Award-winning chef Tarun Sibal’s latest restaurant featuring coastal treats from South East Asia opens in Indiranagar

Imagine a tranquil beach, where golden sands meet the azure sea and the sun shines bright. Nestled among a grove of swaying palm trees, there’s a unique and whimsical sight — a beach swing tied to a gently bent palm and just being seated there brings one a sense of serenity. Although this metal swing under a wooden arch facing a neighbourhood in Indiranagar doesn’t serve the same views, it does a pretty good job at replicating the happy-go vibe of beach-side cafés. And how do I know that this place, resembling a glass house, calls for all things coastal? Well, for starters, you spot the golden logo in every nook and cranny of this space that incorporates every element we described in the first sentence besides artfully framed seashells on the wall, blue walls and tropical plants adding to the ambience. 

Much to our delight, chef Tarun Sibal, whose new restaurant this is, confirms that this latest culinary venture of his, Swwing, is a celebration of tropical flavours. Inspired by his journeys to various seaside serenades across South East Asia, Tarun curates a menu where each dish is thoughtfully crafted combining traditional aromatic spices with innovative contemporary techniques, paired with a selection of wines that complement the flavours and textures. On the table, first comes — Smokey Aubergine Pachdhi (glazed eggplant, red currant and puffed quinoa plated with smooth murukku). The thick, creamy and tangy pachdhi paired with the crunchy texture and nutty flavour of the quinoa set a fine example of the culinary experience the restaurant promises by marrying South Indian and contemporary cooking styles.

The combination of elements at this Gourmet Table + Wine Bar was furthered when a Tomato Tofu Tartar Avocado was served on a plate-sized rice cracker and finished with charred pineapple; we couldn’t, for the life of us, get enough of it. We had a similar reaction to White Pomfret Ceviche, which comes with grapefruit coconut malai and Kachampuli Tiger Juice. The brightness of citrus with the richness of coconut, the tang of kachampuli vinegar and the tender, marinated fish offer a bold and harmonious explosion of flavours, textures and cultures in a single bite. But if we had to pick a favourite then that would be Kingfish Masala Fry serving king mackerel, a popular fish in many coastal cuisines, topped with raw mango and a peanuts salsa.

Now before we moved onto the Medium Plates section of the menu, we toured around the restaurant that’s divided into two floors and nothing appealed to us more than the private dining room where we were currently seated. Soon, a serving of Goat Sliver Gochujang Ghee Roast and Jackfruit Potpourri, Gassi entered the room with a couple of accompaniments — neer dosa and Kerela lachha. The former boasts a fusion of Korean and Indian culinary influences with the fiery heat of gochujang and nutty flavours of ghee roast while the latter showcases how one can blend the tropical and vegetarian nature of jackfruit with South Indian and Cantonese influences using a char shui glaze.

With every dish that arrived at our table, we kept thinking that this one was the hero of the evening but each of them set a new benchmark of expectations and outdid the other. But it’s the dessert that knocked the ball out of the park. The velvety canvas of the Baked Vanilla Yoghurt gave an added edge to the meal with the sweetness of treacle syrup, the unique flavour of mangosteen and the crunch of almond flakes.

Meal for two: INR 2,500 onwards. At Indiranagar. 

Chef Speak:

How did Swwing come about?
According to numerology, we had to name the restaurant with an S. And the first thing that came out of my mouth was swing. A couple of years ago, I just returned from a Sri Lankan holiday where I was captivated by this tilted palm tree in the middle of the beach and a swing hung from it.  And I still have that picture.  That was probably in my mind and we called it Swwing.

What can seafood lovers expect from the menu?
The concept behind the menu and the dishes is coastal cuisine. It is derived from our travels. From Sri Lanka, the Indian coastline, Cambodia to Thailand and Singapore, I wanted to take the spice route journey as the mood board for the menu.

What made you choose Bengaluru for this venture?  
The entire concept of Swwing is a relaxed, non-pretentious luxury. And Bangalore is the 
perfect city for that kind of sentiment. From a very different perspective, I find that in  Bengaluru, there is so much opportunity to work with great food and beverages. 

srushti@newindianexpress.com