The New Chinese Menu at Setz, DLF Emporio

A restaurant that has been synonymous with DLF Emporio, Setz has built a great name for itself, considering how it has stood the test of time and remained its patrons’ frequented place all throughout. I remember when they first opened some 8 years ago, I celebrated a lot of my special occasions there, and it still holds true for a lot of important events my friends celebrate. They have recently launched a new Chinese menu which is quite vast, doesn’t restrict itself to only appetizers or gravies, but goes the whole nine yards and does everything new from soups, dimsums, stir-fry starters, fried starters, noodles, rice, curries and gravies, and ends with so many brilliant desserts! They’ve also brought about a couple of cocktails in this menu, and the cocktails are damn yum!

The meal started with a Sichuan vegetable poached dimsum in a light soya sauce, Steam Chicken Ball with rice wine, Prawn with bonito flakes dimsum, and the Silken tofu, artichoke and Guilin chilli dimsum. The Sichuan vegetable and silken tofu dumplings were bomb! The light soya sauce in the Sichuan dumpling gave an amazing flavour to the dimsums, and the lightness of the silken tofu with the burst of flavours made it a perfect choice to order even if you don’t like veg food. Melted in the mouth!

Setz has given a very different turn to the non vegetarian dimsums in the menu. The Steam Chicken Ball was actually a dumpling that was steamed and coated with rice, not a layer of flour. Very different, very healthy too. The prawn dimsums with bonito flakes was again something very juicy and light, and so healthy!! You don’t miss the coating of flour at all.

The showstopper for people who really love to indulge and enjoy food would be the non vegetarian Pupu Platter. This is a platter that can easily be shared amongst 4-5 people. Chicken, fish, prawn- the platter has it all. Each protein is coated with different things and then deepfried, making it very very crisp and delicious. Fried food instantly becomes addictive, but when it’s flavoured well and the stuffing, specially when it’s meat, is juicy and flavourful, the whole dish tastes smashing in its entirety. This was the case with the Pupu Platter. A crumb coating, a filo pastry type coating, a thin crisp coating, there were different textures to every component of the dish, and the platter was served with a chilli dip. It came on a plate with a centre that had a small flame, a revolving plate perfect for your boomerangs, and of ocurse for moving the plate around and choosing what you would like to have. A must must order!

Appetizers had a Steamed Lamb Ribs with Sichuan pepper and a Spicy Chicken. Didn’t dig the lamb ribs much but the spicy chicken was nice.

I don’t remember the soup we were served, but it had mushrooms in it and the consistency was a thin and watery one. Didn’t like the soup, but I had the main course to look forward to then. Main course is beautiful in this new Chinese menu! The beans can just not be missed, and the same also goes for Prawns, toban, sha cha dry chilli sauce. A thick sauce with an amazing spicy kick, very well balanced. The gravy also had a lot of greens, and the chunky prawns were cooked just right.

We were also served Lotus Stem, celery, Beijing Cucumber, dry red chilli, but you can give this a miss. Go with the Broccoli Stemgaichoy, zucchini, fermented garlic and light soy sauce. A dish with less gravy and more veggies, very light but so packed with crunchiness from the veggies and a light salty soya garlic taste.

The noodles and rice are of course the regular affair and I’ve always maintained that Setz really knows how to do their Chinese. Be it for ala carte or for their famous buffet, the Chinese is always delicious. They have introduced Stir fried sweet potato noodles to give their guests more choice in the sides, and this one sure scores high on the health factor too.

Coming to that part of the evening that left everybody so excited and happy, that we were left wanting more, and in a good greedy sense. The Tiramisu needs no description, just go and order it! Want to try something new yet incredible? Try their Napolean Pastry that displays sheer finesse and technique coupled with an excellent sense of flavour. Kudos to the chef!

Want something chilled and don’t want the usual desserts? Setz has an option to cure this craving too. Indulge in their Fanta Blues Popsicle and Kala Khatta Popsicles. The flavour is exactly what you read, and so so so refreshing! Want to make your party happening or want to turn a quiet dinner at Setz into something exciting? Order their Bubblegum and Paan Iced Shots. The shot glasses are made of real ice, so you got to have your shot as soon it comes on the table, or the glass starts melting. Delicious shots that build up the excitement with their colours as soon as they reach the table.

The menu is overall a good mix of dishes. They’ve gone different with a couple of dishes but have still retained the taste and have also contained the usual Chinese flavours in the new menu. The dimsums and Pupu Platter are a winner for me, and so are the prawns, egg fried rice, noodles and beans in the main course. The desserts? Oh, they had me floored! 

Address: 3rd floor, DLF Emporio, Nelson Mandela Marg, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi
Contact: 011 30806280
Timings: 12 noon to 12 midnight

Disclaimer: The review was done on an invitation from the restaurant. All views expressed are unbiased in nature but readers are advised to exercise their own discretion.

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