“Meanwhile, at a quiet Indian restaurant in the East 60s called Moti Mahal Delux, a bowl of lentils can make you go wobbly with happiness. The dish is called dal makhani, and it is an inky stew of spiced black lentils.. they are deeply, truly luxurious, a word I’m rarely tempted to use in the context of lentils.”
— Pete Wells, New York Times
“When he arrived in New York from New Delhi nearly three years ago, this young man was certain of two things — of a warm welcome from his Indian girlfriend, who was studying in the city. And that he would open an Indian restaurant to prove healthy Indian food was tastier than standard meals prepared with heavy cream, seasoning and a heavy hand.”
— India Abroad, 2014
“Gaurav Anand is the chef/owner of three highly successful Indian restaurants in Manhattan, one of which, Moti Mahal Delux, received two stars from the New York Times just six months after it opened. Not bad for someone with no formal culinary training, who landed on these shores just seven years ago.”
— Food Arts, 2013
“An incredibly hard worker, Anand has done it all, from mopping the floor to cooking up the marinades to creating the restaurants. By the age of 33 he had set up Kebab Factory, Bhatti Indian Grill and the iconic Moti Mahal Delux. Still on a roll, this year, he opened his flagship restaurant Awadh.”
