The Best Restaurant in Bombay ?

Someone asked me this question recently and i have been thinking about it for a while. What indeed is the best restaurant in Bombay? Is it Wasabi, a signature restaurant from a well known chef or Is it Indigo, a place that brought imaginative, Euro-Indian fine dine to Bombay or Dum Pukth, a place which exemplifies the Dum cooking?

So you ready for the answer? Drum Roll Please.....

Thai Pavilion (previous visits here)

Why?
Well, this is mostly subjective and my personal opinion but i have had 6 meals at TP in 2010 and not a single one of them was below spectacular. Each meal was not only consistent but the variety of dishes we tried, not one of them was dissapointing. I could simply point my finger at anything and end up with a perfectly satisfactory dish.

Its a great place to celebrate with a large group, have an intimate evening or do a business lunch. All of which i have been able to do over the last year. In fact, i am planning an evening out at TP right now with 2 very pretty women.

In the Thai space, there really isnt much comeptition for TP, Spices at JW Mariott and Pan Asian at the ITC to a certain extent do some Thai dishes but none of them do it exceptionally. The only other Thai restaurant i know of is Tamnak Thai which is acceptable but not in the same ballpark (hell they arent even in the same game) same goes for Lemon grass and ThaiBan.

I foundKoh at the Intercontinental to be a massive dissapointment, modernity is nothing without flavour and in my opinion will not last the distance.

At Thai Pavilion the menu is fairly traditional, Thai eaters, will immediately be able to pick out the favouraites and i would highly recommend the Tom Kha which is exceptional, the Som Tam papaya Salad is freshness in a bowl and the Red Curry is a flavour explosion and the Pad Thai are the best ive had anywhere. I usually let the guys reommend the veggies, a new one each time.

While i like the old Thai Pavilion a lot and was resistant to go to the new Super Potato designed space thinking they will have ruined it. However, i was poorer for not having given them the benefit of the doubt.

The new space is brilliantly designed, modern, sleek yet a fairly calming environment, selecting the right table can you make you feel like you are having a private dining experience. The service is friendly, prompt, everyone is willing to make recommendations and back them up. Only once was the food exceptionally delayed but were offered a large platter of desserts in consolation. Besides, it was so good that i didnt really mind.

Another thing i really like about TP & The President in general is that compared to some of the other 5 star eateries, their prices are just right (meals for 2 between 1800-3000 without booze) and the food far far superior (Trattoria has been part of my growing up, KonKan Cafe is vastly under rated)

I would put this down to Chef Ananda Solomon exec chef at the Taj President and rated by some folks i know as the most hard working man around.

Thai Pavilion The Taj President
Cuffe Parade
Tel: 66650808
I would reommend a reservation (8.30 or 10.30) have been there on week days and found it packed.

Full Disclosure : No one from the Taj President, Taj Group or any PR agency has asked me or offered me anything to write this post. Its genuinely how i feel.

Eating Singapore

Back from my little workation in Singapore & a brief stopover in KL. Singapore, is a city i have great affection for, it nearly rivals the joy i have for the other two great cities i have been to (London & New York) although Singapore gives you the greatest gift of all, efficient use of time.When i think of a city of the future, i dont think of flying cars but i think of a place where i can pack loads of work and activity in a day and be home without wasting time in traffic and ridiculous long commutes.

Anyway, this is about food. Singapore has a very interesting local scene, plenty of fine dine, variety of cuisine and budgets from hawker to five star. One can sample from across Asia, (Vietnam, China, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand) and also give some of the more modern takes on these cuisines a shot.

There is a strong Indian presence, especially South Indian and you would be surprised by how competetive some of the restaurants are vis a vis back home.

I would say Go Singapore and enjoy a modern city with loads of entertainment and good food.

Off !