Friday’s Featured Food: Spicy Paneer, Naan and Lassi At The Famous Moti Mahal Restaurant in Male, The Maldives🇲🇻

I fell in love with the mix of Indian Paneer (mostly the spicy ones) and Indian Lassi (either mango or natural) when backpacking India away in 2016. I had never really eaten paneer nor drank Lassi before then (that I knew of). Since then, I often delved into Lassi and Paneer at any Indian restaurants. Even when I lived in Warszawa, Gdańsk and Kyrgyzstan I was backpacking Indian cuisine a few times.

Friday’s Featured Food: Spicy Paneer, Naan and Lassi At The Famous Moti Mahal Restaurant in Male, The Maldives

Whilst I am not a foodie or a food geek. Friday’s Featured Food is done for you, the readers, rather than for me…I’d be satisfied with a cup of Earl Grey and cheese on toast every night!

Friday’s Featured Food: Spicy Paneer, Naan and Lassi At The Famous Moti Mahal Restaurant in Male, The Maldives

The Moti Mahal Restaurant chain dates back to 1920, in India. It’s one of the oldest non-stop running Indian Restaurant chains. They opened here in The Maldives🇲🇻in 2024, but this was not clear as they also told me it was since 1920! But I assume they meant the original first one in the chain. They have over 100 restaurants in the chain, spanning 8 countries. I was sure this would mean the food was decent and proper Indian. And that it was.

Friday’s Featured Food: Spicy Paneer, Naan and Lassi At The Famous Moti Mahal Restaurant in Male, The Maldives

Famous people have eaten at Moti Mahal restaurants down the years and some of their photos appear on the walls here.

Friday’s Featured Food: Spicy Paneer, Naan and Lassi At The Famous Moti Mahal Restaurant in Male, The Maldives

The menu arrived and within a minute I had already ordered up an original Lassi. I chose the Traditional Lassi Twist, as opposed to a mango one, or one of the others.

Friday’s Featured Food: Spicy Paneer, Naan and Lassi At The Famous Moti Mahal Restaurant in Male, The Maldives

As my waiter went to get it, I feasted my eyes on an epic menu here. I’m quite decisive and was sure it would be a spicy paneer with butter naan I’d go for. I found the one I wanted, Mutter Paneer which was medium spicy. I had a ferry ride the next day so I played it safe as I didn’t want the shits of hot spice whilst speedboating The Indian Ocean.