One of the first invites that I had done in my writing career was that of Hungry Monkey. The food at Hungry Monkey, courtesy of Executive Chef Noah Barnes was so good that my batch mate always kept it as a benchmark during his residency days. Now with three restaurants under his belt, his legend continues to grow, specially those of his pork dishes. We decided to try out Arriba’s new menu and usual it brought around quite a few surprises that you must try out.
Although we Dilliwallahs are known for downing tequila shots by the dozen, but being a rare tequileria in Delhi, their Avocado tequila shot is something that you must start your night off with. A hint of sour avocado hangs on as a aftertaste as you rustle up your taste buds for an onslaught of some finger licking food. Their is a range of margaritas that you can order from the selection, some of the interesting ones being the Cinnamon Tamarind and Pineapple Ginger Jalapeno Margarita.
There is no better way to start your meal other than the Salsa and Guacamole Carnivale. With a Guacamole that had us coming back for repeats and five different types of salsa, the tortilla chips had been consumed in double time. The Mango Coriander and Habanero Salsa offers a delicate mix of heat, sweet and sour. But tortillas ain’t gonna fill our stomach so the next order on the plate is Stuffed Spiced Jalapenos with Goat Cheese Mousse. The salty goat cheese is wrapped in the peppery heat of Jalapeno and doused over with some sour cream. A plethora of flavours on your palate without activating one of the sweet taste buds.
Let’s come to something sweet now and Chef Barnes’ pork is something that I look forward to at every one of his restaurants. Be it the Habanero smoked Pork Skewers or the Smoked Porked Tortas, the balance of sweetness against the hint of smoky chili flavour is enough to send your taste buds into a tingle. The Pulled Pork Taco is also something that you must give a try. I have been ranting quite a bit about his pork without giving due credit to the rest of the elements on his menu. The Arriba Molcajete is like your typical sizzler platter to be dumbing it down, but the flavours of the vegetables are so fresh that you’ll forget meat for a while. The Mexican Saffron Pilaf with peppers, chili and spiced pumpkin was heaven sent for a couple of Bengalis in town.
When in a tequilaria, we decided to finish off our meal with a tequila lime cheesecake. Topped with a Avocado cream, it’s sourness will be much remembered. Chef Noah Barnes’ new additions to the menu at Arriba are a class apart and represent Mexico in a way I haven’t experienced in Delhi before. This is one place you must try out.
