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| Wine & Dine 01 - 05 - 2004 |
| Capital Dining |
MUMBAI—THE TAJ GATEWAY
Mumbai, India's commercial and film capital is fast becoming its food capital too. Food has definitely come off the back burner and that's worth celebrating. Who knows whether we started demtaanding for these cuisines first or whether canny restaurateurs started supplying them first. After having studied the food scene for the past twenty years through innumerable columns in different cities and eight food books, I have never seen such interest in food before. It is the beginning of an exciting time.
Look at the number of signs that food is heating up. ...sizzling cookery book sales, city restaurant guides and food magazines are being devoured and almost every city paper serves up a food column. Exclusive and exotic home catering is in demand.
Come join me for a quick taste of what's cooking here, sharpen your appetites and hang on to your chopsticks, it's going to be a swift ride as Mumbai cheers the opening of six exotic new restaurants serving Korean, Moroccan, Malaysian, Indonesian, Japanese, Burmese and Mongolian—all this in the last few months; served in contemporary, stylish ambience with a definite slant towards lighter cooking styles. The restaurant scene hots up in more ways than one. It becomes the centrestage of social activity and celebrities jump in to become restaurateurs and chefs become celebrities—something unheard of before. Before, one only had a choice between very expensive five-star dining or cheap street side eats. Now, all that is changing.
Internationally acclaimed Rahul Akerkar blazes the trend with Indigo, his world-class stand-alone restaurant in a bungalow in Mumbai's leafy bylanes. Mumbai's well-known model Dino Marteli turns chef, and along with 'high profile' Sabina Chopra, sets up the designer cafe Sesso, serving designer food.
It's all about die personal touch. Ask Romil Ratra, the trendy young owner of India's only Spanish restaurant Caliente, or die young and talented Iranian Moshe Shek, who opens his very own signature restaurant Moshe's. A couple of years ago, A.D Singh sets up Olive and the trend to see and be seen and injects a masterly dose of hype and glamour to the restaurant-scape.
From the brightly lit Cafe Sesso, and the suburban Tantra (high-ceilinged space with a glass flooring) to Caliente (wood-floored bar, blue intimate lounge, pinewood dining room), and the mango tree growing into the entrance of the brand new Italian restaurant Mangi Ferra; each restaurant is distinct in its attraction.
Not to be left behind, die five-star chain of the Taj hotels sets its restaurants Masala Kraft and Masala Bay up as an art form with the 'studio' kitchen, and a studiedly arty menu. The InterContinental's RGs Kitchen and The Leela Palace Hotel's Citrus are both contemporary, clean-lined, wooden-floored, sexily glamorous at night and starkly airport coffeeshop-like by day.
The Grand Maratha Sheraton's recently set-up Panasian is vibrant with oriental-coloured walls and pillars, Chinese paper lamps, urns and bamboos—a perfect setting for its Korean, Japanese, Mongolian, Chinese, Burmese, Thai, Indonesian and Vietnamese fare.
The Korean barbecue, the soupy hot-pot and the Mongolian brazier are instant hits here. So is the teppanyaki grill. India Jones at The Oberoi set the trend for sprawling restaurants serving a variety of Oriental cuisines, two years ago.
Once only used to the Punjabi-Moghlai Indian restaurants and white-sauce cheesy continental restaurants, Mumbai now boasts its very own Spanish eatery, serving a huge variety of tapas, a delicious sandalwood and tomato soup and smoked paella and also for the first time ever, sushi is in demand. Farokh Khambatta's buzzing brand new modern Far Eastern cuisine restaurant Joss opens and Mumbai enjoys shiitake-tofu rolls, tuna sashimi and crab-avocado rolls. The InterContinental offers a specially fabricated mobile sushi bar, which you can book for your parties. At the JW Marriott's Spices, we delight in Chef Koizumi's superb salmon roe, octopus, eel sushi and more.
Interestingly, stand-alone restaurant chains like the house of Chougale's Indage set the trend some years ago with the very hip Athena, Sin and then Mimosa, offering super oriental fare. Moshe's introduces us to home-style Turkish turlu turlu, Israeli oaf memulay (with couscous, pinenuts etc), Moroccan tagines, Jewish hameem and fresh fondues made to Indian tastes.
What comes across strongly is the focus on lighter styles and healthier variations; for instance, Cafe Sesso uses only olive oil, no mayonnaise, preservatives, cornflour, ketchup or French fries. Light cooking styles, grilled meats and fish are the hallmarks of many of these restaurants.
Interestingly, even Indian food starts evolving from the predictable makhanwalla mode into lighter and more creative dishes using olive oil, while retaining their Indian sensibilities, like in the Taj Hotel chain's Masala Kraft and Masala Bay.
Even as you read this, two dedicated Japanese restaurants are about to open. All I can say is "Itadakimasu" (I will eat and drink).
| LIST OF MUMBAI RESTAURANTS
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The Intercontinental
Marine Drive, Mumbai, tel: (22) 5639-9999
Joss
Kala Ghoda, Mumbai, tel: (22) 5635-6908.
Mangi Ferra
Gulmohar Cross Road No 7,Vile Parle (W), tel: (22) 56751727/29
Cafe Sesso Courtyard
Minoo Desai Rd, Colaba, tel: (22) 5638-5490/91
Tantra
Dalia Estate, Andheri(W), tel: (22) 2673-3333
Caliente
Jony Castle, Ground Floor, Wodehouse Rd, Colaba, Mumbai, tel: (22) 2218-6717
Masala Kraft
Taj Mahal Hotel, Apollo Bunder, tel: (22) 5665-3366
R.G's Kitchen
35 Marine Drive, tel: (22) 5639-9898
Moshe's
Minoo Manor Cuffe Parade, tel: (22) 2216-1226
MasalaBay
Taj Land's.Bandstand, Bandra (W), tel: (22) 5668-1234
Spices
JW Marriott, Juhu, tel: (22) 5693-3399
India Jones
The Oberoi, Nariman Point, Mumbai, tel: (22) 5632-5757
Indigo
4 Mandlik Rd, Colaba, Mumbai, tel: (22) 5636-8980/1
Olive Bar and Kitchen
Pali Hill Tourist Hotel, 14 Union Park(W), Mumbai, tel: (22) 2605-8228/229
Citrus
The Leela, Sahar, Andheri (E), tel: (22) 569 I -1234
Pan Asian
ITC Grand Maratha Sheraton, Sahar; Andheri (E), tel: (22) 2830-3030
Athena
41/44 Minoo Desai Marg, behind Radio Club, tel: (22) 2202-8699
Sin
75 Bhulabhai Desai Rd, opp American Consulate, tel: (22) 2369-2617
Mimosa
76 Nidhi, August Kranti Marg. Ph: 23871949, 8484 Open 12.00noon to 3.30pm, 7pm to 11.45pm
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