Chinese New Year Menu at Yauatcha | Bangalore | Year of the Monkey
12:33
So, our food blogging journey began almost a year ago and since then we have come a really long way.
We have visited street food joints, cafes, fine dining
restaurants, barbeque joints and of course in general buffet joints. (And more
as well ;))
So, now we mark a checkpoint in our food blogging journey
with our first Michelin star restaurant visit. It is a renowned name the world
over for the Chinese and pan Asian cuisine they serve, but they are even better
known for their beautifully crafted desserts. They provide what we would call a
supreme dining experience which is luxurious and is guaranteed to wake up your
taste buds!
So, the name of the restaurant (You must have guessed it by
now) is Yauatcha , which is located at 1 MG road Mall, Bangalore.
We had the privilege of tasting their Chinese New Year menu
celebrating the year of the Monkey. The menu was unique, rare and very
adequately priced considering the quality and of course the skill involved in
producing such gorgeous end results.
A few words about the decor before moving onto the food: The
restaurant looks like a greenhouse from a distance, owing to the fact that it
is entirely visible from the outside. The decor is also very peaceful and
combined with the soothing tunes played it will help anyone relax, unwind and
have a memorable dining experience every time! Moreover, they have a luxurious
bar and an open kitchen in which you can see all the chefs performing their art
which comes to your plate.
 |
| Accompanying sauces and pickled vegetables |
Now for the food:
The Chinese New Year menu had 4 sections—dim sum, main
course, cocktail and dessert.
The dim sum had 6 varieties and all the 6 were unreasonably
excellent. They were served in bamboo steamers and in each of them we would
sense all the flavours distinctly which is very rare indeed! Another striking
feature of all of these was the surprisingly thin coating of the dumplings—you
need to try it to believe it!
The Truffle and English carrot dumpling was something we had
for the first time. As mentioned, the coating was almost negligible. The
stuffing was mashed and there was a breathtaking aroma from the mixture. We
could definitely sense the carrot, but since we tasted truffle for the first
time we understood that the mysteriously good aroma is that of the truffle.
The kiwi and the black olive dumplings were decorated in a
different fashion, topped off with a bit of black olive. This was very well
balanced as the bitterness of the black olive was very well complemented with
the sweetness of the kiwi. With every bite, one can sense the ups and downs of
the flavours thereby striking the required balance.
The corn carrot and curry dumpling was the best in terms of
presentation. The coating was transparent and you can see everything inside
out! This dumpling was a bit sweet thanks to the corn and the carrots. The
curry blended in perfectly and imparted a special fragrant aroma heightening
the taste. All the flavours could be sensed individually and it was great
stuff!
The seafood shui mai was another spectacular preparation.
The green colour was quite amusing and god knows how they made what they had made!
The dumpling was soft, a bit mushy and had minced prawns which were cooked to
perfection and was sweetly delicious!
The lobster ho fun roll with black pepper sauce was yet
another brilliant dish. Pale white, fresh and sweet lobsters were rolled in
very thin flat noodle strands topped off with black pepper sauce. The sweetness
of the lobsters combined with the sharp taste of the granular pepper in the
sauce tasted excellent. Moreover, there were crunchy carrot bits as an added feature.
Lastly, the chicken and coriander dumpling was something
many of us have had before, but I doubt whether that experience will match up
with this one! The colour of the coating, the minced soft chicken with the
aroma of fresh coriander in every bite is sure to make you go “mmmm”!
So, we are done with the dim sum and off to the cocktail, Cherry chaser.
The cocktail had orange juice, ginger juice, gin, mandarin and cointreau as its
constituents. It had two layers—the top layer had the refreshing fragrance of
oranges and little of the gin, whereas the bottom layer was more of gin and
ginger, which sort of gives you a light hit ;)
The main course consisted of 5 items which boasted the
craftsmanship of the chefs which prepared them.
There were two preparations in hunan style spicy sauce: the
stir fried mock chicken and the wok fried lobster.
The mock chicken had soya and rice as its ingredients and it
tasted a lot like chicken, so it was a shocking revelation to me ( Rudra here
B-) ). The preparation had loads of fried beans, oyster mushrooms and other
vegetables. Most importantly, it had a very sharp taste because of the soya
sauce and overall it tasted great.
The wok fried lobsters tasted very similar to the mock
chicken but the presence of soya sauce was mild. The sweetness of the lobsters
went very well with the entire package. Except for that, it also had tonnes of
veggies and the gravy was spicy just like the mock chicken. Basically these two
preparations are for vegetarians and nonvegetarians respectively for having it
with the rice and noodles.
The rice preparation (Toban fried rice) was steaming when served and had one of the best aromas we have ever smelt of rice. Fresh spring onions were sprinkled on top and the rice was a bit sticky. The rice tasted excellent with the distribution of sweet corn and small cut vegetables.
The Mahlak udon noodles were thick noodles which were soft
and slippery. The noodle preparation had loads of diced bell peppers and the
combination was very tasty. The gravy along with the noodles was very rich,
thick and lip smacking!
Last in the main course was the braised pork belly with cigar mantou roll, which is in fact their signature preparation. The presentation was worth a bow and the preparation is pure genius. The gravy was thick and dark brown in colour and was quite spicy. The pomegranate seeds imparted freshness to the dish and when we had this with the rolls it tasted mind blowing. The rolls were also a bit sweet most probably due to honey and the pork was well done. The pork portions had some fat in it and the entire preparation had the essence of the pork which was brilliant.
Up to now, everything was brilliant and we thought there
could be nothing better but then came the dessert –crunchy caramel with
honeycomb ice cream and just the look of it made everything before look pale!
There is nothing to say about the dessert other than that fact that you need to have it to believe it.
There is nothing to say about the dessert other than that fact that you need to have it to believe it.
Overall, one needs to taste everything to believe it. The
pictures and the write up can just help in picturing the brilliance but one
needs to try it to savour the moment.
This menu is available till the 23rd of February, 2016 and
we would definitely recommend this to anyone who has a passion for food.
We really loved the food served here and combined with the
courteous staff and the amazingly soothing ambiance this is one of the ultimate
dining experiences.
We really enjoyed ourselves and hope whoever reads this,
enjoys there as well.
Till next time—bon appétit!
Priyanjana’s Notes –
Rudra did a great job explaining everything here! I had a wonderful time, firstly because of the warm and courteous staff and secondly, obviously,
because of the food! This menu is something you shouldn’t miss. If I had to
just choose 4 things out of the whole menu, which are absolute must-haves, then
I would choose the Seafood Shui mai, Crunchy caramel with honeycomb icecream,
tooban rice and the beautifully done Wok Fried Lobsters!
You should definitely not miss out on this special menu!
*Team FLB was invited by the management to taste the menu.
0 comments