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Blogger’s Table @ Blue Ginger, Taj Palace Hotel

January 24, 2013 by TheWhiteRamekins

There are somethings which don’t need introduction of any sort. Such is the repute of highly acclaimed Taj group of hotels. The magnanimity and the lavishness of it’s hotels is nonetheless obvious even for the most ignorant and nonchalant.

Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi is one of the pioneering gems of the group in the capital, where our chatty and vivacious group of Blogger’s Table met last week to experience the taste of Vietnamese cuisine at hotel’s Blue Ginger restaurant. I was quite intrigued by Vietnamese, as it was going to be my first tryst with it’s flavors. And it was a bonus for me, as we all were getting together after such a long time, almost 3 months.

Blue Ginger has a stunning visual appeal, which makes an ever lasting impression on it’s patrons through it’s French-Colonial aesthetics. It has a private dining room with seating of 12 which is adjacent to it’s main hall. The center of attraction was a large round dining table inlayed with the mother of pearls, beautifully lit up by the contemporary chandeliers above.

As we all gathered, Executive Chef Rajesh Wadhwa joined us for a brief introduction to Vietnamese cuisine, which is still not known to many in the Capital. He talked about the influence which Chinese, Indian, Thai and French food has brought over the traditional Vietnamese food and also about the challenges which restaurant had to face while designing a vegetarian menu suited to Indian palate, as they hardly have vegetarian food in the Vietnamese.

I opted for the Non-vegetarian menu which definitely had some of the common samplers from the vegetarian one. It started with Amuse Bouche, which basically was curried rice cakes with scallion oil and Shiraja, having an awesome hot zing.

From starters, there were Cuu bam xúc sàlách {Stir fried minced lamb with fried onions and scallions served with lettuce}, Goi Cuô´n Tôm Gà {Fresh summer rolls with shrimp & chicken}, Goi Xòai {Raw mango salad}. Reading these names down the menu, I almost felt like singing aloud these words in my mind. The mince was quite crisp and nicely done, seated on a bed of fresh and crunchy lettuce. Raw mango salad was something to die for. It was a power pack of flavors, reminded me of all those pucker y tangy delicacies which I used to enjoy as a kid.

The flavors of raw mango salad were still alive in my mouth, and then arrives the palette cleanser. Tamarind sorbet. WOW !!! Not just any sublime palette cleanser, rather a teasing taste which will take your imagination to the next level. You wouldn’t have thought that in the farthest of your dreams. Simply Amazing. Sitting there and enjoying the last bit of it, I even started wishing if I could recreate something like that.

Main course had something in store for me. I hadn’t ever thought of a braised lamb shank being served in an Asian cuisine. And I guess the various cultures which have influence over the Vietnamese explain this pretty clearly. One bite of it, and it clearly revealed it’s own whole new identity which basically got from the Asian flavors, the lemon grass and chili oyster sauce. The meat was so tender and juicy that it was actually falling off the bone with a gentle touch of fork. Stunning !!!

Alongside, came stir fried lobster with garlic, salt and pepper. Simple yet quite refreshing flavors. I was digging into the food, when Sangeeta almost exclaimed about the lotus root vegetable thing. It was delicacy sereved with tamarind sauce, which actually reminded me of the famous Delhi’s street food, Aaloo ki tikki. Interesting flavors which I found quite relevant.

By the time the main course was over, I realized that I had over eaten. It was such an extravaganza of food, balanced by the flavors of sweet sour and regular food. And having no appetite left, petite serving of dessert was something, which I had been looking for. And then it comes with a loud cheer. Not one, but three showstoppers – Bánh Flan Dac Biêt {Ginger coconut caramel custard}, Socôla Boc Kem Voí Ruou Amaretto {Chocolate bombe with coffee mousse and amaretto chocolate sauce) and Kem Huong Sa {Lemongrass Ice cream}, each one was so perfectly done.

My spoon first dug into the chocolate bomb. The mousse was so light and airy that I almost felt like dreaming. Lemongrass ice cream was quite refreshing and flavorful. I enjoyed and finished it completely. I didn’t like the custard though.

It was a heart warming afternoon spent with my lovely companions and the delicate, refreshing flavors of the Vietnamese cuisine made it special. A wonderful job done by the chef and his team.

Others on the table that afternoon

Sid @ Chef at Large
Rekha @ My Tasty Curry
Deeba @ Passionate About Baking
Parul @ Shirazine
Sangeeta Khanna @ Banaras ka Khana
Ruchira @ Cookaroo
Mukta @ Bake-a-mania

Food Festival | Quartet of European Delights @ Eros Hilton, New Delhi

November 3, 2012 by TheWhiteRamekins

Festivals bring joy to a dull and mundane life. And if they are about some really good food, a heart warming music and some captivating dance performances, nothing can’t stop your life to get revived. Such was the experience when Blogger’s Table was called for yet another event last week. It was the opening ceremony of Quartet of European Delights at Hotel Eros Hilton, New Delhi, a time to unveil some serious European gastronomy.

It’s a festival of cuisine from four European countries including Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, starting from 31st October. And we were quite lucky indeed that we were called up at the opening ceremony.

