Kheer, Gulab Jamun Or Kulfi? The Sweet Side Of Dishes Of India

There is a small problem with ordering a big Indian meal. By the time the plates have been cleared, everyone is usually full. Then someone mentions dessert. That is where the second round of decisions begins. At Dishes of India, the choices include three familiar Indian favourites: Kheer Pista, Gulab Jamun and Pista Kulfi. They are not variations of the same dessert. Each one has a completely different personality, which makes choosing between them harder than it sounds. Considering the story behind Dishes of India, having traditional Indian desserts on the menu feels particularly fitting. The restaurant opened on June 17, 1997, but Chef Ramanand Bhatt had been working toward that moment for decades. He started cooking at just 16 years old at a roadside café in New Delhi. Later, at 25, he travelled to Spain and spent five years working at a prestigious Indian restaurant. He returned to India and worked for 15 years in Air India flight kitchens as an assistant chef before moving to the United States in 1981. Sixteen years later, Dishes of India opened. So, what should you order when you get to dessert?

If You Like Something Creamy, Try Kheer Pista

Kheer has been part of Indian cooking for a very long time, and it is easy to understand why it has lasted. It is comforting food. At Dishes of India, Kheer Pista is an Indian rice pudding served cold and finished with nuts. The rice gives it a soft, creamy texture, while the nuts add a little something to chew on. It is not an overly complicated dessert. That is part of its charm. After a meal full of spices, sauces and savoury dishes, a chilled bowl of rice pudding can feel like a quiet ending. You do not need to figure out how to eat it or what flavour combination is happening. It is familiar, sweet and distinctly Indian. The pistachio and nut garnish also gives the dessert a little more character than a plain rice pudding.

If Syrup Is Your Thing, There Is Gulab Jamun

Then there are the people who see Gulab Jamun on a menu and do not need to look at anything else, fair enough. Gulab Jamun is one of those Indian sweets that has become known well beyond India. At Dishes of India, it comes as a golden fried milk ball soaked in sweet syrup. That description tells you almost everything you need to know about the experience. It is richer than the kheer. It is sweeter. The fried exterior gives it a completely different texture, while the syrup makes the centre soft and indulgent. Gulab Jamun also has a way of turning into a group dessert. Someone orders it “just to try.” Someone else takes a bite. Then another spoon appears.

Then There Is Pista Kulfi

If neither rice pudding nor syrup soaked sweets sound right, Pista Kulfi takes things in another direction. Kulfi is a traditional Indian frozen dessert, and the version at Dishes of India has pistachio flavour. It might remind you of ice cream, but kulfi has its own identity. The texture and preparation give it a denser, richer character, while pistachio brings a nutty flavour that works particularly well after a savoury Indian meal. There is also something satisfying about ending a meal with something cold.

Dessert Is The Last Part Of The Meal, Not An Afterthought

There is a tendency to focus on Indian food through curries, naan, tandoori dishes and other savoury favourites. Desserts deserve some attention too. At Dishes of India, Kheer Pista, Gulab Jamun and Pista Kulfi offer three very different ways to finish a meal. One brings chilled rice pudding and nuts. One brings fried milk sweetness and syrup. The other brings traditional pistachio kulfi. None needs to compete with the others. They simply suit different moods. Perhaps that is the nicest way to end a meal at Dishes of India: take your time, try something sweet and remember that the restaurant itself came from a chef who spent decades doing exactly that with food, learning, working, starting again and eventually creating a place of his own.