(2/5)
When it comes to home delivery and takeaway operations, my single, most frequent gripe is their phone service. More often than not, there’s a sleepy, uninterested voice on the phone who reluctantly takes the details of your order and slams down the phone just as soon as that’s done.

Not so at Kitchen Mantra. The people at Kitchen Mantra sound educated, well spoken, polite and eager to make sure you have a great time with their food. The first time I called, I recall being bowled over by a person who wanted to know if there were kids in the house (reduced spices), how many people were rice eaters and so on.

Unfortunately, Kitchen Mantra’s hospitality doesn’t extend beyond a voice on the phone. The people at Kitchen Mantra have built a good looking website, a very classy looking menu and so on. The common factor is that all the focus at Kitchen Mantra seems to be on the outside – looks. The website has a great front page and little or no content inside. As you’ll see, it’s the same with the menu.

We’ve ordered from Kitchen Mantra a total of 3 times – each time their food has been average to horrendous. We’ve tried mutton curries, dals, vegetables, rotis, and butter chicken from Kitchen Mantra. I recall exploring their menu during my second order, when we ordered 7 – 8 different dishes and an equal number of breads. All, without exception, were average or below. Mostly below average is what you’ll get everytime at Kitchen Mantra. Things don’t stop there there unfortunately. Deliveries from Kitchen Mantra are always late, for which you’ll get a new excuse everytime – in a polished and genuinely apologetic manner, which doesn’t pass muster due to the number of times it is repeated. To make matters worse, Kitchen Mantra doesn’t believe in setting things right then and there. Instead of appeasing their customers and in all probability retaining them, the staff at Kitchen Mantra ‘promise to make it up on the next order’, and staunchly refuse to throw in any discounts or freebies. Methinks that’s not the right way to convert or keep customers – who knows if that customer will ever order again?

To conclude, if a polished voice matters to you more than the food, Kitchen Mantra is your number 1 choice. If however, the quality of food and on-time deliveries matter more than a voice on the phone, avoid Kitchen Mantra by a long mile and instead, opt for one of the many other joints that dot the vicinity.

- Sid

Meal for Two: 450 | Credit Cards: NO | Alcohol: NO | Takeaway: YES | Home Delivery: YES