Leading the luxurious life is all about duality coupled with the great privilege called CHOICE. In the mood for a beach holiday? Then worshiping the sun and getting that killer tan is just a jet-plane ride away to Bora Bora. Or perhaps a ski vacation in the chilly climes of Banff is more your thing? Why then should fine dining be any different? Some days that long, languid brunch beckons while some nights call for dressing up to the nines and hitting that hot new hedonistic temple to black-tie dining that brings out the sybarite in you. So just where do you begin and what’s tantalizing in the world of haute cuisine? Read on…
5 of the world’s ultra luxe brunch restaurants
1. Pastis, New York, USA
Fast becoming an institution where brunch is a meal elevated to great gastronomic heights, Pastis that is housed in Manhattan’s trendy Meatpacking District is a must-visit restaurant. This French bistro style restaurant is the kind of place where you almost certainly find yourself sharing space with a famous face. Gerard Butler, Jude Law and Sienna Miller are regulars here as are other die-hard foodies who can’t seem to get enough of Pastis’ offering such as the to-die-for Eggs Benedict, the various fluffy omelets and pates served with warm house bread. Pastis is run by Keith McNally and serviced by his impeccably talented team comprising of Executive Chefs Riad Nasr and Lee Hanson and Chef de Cuisine Pascal Le Seac’h. The trio prepares a menu that combines hearty Provençal dishes with moderately- priced bistro fare. The bar serves a range of house cocktails, wines by the glass, carafe or bottle, and several varieties of pastis, an anise-flavored aperitif from the south of France that this culinary jewel gets its name from. A word of warning about the ever-crowded Pastis: make your reservations way in advance or be prepared for an hour long wait for a table!
2. Le Nautique, Nice, France
Regarded as the playground for the rich-n-famous, Nice is the uncrowned jewel of the French Riveira with its super-decadent bars, hotels, clubs and restaurants. One such heaven to see and be seen in is Le Nautique which easily dishes up the best brunch-time food in the region. Located next to the Quai Lunel, this restaurant is legendary for serving what else but the home dish from the region--the Salade Nicoise. This brunch favourite comes served replete with endives, tuna or thon as it is called in French, a chopped boiled egg and the very salty anchovies. Best washed down with a glass of crisp Semillon, the salad is a great pre-cursor to the other mains on the extensive brunch menu such as the seared salmon streak served atop French Andouillette sausage and drizzled with a very exotic passion fruit sauce. While prices can be a tad steep, this is in keeping with the cost of good food in the region. A brunch at Le Nautique truly is what leading the good life is all about. Santé!
3. Villa 39, Mumbai, India
A vision of ivory and silver enhanced by voluminous chiffon drapes and soft mood lighting are some of the first things you notice as soon as you enter Villa 39’s über classy interiors. Touting itself as Mumbai’s first ‘home style’ Italian restaurant, Villa 39 that is housed in an elegant heritage building sure looks like a home… that of a very moneyed Italian Contessa! The brunch here is a relaxed laid-back affair that deserves to be enjoyed with plenty of time on your side. With a starter and salad bar offering everything from make-your-own Caesar’s Salad to bruschetta with olive tepanade to parma ham with melon, Villa 39 scores big time. With some typically ‘brunchy’ cocktails on offer like the the house special Mojito 39 made with coconut water and garnished with lychees or the highly unusual Bitter Chocolate Vodkatini, this place packs quite a mean punch. But it is the selection of brunch main courses that will leave you coming back for seconds. Succulent lamb chops compete with unusual offerings like the fried zucchini blossoms and the superlative Champagne risotto and the divine Lobster Linguine. Indulgence was never this good.
4. Alfresco, Medhufushi Island, The Maldives
Living up to its name, Alfresco is not only al fresco, but also sur la mer (on the sea)! As with most Maldivian hotels and resorts, this gem that is part of the Medhufushi Island Resort is housed on stilts a few yards into the Indian Ocean with azure waters lapping gently below. Brunch here is almost a ritual so much so that guests from neighbouring resorts make a bee-line for Alfresco’s sublime offerings. Right from the freshest of sushi to the translucent Vietnamese spring rolls to raw oysters with a squirt of lime on them, the starters at the brunch are edible poetry. For mains you can have the grilled lobster with mango compote or the squid ink black ravioli with a pumpkin reduction. Brunch time here calls for a plethora of cocktail options like the Mai Tai or a bluer-than-the-ocean Blue Lagoon and the unusual Chili Martini with just the right amount of spiciness to it. Brunch can often last from 11am, till the sun starts to bid adieu in the late evening. Alfresco is that kind of place where not only is it OK to kick off your Ferragamo loafers and walk barefoot… it is the norm!
