It is indeed rightly said that there is no greater joy than a good meal in a joyful ambience with attentive service. Chi Asian Cookhouse at Janpath ensure that their patrons enjoy authentic Pan Asian cuisine at a very reasonable price. ‘Chi’ means ‘natural energy’ and the restaurant is spreading ‘natural energy’ as it opens its doors to Delhi this July.
Décor has taken an inspiration canteens in industrial units,The Idea behind this during that time was to motivate community dining which is popular in China, Japan and Korea. The furniture and Interiors are smartly designed and there is a great use lighting as well as the natural lights.
One of the Major highlights is their 15 foot bar which is connect between the main sitting space and an inner courtyard. They do have a live kitchen as well so that people can see their food being cooked in front of their eyes. . Elements of deep yellow, fresh green, deep teal and warm greys add vitality to the space.
Food Talks
We had a customised menu for our visit which is picked up from their main menu by the chef himself. The dishes comprises of their Signature dishes, hot selling items and latest addition to their menu. All dishes mentioned in my review is a part of their main menu.
I must compliment them for a masterpiece menu which is Created using a mix of traditional and modern Asian cooking techniques. Drawing from the best of Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesian, Malaysian, Singaporean, Korean, Thai, Japanese and Burmese cuisine, the menu features exciting sections such as Oriental Roasts, Pancakes & Rolls, Skewers and new age Dimsums. In a nutshell there is something for everyone , You just name it and they serve it to you sir.
Journey with their signature Lemongrass Caipiroska with flavours like Lemongrass and Galangal flavours which tingles on your taste buds. Mind you Ma’am even mocktails do not play second fiddle and the Mandarin based Buddha’s Palm is refreshing and compliments well with the meal
This was further followed by Chiang Mai Glass noodle soup served with shiitake and chicken which is one of the few Thai soups that are not spicy. It is good to eat as an accompaniment to spicy salads and curries to counter balance the spiciness.
Goi Cuan Chay still remains as of the star dishes of the evening for me .It had two versions consisting of one with prawns and other vegetarian I tried both of them. It is an easy to make fresh and delicious rice paper rolls for a snack or light lunch. You can pretty much wrap anything in it; the choice of fillings is only limited by your imagination.For these vegetarian rice paper rolls they have gone for the more traditional Vietnamese fillings of , carrot, shitake mushroom and herbs.
Then we were greeted by the Fish with Thai curry paste which was a typical red thai curry paste which was rich in flavour along with a basa fish which was soft and succulent. Together they made a terrific combination
Ho CHI Minh Chicken satay and Cha ca thang – Vietnameese style fish is an ideal treat on skewers.
They even had a great variety of Dumplings to offer. Prawn cheung fun which is soft from outside and crunchy from inside because of the batter fried prawns turned out to be the highlight. I even liked the soupy pork dumplings which had a filling of juicy and soft minced pork inside it.
As we moved on to the mains the journey was more interesting with Cheating chili prawns which were rich in flavours and crispy like anything. It had an authentic thai flavour attached it. The next was Musaman curry which had two options again in veg and lamb and we opted for the lamb version which had peanuts and thai herbs dominating your palate. Jiao chicken was more of a simple and earthy chicken dish with shiikate and had a subtle flavours . My friend liked it with the gluten free cellophane noodles. on the palate.
Journey ended on the same sweet note as it was started with their Coconut Pancake which is basically a coconut flavoured pancake served with vanilla ice cream and orange reduction
In a nutshell 4.5/5
Address: Chi Asian Cookhouse, 68/1, Janpath – 110001
Timings: 12 Noon – 12:30 AM
Meal for Two: Rs. 1300, without taxes and alcohol
