Moti Mahal is a restaurant chain founded in

Delhi, India Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its right bank, Del ...

. Founded after the

partition of India The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Dominion of India, Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Paki ...

in 1947, the Moti Mahal in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

was founded by Kundan Lal Gujral, Kundan Lal Jaggi and Thakur Das Magu as one of the first restaurants to introduce

Punjabi cuisine Punjabi cuisine is a culinary style originating in the Punjab, a region in the northern part of South Asia, which is now divided into an Punjab, India, Indian part to the east and a Punjab, Pakistan, Pakistani part to the west. This cuisine ha ...

and

North Indian cuisine North Indian cuisine is collectively the cuisine of North India, which includes the cuisines of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Terr ...

to the rest of the world such as

tandoori chicken Tandoori chicken is a dish made from chicken marinated in yogurt and spices and roasted in a '' tandoor'', a cylindrical clay oven. The dish is now popular worldwide. The modern form of the dish was popularized by the Moti Mahal restaurant in ...

paneer makhani Paneer makhani (also called paneer butter masala) is an Indian dish of paneer, originating in New Delhi, in which the gravy is prepared usually with butter (''makhan''), tomatoes and cashews. Spices such as red chili powder and garam masala are ...

dal makhani Dal is a term in the Indian subcontinent for dried, split pulses. Dal or DAL may also refer to: Places Cambodia *Dal, Ke Chong Finland * Laakso, a neighbourhood of Helsinki India * Dal Lake, in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India * Dal ...

, and

butter chicken Butter chicken is a type of curry made from chicken cooked in a spiced tomato and butter (''makhan'')-based gravy. The gravy is typically known for its rich texture. It is similar to chicken tikka masala, which uses a tomato paste. The dish orig ...

. Internationally, the franchise has restaurants in

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

, and the

UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a federal elective monarchy made up of seven emirates, with Abu Dhabi serving as i ...

History

Moti Mahal was founded by Kundan Lal Gujral, Thakur Das Magu and Kundan Lal Jaggi, in

in 1947. They worked at a small eatery called ''Moti Mahal'', owned by a man named Mokha Singh Lamba in

Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

, from the 1920s to 1947. A piece of a tandoori chicken

After the

in 1947, they fled to

with their families. In Delhi, the three partners bought a ''thara'' (booth) in the

Daryaganj Daryaganj (literally "A market near a river") is a neighbourhood of Delhi inside the walled city of Old Delhi. The "darya" (lit. "River") refers to the river Yamuna which was just outside the walled city. Daryaganj is one of the three sub-divisi ...

area, then considered a newer part of

Old Delhi Shahjahanabad colloquially known as Old Delhi( Hindustani: ''Purāni Dillī'') is an area in the Central Delhi district of Delhi, India. It was founded as a walled city and officially named Shahjahanabad in 1648, when Shah Jahan decided to shi ...

and then they started Moti Mahal, Daryaganj. Moti Mahal further went on to invent

, and

as well as the modern

References

{{coord, 28.6465, 77.2401, display=title Moti Mahal Restaurants in Delhi Punjabi cuisine Restaurants established in 1947 Indian companies established in 1947