Ssence, The Suryaa Hotel, New Delhi Review

Ssence, The Suryaa Hotel, New Delhi Review & Pictures

Hello Everyone,

I recently had the chance to visit Ssence at The Suryaa Hotel, New Delhi which is located at New Friends Colony. It was recently renovated and offers a wide variety of cuisines like Italian, American, North Indian & Continental making it truly ‘A Culinary Showcase‘. They offer an extensive buffet spread along with a special counter of low calorie dishes and drinks for heath conscious people besides an impressive salad spread.

The ambiance of the restaurant is luxurious, vast and elegant with an open kitchen and not to be missed is their grand dessert options. You are literally spoilt for choice with desserts ranging from cheesecakes to divine mousse, cupcakes to profiteroles along with yummy Indian sweetdishes.

Shweta & I decided to go together at Ssence and were first given a tour of the restaurant, shown the various counters and were later seated to our table. We had the chance to meet Chef Sanjay Behl and we decided to let the chef decide our menu that day.

We were welcomed by a fresh Lychee Drink along with fresh Watermelon stuffed with cheese. It was a refreshing start to the meal and for drinks I was offered the bartender’s special mocktail of fresh juices.

We moved on to the appetizers and tried their Mushroom Croquettes, Feta Cigar Rolls, Ceaser Salad accompanied with a Fig Chutney and cheese aioli. The Mushroom Croquettes were full of flavour and definitely a favorite from the meal. The Ceaser Salad was fresh and crispy and the dressing wasn’t heavy which is exactly how I like it. The Feta Cigar Rolls were quite appetizing, cigar rolls were crisped to perfection and I surprisingly liked its combination with the Fig Chutney.

The appetizers were followed by a Kebab Platter which consisted of Subz Galouti Kebab, Paneer Tikka &  Phaldari Chat. The Phaldari Chat basically consisted of apple, pineapple and guava which was grilled with a spicy and tangy chutney and tasted quite delicious. They nailed (for the lack of a better word) the Paneer Tikka however Subz Galouti Kebab which is a vegetarian kebab accompanied by Saffron Parantha was a little too bland for my palate.

Personally I hate aubergine(brinjal) but both Chef Sanjay & Shweta recommended that I try Aubergine Parmigiana which I was assured would appeal to me. Aubergine Parmigiana is a baked dish layered with parmesan cheese, fried aubergine, tomatoes with a tangy tomato gravy. At first I wasn’t at all fond of it but the flavours definitely grew on me later though I couldn’t even finish half of it as I was really stuffed by then.

Since we were quite full, we requested the Chef for small portions of our favorite Italian dishes- Asparagus Risotto & Pasta Napolitana. Though I am not a huge fan of rice or biryanis but I do like well cooked risottos, this one was silky and was seasoned perfectly. The pasta was tasty but what I liked even better was the garlic bread with the tangy mustard sauce <3

With the main course done, we moved on to the yummy desserts and had the hardest time selecting what to try. I wish we had left some room in our tummy for the desserts as they looked delicious. I had never tried a Teppanyaki Ice Cream which involves the ice creams of your choice being mixed together with accompaniments on a cold plate. We chose the combination of vanilla & butterscotch with brownie and nuts and least to say, it tasted absolutely DIVINE.

I also ended up trying the Raspberry Profiterole which was one of the best I’ve had till date and I couldn’t help but manage to eat it all despite being so stuffed, yes it was that good. I also managed a little more space for the delectable chocolate mousse. The rich yet fluffy texture made it one of the best mousses I’ve tried till date.

I had a wonderful experience at Ssence and the staff was courteous & warm. They made sure I was comfortable throughout the meal which led me to having a lovely time. I highly recommend Ssence to anyone looking for a great experience involving good food, tempting desserts and a great ambiance.