The idea of a good time is not always run of the mill Saturday night carouser. I try to find some solace through meditation on a lazy Sunday afternoon, and being the foodie that I am, I meditate upon food cooked to suit my taste in the comfort of my own crib. For this very reason my hesitation outweighed my excitement when I received an invitation to the Sunday brunch at Taj Vivanta, Dwarka, New Delhi.
After being filled with a lot of loathing with the GPS, which always finds a new route to irritate me and braving the hot summer sun, we finally arrived at the Vivanta by Taj at Dwarka, quite late in the afternoon. Upon our arrival, the valet promptly grabbed the keys from my hand and I stepped into a place which seemed to me like an Oasis in the midst of a desert at that moment.
Even before I had checked in at the reception of the restaurant, which has been named as Creo, my ears picked up the melodious beats of the song Red Red Wine (Of UB40 fame) being played by the in house performer and conveys the message to me that son you are in the right place. After confirming my reservation at the reception, I was helped to secure a table to my liking. The place has put natural lighting to good use and the interiors including upholstery of the chairs and table linen were in sync with the occasion of a Sunday brunch.
We had a chat with the Executive Chef Elangovan Shanmugam, who was courteous enough to provide us with a walkthrough of the day’s menu. Creo offers a global menu on card with the combination of European, Oriental, Indian and south coastal main courses. The kid inside me took a few spankings to behave when we were strolling past the chocolate fountain in the kids counter assorted with mouth watering savories.
After tasting a majority of the dishes albeit in small portions, I can safely admit that there is no compromise on variety which adds credibility to Creo’s claim of providing fine global cuisine under the same roof. The versatility begins right from the first course with its Sushi, salad and cold cuts. Take this tip: go for the cold cut of duck. It’s amazing.
Most of the dishes would leave one asking for more, particularly the Prawn in Malabar curry served with Appams
which apparently is prawn curry as the name suggests but cooked to perfection with mangoes and kund chillies – a variety of chilli indigenous to the southern region of the country.
The other dishes that stand out are the Misoyaki chicken
– a Japanese version of roasted chicken, mutton Rogan Josh and the freshly baked thin crust pizzas. The Thai white curry and noodles, however, was not satisfactory especially when your taste buds are on a high from the previous encounters, and along with the tender loin which seemed to me a little under proves to be the Achilles’ heel.
The sweet tooth is a naughty one, and why it should not be when you have that variety. The lot competed rigorously among each other but the Mango Mousseline emerges as the magnum opus.
By the end of the day, I was stuffed to the brim with good food, mostly owing to the cajoling from the extremely hospitable crew of the Creo and the relaxing environment set up by the music from Mario – the in house artist who has been associated with Taj for decades.
As I poked the key to crank alive my car, I thought to myself that, for a change, I decided to spend my Sunday away from home only to find myself at home.
Whether you want bottled water or regular, is an option that all eateries offer. Diggin was no different. But here, I made a different choice. I opted for regular water. The waitress, dressed smartly in a white shirt and black trousers, smiled and poured me a glassful of water from a bottle. The water tasted different, it tasted fresher, mintier. A welcome flavor for the summer heat! In those bottles of regular water were mint leaves that gave the unique flavor. I knew that instant, this is a place that did things differently and for the better.
The Mashed Potato 