The month of April is the World Gourmet Summit and we were invited by an exclusive Indian restaurant - Rang Mahal - for press tasting. Even though it is not a vegetarian restaurant, the owners of this restaurant are vegetarian and hence they offer an extensive vegetarian menu. We were pleased that our request for vegan food was accommodated by this fine establishment and the guest chef, Mr Vivek Singh, and we were served several courses of delectable food made from combining the spirit of Indian food with a refined Western sensibility.
We started off with a watermelon cashew appetiser. Though it looks simple, it packs a spicy punch and was very refreshing.
We were then served deep fried zucchini flowers on a bed of dahl and vegetables. It was the first time I was having zucchini flower and it was superb and delicious. The dahl had a home made feel about it which reminded me a lot of my mum's cooking.
We were then served smoked eggplants with asparagus and a coconut onion sauce to go with it. It was an interesting combination and the smoked eggplants were mouthwateringly delicious. The coconut onion sauce was delicate and creamy.
We were then served grilled eggplants with some soft fragrant basmati rice. The eggplant was grilled till juicy and generally topped with curry. Even my eggplant hating husband was in awe of it. It was clean and the pairing with the rice was classic.
We ended the meal on a sweet note with rice pudding laced with coconut milk and some grilled pineapple with jaggery or sugar. The pineapple was slightly under ripe and hence was perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the jaggery.
Overall, vegans in Singapore are limited in their fine dining options. Hence, Rang Mahal makes a good choice for those wanting something vegan with an air of sophistication. Of cos' be sure to call them ahead - at least three days - to make special requests!
Next we had a spiced fruit salad with pomegranates and sliced fruits and vegetables like mango and radish. Though it looks deceptively simple, the salad was full of flavour with explosions of heat and spice in every bite.
A picture of the exceptional Chef Vivek Singh and myself
Lucky journalists! Too bad I missed this restaurant, I hope I'll discover it next time we come. Vegan Haute Cuisine is so rare around the word, I hope there will be more places like this soon.
ReplyDeleteVirginie, they actually did not have a vegan menu available but a vegetarian one. But we requested for vegan options and they were happy to oblige with a full five course meal. The chef's wife is also a vegetarian (even though he is not) so he is familiar with vegetarian food. However, he did share with us that vegan and vegetarian food concepts are not widely understood in the gourmet food circle especially by European chefs.
ReplyDeleteThis chef is a guest chef at the restaurant. He is based in England and has his own restaurant called Cinnamon Club. For Rang Mahal, we were told that if we can provide them three days notice, they will be able to create a vegan menu. :)