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Review: Spices, JW Marriott

CM personally feels that there are two cuisines that Mumbai restaurants have not been able to do justice to – Thai & Mexican. While we have made some headway in Mexican, moving away from the fusion Gujarati sev & rajma tacos with restaurants like Sanchos & Sammy Sosa, Thai is something we still haven’t mastered.

Yes I know we have the likes of Thai Pavilion by the Taj Group & Koh by Kittichai. But if you have ever been to Thailand and had even the moderate street Thai curry you will know that the sweet gravy served in the guise of Thai curry here is bullshit. Not many Mumbai restaurants have got the intricacies of this beautiful and flavourful cuisine right. So when I got an invite for JW Marriott’s Asian restaurant – Spices, I went without any expectations.

As Vir Sanghvi puts it, our definition of fast food is limited to the crap that American chains serve us. If you want to know what yummy & nutritious fast food is, one that does not taste like the tire of your car or the eraser of your pencil – then Thai street food it is. Even the most moderate, small roadside Thai hawker will serve you some of the most amazing dishes. Every vendor specializes in that one dish – Som Tam (papaya salad) or Baked Fish, which will linger in your tastebuds forever.

JW Marriott has this Thai Street Food Festival going on. Did it fit in Culinary Muse’ quest for authentic Thai Food in Mumbai, you are about to find out...

I begin with the Som Tam – nutritious, healthy, cholesterol free papaya salad. The solace of the chef making it fresh, right in front of you is brilliant. You have to consume this fresh, immediately after it’s made. The one at Spices matched all my check points. Fresh ingredients, dried shrimp (yup this will tell you the authenticity of the dish) ground peanuts that added the crunch. Sweet, sour, spicy tangy all in one bite!

Next were the starters –

Pandan Chicken

Pandan Chicken- succulent pieces of chicken wrapped in pandan leaf. Yummy and perfumed with lemon grass

Lemon grass chicken

Lemon grass chicken – Had beautiful flavours to it

Prawn Sesame seed – a tad oily but delicious at the same time

Prawn Sesame seed 

Banana fritters – well done banana bhajjis, thai style

Then came the soups –

I had the Prawn Tom Yum – this was extremely fiery, would pass of as sambhar so stay away from it

The live stations –

They had 2 live stations, one for Phad Thai & The other one for Thai barbeque

Thai Barbeque Station

The Phad Thai was delectable. Silky flat noodle sheets stir fried with veggies, meat of your choices, yummy flavor sauces, topped with egg. CM could’nt get enough of this

Phad Thai 

The Barbequed Meat

The Barbeque Station too was brilliant – beautiful fresh rock lobsters, mackerel, baby pomfret, & chicken sate. Nom Nom

Then came the Thai Curry Station-

Green Thai Curry With  Prawns 

Beautiful baskets of fresh ingredients – galangal, lemongrass, kafir leaves lay infront and you can direct the chef to make your curry with the meat & veggies of your choice. Now this is my ultimate test. If a restaurant can get its Thai curry right, there is no doubt on their thai food capabilities.

I tried the Green Thai Curry With  Prawns – it was ------ wait------ for------it – Immaculate! Not to sweet, not too tangy, full of balanced yet bold flavours. This definitely falls under one of the best thai curries I have tasted in Mumbai. Even if you don’t come here for the festival you must not miss the thai curry at Spices

Lobster Ka Prao with Thai Basil Rice

Pair it with their sticky rice and you know what it’s like to have a spa in your mouth.

In the main course they also had the Lobster Ka Prao – beautiful lobster pieces cooked in thai basil sauce was delectable too.

For the desserts –

The Rambutan a delicious lichi like fruit. The Egg Custard was yummy. The rest of the desserts were very ok, not great!

The Thai Street Food Festival is on till December 01^st & costs approximately 2300/- with unlimited beers.

But I would suggest you go to Spices even for an a la cart meal if you can't catch the festival. On an average a meal would cost Rs 2000 for 1 without alcohol.

