Aish the iconic, award-winning restaurant from the City of Pearls at The Park Hyderabad meets Six ‘O’ One for an extravagant 10-day pop-up. This is the first of The Park’s Power of Four, a series where iconic restaurants of The Park Hotels that have seen decades of patronisation, notable menus, celebrated chefs and many awards will now travel across the country to serve up the same magic in different cities. The highlight of this one is not one but two different seven course thalis curated by Master Chef Habeeb Mohsin who has a career spanning three decades and specialises in Hyderabadi, Awadhi and North West Frontier cuisines. Excerpts from our conversation:
What is in store for guests at the pop-up? Give us a sneak peek at the menu.
We have two options of thalis — Heera–e–Aish, and Ishq–e–Moti which will cover the cuisine extensively. This would have seven courses — we start with an amuse bouche, sherbet, kebabs, sorbet, haleem, thali including biryani, curries and breads and then finally sign off with signature desserts like our Khubani Cream Cheese Mille-Feuille.
For folks dropping in, what is one must try dish — apart from biryani of course!
Apart from biryani, a must-try dish for folks dropping in would be Hyderabadi haleem, as well
as a Kattal Haleem variant for vegetarians, made of jackfruit.
Will your luggage include spices or any other specific ingredients that you are carrying with you?
I believe all the ingredients are available at Chennai but I am carrying potli ka masala with me for sure!
Tell us a bit about yourself and your culinary journey.
My culinary journey started around 1992, and over the past three decades, I have gained comprehensive work experience with various chefs. Some notable names include Mumtaz Begum and Kulsum Begum, from the royal family of Hyderabad. In 2019, I had the honour of representing Indian cuisine in Iceland on Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary.
With a career spanning three decades, you must have enough stories to fill a book. Do tell us a few...
Over the last several years, there were many interesting experiences. I remember one was when a young American couple had booked the entire restaurant for themselves for the evening. No other guests were allowed and we displayed the cuisine in smaller portions and they absolutely loved the experience.
We had another one where the guest wanted to impress their daughter’s future in-laws and requested us to create the Aish experience at their residence.
Outside the kitchen, what are your plans while in Chennai?
I want to take a stroll along the iconic Marina Beach, enjoy the scenic views and indulge in local street food by the sea. I hear the biryani in Tamil Nadu is very distinct and I definitely want to taste it! I’ve also heard about a dessert called Dum Ka Roat available in the Triplicane area, which has been served for many decades there, which I want to try.
Starts today. On till July 30. Ishq–e–moti at INR 2,499 ++. Heera–e–Aish at 2,999 ++.Veg and non-veg thalis are priced the same.