Under the open sky of a starry night, the ceremony started with a brief address by the ambassadors of all four countries followed by a felicitation of the brilliant Chef Marek Brezina from Slovakia, Robert Trzópek from Poland, Csaba Horváth from Hungary and Michal Jerabek from Czech Republic, who flew into India exclusively for this 10 days of food extravaganza.

It was just finished and we got to hear the sound of orchestra, adjusting their instruments, coming from the corner of the stage. It was really lovely live jazz music, which was then followed by some beautiful melodies by Monika Dryl a Polish actress and singer, who after winning numerous festivals and competitions, including the Grand Prix, was here to win our hearts with her very sweet and melodious voice.

And then came the jewel of the evening. A mesmerizing Hungarian folk dance performance by a group of vivacious dancers, which was presented by Csillagszemuek (Starry-Eyed) Dance Ensemble, an institution who teaches dance education through workshops in which children learn their native folk dances. And they really are able to preserve their native folk dances and culture, which was quite obvious from the spirited foot tapping performance of the dancers.

Food, the main attraction of the festival, was nonetheless extravagant. Their were huge buffet counters from all four countries. I tried to taste a sample from each one of the counters, but could not do so, as it was not at all possible. It was comfort food all over. From soups to meaty stews to creamy vegetables to cheesy savory pies to pancakes to warm apple strudel. It was a never ending affair of such good comfort food. And this is right in time, as we can feel the starting nip in air in Delhi these days.

The one which I could taste and really liked were

Lamb Goulash, Cold Trout with Chive Yogurt, Homemade Gnocchi from Hungary.
Marinated Duck Breast with Juniper and Apple and Beetroot Salad and Crepes with Walnut Cream & Orange Chocolate Sauce from Poland.
Cauliflower Pancakes with White Cheese and Chive and Warm Apple Strudel with Vanilla and Chocolate Sauce from Czech Republic.
Dense lentil & Vegetables Soup, Sheep’s Cheese Pie from Slovakia

All in all it was a wonderful evening spent having some really good food along with experiencing a panoramic view of the cultures and traditions of those four great European countries.

The festival is on till 9th November. Do stop by for this wonderful food affair.

Others from Blogger’s Table who were present that night:

Sid Khullar of ChefAtLarge

Charis of Culinary Storm

Rituparna of Chocolates & Dreams

Blogger’s Table | Rose Cafe, Mehrauli, New Delhi

October 11, 2012 by TheWhiteRamekins

Rose Café as the name suggests, has a beautiful pink, white and green décor with some white lights, laced curtains, rugged-looking furniture and a small garden at the back. As soon as you enter this little café located in Mehrauli area of New Delhi, you get the feeling of coming to the Cinderella’s home. All that glitterati can easily woo a first time visitor. And this is what exactly happened to me as well when our Blogger’s Table visited this place on last Sunday for a brunch.

Ascribe it to my poor Google skills, I got mistaken by another restaurant by the similar name, so was running late by 30 minutes. And when I dropped in, my folks had already ordered some of the things from their menu; a couple of portions of their signature white base pizzas, one with toppings of bacon, onion and other one with green apple, pomegranate, walnuts and potatoes along with a beverage of each one’s choice. I quickly glanced through the menu to pick my drink. It was their signature Mint Iced Tea, which I ordered. After waiting for another half an hour, when the pizzas hadn’t still arrived on the table, acting like a clever customer I picked up their menu to chose the next course of meal , to avoid any further delay. My cleverness too had been killed by the boredom of waiting for the food to appear out of the kitchen, which I realized later when the main course got never delivered. I just couldn’t see that.

Finally after waiting for an hour, pizzas arrived and they tasted good, especially the one with bacon. I was liking the last bit of it, when a blogger friend at the other end of table pointed out, that we were not served what was mentioned in the menu. It was supposed to be a white base of crème fraiche, which remotely tasted like one. We were not served which was promised, so what if it tasted good. Such kind of cheating on the customers strictly puts me off!!! And their audacity and shamelessness to cheat on someone whom they had called for a review ghastly amazed me, as if the laid back service wasn’t enough.

There was a sense of chaos in the café because of their sloppy service and laid back attitude of the waiters. Even after clearly pointing out by another friend that there was a hair in his water, the server didn’t bother to replace that or at least apologize. He rather tried to correct the gentleman by telling it to be a fragment of lime flesh. A stockpile of uncompleted orders and the rude and adamant behavior of the staff ruined the whole experience of the beautiful interiors. There was time, when the jacket potatoes ordered a while ago, reached the table along with the desserts. Even the desserts tasted like yuck. Macaroons were served straight out of the freezer and they had that eternal chewiness which never seemed to end, unless you spit them out. All the cakes were hard and cold enough to be dig in.

You wouldn’t wish to visit such place for a Sunday brunch, which probably is living in their own dreams, imagining they serve some good food, just by compiling some of the fancy items on the menu. Or rather forget about good food, they first need to be taught how not to be rude and discourteous to the guests.

Avoid, if you can.

See what others from the Blogger’s Table have to say:

Sid Khullar of ChefatLarge
Charis of Culinary Storm
Rituparna of Chocolates & Dreams