Did Gauri Khan’s Restaurant Serve Adulterated Paneer? Viral Video Sparks Controversy, Torii Responds

Shah Rukh Khan’s Wife Gauri Khan’s Restaurant Torii Accused of Serving ‘Fake’ Paneer; Viral Video Sparks Controversy, Team Responds with Clarification

Upmarket Mumbai restaurant Torii, owned by Gauri Khan, came under a social media storm after a video allegedly went viral claiming the restaurant served ‘fake’ paneer. Interior designer Gauri Khan, renowned in her own right, opened Torii as an upscale dining destination with her Bollywood superstar husband Shah Rukh Khan. Gorgeous interiors and constant celebrity footfall previously served as Torii’s headlines for being the most expensive eatery; now, they make headlines for probably the lowest quality of food.

The saga began when influencer and YouTuber Sarthak Sachdeva posted a video from his visit to Torii, alleging that the paneer he got was adulterated with starch. Sarthak went on to perform a very basic iodine test against the piece of paneer that saw iodine drop on it, turning blackish-blue almost instantaneously, an age-old reaction to indicate starch content. He was shocked by the iodine test results: “Shah Rukh Khan ke restaurant mein paneer nakli tha. Ye dekh ke mere toh hosh udd gaye the”.

Sarthak’s video was a larger series where he reviewed paneer served at various celebrity-owned restaurants in Mumbai. By coincidence, when Sarthak performed the same iodine test elsewhere, i.e., Virat Kohli’s One8 Commune, Shilpa Shetty’s Bastian, and Bobby Deol’s Someplace Else, the outcomes were negative for all, adding flame to online speculation over Torii.

The video took the internet by storm, leaving many food enthusiasts concerned about standards at high-end restaurants. Eventually, Torii issued its public statement through a comment on the video, which reads: “The iodine test reflects the presence of starch, not the authenticity of the paneer. As the dish contains soy-based ingredients, this reaction is expected. We stand by the purity of our paneer and the integrity of our ingredients at Torii.”

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Taking the controversy lightly, Sarthak wrote cheekily, “So am I banned now?😵‍💫 btw ur food is amazing 👀,” hinting that while the test result called for questioning, he still thoroughly enjoyed the whole dining experience.

To further elucidate the matter, Dr. Kiran Soni, the head of the Nutrition and Health Department at Yatharth Hospital, Greater Noida, shared her views. As per her, iodine tests can show starch presence but don’t really prove anything beyond that-it can’t prove that the paneer is ‘fake.’ Dr. Soni explained: “We know real paneer made from milk protein does not have any starch naturally present. A positive reaction with iodine may indicate adulteration; however, other reasons like coating in batter or soy-based ingredients could also cause the color change.”

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Moreover, Dr. Soni mentioned some commercial producers of paneer might add starch on purpose to enhance texture or volume. So seeing a black-blue color change in an iodine test doesn’t prove the paneer falsified; it might just have been added starch for culinary reasons.

As Twitter continues to talk about the incident, it has cast a shadow over how premium restaurants view and test food quality. For now, though, Torii maintains ingredient integrity, while foodies and Instagram detectives are divided over the alleged paneer in question.

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