At some point during a conversation with chef Adrial Branco, you realise that every dish on the menu is something he has eaten somewhere, thought about for too long, and then refused to leave in the past. With the new menu at Roc-A-Coe, it becomes all the more apparent. A childhood plate of tandoori chicken becomes fried chicken. A Bombay chaat becomes guacamole. A bowl of leftover mash and Goan chorizo from his kitchen days becomes a dish of its own. Even the very rich mashed potato takes a detour through the French Chef Joël Robuchon’s kitchen before arriving in Chennai.
The new Roc-A-Coe menu is built on these little detours, using global formats but constantly finding its way back to India. “We’re just not mixing two cuisines,” Adrial says. “We’ve broken the cuisines down. We’re taking plating techniques, cooking techniques, an element or an ingredient that is very famous in a European or Mexican or American country.”
The Desi chicken tacos make the point neatly. Makhani gravy and chicken chunks sit inside a triangular taco with birista onions and pickled onions. Adrial refuses to use pulled chicken here because, as he puts it, “I don’t really like to use a lot of pulled chicken because it gets very chewy.” The chunks hold up better, especially with the richness of the makhani.
The Goan chorizo mash and chips has an even better origin story. While working in Goa, there was always mash left and always chorizo left, so the two ended up in the same bowl. “That combination was so good,” he says.
Then there is the TFC, or Tandoor fried chicken, which is essentially a childhood birthday memory put through a bar kitchen. Chicken thighs are brined overnight, marinated in tandoori spices, dredged and fried.
“While growing up, we used to love the tandoori chicken on birthdays,” Adrial says. “They used to sprinkle some kind of masala on it, which I figured was chaat masala and cumin powder together. Lime wedge, lachha onions and mint chutney. And that is how we are serving it here.”
The Guacamole chaat is where the menu makes its most direct case for the vegetarians at the table, and it makes it honestly: chaat masala, pink salt, tamarind chutney, mint chutney, boondi, nylon sev, onions, arugula for a peppery bite, served with thattai on the side. “Most of the food is fried, creamy,” Adrial says. “So this is a very healthy option.”
The Ghee podi mac and cheese is the dish that sounds most skeptical on paper and delivers most convincingly in practice. It is cheesier than most versions currently available in Chennai, and the podi dusted on top adds a nutty, aromatic quality that cuts through the richness of the dish well.
The Dirty Indonesian fried rice is the nasi goreng in its fullest form, with non-vegetarian add-on options and the option of a bone marrow topping that will function as excellent rage bait if you are eating at a table full of vegetarians. Consider this a warning and also a recommendation.
The Ros omelette closes things with a Goan story. In Goan homes, the leftover curry from the night before goes on top of a morning omelette. Over time that became street food. Over more time it became the thing you eat on a Friday night after you have had enough drinks to need something grounding before sleep. Karl Fernandez, operations head and beverage consultant, would tell you the same.
Meal for one: Rs 800+. From 12 pm to 10.45 pm. At Roc-A-Coe, Nungambakkam.
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