Spice Terrace is one of the many premium restaurants housed inside JW Marriott which is located steps away from the lush gardens of Cubbon Park and close to the UB City, the heart of CBD. I was here around a week back to experience the launch of revamped Spice Terrace which also included a delectable Awadhi and North West Frontier food trail designed by Master Chef Abdul Quddus.

The unbeatable scenery all around along with stunning views from pool deck is something which amplifies the feel good factor here. Every table is well isolated from each other and this ensures enough privacy to enjoy your perfect dinner.

After a warm welcome and a round of pre-dinner drinks we all settled down on the elaborately decorated table. It was indeed a wonderful sight and folks all around couldn’t stop clicking pictures of it, but am sure I got the best angle 😀

The menu for the day looked very interesting, it managed to give us a very clear and full-fledged idea of what can be expected here, something which is much needed when you’re attending a bloggers table!

First to arrive was Murg Gilafi Seekh, a rather colourful seekh kebab which had subtle hints of garlic, shahi jeera and peppers. This was followed by Zaitooni Malai Jhinga, it was delicious seafood dish, prawns to be specific which was marinated in hung curd and seasoned with olives and cardamom.

Next up was Gosht Galouti, texture was spot on but I personally felt that the preparation would have been even better if it was spiked a bit  in terms of spices (I recollect reading somewhere that the original recipe made use of over 100 spices!!).

Meanwhile I went on to taste the Paneer Tikka Lazeez, which easily stands out to be one of the best stuffed Paneer dishes (stuffed with nuts) that I’ve had in the recent past.

Murg Zaffrani Shorba was served in a fancy manner, the bowl had a tiny lump of saffron and spices over which the chicken stock was poured in a very dramatic manner. It was brilliantly spicy and I must admit that it helped my (slightly) sore throat in a nice way.

It was time for main course now and we started with Shahi Nalli Nihari (Mutton) and Murg Kundan Qaliyan, both paired with assorted bread basket that came along with it. Murg Kundan Qaliyan had aromas of Saffron and Coriander which made it so tempting, the chicken was cooked well and the entire gravy had a semi thick texture.

Dal-e-Awadh was rich and creamy, it had a smoky aroma initially which in my opinion was a turn off but I was glad as it vanished within second making way to the aromas of tempering and spices used.

Chef Abdul Quddus presented himself behind the Dum to make the entry of Biryani a spectacular one. I tried the Shahi Gosht Dum Biryani whereas the veg folks had Sub Chilman Biryani. The long grained Basmati rice is spread with layers of spices and chunks of succulent meat pieces surely calls for something which you would not want to miss.

Our elaborate dinner ended with three amazing preparations from the dessert menu – Shahi Malai Tukda, Shahd-e-Jaam and Kulfi Falooda. Shahi Malai Tukda was my favourite, the lump of fried bread absorbed the condensed milk well and the entire texture was just fine, taste was further enhanced with pistachio, saffron and silver leaves spread over the top.

Overall, for me Spice Terrace checked all the boxes of a fine dine restaurant. Chef Abdul Quddus has spread his culinary magic over the entire menu in a wonderful way. If you are in and around CBD area and want to indulge in signature regional dishes then Spice Terrace at JW Marriott is the place to be in.