The new menu at Bombay Brasserie brings together traditional tastes with experimental combinations
When the papad plate arrived like a bride accompanied by her bridesmaids, I could not hide my excitement. Potato, urad dal and sabudhana papads served with six types of dips was an experience by itself. Even as I was revelling in their varied taste, the chilli cheese kulchas arrived in style. Biscuit-sized kulchas stuffed with cheese became my newest comfort food instantly.
Launched in 2014, Bombay Brasserie has recently revamped its menu, offering a fresh perspective, aimed to take Indian cuisine to a whole new level, presenting the traditional regional cuisine with a modern twist.
“The entire menu has been designed in such a way that we cover unique flavours pan India, and our presentation has been tuned to bring in more young customers,” says Shika Nath, Brand Director, Bombay Brasserie of K Hospitality Corp.
As a result, we have a selection of pan-India ingredients and cuisines presented in sections such as the start, hot plates and street grills and paired curries. This, apart from the usual biryanis, accompaniments and desserts.
With regionally-sourced ingredients, such as aam papad from Amritsar, ambotik masala from Goa, kasundi from Bengal and malvani masala from the Konkan belt, the flavours can stimulate your palate.
Like the Marathi jhinga mirch caught me unawares with its unique Maharastrian mirch ka thecha masala, which was flavoured with peanuts and thecha chillies.
The reimagined menu focusses extensively on dips and pairing it with the main dishes. When the Calcutta club fish curry is paired with pungent kasundi(mustard) dip, the taste and flavour are enhanced. The Kashmiri naan kebab is a single-piece foot-long minced-mutton kebab, served on a saffron-smeared naan, with a cooling yoghurt dip.
For mains, we settle for Bombay lunch home veg curry and banana leaf rice. The mildly-flavoured rice, with a hint of coconut milk, when paired with vegetables cooked in malvani masala and garnished with vermicelli, is a delight.
Bombay dabba gosht, a Bohri dish where mutton is baked in a round tin with spices and condiments, is a tad too bland, but turns out to be a perfect companion for chur chur paratha.
The Bombay ice-cream sandwich, which was served with jim jam and bourbon biscuits, eclairs, jujubes and chocolate sauce, had a whiff of childhood nostalgia. It was the plating and pairing of dishes with dips that made the dining experience exciting. The experience provides a panorama of regional masalas and distinctive flavours. As Nath says, “We like to tell gastronomic stories. Every dish has an interesting story behind it, which we have given in our menu.”
Bombay Brasserie is located in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai. The new revamped menu is available at all the restaurants. In Chennai, it has two branches, in Nungambakkam and Adyar. It will soon be opening two more outlets in Mumbai and Lucknow in the coming months.