5. Blanc, Barcelona, Spain
As soon as you step inside this restaurant housed in the spanking new Mandarin Oriental, Barcelona, your mind will try to come up with synonyms for the colour white. Yes, true to its name Blanc does have a lot of white. Right from the seats to the walls and even the napkins, all bear the signature white. The perfect brunch destination, Blanc dishes out some impressive fare like a fragrant seafood paella and onion tart washed down with wine from Spain’s Rías Bajas region famous for its crisp whites. But what is really interesting about this place is the Bento Box brunch special. Not traditionally Japanese, Blanc puts it’s own spin on the box which comprises of a cold cucumber soup, a grilled asparagus and leek appetizer, a watercress, feta and walnut salad, a tapas-like Parma ham bruschetta and a scrumptious crème brûlée to finish of the meal. Simple flavoursome food in an even more simple and flavoursome setting…
5 of the world’s elegant black-tie restaurants
1. Santi, Singapore City, Singapore
The paint on the walls of this spanking new Spanish fine dining restaurant may be barely dry, but patrons have been flocking to Santi, that is housed in The Marina Bay Sands, Singapore Hotel, in droves. Taking formal black-tie dining to a whole new level is world-famous master chef Chef Santi Santamaria who dishes out some Catalan cuisine with a distinct Asian influence. The restaurant itself is soft, cool elegance, with warm rustic touches, accented by custom artwork ‘graffiti’ overlaying modern glass enclosures that sparkle under the night sky. A veritable piece of Barcelona in Singapore. But the food does more of the talking here at Santi. And although the dinner menu changes daily one is never short of great fine dining options here. To start off things, the tomatoes and girolle mushrooms confit salad with iberic ham and oyster escabeche with melon soup and fresh almonds completment each other perfectly while delectable creations like the Spiny lobster with foie gras and spiced sauce, the green riotto and the pigeon crapoudine with peppercorn sauce make up the mains. Santi also has on tap some of the best wines money can buy and deserts like the quirky Japanese peaches with marinated figs and Szechuan pepper ice cream. A top class meal for your top dollar… or rupee even!
2. Veda, New Delhi, India
The enfant terrible of Indian fashion, Rohit Bal takes fine Indian dining to a newer opulent level in his very own inimitable way with Veda, his ultra glam two-year-old Delhi eatery. The interiors of this restaurant speak of a great dalliance between the unabashedly ornate and the decadent. The rich black walls are swathed in heavy tapestries and embellished with huge mirrors that seek to bring out the dormant narcissist in us all. The rather dim, soft strategic lighting and flickering shadows caused by the low intensity red glass chandeliers create an earthy mood. But as the saying goes, it is the food that should do the talking and the posh nosh at Veda sure does a whole load of that! The cuisine here marries the traditional with the contemporary. Crispy fried okra slivers dusted with a magical chaat masala finds itself jostling for space on the table with a robust, yet delicate biryani, a fragrant dal makhani and a flavoursome lamb rogan josh. Forgotten ancient recipes that might have faded from memory are given a new lease of life by the Master Chefs of Veda. Modern interpretations of the old culinary dishes make these dishes truly classics like the superlative Lychee Tehri that is exotic and quirky in its fine marriage of a tropical fruit like a lychee with something so traditional like a thick luscious rabri.
Veda is a lot like an Indian diva who sure knows how to put on a spellbinding show and never lets you forget that she seduces best at night time, making dinner here a must-do activity.
3. Vanitas, Gold Coast, Australia
When the Versace brand does anything, you can be sure that they will do it in style and larger than life! As part of the world’s first Versace hotel, the Palazzo Versace in Australia’s sunny gold Coast, Vanitas is the kind of place that demands you flatter it by turning out in your black tie or evening gown for dinner here. Elegant sophistication wrapped in a glitzy, sparkling exterior, this restaurant is perfect for a dose of haute cuisine. Along with an extensive cellar of international wines, dishes such as the seared salmon on a bed of pinto beans with an adzuki reduction and the saddleback pig with apple sauce wow the taste buds. A night at Vanitas provides the ultimate luxurious fine dining experience. It is the epitome of classic understated elegance – ornate mosaic marble floors and palatial fountains viewed through an entrance of flickering candles. There is meticulous attention to detail, from the exquisite Versace tableware, knowledgeable personalised service and the sourcing of outstanding international wine. All this overlooking the hotel’s beautiful 65m lagoon pool. Wear luxury, now eat luxury too. That’s the way to live, right?
4. Heichinrou, Bangkok, Thailand
A member of the renowned Heichinrou Chinese Restaurant chain, well known in Hong Kong and Japan, the Heichinrou, Bangkok is housed in the stunning Amari Watergate Hotel in the heart of the city. Red, black and gold are three colours that dominate the space in this fine dining temple. Intimate round tables bring back the elegance of dining in the 1940’s when style was at its peak. But for the food now. This restaurant serves fine Cantonese cuisine in a vibrant Chinese-influenced setting. Signature dishes include 'Monk jumps over the wall', deep-fried Hong Kong chicken and barbecued Peking duck authentically cooked by Cantonese chefs. Whether you prefer a potent cocktail, a flute of bubbly or a glass of mild Chinese wine, the restaurant’s well stocked bar will make sure to keep your palate wet. Heichinrou’s six elegantly appointed banquet rooms provide privacy when desired, in a setting to suit the occasion like an intimate dinner date perhaps? If fine dining Chinese style is what you crave, then Heichinrou has it all and then some more to offer you.
5. The Great Room Restaurant, Belfast, Northern Ireland
How often can one brag about dining in a restaurant that is so palatial and grand that you’d almost expect the Queen to enter any time. Well, The Great Room Restaurant will give you a vicarious feeling of royalty as you eat your course by course feast here. Architecturally. The Great Room Restaurant is the jewel in the crown of The Merchant Hotel. The stunning interior design of this restaurant is distinguished by the magnificent central enamelled glass cupola, suspended from which is Ireland’s largest chandelier. This was specially commissioned by The Merchant Hotel from local company Tyrone Crystal. The Great Room Restaurant features cosmopolitan menus that unite influences from around the world, while honouring the best of traditional Irish, British and French classics like the superlative seared foie gras, the roast free range quail served with a sausage and white bean stew for starters and the slow roast pork belly with apple and black pudding for the mains. This is a show case for food as it should be, using the best of local produce reflecting the changing seasons like the very summery lemon posset with raspberries and meringue desert. Enhancing the stunning food experience is a carefully constructed wine list which also changes regularly to reflect the flavours of each season. Spring, summer, autumn or winter… fine dining will never go out of style here!
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