Chennai’s newest bistro Hundreds, has dal makhni pizzas and mutton galouti tacos

Experience Indian fusion cuisine at Hundreds Bistro on Harrington Road, Chennai, with unique dishes like dal makhni pizza and Lucknowi paneer.

Hundreds Bistro on Harrington Road is warmly lit, laidback, and slowly filling up with its first diners for the evening. Some tables already have cups of coffee with biscotti on the side, and at others, diners pore over the menu to weigh in on options for the night. 

Muddasar Malik, one of the partners, says that this is not their first foray into the world of food. This bistro belongs to the larger ‘Hundreds’ group that began Vellore’s first major fine-dining multi-cuisine restaurant, Hundreds Heritage. Chennai is a new turf though.

“We want to do justice to Indian flavours here. Our Neapolitan pizzas have dal makhni, prawn hariyali, and seekh kebab, and we have brioche bun pavs with Lucknowi paneer and mutton salli to choose from,” he says. 

Our ears perk up when the dal makhni pizza is mentioned. Fusion food involving Indian flavours, is more often than not, clickbaity (think the mutton keema cakes and chocolate ice cream dosas you hurriedly scroll past). It is especially hard to get right. 

Chef Kaushik S (aka The Mad Chef) of Eatitude consultants, who has curated the menu for Hundreds, tells us that the food was planned keeping in mind authentic Indian flavours, but with different presentations. “The dal makhni for instance, is simmered overnight on the tandoor but will be served on a pizza. There are kebabs in tacos, oven-baked kulchas and chicken wings in quintessentially Indian flavours,” he says. 

Keeping with the vibe of a bistro, the menu is a mix of coffees, milkshakes, pizzas, pavs, and hearty kulchas and biryanis, encouraging people to walk in any time — be it for a quick chat over a coffee, or a more elaborate meal. Chef Kaushik tells us every element, from the fermented sourdough in the sandwiches, to the berry compote in the milkshakes, the sauces, gravies and everything else are all prepared in-house. 

We start off with a sweet, indulgent coco biscotti shake topped with a cloud of cream and coconut shavings in a tall glass reminiscent of Archie’s Pop Tate’s. Minutes later, we are more than thankful for this sweet relief after biting into a paneer cheese kebab marinated in bhut jholakia chilli. The sharp spice hit is one that spice tolerant fiends will find quite delicious and others, eye-watering.