Mangia Italiano at Fratelli Fresh

For Mumbaikars, the onset of the summer season can only have one upside - the arrival of the king of fruits! So, everyone tries to include the goodness of ripe pulpy mangoes in their meals. Renaissance took this a step ahead and was the host to a wonderful Mango festival entitled Mangia Italiano. 

Mangia Italiano saw the light of day from the 19th of May and pleased diners till the 28th of the month. Chef Cristian Cabrera incorporated and played around with the fruit with some of his Italian specialties. We were invited for an experiential for the same. 

We started off with salad and soup, namely minestrone ortalana, and arborio arancini with Cristian caesar salad.

The Caeser salad was just perfect; a well-balanced salad with some beautiful dressing topped off with some parmesan accompanied by the biggest arancini we've ever laid eyes on. The arancino was well-cooked and served as a perfect appetizer and raised our expectations for the meal. 

The soup, however, was a bit not too suited for our taste. The vegetables inside were really soggy by the time we were able to eat it and hence, ruined the entire texture. 

Next, we tried the Tuscany Primavera pizza.

Trust an Italian chef to make your pizza flawless! Paper thin crust, well-marinated sauce, loads of cheese, finished off with some cheese. Also, we'd like to give a special mention to the special accompaniment - chili oil. The chili oil (above the pizza in the picture) added a burst of flavour to everything we paired with it and made us relish the food even more. 

Finally, we moved on to the most awaited part of our evening. (People with sweet teeth, us!) 

This beauty was entitled the Lombardy mango fantasia. It consisted of a mango cheesecake and a mango flavoured macaron and a few chocolate coated nuts. The presentation was fabulous and the tiny plated wiped clean in a matter of seconds. The cheesecake's texture could've been a bit better, though. 

A huge thank you to Renaissance and Fratelli Fresh for hosting us and for the wonderful experience.

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Smirnoff Bowls over Mumbai!

With the IPL fever hitting everyone, imagine the excitement upon being invited to an IPL themed cocktail masterclass by Afzal Kaba, United Spirits Brand Ambassador on the 10th of May. 

It was held at Please Don't Tell, a pub in Lower Parel, with a mysterious vibe about it. The place was a perfect setting due to the bar area which provided the perfect space for the summer cocktail making session. The evening started with an introduction to the various flavours of Smirnoff - coffee, orange, vanilla and so on. All of them have such prominent flavours that they will leave your smell and taste buds tingling.

Then, Afzal Kaba walked us through the history of Smirnoff and how the revolutionary brand came into the picture. Post that, the audience was explained the basics of cocktail making like stirring, shaking and so on and the fundamentals and reasoning behind the mixology of each drink. Post all this, Mr. Kaba started showing us how to whip up a few summer cocktails. Cocktails like 'Winning Shot' and 'Halftime' made us realize how easy it is to be fantastic hosts during the game season. 

These were a few of the cocktails the host taught us. And, the best part? We got to make them too! Afzal Kaba ensured we learn and made us prepare the cocktails step by step beside him, thus turning us all into some pretty decent mixologists. 

We also indulged in a few appetizers at Please Don't Tell - Paneer 65, bruschetta, and the deconstructed Mumbai vada pav. 

We would like to thank United Spirits, Please Don't Tell and Afzal Kaba for this wonderful and insightful session. 

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Marriott India Chef's Workshop

JW Marriott was the host to an event titled "Marriott India Chef's Workshop on the 23rd of March and we were lucky enough to be a part of it.

The event consisted of 30 executive chefs from the Marriott properties all over India to discuss the culinary trends for the year 2016 in India. This marvelous competition took place at Lotus Cafe, where each chef presented their signature dishes and vowed all the diners, bringing the best of India's culinary state together, all at once. 

The spread obviously, was humongous, including an array of dishes from various cuisines. A few of the counters were local seafood, Asian, Indian Awadhi, local chaat, European, Italian and over 30 kinds of desserts, live counter for pancakes, ice cream and so on. We were each handed a token and were asked to vote at the end of our meal for the counter we thought most deserved to win. 

A few counters I tried - 

Chaat counter - 

The dhokla sandwich and the pani puri here were exceptional. The pani puri, served with sprite was a one of a kind experience.

Live pancake station -

We gulped down this beauty topped with banana toffee ice cream and drizzled with a generous serving of maple syrup within moments. Fluffy, light and delicious!

Italian counter -

The Italian counter allowed us to customize pizzas and pastas according to our preferences and needs. We had a serving of alfredo pasta with bell peppers, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes and pizza with toppings of our choice and we weren't disappointed. Our plates were wiped clean within moments and we were considering going for seconds.

Desserts -

One of the best things of a buffet is the unlimited spread of luscious, velvety, specially crafted sweet delicacies. We started off our meal with a serving of desserts and ended with another. Absolute heaven for people with a sweet tooth! 

Thank you, JW Marriott for letting us be a part of this wonderful event and for experiencing specialities from some of the most skilled chefs in the country. 

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