With its close-to-authentic Malaysian flavours and
presentation style, the food on offer at this new Andheri (E) restaurant is
almost spot on, bringing to the city a taste of the hitherto unknown Peranakan
cuisine of South East Asia.
FOOD
Flavourful
SERVICE Excellent
AMBIENCE Vibrant
COST Moderate
VERDICT Very Good (**)
SERVICE Excellent
AMBIENCE Vibrant
COST Moderate
VERDICT Very Good (**)
By Raul Dias
The Peranakans of South East Asia—in particular
Malaysia and Singapore—are a unique blend of people thanks to their confluence
of cultures, and most importantly, cuisines. The result of the intermarriage of
Chinese merchants and local Malay women centuries ago, Peranakan men are known
as ‘Babas’, while the women, ‘Nonyas’. Legendary for their prowess in the
kitchen, it is these Nonyas who are responsible for the complex, highly
flavoured dishes that see influences from Chinese, Malay, Thai and even Indian
cookery styles and ingredients.
Distilling this cocktail of cultures in a menu that’s mostly Peranakan is the recently opened Nonya. Done up in bright, cheery accents and upholstery, with a whimsical ‘bubble’ chandelier hanging overhead, the first-floor space was virtually empty the afternoon we visited. Thus, affording us the luxury of the staff’s undivided attention which they lavished upon us rather enthusiastically.
When our first choice of the orange pekoe bubble tea (Rs 195), was discovered to be unavailable on that day, our server immediately suggested, nay, insisted we try the lavender lemonade (Rs 145). With a subtle hint of lavender, imparting to it a pink-purple tint, and balancing perfectly with the fresh lime juice, the fizzy drink was just what we needed to counter the blazing heat we’d just escaped outdoors.
Thick and luscious with all the requisite condiments like lime wedges, fresh sprouts, soy sauce and crushed peanuts in place, our seafood Malaysian curried laksa (Rs 275) was fiendishly good. Though the presence of the de rigueur sliced boiled egg, that was missing in this iteration, would have elevated it even higher, we enjoyed the toothsome appeal of the egg noodles, fresh mussels, clams and prawns in the Peranakan classic.
The twice cooked duck burger (Rs 325) that we called for next made for messy satisfaction with its chili plum sauce-coated BBQ duck slices and the cool-yet-spicy hit of the wasabi coleslaw, all ensconced in a soft, pliant sesame bun. Though a tad overpriced, the robustly spiced massaman curry (Rs 675) with tender bits of lamb served with fragrant jasmine rice, reminded us of the ones we’d recently eaten on a trip to Penang. Our other main, the all-vegetarian Buddha bowl (Rs 395)—which had ginger-soy dressed broccoli, baby corn and snow peas sitting atop garlic fried flat rice noodles—was light and flavourful with suitably al dente noodles.
Sadly, our choice of dessert—the Malay favourite of iced kachang (Rs 195) was a total abomination and fell flat. Substituting the expected coconut milk with cloyingly sweet condensed milk, drizzled atop shaved ice, jazzed up with luridly coloured synthetic syrups and overcooked, stewed fruit bits, Nonya’s version was as far from a kachang as Kurla is from Kuala Lumpur!
Barring that niggling dessert fiasco, our meal here was almost perfect. But then again, is there ever something such as ‘the perfect meal’?
Distilling this cocktail of cultures in a menu that’s mostly Peranakan is the recently opened Nonya. Done up in bright, cheery accents and upholstery, with a whimsical ‘bubble’ chandelier hanging overhead, the first-floor space was virtually empty the afternoon we visited. Thus, affording us the luxury of the staff’s undivided attention which they lavished upon us rather enthusiastically.
When our first choice of the orange pekoe bubble tea (Rs 195), was discovered to be unavailable on that day, our server immediately suggested, nay, insisted we try the lavender lemonade (Rs 145). With a subtle hint of lavender, imparting to it a pink-purple tint, and balancing perfectly with the fresh lime juice, the fizzy drink was just what we needed to counter the blazing heat we’d just escaped outdoors.
Thick and luscious with all the requisite condiments like lime wedges, fresh sprouts, soy sauce and crushed peanuts in place, our seafood Malaysian curried laksa (Rs 275) was fiendishly good. Though the presence of the de rigueur sliced boiled egg, that was missing in this iteration, would have elevated it even higher, we enjoyed the toothsome appeal of the egg noodles, fresh mussels, clams and prawns in the Peranakan classic.
The twice cooked duck burger (Rs 325) that we called for next made for messy satisfaction with its chili plum sauce-coated BBQ duck slices and the cool-yet-spicy hit of the wasabi coleslaw, all ensconced in a soft, pliant sesame bun. Though a tad overpriced, the robustly spiced massaman curry (Rs 675) with tender bits of lamb served with fragrant jasmine rice, reminded us of the ones we’d recently eaten on a trip to Penang. Our other main, the all-vegetarian Buddha bowl (Rs 395)—which had ginger-soy dressed broccoli, baby corn and snow peas sitting atop garlic fried flat rice noodles—was light and flavourful with suitably al dente noodles.
Sadly, our choice of dessert—the Malay favourite of iced kachang (Rs 195) was a total abomination and fell flat. Substituting the expected coconut milk with cloyingly sweet condensed milk, drizzled atop shaved ice, jazzed up with luridly coloured synthetic syrups and overcooked, stewed fruit bits, Nonya’s version was as far from a kachang as Kurla is from Kuala Lumpur!
Barring that niggling dessert fiasco, our meal here was almost perfect. But then again, is there ever something such as ‘the perfect meal’?
TIME:
11am to 1am
AT: 1st floor, Hotel Ginger, Teli Galli, Opposite Hubtown Solaris, Andheri East.
CALL: 7400403462
(An edited version of this review appeared in the 16th April 2018 issue of the Mid-Day newspaper, India on page 20 https://www.mid-day.com/articles/mumbai-food-try-southeast-asian-flavours-at-this-new-eatery-in-andheri/19324176) AT: 1st floor, Hotel Ginger, Teli Galli, Opposite Hubtown Solaris, Andheri East.
CALL: 7400403462
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