My love for food is shared by my whole family but my love for travel and innumerable restaurants solely comes from my father showing me all those amazing TLC and NDTV Good Times shows. I vividly remember watching Chef Ritu Dalmia’s adventures and cooking expeditions through Italy and hence this dining experience was a nostalgic touch down the road. #EatingLikeADiva at Diva Spiced was an absolutely lovely experience at the cozy place tucked in Meherchand Market. Chef Anumitra has created an amazing menu for this Modern Asian bistro and their winter tasting menu is pretty drool worthy.
We started with a crispy tofu Amuse Bouche with a sweet and sticky sauce and black sesame seeds.
The first course – Tomato Consomme. Finely sliced cherry tomatoes, glass noodles and a refreshing scent of lemon grass, this broth acts as the perfect appetite enhancer.
Roasted pumpkin, shitake and truffle oil dimsum – a crystal dumpling stuffed generously with pumpkin and the crunchy mushroom texture. Chinese greens, corn and water chestnut gyoza – the pan fried dumpling with a toothsome filling. Also tried their chicken marinated with Asian sauce gyoza which was pretty swell too. Also, I was quite digging their beautiful bamboo baskets to hold dumplings for one.
Red quinoa with Goji berry and poppy seed dressing – probably the healthiest thing on the menu, the quinoa salad was well curated with exotic Goji berries and tossed with poppy seeds.
Appetizers included Taro and Water chestnut satay – batter fried water chestnuts and taro skewered up and tossed with a palatable sauce. Pork belly with Som Tam glaze and charred pokchoy heart – sliced pork belly glazed with the sweet sauce and peanuts served with steamed bok choy greens. Crispy Bombay Duck with frisee lettuce and tomato namprik – an absolute delight, crispy on the outside with soft meat in, served with a sweet chilly sauce.
The mains – Chicken Ramen bowl and Congee Ramen bowl. The bowls were a wee bit displeasing. I prefer my ramen bowls with a lot more thicker broth. With noodles, greens and a runny boiled egg, the Ramen bowls did not quite appeal to me. Yam and lychee curry served with Cheddar Bao and Tofu steak with lemony coconut sauce, grilled pineapple and Burmese coconut rice. The vegetarian offerings were really quite tantalizing, especially the Cheddar bao with a molten cheese centre and strawberry preserve. The meaty larger plates included – Buckthorn jelly marinated lamb chop with wasabi mash and stir fried wild mushrooms and Salmon poached in miso citrus sauce served with wok tossed red quinoa. The New Zealand lamb chops were an absolute favourite with the sweet jelly sauce and creamy mashed potatoes.
The dessert platter – Black rice pudding, black pepper infused Chocolate Ganache with sesame gajak and honeycomb ice cream, Japanese cheesecake with apricot glaze, Puto, coconut jelly and dalle infused pineapple. My favourites from this exotic platter – the cheesecake with apricot glaze, home made ice cream, chocolate ganache and the coconut jelly. Absolutely divine!
Diva Spiced dishes out some exemplary dishes and they are soon coming up with their tasting menu – don’t miss out on the dumplings, pork belly, lamb chops and the dessert platter of course.
Where? Diva Spiced, Meherchand Market, Lodhi Colony
Price for two – 2200INR approx
Cuisine – Modern Asian