These brand new curated menus are the next best food experiences in Bengaluru at never seen before prices!

We’ve always been curious about curated meals, but more often than not, the experience has been more about gimmicks and leaves us unsatisfied especially considering the inflated prices these menus come with. It was therefore a pleasant surprise when ITC Gardenia got in touch with us and told us about their newest experiment — Cajsa — an affordable gastronomic experience.

Offering a reimagined menu, the restaurant, much like its name — rooted in the Greek word for ‘pure’ — embodies the simplicity and authenticity of the diverse, contemporary dishes offered. Thoughtfully crafted set menus, with 7 (Inizio), 9 (Lagom) and 11 (Elysian) courses have been curated to cater to vegetarian and non-vegetarian preferences, each offering a symphony of tastes and textures through cuisines from all across the globe.

What caught our attention first, however, was the clean and classy décor — something the property has come to be known for. We were seated with a wonderful view of the open kitchen — busy and buzzing with enthusiasm.

We decided to go with the non-vegetarian Lagom menu, but also managed to get a taste of some of the options from the vegetarian menu in between. We began our tasting with the Zen Tomato — alligator avocado, shallots, mirin dressing and stracciatella — an absolute delight and in no way as basic as what you’d imagine it to be. This was from the 11-course Elysian menu, as we decided to skip the Potted Mushroom Pâté, simply because we dislike pasty textures.

We followed this up with Hooked, Salt & Batter — spumous batter, seabass and tartare sauce — and Plant ’n’ Chips — mustard smoked eggplant and miso tartare — as our second course from the veg and non-veg menu. This course was passable in terms of creativity but was fresh and an absolute joy to eat.

Next up we tried Course 3, Asparagus & Corn — byadgi chilli oil, puffed corn sweet ’n’ spice — served on both menus; and we couldn’t get enough of the caramel popcorn served instead of croutons as an accompaniment to the thick and satisfying soup. We even asked for more popcorn and were gladly obliged.

Course 4 was Steamed Lotus Root as we skipped the Lobster Lux, which was the non-veg option. This smoked pepper, gochu garu lotus cracker delight was a big winner in terms of flavour and creativity. We quickly followed this up with Course 5, a palate cleanser — Cantaloupe & Ginger — and while we felt the ginger could be more pronounced, most diners seemed to like it as it was.

It was now time for maincourse and we decided to go non-veg with the Hickory & Farm Raised Chicken served alongside vegetable cyrstal, young peas and gari. We couldn’t really taste too much of the hickory smokiness we were really expecting but that’s a personal preference and we suggest you inform the team on how smoky you’d like your chicken.

Our last course before dessert was the Goat Gala for non-veg and Water Chestnut & Haloumi Pithvier for veg. The mutton was brilliantly executed with tender meat and intense flavours while the veg option was extremely satisfying too, flavour wise and visually too. A perfect end to a great meal!

Dessert consisted of The Sorcery with a raspberry cremeaux and vanilla custard; and Go Bananas with miso caramel ice cream and a cinnamon cremeaux. Both desserts were delicious and refreshing but we must add that we are kind of done the whole faux fruit gimmick and so while we did like them, maybe a different presentation might be better appreciated.

INR 2,500 onwards. Only for dinner. At Residency Road.

Email: romal@newindianexpress.com

X: @elromal