We revisited Glass Window at hotel deccan rendezvous near apte road-ghole road in Pune on the memory of a really good meal about 4 years back! We ordered achari murg tikkas and requested if chef could make us his palak paneer since we could not find it on the menu. He kindly obliged.

The tandoor cooked achari tikkas were delicious. They were cooked perfectly leaving them juicy and tender. When you took a bite the smokiness of coal from tandoor came first. A few spots were aptly charred and the chicken leg chunks used were big. The marinade was made special by use of homemade achar (pickling) masala which had coarse ground mustard seeds, methi (fenugreek), saunf (fennel), jeera (cumin) and kalonji (onion seeds). You could spot the crushed mustard seeds which added a sharpness to the flavor which was balanced by the slightly bitter undertones from methi and the aromatics from saunf. The kababs did not pack a lot of heat but rather were aromatically spicy. The thinly sliced onion was perfect accompaniment.

We then had palak paneer. This is easily taken for granted but the one with qualities we love is not always easily found. The best way to describe it is the palak is greener on this side. This was prepared with careful attention to not over complicate it and seasoned quite expertly to let you enjoy it in spoonfuls just on its own. Some people might prefer it hotter with more chilies but for us this was perfect with the simple earthy seasoning coming from cumin and a little bit of heat from green chilies. The spinach flavor was brought out at its best by not overcooking it which brings on the bitterness and metallic/mineral taste. This was milder leafy flavor balanced by pungency of garlic. I did not confirm this but most likely the palak was cooked only upon ordering.

The service at Glass Window is very courteous and attentive and when we requested to not serve the food because we need to take pictures they smiled and waited patiently till we were done. They also hooked us up with chef brijesh graced us at the table and offered us some insights to take back to our kitchen.

Have to thank him for some superb tips and actually writing down the recipe for us on a piece of paper that i would certainly treasure. His tips were to do big pot blanching of spinach to cook it perfectly and to then add baking soda to reduce the acidity which affects chlorophyl in the spinach. For the tikkas they use bigger leg chunks and are meticulous with their tandooring along-with a the use of their fresh coarse ground achari rub.

We wish this young team at Glass Window we encountered success that is worthy of their passion and hard work which easily came through in our food and the interactions.