Restaurant Name: QBA, Connaught Place, New Delhi
Phone: +919560871118, +911145173333
Address: E 42-43, Inner Circle, First floor (lift available), Connaught Place, New Delhi 110001 India
Time: 12:00 Noon – 01:00 AM
Meals for two: Rs. 2,000
Cuisines: North Indian, Italian, Continental, Pizza, Desserts, Beverages, Mughlai
Facilities: Home Delivery, Takeaway Available, Full Bar Available, Table booking recommended, Family Friendly, Smoking Area, Live Sports Screening, Indoor Seating, Happy Hours, Desserts and Bakes
Go to any of the new brigade of restaurants in the city and you will find the noise level abnormally high: granite floors, metal tables and chairs and little in the way of upholstery to dampen the sound. In the old days,restaurants were made with flair and with the customers’comfort in mind. QBA is 18 years old and the wooden floors, comfy sofas with full upholstery means that you can settle in to enjoy the food, drink and music without an assault on your ears. In fact, even the playlist is of the timeless, ageless kind: peppy and melodious. The restaurant is vast, yet it is usually full due to its location. Also, Connaught Place tends to cater to two disparate groups:one is the senior brigade who only patronize the heritage restaurants; the other is the under 30s, who stick to the loud music and uncomfortable seating variety of restaurants. QBA is one of the few eateries that straddle the divide effortlessly and because it is attractive to a wide swathe of customers,is usually crowded to capacity.
QBA, Connaught Place, New Delhi: Food
While the restaurant has always served western and north Indian food, the unique selling point is the sub-divisions within the categories. For example, the menu offers a variety of rolls: kathi and Lebanese rolls. There are also pizzas, and because QBA attracts large groups, pizzas have become the default appetizer, as it is easy to share amongst a big table. Garlic roast chicken pizza (₹695) is our personal favourite, though the green chilli and pineapple Hawaiian pizza (₹595) sounds unmissable. In case you are looking for something hearty outside of mealtimes, their burgers seem to be hot-sellers, though we have not tried any ourselves. One observation is that the quality of cooking is far better than the new crop of restaurants that are big on style and short on substance. Not QBA, though, where one or two of the kitchen staff have been around for as long as the restaurant has. The grilled fish fillet served with lemon butter sauce (₹895) is usually cooked to perfection.
Plus & Minus:
The mac and cheese (₹675) could have done with a bit more cheese, of a stronger variety, but for convenience and vibe, QBA is hard to beat.