I didn’t feel like cooking today. Nope. I felt like baking so I made Tiramisu instead, not that it involved any baking, but it was still therapeutic to just make something I wanted instead of worrying about what to feed other people.
But we couldn’t very well eat Tiramisu for lunch, yes? 
So after much browsing through Zomato’s Android app, I finally settled on ordering lunch from New Bombay (The Columns branch). Zomato Online Delivery, to the rescue! Haha.
I decided on ordering from New Bombay because I wanted my parents to try new flavors. New Bombay is also the Indian restaurant where I first tried Indian food and got hooked. I am aware that it is not the pinnacle of Indian cooking in the Philippines, but it’s accessible and I know that the flavors won’t be too wild for first-timers. It’s also an affordable choice. 
USING ZOMATO ONLINE DELIVERY
Ordering online through Zomato was actually quite easy. The part that took me the longest time was picking out a restaurant!
On the Zomato app, I clicked on ORDER FOOD and was shown a list of restaurants that delivered to our area.
Once I picked New Bombay, I just clicked on the ORDER tab and got their online menu, with prices. Ordering was straightforward, just click +/- to add/remove orders to my cart. The total amount is shown on the bottom left of the app.
I ordered the Palak Paneer (278.25), the Mutton Rogan Josh (P278.25) and the Chicken Curry (P278.25). Yes, I also noticed that the prices were all the same… 
I wish they included Mattar Paneer on the delivery menu. It’s something that I often request when eating at New Bombay, but it’s not on the regular menu. It’s my favorite paneer dish.
At the moment, I think they only accept Cash as the payment method.
Note: There was a delivery fee of P100.17. I think the delivery fee is proportional to the amount ordered, based on my computation, it seems to be 12%.
After finalizing my order, I got an order summary telling me that the order has been sent to New Bombay. After about a minute, I got another notification telling me that New Bombay has accepted my order.
I was also given an estimated time when the delivery will arrive (about an hour).
After about 15 minutes, I got another notification letting me know that the food is on its way! Yay! Everybody’s hungry! My bad, it took me more than 30 minutes to pick a restaurant, haha. So we had lunch at 1:30 pm.
I also received an email summary:
The Zomato delivery guy arrived on his motorcycle. He had a big, insulated bag that kept our order safe & warm.
NEW BOMBAY RESTAURANT
On first look, it seemed that our package was too small for 3 orders! But the way New Bombay packed it was by filling up the round, mid-tall microwavable container that we’re familiar with, for each order. It just looks small but we even had leftovers (4 people), because the sauces are flavorful, a little goes a long way, especially when eaten with rice.
I totally forgot to take pictures of the food! I only remembered halfway through the meal. So here is what the containers look like, they were full when they arrived:
My mom liked the Mutton Rogan Josh, she actually went back for more rice twice! My dad also ate all the dishes. Although for me, I didn’t find it super delicious (I think the food at New Bombay was better back when it was still new and had just started expanding), it was still good and more than acceptable to my parents, which is what mattered. My mom found the Mutton Rogan Josh particularly flavorful (hence, 3 servings of rice!).
I think New Bombay is a good introduction to Indian food for people who are not really into Indian food yet. The flavors are not too wild, too weird, or too spicy for regular people. It is also one of the more affordable Indian restaurant options in Manila, with several branches to choose from now.
New Bombay, Bel-Air Branch
Ground Floor, The Columns, Ayala Corner Sen. Gil Puyat Avenue, Bel-Air, Makati City
Hours: 9:30 AM to 11:30 PM
