Cafe Mezzuna, the European dine den which was the first cafe-concept brand from the house of Speciality Restaurants Ltd, recently hit the 10th-year mark. To commemorate the occasion, chairman and managing director Anjan Chatterjee has brought in chef Saby Gorai of restaurants like Olive Bar and Kitchen, Khubani etc to come up with an all-new menu that promotes quintessential European and Mediterranean food that’s doing the rounds in the current culinary scene.
The menu is a reflection of Saby’s expertise and genius in European cuisine, especially when it comes to hand-rolled pasta, Neopolitan pizzas and dealing with meat in the most delicate and flavourful manner. Chef Saby Gorai has been the recipient of the President’s award, and has trained at many prominent culinary locations in Europe as well as the US. That apart, he has successfully opened and partnered at prominent restaurants across the country.
The Telegraph sampled the food and pored over the details of the new menu.
Truffle Muse Neopolitan: This pizza is love at first bite. The dough is made using 00 type flour and is just the perfectly soft and airy base. It is topped with fresh tomato sauce, truffle tapenade, melting truffle butter and parmesan cheese.
Sea View Lollipop: Served in style, these crispy batter-fried calamari rings dusted with spice mix and a creamy dip on the side are a good appetizer option.
The Burrata Bomb: A D-I-Y special plate that has a big burrata blob on a bed of confit and cherry tomatoes with fresh pesto. Cut it in, mix it up and slather it on to some fresh sourdough toast and you’re good to go.
Avocado Crostini: Chef Saby’s fave, this has in- house sourdough slices slathered with cream cheese, avocado and truffle guacamole, garnished with cherry tomatoes. Another fresh surprise.
Tiramisu de la Casa: A chef Saby special Tiramisu, this was true to its form, soft, melt-in-the-mouth, creamy along with a lovely coffee and liqueur flavour profile.
Biggie Lamb Adana: A specialty from Turkey, these mutton kebabs are unlike any other serving in the city. Minced mutton with almost no seasoning and just salt is coated around flat skewers, and then grilled to perfection. It is served on a bed of fresh and thin bread, along with sumac-flavoured onions, and two dips on the side.
Three Milk Cake: A Mexican specialty, this Tres Les ches was a beautiful vanilla sponge, soaked in three different type of milks that make is super soft and succulent along with a creamy layer on top. We love.
Lean Chicken Kobbideh: This juicy and succulent kebab is served along with fresh salad, roasted potatoes and a salsa verde-style dressing that’s drizzled all over the chicken. We loved how tender the chicken chunks were.
The oven is a master piece by Marco Cappiotti. It is a handmade variant that is a speciality when it comes to chef Saby. The right kind of oven is essential to create the ideal pizza crust.
“Working on this menu was a delight. My focus is to bring in fresh produce, authentic techniques as well as simple ingredients. Our pizzas are unlike anything in the city currently, especially for the price that we’re offering them at. I’ve travelled and worked all over Europe to learn the art of pizza making and pasta making and I’m glad to bring that repertoire into the menu here. All our pizzas and pastas are vegetarian friendly. They’re also without onion and garlic because the ingredients are so good and fresh that we don’t need any extra additions. Our kebabs are a must-try as they’re done in the authentic Turkish style with almost no extra spices, just the meat, its fat and salt doing the magic. We’re also doing a few interesting desserts. Overall the portions are shareable and pricing modest,” said chef Saby Gorai, who was beaming with joy as he showed us his new hand-made pizza oven at Cafe Mezzuna, which was sourced from Marco Cappiotti, a prominent pizza enthusiast, who deals in specially crafted hand-made ovens for the ultimate pizza experience.