Compiled by-Nidhi Kumari
A yummy, appetizing and palatable food is good enough to make your day. Often times, it happens when you miss your indigenous food, those yummy sizzlers , or the chatpata chaat, from that corner of the street, or the Fafda and Jalebi from that farsan and sweets shop, here comes a happy news! For all the lovers of Indian food and for all those who yearn for delectable chatpata Khana (food) from the streets of India ; Chatkazz is the place to be!
Based in the heart of Harris Park (also called Little India in Sydney), located on Station street East, – Chatkazz is a restaurant with a rustic ambience and a modern feel, which is new, up class and refreshingly novel, and is definitely worth a visit.
Members from the Indus Age team took a tour of this restaurant and savored some of the best Indian food, available in Australia.
We began our foodie delight with, the Jeera soda and Ganga Jamuna, which was a mix of a fruit punch of orange, pineapple and water melon which was extremely good. A healthy drink for a start! A refreshingly, natural drink, good enough to tickle ones taste buds. After the refreshing drink came the Jalapeno poppers, the poppers were stuffed with paneer and cheese, having tomato ketchup in between with red and yellow pepper, the entire presentation was impressive and mouth watering indeed. It looked like an Indian pakoda with a twist. Jalapeño filled with cheese and paneer was delicious crunchy and crispy.
Our foodie voyage continued with Sev Puri with no over usage of oil or spices in it and the sauces on it gave it a subtle taste. Unlike the typical Indian chaat and sev puris that are overpowered with excess of salt and masalas (spicy), this one was in proportionate with equal amount of ingredients in the right ratio. It had its own taste that made it unique and taste unusually tasty.
Glancing through the menu, we saw a wide range of vegetarian Indian food –Mumbai roadside special with delicious Pav Bhaji, tava pulao,vada pav ,samosa pav , masala pav , good range of yummy roadside sandwiches like – masala toast sandwich, masala cheese toast sandwich, aloo sliced, cheese double sandwich, samosa sandwich and so on. Another section had a list of delicious frankies like veg aloo, schezwan, paneer frankie etc. The Recent additions to their menu also include a range of delicious rotis and paranthas like gobi parantha, methi mooli paranthas, garlic naan, and a variety of Punjabi sabjis like palak paneer, paneer tikka masala and so on…
To our amazement, they also have an Indian style Pizza section which comprises of Tandoori paneer pizza, Veg. Classic pizza, pizza crusts like Garlic crusts and all time favourite Garlic breads.
And for the lovers of South Indian food there are a variety of South Indian dosas like schezwan dosa, spring dosa, and the newest amongst them being Chinese dosa and Jini dosas.
They also have a range of refreshing, new drinks like Mojito, Berry Mint Frappe, and freshly squeezed juices like Orange and Water melon. Lip-smacking Sweets and Desserts are hard to ignore and probably most tempting after a chatpata meal. To name a few, Chocolate pizza, Sizzling Brownie, Shrikhand, Ras Malai and the list goes on…
All that are left back home, you can get in one roof at Chatkazz!
Indus Age caught up with Dharmesh Rangparia, the owner of the restaurant ‘Chatkazz’ to know more about Chatkazz, it’s journey, their specialty and a lot. Excerpts from the interview:
Q1- ‘Chatkazz’, a restaurant serving Indian street food and Farsan in an absolutely foreign soil. How has your journey been so far?
A: It’s been an amazing journey; we’ve thoroughly enjoyed serving authentic Indian street food to all the foodies in Australia. We started with a small shop of about 18-20 seating capacity and now have grown to 120 seating restaurant.
Thanks to all our customers who have helped us grow and learn at each step of the journey by sharing their feedback i.e. what they love about Chatkazz and what they’d like to improve!
Q2- Why did you choose Australia, specifically for Chatkazz?
A: Well, when we started Chatkazz – we had been here for 7-8 years but missed authentic Indian street food and fresh farsan that you’d find in India. The idea struck a chord in our minds and hearts, and here we are serving Indian dishes not only street food but also dishes from various parts of India.
Q3- You’ve an extensive range of items, how do you manage this wide range of food products and its quality?
It is all about management and team work. We are blessed to have a team of trained chefs who come with experience from across the globe and have helped us maintain the food quality and standards that we are at today. Not to forget our crew on ground, who serve our customers each day with a smile!
Q4- According to you, which is that one food, or item that everyone must taste when they visit Chatkazz?
A: Oh, that’s a hard one to say as most of the items on the menu are my personal favourites. I can list a few though… Chinese Sizzler, Paneer Frankie, Jalapenos Poppers and the usual Vada Pav, Pav bhaji and Chhole Bhature are a must try!
Q5- What do you’ve to say to the Indian food lovers in Australia?
A: We’ve enjoyed serving a variety of Indian dishes to all food lovers in Australia and we will continue to bring new items and concepts to Australia. So, keep an eye out for our new dishes, coming soon!!!