The House of Celeste at 32nd Milestone is the brainchild of Chef Suvir Saran. Chef Suvir’s story is inspiring to begin with. After pursuing visual arts, he turned his passion for cooking for his loved ones into a successful catering business – Rasoi. And went on to head the first Indian restaurant to have a Michelin star restaurant in New York, Devi. With no formal culinary education, Chef Suvir Saran’s love affair for Indian food is admirably evident in his new venture – The House of Celeste.
The design of the restaurant is quite interactive. A huge open seating, the ground floor houses the stone brick oven and the first, the bar. Dark florals and tropical wallpapers dorn the walls and the PDR is most charmingly called Pinjra.
To begin with – small bites
We started with Homemade Khakra with tamarind chutney, yoghurt and mango foam. Masala Pebbles – saffron tart, candied outside enclosing chilli pineapple cold soup and tamarind chutney. Unlike most amuse-bouche, it wasn’t just a pop of flavours but also textures. Delhi 6 clouds, yoghurt mousse, topped with crunchy fried potatoes, mint and tamarind chutney and topped with sev. This progressive take of chaat is as close as it comes to the real deal. The taste was bang on. Beet Balls, crunchy fried beetroot balls, stuffed with goat’s cheese stained with beetroot and served with cranberry chilli.
Amuse Bouche – Masala Khakra 
Masala Pebbles 
Delhi 6 clouds 
Beet Balls
Medium bites
Spicy-sweet-sticky shrooms – enoki, shemji and button mushrooms tossed together in a desi Manchurian sauce and topped with fried enoki. Chicken 69, taking the classic chicken 65 and adding 4 on their secret spices with Goat’s cheese crema. Crispy from the outside, the chicken was sprinkled on with podi powder. Gilafi Apricot Seekh, melt in your mouth mutton, tempered with apricot, with apricot chilli jam, goat’s cheese crema and saffron-infused sheermal.
Spicy-Sweet-Sticky Shrooms 
Chicken 69 
Gilafi Apricot Seekh
Sourdough Flatbreads
I am a sucker for sourdough pizzas! And The House of Celeste nails the flatbreads with an Indian twist so, so perfectly. Roast Onion-Garlic Sourdough – doughy on the sides, with the sides stuffed with buffalo mozzarella on one side and Kerala onion jam on the other. Fold it from the middle so that you can enjoy both the flavours together. I absolutely loved it. Served with garlic aioli, the strong Indian flavours and sweetness of the onions, blended in beautifully with the fresh mozzarella. Shrimp Balchao, the more traditional looking pie was smeared with Balchao sauce, topped with baby shrimps and cocktail onions. Topped with bocconcini to balance the spicy Balchao.
Roast Onion-Garlic 
Shrimp Balchao
Large Bites
Fried chicken makhani, served with red rice risotto and kachumber salad. Tender pieces of chicken, crumb coated and fried, in a rather tangy makhani gravy. The gravy, to be honest, was a little too tart, more so because I prefer my butter chicken on the sweeter side. On the other hand was a glorious Mutton Ghee Roast. Shredded mutton, cooked with curry leaf, topped with a parmesan coated poached egg. Pickled cocktail onions and chomped down with a flaky Malabar parantha!
Fried chicken makhani 
Mutton Ghee Roast
Desserts
We ended the meal with Three indulgences – chocolate cake, caramel-coated popcorn, and sweet corn ice cream. With extra dollops of caramel on the side, the dessert is named quite aptly. Another special mention, paan meringues with were made with paan leaves chopped in.
Three Indulgences 
Paan Meringues
House of Celeste blends a lot of different flavours and culinary techniques, keeping the taste still very familiar. There isn’t a lot of drama attached to the plates, making it easy and approachable. You must, must try their excellent flatbreads and the special dessert section.
Where? House of Celeste
Cuisine – Modern Indian
Price for two – INR 3000 approx