Nakli Dhaba — Restaurant in Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation

Ambience - 2/10 (where I was sitting as compared to the rest of the restaurant) Food - 9/10 Service - 2/10 Table reservation and wait time for table - 0/10 Live music available (maybe for new year occasion)

Very bad first experience; nothing lived up to its name.

We went there on 1 Jan eve for a dinner.

Problems we faced:

We booked a table ONLINE through Google for 2 at 8 PM. (Photo attached) We reached there at 8:15 PM. NO TABLE WAS RESERVED. We were told to wait for a few minutes (completely acceptable, as sometimes some customers take a bit of extra time). Although I could literally see many tables for 2, 3, 4, or more were empty. People coming after us were getting tables. We told them we booked a table here. THEM: "Our system has some problem with online reservation" seems like a pure excuse for mismanagement. They gave us a table at 9 PM, outside their main sitting area (video of surroundings attached). The table was very small. It was like while serving, they were just hovering plates over food in confusion about where we should put it, and then we had to make space by holding our soup in hand and moving the cutlery (I'm not being inconsiderate, but if the table doesn't have a space for 2 bowls and 2 plates, a water bottle, and 2 glasses, what should I say?). We asked and waited for basic things like napkins, salt, and pepper (they are short of shakers, so they will provide you small pouches). Food preparation time was ok. They were quick with it. They were quick in serving food. People were polite and nice. But they themselves seem confused many times. About why they can't provide a table to a couple who booked online.

I know many will say that I'm being too naive, Karen, and insensitive, but for a high-end restaurant (which they project themselves), it is totally mismanaged on a busy day like 1st January.

You can get better everything (food, service, table, ambience, and less confused staff) at any less self-proclaimed & too much hyped place.

Half a night was very nicely ruined by them.

Felt biased and excluded. And they were not even considerate about their mismanagement. Rather, they were DISMISSIVE and said to my wife that AT LEAST YOU GOT A TABLE.

I didn't want to be completely moody and create a scene. So I left and went to SUPER SNAXX to get better food and service, which they...

We’ve always enjoyed our visits to Mayfair from Teapot and Super Snax the service, warmth, and consistent quality have made us repeat guests. It’s also a hotel that’s frequented by many of my colleagues and seniors, and I’ve always felt proud to recommend it. So for our anniversary, we decided to try Nakli Dhaba, expecting the same charm and culinary standard we’ve come to associate with the Mayfair name.

The start was promising. The soup was warm and satisfying. The first starter chicken had an excellent flavour, though the texture was slightly loose, almost as if it had been over-marinated or stored too long. We let it pass because the taste was genuinely good.

Then came the main course a chicken curry costing around ₹700. Playing it safe, we ordered kulcha on the side in case the curry didn’t suit us. Unfortunately, what followed was the real disappointment. The gravy arrived hot, but within 1–2 minutes, it turned cold. The chicken pieces especially the bone were stone cold, clearly straight out of cold storage and reheated, likely in a microwave. And not reheated well. It was a jarring contrast to the warmth of the gravy, and quite disheartening for what should have been a special meal.

I’m not opposed to reheating food if it’s done properly and tastes good. But at a place of Mayfair’s reputation, especially on an occasion like an anniversary dinner, we expect more at the very least, for the chef to ensure the dish is served hot throughout. Sadly, we left half the curry untouched, feeling more disappointed than we ever have at Mayfair.

We still hold Mayfair in high regard for the many good experiences we’ve had over the years. But this one evening which should have been memorable for the right reasons left us feeling let down. I truly hope this was a one-off lapse, and that Nakli Dhaba can match the standards set by the rest of...

This place started off with a bang and then there was a period of time when people said it was going quite bad. I was here about a week ago and I can safely say that the food is still very much in the "good to very good"range.

I am taking strictly about their main restaurant because they also have small cabins to seat groups of about 6 people - about six or seven of them as far as I can remember- and they are terrible - cramped and very very musty.

They've generally tried to make the place look Dhaba-like with stuff like utensils and tiffin carriers used as showpieces; hell, there's even a fake peeing dog in the outdoor area.

The main restaurant was really nice -the Galouti Kebabs, the Rumali Roti, the Dal Makhani, the Kheema Mattar, they all worked and how!

Had some wine that was served chilled, for a change (the Baron and the Baroness, their pub, had served us warm wine the last time!!!)

Service was a bit on the slower side but we didn't mind.

There's live music but this is the real fail in this place to my mind - it is impossibly loud and very very far away from anything that can be called melodious.

Overall, close your ears and eat your food. Chances are you won't be...