Treasure island

THIS most celebrated of Indian luxury hotels occupies an entire small island in the lake fringed by the Rajasthani town of Udaipur. Originally an 18th century palace belonging to the maharajas of Udaipur, it became a hotel in 1962 and, although still the property of the maharaja, has been run by the Taj Group since 1972.

Guests vary from wealthy Indians taking short breaks and well-heeled individual travellers with a weakness for Indian luxury, to small tour groups from Europe and America. The catering is similarly diverse, with menus embracing both good-quality international food and highly individual Indian dishes. A total of 450 covers are served each day.

The Lake Palace's à la carte restaurant, Neem Kamal, offers a range of local Mewari dishes, the Mewars being the ruling family of Udaipur. Mewari cooking can be highly seasoned, and red chillis feature prominently in most recipes, as do yogurt and sweetcorn. Average spend here is 900 rupees (£13.60), without drinks, and the menu sensibly flags hot and very hot dishes with chilli symbols, so that customers are alerted to dishes that might be beyond their tolerance.

Chef Jitendra Kumar, while providing the variety of cuisines that the clientele demands, is keen to promote his Mewari dishes. "I have prepared a printed collection of local recipes, which is circulated among the other chefs of the Taj group."

Particularly popular are the main courses of machli jaisamandi (freshwater fish fillets fried and served with a green sauce) at 425 rupees (£6.28); khud murg ka mokul (shredded chicken in a rich almond and saffron sauce) at 450 rupees (£6.65); and papad pudina chutneywala (a flavoursome combination of lentils, chapatis and mint), priced at 300 rupees (£4.43).

Eight starters include four vegetarian choices, such as tawe ke khumb (button mushrooms marinated in yogurt, red chillis, ginger and freshly ground spices and cooked on a griddle with tomatoes), priced at 250 rupees (£3.70). Desserts include bibinka flavoured with coconut and cardamom at 190 rupees (£2.81).

"Almost everything is bought and prepared freshly," says Kumar, who heads a brigade of 39. "We have to use some frozen produce, such as New Zealand lamb, flown in from Bombay. But space is limited and we don't have room for large freezers, so all our vegetables are fresh, and we bake all our breads and pastries."

Most visitors try the fixed-price buffet lunch of 500 rupees (£7.39 plus 24% tax), or dinner of 600 rupees (£8.87 plus tax). They offer the choice of Continental or Indian cooking, or both.

"This is our best-selling option," says food and beverage manager Mukesh Kumar. "We get through slightly more Continental food than Indian, but there's not much in it."

As an alternative to dining in the restaurant, the Lake Palace offers romantic dinners for two on pontoons moored in the lake. A launch ferries food and wine back and forth from the hotel, and the couple and their waiter are given walkie-talkies so that requests such as "More Champagne, please!" can be relayed swiftly to the kitchens. n

Lake Palace hotel, PO Box 5, Udaipur, 313001 Rajasthan, India. Tel: 00 91 294 528800