Last summer, a friend made a whole bunch of us walk about half a kilometre in the blistering heat of June, in the promise of good food, and we were not disappointed... The source of our ’reward’ was The Magic Forest situated in South Extension 1, New Delhi. It’s comfortably located, as I mentioned before, about half a kilometre from the main market. It’s a relatively new place, less than a year old, but it’s not too well-advertised, so, not too many people know about it.
A multi-cuisine restaurant, it offers great continental and chinese cuisine (I’ve never been able to look past these, but I’m informed by reliable sources that the indian fare is good) The food, here, is really good. I strongly recommend the ’fromage aromatic’. Fromage is french for cheese. The paneer, as we better know it, is grilled, yet soft and succulent, and topped with a delectable gravy, served with rice and veggies (my mouth is watering as I write) Among the chinese dishes, I recommend the ’hongkong potatoes’ and the ’crispy lamb’. Both veg as well as non-veg preparations are excellent. The portions are generous and served at just the right temperature.
The refreshments and desserts are good too. Try the ’punchy punch’, ’orange blossom’ and this blue-coloured, lemon drink (I’m sorry, I’ve forgotten the name..) Among the desserts, you must try the ’date pancake’, it’s awesome.
The staff is friendly, courteous and helpful. The interiors are very well done. The restaurant is spread over two floors and the first floor has these really cool fountains, that are guaranteed to keep the kids busy and out of your hair.
Oh yes, I wouldn’t recommend you visit here if accompanied by elderly person(s) who cannot climb steps, because there are about 10-12 steps leading even to the ground floor. In that case, just order in, they offer home-delivery.
The Magic Forest caters to pretty much one and all. The food’s reasonably priced. so, college students can frequent the place. You can go there for lunches with friends or dinners with family. But it’s not exactly ideal for a romantic dinner with your boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife...you get the picture. You could do lunch though...