All new menu at The Flying Elephant, Park Hyatt, Chennai

Restaurants go through ups and downs, and it is then time to reinvent the wheel, look for new festivals, new venues to crank things up a bit. Here too at Flying Elephant in Park Hyatt they are shaking things up with a whole new menu. Yes, some of the familiar popular dishes continue to remain but there are quite a few new additions crafted by Chef Jyotisankar...

Flying Elephant is not really just a restaurant, it is more of an experience. From the minute you walk, to finding a table and enjoying the meal....

Here is what we got to try,

Paneer e Hasan- the Chef who created this was Hasan and so he named it so...cheeky right?!:-) Each paneer disk had a different stuffing- spinach, saffron and one more...

Kamal kakdi ki Shammi -Pan fried lotus stem patties with brown onion & medley of spices. It was literally melting in our mouth..

The signature in-house bread with tomato dip..

Burrata al forno con salsa di pomodoro e olio di tartufo - Baked burrata inside a thin wrap sitting on a puddle of delicious tomato sauce that had truffle oil in it and was covered in fried vermicelli with a side of Rocket leaves... We loved digging into this bowl and trying to get a piece of everything in one forkful.. 

Insalata con rababaro e cuori palma, caprino, pistachio, salsa al miele- This salad had my attention, it had roasted rhubarb, heart of palm, some goat's cheese that had been shallow fried sitting in the middle.. The dressing was a pistachio in a spiced honey vinaigrette... Rhubarb is something I had seen only on TV and so was very curious to try and taste..

Mains:

              

Ravioli di zucca e confit di cipolla, mascarpone fresco, salvia e noci- Roasted pumpkin chestnuts and walnuts packed ravioli sitting on a butter sage sauce with sweet crisp biscuits made with vanilla beans & caramalised onions. The ravioli had saffron in the pasta sheets... It was heavenly and we couldnt stop eating it.. 

Risotto alla primevera- Risotto made with spring vegetables, vialone and asparagus topped with crisp beans and microherbs..  [This is a gluten free dish].. The Risotto was creamy with a bite from the beans on top and the three kinds of cheese that had been blended it.. It was a tad too rich for my palate. 

From their Indian section came this trio- Soft butter naan, bowl of steamed rice and Shahi Hari Gobi Zaitooni - Broccoli and olives cooked in a saffron, onion and cashew gracy.. The olives gave it a sharp hit of saltiness.. But when eaten with rice/roti it was perfect.. 

Desserts:
We got to try two different desserts, one Indian and other Western...  The minute I saw the Apple crumble , I was ready with my fork and all set to dig in... :-) The other one was a salted caramel kulfi on a bed of soft vermicelli and few other sauces/flavours...

Oh and during the meal, we also witnessed the entire team lining up and putting on a small dance performance, not once but twice.. Was quite nice to see people across levels joining in and having fun! 

The Flying Elephant is open for dinner on all days with brunch on Sundays. 

Park Hyatt 

#39, Velachery Road, 

Guindy. 

For reservations call: (044) 71771234/ 044 7177 1655

Savya Rasa, Kotturpuram Chennai

It is always good to see new restaurants make an entry in the city. joining the league is Savya Rasa [which was launched in Pune back in 2015], yet another from the Pricol Gourmet group [Soy Soi right next door is one more from this brand] and then there is one more coming up on Cenotaph Road! The menu here is medley of dishes from seven regions, like Mangaluru, Mysuru, Nellore, Kongunadu, Chettinad, Nasrani and Malabar, each with their distinct cultural identities.

The decor is very traditional, with yesteryear household appliances adorning the walls, the tables, the lights are all what you would have seen in your grandparents homes in your home towns. If you have been to Meena Tai or Batlivala & Khanabhoy, some of them might look familiar.. [yes they were a part of the decor when the restaurants were around] .

The menu card is beautiful, almost like an olai suvadi [palm leaf] except made of wood, and you flip through each page to check out the extensive menu. Each item is listed with their origin and a description of what it means. 

Since my friend & I were vegetarians, we tucked into a few of their speciality vegetarian dishes. We asked one of the staff to take the call on the dishes for us to try and each dish was exquisite, down to the tender coconut pudding.

On the table was a bowl with different kinds of vadams that was served with 3 kinds of chutneys- raw tamarind, puli ingi and maavadu. I loved the raw tamarind chutney with the vadams. It was delicious and very new!

Kokum Mojito - was delicous

Water - they have 3 kinds- jeera water, vetti ver or tulsi.. 

CHUTNEY PANIYARAM
Rice and lentils steeped over night, stone ground into a batter, seasoned with ginger, green chillies, grated coconut, crushed pepper, stuffed with three types of chutney and shallow-fried in a customised cast iron pan. These were yumm, my favorite among all the dishes. Everytime you bite into it, a burst of thakkali onion chutney pops in your mouth... :)

 Pallipalayam Kalan- Mushrooms cooked with local masala 

 BUN PAROTTA

A fluffy multilayered bread made with refined wheat flour, egg and butter cooked on a griddle – soul food!

Served with Vazhaipoo & murungakkai kozhambu that was like a cross between arachu vitta sambar and koottu we make at home.

For mains we also had VETRILAI POONDU SAADAM - Short grain rice flavoured with digestive betel leaves and fried garlic – a secret recipe from the land of the Cheras.It was served with a simple yet yumm Thengai pachadi [ Grated fresh coconut in curd with mustard seeds tempering]- unfortunately did not take a photo of it.. 

For dessert- it was ELANEER PUDDING

Tender coconut water jelly set with China grass – a Thannur delicacy... With no added sugar it was deliciious and light.

The vettrilai potti that came at the end of the meal, quite the traditional box that had us rapt with curiosity.. 

This meal for 2 worked out to Rs1800 odd [incl GST].. The place is open for lunch and dinner and they have seating across the 3 rooms, and a private hall of sorts towards the end of the main hall. Loved the decor, the ambiance, the service and ofcourse the food as well. 

Address:

Savya Rasa

2/10, Gandhi Mandapam Rd, Chitra Nagar, Kotturpuram, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 600085

[opp AMM school]

Ph- 044 2447 2557 

Note: They are open for Lunch and dinner..