Tuskers, the pure vegetarian restaurant at the Sofitel Hotel Mumbai, celebrated an authentic Gujarati food festival called “Padharo Gujarat” ( welcome to Gujarat). We had the pleasure of being invited to sample the mouth watering delicacies that were part of their menu during the festival.
As you step out of the elevator on the first floor of Sofitel where Tuskers is located, you feel as though you have been transported to the vibrant and colourful land of Gujarat. There were colourful stalls put up outside the restaurant which becomes almost like a fair in the evenings. With a puppet show going on in one stall, to henna artists making intricate designs on the hand, to folk dancers and singers singing and dancing on folk lore songs you get swept into the mood of festivities. The entrance to the restaurant had earthen pots stacked one on top of the other to decorate the area. The restaurant itself had beautiful different coloured material draped along the columns and on the ceiling.
We were ushered to our table by the general manager of the hotel and as we settled in he filled us in with the food at Tuskers. He spoke about having a complete transformation of the restaurant once a year for about 3-4 weeks where they have a food festival of a particular area of India. The main chefs for this festival were two housewives specially flown down from Gujarat to head the kitchen at Tuskers. Mrs Urmila Gohil and Mrs Neha Varma prepared mouth watering and traditional delicacies. Their recipes have come down generations from great grandmothers and the spices are specially blended and made at home to get the desired flavours . The menu had been created keeping in mind the ingredients and vegetables available in Mumbai during the month of February.
A home styled restaurant, where the food is more balanced with subtle flavours.
After having stuffed ourselves with the thali, they got us to traditionally wash our hands at our seats and then we were served dessert. Adhyay Pak is made of 36 different herbs, and is believed to help in strengthening the bones, it is believed that it releases heat in the body and hence it is served only in the winter months. The other dessert was Citaphal basundi (custard-apple flavoured sweetened milk ). It is made of mildly reduced condensed milk and not as thick as it is normally made.
The meal, the ambience, the flavours transported us to Gujarat, the land of traditions and culture and hospitality.
We left Tuskers, happy and satiated after the delectable Gujarati meal.
Address:
Tuskers – Sofitel Mumbai
C 57, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai
