An epicure’s paradise

BENGALURU: Every once in a while, a good meal stays with you and our recent trip to 1Q1 Kitchen and Bar for ‘An Epicure’s Tale’, still has us salivating over the gorgeous, seven-course dinner. Chef Mako Ravindran’s creations, with each dish paired with a wine from Hampi-based boutique winery KRSMA Estates, were a confluence of flavours, textures and colours.

We started the meal with the Fresh Vegetable Noodle Salad, paired with the light, crisp Sauvignon Blanc 2017. The salad was light on flavour and felt like the perfect way to start a meal, and this white wine is perfect for the summer.The second course, paired with the same wine, were Grilled Prawns with Mango Salsa - the prawns were fresh, juicy and blended well with the tangy-sweet salsa. The Chardonnay 2017 was the next wine we tried, along with a Tuna and Grapefruit Tostada. What we loved about the tostada was the generous amount of parmesan cheese on top, which gave the dish a rich and earthy flavour with each bite.

After this, came the Trio Nikkei Rolls, of which we especially loved the flaky filo spring roll. The fifth course, and our favourite from the tasting menu, was the Duck in Three Ways - the rice was our favourite and was cooked in duck fat, giving it a wonderful flavour, and the meat was perfectly cooked in each of the three preparations. The Beef Steak with YakiniKu sauce and Onion Marmalade was next, and the beef was done just right. We often find that most places don’t grill the meat according to our preferences, but this steak was perfect - the meat was pink, juicy and the onion marmalade and flavourful mash were a match made in food heaven. This was paired with a lovely red wine - Sangiovese 2016.

After these finger-licking starters and entrees, we couldn’t wait to see what chef Mako would serve for dessert, and we were not disappointed. As we went back to our favourite wine of the night, the Sauvignon, the Cheesecake with Cherry and Sangiovese Reduction Sauce was brought to the table. Beautiful to look at, this was perhaps the finest cheesecakes we’ve had in a long time. It was soft, fluffy and had just the right amount of tartness to complement the sweet cherries. Overall, a meal that exceeded all expectations and left us feeling happy, full and wanting for more at the same time. So if you haven’t hit up 1Q1 yet, we strongly recommend that you do.

Cost for two: Rs 2,500