Food Review: NRIA Deliciously Bold Endeavour

p/p pThe last couple of years the world has seen an intriguing shuffle with more and more people travelling across continents, imbibing and celebrating a global culture. NRI, or should we say, Not Really Indian is an outcome of one such cross-cultural travelandmdash;a celebration of the various destinations the Indian Diaspora now calls home. Cutting a long story short, NRI seemed to us like the world on our platter, albeit with an Indian twist.br /br /The brainchild of Michelin-starred chef Atul Kochhar; there possibly could have been no better come back for him after 22 long years than with a property like NRI. Drawing the perfect balance between casual and chic, the vibe, as you enter NRI, is enough to get you started for the evening. Abuzz and running full house for dinner even on a weekday (quite a feat considering it is nestled in the heart of Mumbaiandrsquo;s business districtandmdash;BKC), we were pleasantly consumed by the warmth the space exudes./p pandnbsp;/p pandnbsp;/p p style="text-align: center;"/p pandnbsp;/p pbr /As we settled in, our evening was set rolling with a delicious curry leaf infused cocktail aptly called Mumbai Martini. To simply call it fresh would not only be an understatement; it would do pure injustice to this out-of-the-ordinary beverage. Those who donandrsquo;t fancy a posh cocktail once in a while can always opt for the Durban Cooler which is the right mix of pineapple, orange, honey and lime, topped with chunks of grilled pineapple. br /br /Sipping on our cocktails, just reading the menu gave us the feeling of being on a world tour while still seated in the warmly lit confines of NRIandrsquo;s large glass walls, overlooking a then sleepy business hub that bustles by the day. We started off with chicken liver masala on toast followed by the Malay button mushroomsandmdash;melt-in-the-mouth button mushrooms perfectly cooked in dollops of butter, kresikandmdash;which, simply put, is fried desiccated coconutandmdash;an ingredient that sets apart Malaysian and Indonesian curries from ones around the world, and kecap manis which is a sweet Indonesian soy sauce. Soon enough, we were served the South African piri piri chicken wings (the best weandrsquo;ve had so far) and the indie Brit fish and chipsandmdash;fried fish served with kasundi mayo and fried banana plantain instead of potato chips and matar churma. The fish and chips deserve a special mention simply because it tasted nothing like what our taste buds are accustomed to. We are certain that the fish and banana plantain took up so much of our love and attention, the matar churma sure felt left out.andnbsp; br /br /For the main course, we moved to another country, another tale. We were suggested the lip-smacking bunny chowandmdash;melting mutton curry served in a bread bowl topped with a slice of fried banana plantain and shredded cabbage. While we could fill endless spaces speaking of this brilliance they call a dish, we will stop at saying that this is one dish you cannot step out of NRI without trying! Who would have thought what was once a take away meal of Indian immigrants who worked on sugar plantations in South Africa in the second half of the 19th century now tops our list of delicacies!/p pandnbsp;/p pandnbsp;/p p style="text-align: center;"/p pandnbsp;/p pbr /While the world was brought to our table, we still couldnandrsquo;t let go off the good olandrsquo; butter chicken accompanied by butter naan. When it was time for a dessert, our server rolled in a thela (food cart) full of delicious treats. While we couldnandrsquo;t help but feel like children in a candy store, we opted for the scrumptiously moist jiggery bread pudding, masala chai baileys brownie and the choux bun stuffed with mango./p pandnbsp;/p pThere is something beautifully nostalgic and Indian about the mood and experience NRI offers. Right from the interior to the food and the set up, everything about the space is reminiscent of an India Indians are so familiar with, yet it holds the power to take you around the world ticketless. Donandrsquo;t shy away; itandrsquo;s time you take this world tour!andnbsp;/p pandnbsp;/p pstrongMore On andgt;andgt; a href="http://luxpresso.com/lifestyle/food-drink" target="_blank"Food andamp; Drink/a/strong/p

from Luxpresso http://www.luxpresso.com/reviews-lifestyle/review-of-nri-restaurant-by-michelin-starred-chef-atul-kochhar/16012230
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