Hotel Le Dupleix - Pondicherry

Hotel Le Dupleix was once the former home of Governor Dupleix during the French occupation. The hotel still maintains much of its old-style architecture and it's restaurant serves both Indian and Western cuisine. It is located on Rue de la Caserne, off Suffren Street in the Pondicherry French Quarter.

We were served complementary Bread while waiting. The bread was unfortunately tough and unusually cold - absolutely ridiculous for a restaurant of its kind. It was served with a Tomato Salsa, Butter and Hummus, which were pretty good (when eaten alone without the shitty bread).

The Classic French Onion soup priced at Rs140 (RM9) was a let-down. The consomme was flavorless, and the cheese croutons it was served with were barely hard at all. To me, it tasted like old, reheated, flavourless soup.

The Poulet Sauté Chasseur worth Rs350 (RM23) on the other hand, was divinely cooked. The lovely boneless cut of chicken was mildly flavored with herbs, and placed on a bed of smooth mashed potatoes and crisp sauteed vegetables.

The Grilled Lamb Rack worth Rs350 (RM23) was pretty good too. The tender meat easily came off the bone, but came with a measly two slices of grilled zucchini. The couscous that came with it was cooked wonderfully, but barely had any flavor. Slightly disappointing.

My grandfather had himself Chicken Biryani priced at Rs265 (RM17). The biryani here had an incredibly strong aroma from the spices, so strong that I could barely take more than two spoonfuls of it. Furthermore, the pieces of chicken were slightly tough and were hard to eat.

The biryani was served with a side of curry which helped merge all the flavors of the rice together, and sweet raita which extinguished the spiciness and cooled our mouths. Additional bowls of raita are priced at Rs100 (RM6.50)

In conclusion, our experience at Le Dupleix was somewhat good, but disappointing. Supposedly one of the best restaurants in Pondicherry, it fails to live up to its name. If ever you do come to Pondicherry for some fine dining, I recommend you try Carte Blanche instead.

Presentation: 7/10

Ambiance: 8/10

Service: 6/10

Overall Taste: 5/10

General Impression: 6/10

____________________________________________________________________________

BrianandRepublic