabad
Next, in line is Paradise. The restaurant has various branches including NTR Gardens, Paradise Circle etc. We headed to the one at Paradise Circle. The restaurant is just off the main road and can be easily spotted. One can say that there is a Paradise complex which houses the Paradise Bakery and the restaurant. There are 3 floors and a garden area where people and dine. There is also a separate block for take away and there provision for valet parking too.
The restaurant has seen many celebrities who have visited this place. The list includes the likes of Ileana, Prakash Raj, Harsha Bhogle, and most recently Sachin Tendulkar. Well, this place certainly has something ! The restaurant has received some prestigious Food awards too.
We headed to the first floor and ordered a Veg. Biryani and a Chicken Biryani. The restaurant is pricey when compared to Bawarchi. A plate of Veg. Biryani costs as much as 200Rs while the Chicken Biryani costs about 250 Rs and all this EXCLUSIVE of taxes. The service was quick and we soon had what we were waiting for !
So, talking about the Veg. Biryani I must say that I was extremely disappointed. (Compared to Bawarchi this was pretty mediocre) It seemed like a mix vegetable curry prepared along with paneer and all of this was spread on a layer of rice and a good amount of ghee. Well, this is not how biryani is made ! Even the amount was less compared to what was served at Bawarchi and for all this we paid almost double amount that what we did at Bawarchi. The Chicken Biryani though looked appealing to me, but as it turns out, it also wasn’t great either as pointed out by my friend. He said, there wasn’t any great taste and even the chicken wasn’t that good.
Well, Paradise was not so Paradise for us. Not what was expected from a restaurant whose tag line is ” World’s Favourite Biryani” I don’t know about their other branches, but this wasn’t that great.
So in the end of Bawarchi or Paradise – Who’s got the best Biryani ? we have a clear winner and its Bawarchi.
Reasons: –
- Prepared according to the authentic style.
- Spiced to perfection.
- Amount of rice is excess.
- Value for Money – 10/10 !
Next time you are in Hyderabad, don’t miss out eating at Bawarchi or Paradise. You might have a different opinion, so do try out both. That’s all for this post, guess you now know where to head for authentic Hyderabadi biryani.
Other Biryani Restaurants in Hyderabad:
- Shah Ghouse
- Behrouz Biryani – delivery only
- Alpha Biryani – near Secunderabad Railway station
- Meridian Biryani
- Shahdab
If you are from Hyderabad, what are the other restaurants you believe serve the Best Biryani in Hyderabad ? Share your restaurant recommendations in the comments below or tweet to me at @Atulmaharaj or DM me in Instagram
Best thing to try in bawarchi apart from biryani is grill chicken wid kebabs.
No doubt bawarchi will defeat all the restaurants in hyd..best briyani kebabs in town
check this out…http://timescity.com/timesfoodawards-2014/hyderabad-winners
http://timescity.com/timesfoodawards-2014/hyderabad-winners/casual-dine