A tribute to an Indian chef and his first solo restaurant venture, the former Manu Chandra, the latter, Lupa, located in Bangalore, India.
Above: Atrium dining area of Lupa
Others belonging to this segment of cuisine, known as Modern European, have had a strong forehand but more often than not, a painfully weak follow through (for indeed there are a vast number of limitations and challenges with respect to the availability of ingredients in India) which I am happy to say with complete confidence, is not the case at Lupa.
On the contrary, it ticks every single box, if indeed you agree with my choice of criteria, i.e. architectural design, interior décor and most importantly culinary offering, all of which conspire to bring the best of international quality, smart casual Modern European dining to India, each dish in Lupa’s repertoire blissfully devoid of gimmickry and trickery, earning and justifying its presence and place, as opposed to acting as a mere filler for the purpose of plumping up the menu …
Above: Kitchen of Lupa
… But perhaps the most remarkable achievement by Manu Chandra is the uber large and technically exemplary kitchen he himself designed, endowed not only with state of the art equipment but also the most comfortable, hygienic and altogether pristine working conditions for his kitchen brigade, advancing a culture of pride of profession for Indian cooks, by way of inculcating in them the artistic expression and surgical precision of cooking, in addition to demonstrating its viability for raising their socioeconomic status.
Manu Chandra is actively participating in overturning one of our country’s most unattractive features, which is the archaic class-structure that, amongst other things, has limited both employment and entrepreneurial possibilities for our people. Unlike many others, he is not distant from his staff, he works along-side them, teaching them everything he knows and driving them to emulate him; in short, a true act of benevolence, and without much further ado, onto the proof of the pudding I go…
…I was so taken in by the menu upon first scrutiny, I had to make sure it wasn’t too good to be true, hence my choice of dishes was based both on precision in technique of cooking and authenticity of texture and flavor; by consequence, three of the five dishes ordered happened to be renditions of beef, for the city of Bangalore is gainfully exempt from the prohibition imposed on us here in New Delhi.
Above: Steak Tartare,
before and during the eating process
and side of sweet potato chips
My first choice of starter was the classic French beef tartare and I am thrilled to report that it is as good, if not better than the very best available in its country of origin, which, as a fellow Chef I will say is no easy feat.
The beef, Manu later informed me, is from Kerala, where a local butcher who has been internationally trained is servicing India’s finest restaurants with the choicest cuts of meat, to which I can certainly testify after having tasted the roasted bone marrow and braised short rib too…
…but let me return to the tartare, for it was everything a tartare should be, derived from an unequivocally fresh and lean cut of beef, hand chopped with a sharp knife, as opposed to a meat grinder, perfectly chilled, precisely seasoned and tossed with just the right quantities of onion, capers, gherkin, parsley and chives, dressed with a blend of egg yolks, mustard, oil, Worcestershire sauce, anchovy and perhaps a tiny bit of ketchup, served with a poached egg yolk, lightly garnished with some micro-herbs, and chaperoned by a generous quantity of sweet potato chips; a truly winsome dish that I am pretty sure is unequalled in India, just as I will venture to say of the bone marrow that transports one immediately to St. John’s restaurant in London, UK, where Chef Fergus Henderson serves his signature, succulent and ‘must-eat-in-this-lifetime’ roasted bone marrow with a parsley salad.
Above: The whole portion of 3 bone marrows,
and a close up of one bone marrow
Manu takes it one step further, using bones that have been slit open lengthways, which after roasting, he empties of the fat and marrow, then tosses the marrow with a citrus pepper paste, sausage, breadcrumbs, and a herb salad, replenishes the hollowed out bone with a layer of fat, crowned with the marrow, sausage and herb crumble; in short, poetry to the palate.
Clockwise from top left: Spicy green Pea and Edamame pate,
toasted brioche and one of Lupa’s many superb tequila cocktails.
The next dish was a rather brilliant vegetarian one, which in spite of its unassuming description and modest ingredients, certainly holds its own amongst the gastronomic upper class; a perfectly executed pate of spicy green pea and edamame, garnished with sesame seeds and pine nuts and served with toasted brioche…well, what can I say, but just try it; it is not only remarkably creative, but also serves as both exercise and lesson in culinary subtlety and style.
Now onto the risotto, which the judges of Masterchef Australia call ‘the death dish’, although I do beg to differ, for there are a few safety measures that may be used when producing this Italian staple, but I will get to that later.
Lupa offers three types of risotto, one of which I ate, while the other two I had the privilege of watching being finished in the kitchen during my after-dinner tour of the premises by the chef-owner himself, and even if I cannot give a first-hand account of their taste and texture, suffice to say they were a feast for the eyes.
Above: Crumbled Sausage & Bacon Risotto
I chose the crumbled sausage and bacon risotto with sage, kale, pecorino and chorizo chili oil, and it was every bit as good as it sounds; all at once, creamy, chewy & piquant, the soupy rice ( a little over al dente, the way even the most gastronomically evolved Indian clientele like it) just beginning to thicken as the plate hit the table, the bouquet of the house made sausage and chili oil a mouthwatering prelude to the actual eating of what was a masterfully executed risotto, and I would challenge good old Matt, George & Gary to say otherwise.
Above: ‘A Night at the Movies’ house made gelato
Not only does Lupa make its own sausages but cheese too, the latter under brand name Begum Victoria, available for sale in select stores across the country; indeed, Lupa is somewhat of a culinary mecca, and since I am now in danger of being over-effusive and ruining the element of surprise, I will skip a vivid description of the braised short-rib, other than advising all beef aficionados out there to not miss it, and jump straight to the most formidable finale, which is one of Lupa’s most prized house made gelato’s, titled, ‘A night at the Movies’, the scent and flavor of popcorn so stunning, it will leave you speechless for quite some time