Usually
my friends and I prefer to go out for luncheons; that way we get to extend the meal
right into evening tea. ;) The city, these past few days, has been experiencing
scorching summer heat which has put a damper on afternoon jaunts. We opted for
dinner instead and our choice of restaurant was Rhubarb!
Rhubarb
is situated in the same building as Seasons Hotel, at Aundh. It is, however,
independently owned and is not a part of Seasons Hotel. The decor is a
stylishly minimalistic; mainly in shades of black and white. I loved it!
We were parched and opted for drinks as soon as we reached the restaurant. We chose freshly squeezed orange juice, Two Grandmothers Lemonade and
Aam Panna. The oranges used for the juice were not sweet enough and, oddly, felt as if mixed with sweet lime juice. As for the fresh
lime soda and the Aam Panna, I’ve had better! They need to up their game with
regard to the drinks they serve. They simply did not dazzle.
For
starters we ordered, Baked Cheese, Croquettas and Sautéed Mushrooms served with
herbed bread, with butter and olive oil-balsamic on the side.
The
Sautéed Mushrooms were cooked just right. Atop the mushrooms was perched a
perfectly poached egg. As one of my friends is an eggetarian we requested Amogh (owner and chef) for an extra serving of poached egg and he amiably obliged. I could find
absolutely no fault with the dish. The reason you don’t hear me going ga-ga
over this simplistic yet beautiful dish is because although I did taste this
dish and enjoy it, all my greedy attention was diverted towards the next two
dishes that I am about to write about.
The
Baked Cheese was molten deliciousness; served with thin Melba toasts and olive
tapenade. The main cheeses used in the dish were Camembert and Brie. Do I need
to say anything more after having mentioned the names of the cheese? When they
served us the dish, the tapenade did not look appetizing but, not one to judge
food merely by how it looks, I gave it a try. It was stunning! It complemented
the cheese and toast perfectly. We kept dipping toasts in that magnificent-melted
goodness and licked the dish clean. Well, not literally but you get my drift,
right? :)
The
Croquettas, were balls of molten cheese and braised lamb served with chilli
mayo. They were crumbed from outside, while the braised lamb shreds tangled
with melting cheese from within. The chilli mayo served with the croquettas
added a classic zing. They were delish!
For
mains, my vegetarian friend chose hand cut Pappardelle with asparagus and
parmesan, while the carnivores chose Year of the Rooster and 12 Hour Pork Ribs.
My
friend loved the in-house, hand cut pappardelle as she is someone who makes
pasta at home, from scratch. According to her, the dish in entirety was
delicious. I merely took a bite from the bowl of pasta; with chicken and
pork staring at me from other plates can you blame me for ignoring the vegetarian pasta? I have to honestly say, my comments about the pappardelle dish are from
the feedback I received from the person who had it and raved about it.
The
Year of the Rooster is half a chicken, beautifully charred and served with Schezwan glaze,
egg fried rice and sautéed vegetables. The chef described a particular technique
he used to ensure that the chicken remained succulent on cooking. I recognized
the method as similar to the one used by a very famous international chef. The
chicken was charred from outside but was superbly succulent from within. The
fried rice served with the chicken was not the usual long grain rice. This was a
broken variety of Indrayani Rice. I am someone who loves long grain rice, but this
rice, and the way in which it was cooked, was so darn good that there is no way
I can sulk or throw a tantrum for it not being the long grain variety. This was
a fantastic dish!
The 12
Hour Pork Ribs was the dish of the day! Cooked in molasses and Korean chilli
paste, it was a perfect balance of sweet and spicy. The dish brought back
flavourful memories of Yangnkeom Tongdak (Crispy Korean Chicken); a recipe I regularly make at home using the very same Korean paste. I was the only ‘oink’ eater at
the table hence could not finish the entire portion served. I requested Chef
Amogh to 'doggy-bag' the rest of the ribs. By the time I reached home, an hour
later, all I could think of was devouring the succulent babies travelling
home with me. I behaved, though, and had them the following day, for lunch.
These ribs are among the best I’ve had in Pune! On any given day, I’d travel
all the way to Aundh (a total of 50 kms, 25 to and fro from my residence) just
to lay my greedy paws on these sinfully pieces of ‘oink’. Sigh!
Our
dessert choices were Mint Panna Cotta with Lemon Curd, Strawberry Jam and
Meringues (served in a glass), Warm Chocolate Cake with Hazelnut Cream and Seasonal
Fruit Tart with Rhubarb Jam. The fruit tart was not for me as I steer clear of
fresh fruit. My friends enjoyed it, though. The panna cotta was refreshingly
different and yummy. The minty flavour melded beautifully with the tartness of
the lemon curd and the sweetness of the strawberry jam.
The Warm Chocolate Cake
was as comforting as chocolate cakes can get. In fact, it was so yum, I could
easily have had it all by itself without the hazelnut cream.
Owner
and chef, Amogh, is extremely passionate about the food he cooks and that passion clearly reflects in all that he serves! How then can one leave a restaurant
disappointed? We didn’t! Three happy puppies trudged home with full bellies,
satiated smiles and we raved about the food, all the way home.
In
the past month, Rhubarb has added many new dishes to their menu. They also have a new breakfast menu coming up from Saturday, May 6, 2017. The breakfast menu will be served Tuesday to Sunday (Monday closed), from 8.30 am to 11.30 am. I can't wait to check out the new stuff... Soon, very
soon!! :-)
Food: 4/5
Ambiance:
4/5
Service:
5/5
Address:
Shop No 1, Seasons Apartment Hotel, Sanewadi, Aundh, Pune.
Tel:
020 30189220
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