First look will make you crazy; my eyes were just glued
to the façade full of golden hues and royalty emanating from the grandeur of
the whiskies lined up at the most elegant Bar, I have witnessed in recent
times. Welcome to “Whisky Samba” my friends….. A brand new place by ace restaurateur
Ashish Dev Kapur who revolutionized the way you drink at bars with his super
hit concept “The Wine Company”.
He has teamed up with Deepak Seth and Joydeep
Singh to create this awesome place which portrays their undying love and
passion for Whisky. Their main aim is to showcase and revolutionize the whisky
drinking experience through the carefully selected brands from all over the
world. In addition to the unique whisky cocktails paired with great food from
their stable, Whisky Samba will change the game altogether.
Chef Akshay Bhardwaj is a Noma returned or I must say
Noma trained Chef who has woven some of the best stories around food. Menu is
very carefully done, with the best from all over the world. Using techniques
like Chargrilling, Braising, Dehydrating, Baking and Curing he has done wonders
with whatever we tasted from the Chefs tasting menu. I loved his ideology of
using the best of “Locally sourced ingredients”.
We loved the Salmon Carpaccio (Art on plate) and the Shrimp
Ceviche (with raspberry and litchi compote) OMG, what lovely burst of flavors ….
It was so damn good and didn’t seem to be raw at all!! The restaurant is not
following any cuisine as such; it is defined by the best of cooking techniques
and the freshest of ingredients.
Tortellini coated with a thick film of plum reduction
stuffed with goat’s cheese was heavenly and how can I forget the Mushroom
Risotto, it was so flavorful and creamy yet the bite was just perfect in the
rice and the charcoal coloured mushroom crisp was a perfect accompaniment.
The palate cleanser was nothing short of an
artistic creation in the form of a frozen whisky cocktail (Whisky sour ice
shavings) topped up with fermented lily and passion fruit bubble covered in chocolate.
The biggest delight for me was the Short Rib braised for long, finished to
perfection on a grill with a flavorful jus served with house baked brioche,
salad and an awesome mash which was like heaven on tongue. The Pork Ribs too,
were melt in the mouth types with a nice spicy flavour and were quite different
than we usually eat anywhere else.
Desserts are to die for, and don’t even dare think about
something you can find anywhere else. Chefs take on sinful delights is highly
innovative; Five textures of Pineapple is one of them, one needs to savour this
Nirvana. Also not to forget the chocolate mousse bubbling hot from the oven
served with house made Magnum style choco bar filled with freshly ground mint ….
Oh! My my …. Need I say More ?
Though, I had to miss the most sought after whisky
cocktail renditions at Whisky Samba (Off Alcohol for a few days), but will
surely visit it again soonest to try them all perfectly paired with the
excellent food that this place has to offer.
WHISKY SAMBA
Two Horizon Center, Golf Course Road,
Gurgaon