Though Mumbaikers have a love affair with street food, once in a while it’s nice to go out and experience the high life. When you think of finer things in Mumbai, the very first places that come to mind are the Taj and the Oberoi. On my most recent visit to Mumbai, I got a chance to dine at Ziya, located on the first floor (that’s second floor American) of the Oberoi Lobby overlooking Nariman Point on Marine Drive and the Arabian Sea.
Ziya is spearheaded by the Michelin-starred, London-based chef Vineet Bhatia of Rasoi fame. Though he doesn’t actually cook in the kitchen, his influence can be found throughout the menu in eclectic flavor combinations and beautiful presentations. Much like Rasoi, Ziya offers a “Vegetarian Gourmand” tasting menu that I was lucky enough to dig into.
Up first: an amuse bouche of herbed cauliflower fritter with cilantro chutney, elegantly plated on a sparkling gold charger.
First course: a tandoor chilli paneer with garlic tempered vataana (peas) chaat. A large portion of soft but spicy paneer is paired with al dente pea “salad” with onions, tomato, garlic and street-food style masala.
Second course: Mulayam seekh kebab with a side of dosa potatoes, a side of lentil-popcorn soup and accompanied with wasabi chutney. Sausage-style seekh kebabs are completely meat-free and made with potatoes and spinach. A side of tumeric potatoes compliments the kebabs as does the wasabi chutney. The popcorn daal makes less sense on the plate, except perhaps to offer some moisture to a starchy plate.
Third course: Sundried tomato vegetable parcel with chilli-tomato pipette and black olive chutney khichdi is perhaps the most exciting dish in flavor as well as the most fun to eat.
A lip-smacking and refreshing palate cleanser in the form of lychee-ginger sorbet immersed in a pool of champagne comes out next. While it’s delicious and is very welcome after the heavier food, it seems out of place on the line up and would perhaps be served better just before the dessert.
Fifth course is a confusing dish of cabbage Bengal gram fritters, yellow dhokla with coconut and cilantro chutney, and more fritters with Chettinad chestnut masala. While each item is authentic in flavor, it is a random and overwhelming mix of items that inundates the palatte as well as the eye.
Sixth course: poppy seed crusted ginger rajma bar (red beans) with cracked wheat wrapped in fried dough, paired with a mix of spinach and pine nuts and a bit of Kashmiri rajma masala. This dish is traditional and modern blended tastefully.
Finally, out comes a mishthaan capsule with a hot and cold duo of desserts. A cold rose (gulkhand) and betel leaf (paan) kulfi marries romantically to a chocolate and cumin fudge.
The tasting menu offers seven courses of decadence that one can enjoy at leisure in a tasteful dining room served with attentive hospitality that is truly worthy of a fine dining experience.
For a sneak peak of some other dishes, check out the photos below…
Ziya
The Oberoi Towers, Nariman Point
Mumbai, Maharashtra 400 021
+91 22 6632 5757
Currently based out of Boston, Jesal is a blogger, freelance writer, yoga enthusiast and lifelong vegetarian who spent four years eating her way through New York City and various other cities around the globe. After answering hundreds of emails and phone calls answering the question, "Where's a cool place I can take my vegetarian friend out to eat" she started Veggiewala to efficiently share her knowledge of the vegetarian food scene with curious carnivores, flexitarians and other vegetarians.