Verdict:

Food: Yummy

Ambiance:  Serene                                 

Service: Good

Quick Tip: Go there for the Phad Thai & Thai Curry with Sticky Rice

The Co-ordinates:

Spices, JW Marriott

Where: Juhu Tara Road, Juhu, Mumbai, Mumbai

Tring Tring: 022 30932030

Timings: 7 PM to 12 Midnight

Food Type: Asian, Thai, Malaysian, Indonesian, Chinese, Japanese

Payment Methods: Credit Card Accepted

Vamos Espana

Let’s Go Spanish!

Review: Arola, JW Mariott

I have been to Spain more than 12 years ago, as a kid while visiting my cousins and extended family (Yes, there are alot of Sindhi’s in Spain). A country of beaches, the sun and The Tomatina, Spain’s culture is warm and food forms an integral part of it.

Chef Ferran Adria of El Buli restaurant was responsible for getting Spanish cuisine on the world map, thanks to alot of praise from The New York Times. So when CM was invited to dine with his disciple Chef Sergi Arola, she knew it was going to be interesting

A Chef, a musician, a restaurateur and encantador senor (charming man), Sergi Arola is a world renowned Spanish Chef. His smart wit and good looks make you wonder what he is doing behind the kitchen door when he can easily pass off a leader actor (an Oscar winning one I may add).

Over some of his signature dishes, he discusses his childhood, Spanish Culture & Politics, Why India, his grandmother and his love for music.

Arola at JW Marriott is essentially a tapas bar. So everything you get here is' bite sized' appetizer kind-off food to accompany your poison. Spanish food he believes is about unadulterated flavours and locally sourced ingredients

Naan Tomato

No wonder our first dish is something known as ‘Naan Tomato’ -  tandoori naan served with salt, olive oil, tomato concasse and garlic. Sergi teaches us to how to eat this – rub some garlic over the naan add the tomato concasse drizzle of olive oil & salt and Voila. Never knew plain naan could taste so yum!

In the drinks, I start with the Sangria de Sergi – beautiful light and flavourful!

The next dish was Berenjenas – tandoor chargered juliennes of aubergine with balsamic reduction and pine nuts. Beautiful dish again, nothing can be this simple yet this tasty...

Ceps

Ceps - Finely sliced Porcini mushrooms generous drizzled upon with pine-nut reduction and olive oil with a few shavings of Iberian ham. Me Gusta Mucho! (I loved it). This is one dish I can go on eating!

Patatas Bravas – A signature dish of Sergi – deep fried cylindrical potato rolls filled with tomato concasse topped with this tasty alioli. Again a great tapas to go with your drinks

Chicken Wings – The chicken wings were very ok... CM has tasted better!

I begin my main course with the Orange Flambe Gin and Tonic – A signature of Sergi, this drink is a must try at Arola. You just cannot miss it!

Steak Tatare – The steak tartare also was not great, could have beenbetter

Lobster

Lobster – The lobster was yum, tender chunks of the crustacean drizzled with mild spices and olive oil

Gamba Al Ajillo – fresh prawns tossed in garlic, parsley and olive oil. Deliciously unadulterated flavours.

Seafood Fideua – Not one I would eat again, you know the sev you serve in kheer, well it was that with prawns squid and seabass. Didn't leave a very pleasant after taste in my mouth

In the desserts we had - Momento Dulce - Three Miniature Deserts:

White Chocolate Mousse with Passion Fruit Granité – the tanginess of the passion fruit granite made a very happy couple with the chocolate mousse!

Dark Chocolate Souffle – warm, delicious and melt in the mouth kind!            

Yogurt and Vanilla Cream with Rhubarb Compote - a beautiful combination

All in all the three miniature desserts were to die for!

Steeply priced, each dish at Arola,  on an average costs Rs.750. So you could end up spending Rs 2500/- per head

Verdict:

Food: Good

Ambience: Beautiful

Service: Good

Quick Tip: When your in the mood to indulge – this is a great place for drinks and yummy tapas!

