From the American sitcom to the Indian dining scene, the East has never been more assertive, if you will forgive our French. Always trying to stay au quarantine, we washed up on the shores of the Chi Asian Cookhouse, which encloses the diverse cuisine in a single spot on the street.
The restaurant has all the pop colors of an anime feature film, brightly lit and set like a dragon landing on the first floor. The menu happily travels around Asia without playing favorites in any particular region. The focus is semi-casual so there are plenty of squares, dim sum and pancake rolls. No, we don’t mean that
Betty Crocker.
We start with Guay Cuan Chay, a rice paper roll that looks minimal until you get bitten, a rather immersive experience, your mouth bursting with noodles, fresh basil and peanut flavors.
We started our position in Vietnam with Ho Chi Minh Chicken Saat and Cha Ka Thang (Vietnamese fish cooked with turmeric and dill). Politically, even without bias, we can safely give our vote to both diagonals, the fish winning our hearts with the melting texture of its mouth.
Bibimbap at Chi Asian Cookhouse.
This is followed by a roll call with dim sum, Thai curry paste fish, soup pork dumplings, shrimp chew fun and sticky rice and minced chicken wrapped in banana leaves. The fish comes first again, tied to the pork. Served in a shot glass, the fish is full of flavors similar to Nicholas Spark’s novel, while the dumplings we eat whole, a gloriously messy supernova of tender pork. Cheung fun may be a little more flavorful but at the moment we are out of complaint.
As stuff as we are, we still have to eat our main (or no dessert, we can almost hear our mom). These include chewing chili shrimp, tossed in a tangy red sauce, and kimchi rice. Cheating never felt good.
Dessert is a coconut pancake that is served with vanilla ice cream. The pancakes are filled with a magnificent molasses and coconut dessert. This little pig went to the Orient and said Chi. And keep.
Meals for two: Rs. 1,800 (inclusive of tax, excluding alcohol)
Address: 68/1, Janpath; 45123244
