From Other People’s Kitchens To His Own: Chef Mahabir Singh Opens Aure Heer
At Aure Heer in Delhi, Chef Mahabir Singh cooks North Indian classics and inventive dishes on his own terms after 35 years in kitchens
“I wasn’t able to find freedom. If a chef doesn’t have freedom, he can’t do good work,” Chef Mahabir Singh says. After three and a half decades of cooking in kitchens across India and overseas, the thought had become difficult to ignore. “There’s pressure on the food, pressure on the cleaning, pressure on the tasting, pressure on everything. I thought, if I want freedom, why shouldn’t I start my own business?”
That question eventually became Aure Heer, his first restaurant, which opened at Panchshila Rendezvous in Malviya Nagar this July. The name came after some searching through old stories and memories. Heer, of course, refers to Punjab’s enduring love legend, while Aure is a softer, more elusive addition. There is another half to the story: the restaurant is Aure Heer, while the bar is Ranjha. “Everyone said, ‘That’s a great name.’ So we opened it,” he says.
For Chef Mahabir, though, the restaurant is less about a clever name than having a kitchen where he can finally call the shots.
Built From Memory
The chef has had a hand in the interiors, too. Pieces and ideas gathered from years of travel, along with inspiration picked up online, have found their way into the room. There is wood, warm lighting, earthy tones, live herbs, and handcrafted ceramics, while an enclosed glass section around the kitchen was designed by him with ventilation and warmth in mind.
A private dining room sits to one side, away from the bustle of the main restaurant. The open kitchen remains visible without turning the cooking into a performance. It is a comfortable room, and one that feels more personal the longer you sit in it.
A Little Theatre
The appetisers are where Aure Heer allows itself some flourish. Samosa Golmaal arrives with mini samosas set over a matra reduction and khatti mitthi chutney, accompanied by dry-ice vapour, and a presentation resembling broken pottery. It is playful without being too serious about the theatrics.
The Cheesy Mushroom Bomb, stuffed with cream cheese, and a hint of black truffle, is richer and more indulgent. The Goat Cheese Beetroot Shammi is a more interesting departure: a beetroot patty topped with whipped goat cheese and micro herbs, sitting somewhere between a familiar shammi and a contemporary small plate.
Among the non-vegetarian starters, the Legacy Mutton Chop is hearty and well-seasoned, while the English Whisky Smoked Chicken Tikka brings a noticeable Scotch-inflected char to the familiar tikka.
The Star Dish
The Truffle Malai Tikka is perhaps the most convincing dish on the menu. The chicken is creamy and tender, with truffle and white pepper adding depth without overwhelming the tikka. Unlike some of the more elaborate plates, this one knows when to stop. That restraint is also what makes it memorable. The truffle is present without dominating every bite, allowing the chicken and marinade to remain at the centre. It fits neatly with Chef Mahabir’s approach to cooking, which he sums up simply: “The food that I won’t allow for my children, I won’t allow for a guest.”
Mains Built On Patience
The main course moves into more familiar North Indian territory, with the chef’s signature “Magic Masala” appearing across several preparations. The blend, made with 35 spices, has been refined over years of cooking. Heer’s Magic Handi comes slow-cooked with a charcoal-kissed mutton skewer and saffron, with a little tableside ceremony adding to the arrival. Murg Maharaja takes a more celebratory route, pairing a whole chicken with cashew-saffron gravy and smoked butter.
Then there is the Classic Butter Chicken, which Chef Mahabir considers his legacy. Fire-roasted chicken tikka is folded into a smooth makhani gravy finished with kasuri methi. It is recognisable, comforting and, importantly, doesn’t try too hard to reinvent a dish that already knows what it wants to be.
An Unexpected Matcha
The drinks menu takes a slightly different turn. Alongside coffee and cocktails, Aure Heer serves matcha in forms that have little to do with the restaurant’s North Indian kitchen.
The Cookies and Cream Matcha is the one worth trying. It softens matcha’s grassy bitterness with sweetness and a creamy finish, landing somewhere between a drink and a dessert. It is an unusual companion to tikkas, kebabs and rich gravies, but the contrast works.
Saffron To Finish
Dessert brings together several familiar flavours in a different format. The Saffron Rasmalai Tres Leches combines milk sponge, gajar halwa, saffron milk, and pistachio crumble. The structure borrows from a tres leches while the flavours remain firmly rooted in the Indian dessert repertoire.
It is rich, but the saffron gives it enough lift to keep the final few bites from feeling too heavy. More importantly, the dish does not lose sight of rasmalai even as it takes a detour.