The Co-ordinates:

Arola Restaurant And Bar

Where: JW Marriott, Lobby Level, Juhu Tara Road, Juhu, Mumbai

Tring Tring:  - 022 66933220, 022 66933000

Timings: 8 PM to 1 AM

Food Type: Fusion, Spanish, Tapas, Appetizers

Payment Methods: Credit cards accepted

La Dolce Vita

Review: Mezzo Mezzo

Yes Culinary Muse has been living La Dolce Vita or the Good Life lately. It almost like Fergie singing G.L.A.M.O.U.R.O.U.S in the background! She has dining (and wining) at Mumbai’s finest places! And the latest to join her list is the celebrity Italian Restorante at JW Marriott – Mezzo Mezzo.

With it’ dim (read: close to nil lighting) and wooden flooring (that went tock tock with her heals), you’d believe you are on the sets of God Father with the mysterious music playing in the background et all.

As for the food, here goes Culinary Muse’ take

 Citrus & Herb Marinated Alaskan Sea Scallops

Picolli Morsi or as they say Small bites  -  We started with the Citrus & Herb Marinated Alaskan Sea Scallops – juicy chunks of the fish marinated in this divine herb and zesty limoncello -  tasted just beautiful. The next Proscuitto San Danielle – Shaved Parma Ham with Warm Buffalo Mozzarella – the rusty saltiness of the parma ham combined with slightly bland mozrella was amazing. Then was the Pizza Biance Con Rucola – a delicious pizza sans any tomato sauce just Mozrella and Cream topped with the picante taste of rocket salad – brilliant again (Check out Chefs Corner for the Recipe & World Cafe for more about the dish). Not thats what I call exotic yet tasty. Who would say that Italian food is bland.

Proscuitto San Danielle

Wine - Alessandro Comin, Maitre D'Hotel suggested we pair this course  with Wine Zardetto Procesco Brut NV (Rs 700 per glass), a sparkling wine. Though it had a nice fruity flavour to it, I personally found the Vini too dry.

Primi Piatti (First Course) – We then moved on to the first course where we had two kinds of Pasta’s-  Rigatoni in tomato based sauce – giant flat pasta in a tomato consomme with braised egg plant and fresh ricotta – I thought this needed some more flavour or seasoning to it. The next one was a Giant Shell with Chantralle Mushrooms, Truffle Cream Sauce – ambroasial flavours of truffle cream cheese with the mildly peppery taste of the chantrelle mushrooms! However Culinary Muse thought that pasta was a bit thick and doughy.

Wine – We paired this with Ferragamo Family Estate II (yes Salvatore Ferragamo) Borro lamelle 2008 (Rs 750 per glass). The wine was straw yellow in colour and had an intense floral and peach taste to it with a hint of vanilla. Brilliant! Now this is the kind of wine Culinary Muse would love to get high on!

Secondi Piatti -  For the second course we start with Branzino al Forno in Guazzetto di Marre (thats a mouthful I know)– roasted Sea Bass Fillet, Clams, Mussels & Shrimps in a sort of white wine broth – I loved what the white wine did for all the sea food – just enhancing the flavours and not over powering them. Delectable. The New Zealand Rack of Lamb, however had some great flavour with perfectly mashed potatoes but was too rare and it took CM hell of time trying to cut through it. (almost felt like butchering it all over again). The meat was also quiet chewy

Wine – Again a  Ferragamo Family Estate II Borro Pian di Nova 2007 (Rs 600 per glass) was a ruby red in colour.It had this spicy taste to it that didn’t impress CM much!

Dessert – For desert we had the Classic Tiramisu – a bit sweet Italian delicacy – think I had too much of coffee powder on mine, the Mango Tiramisu however added different dimension, quite a welcoming one I would say. But a must have dessert was the Calzone - kanranji shaped bread filled with Nutella – one bite into it and you know what paradise would taste like!

Verdict:

Food: Excellent

Ambience: The God Father with music et all

Service: Good

A 4 course meal without Vini (Wine) at Mezzo Mezzo would cost Rs 2500 aprox plus taxes

Quicktip: To get a taste of authentic Italian supper Mezzo Mezzo is the place. Culinary Muse would it rank amongst the top three places in Mumbai where you could get a fix of Italian khaana.  Do try the seafood there, the scallops are to die for!