Wash off your palate the pretences of futuristic cuisine as Chef Jaydeep Mukherjee of Indigo Colaba adds class to the comfort of basics
With a thunderstorm looming on my head like a hatchet, I made my way to Indigo, Colaba, hoping that Chef Jaydeep Mukherjee's monsoon kitchen is as exciting as the one I remembered from last summer.
If stepping into the warm-hued bungalow was step one towards getting rid of my rain blues, the first of their offerings, a Charred Cauliflower Cream Soup with parmesan pancacotta and truffle granola, took care of the rest. The combination of reddish-brown cauliflowers, gorgeous in their smokey flush, and the thick, salty richness of the cream, reminded me why some on-plate couples are effortlessly classic. In between sips of the Java Plum Twister, a concoction of vodka, jamun, lemon and mint, it was already time for the Fruits de mer smoked tomato broth—with clams, mussels, scallop, lobster tail and baby octopus; lemon curd and champagne salt. Served in a glass cloche, the bed of sea-goodies arrived separate from the tangy-spiced broth, which was poured onto the meat as we watched the thyme-smoked cloche turn red and inviting.
The appetizers, a soft-on-the-tongue Butter-poached Lobster with crème brûlée and pepper hollandaise and a Camembert Souffle with warm mushroom salad and truffle buerre blanc, fought tooth and nail for my attention (and secured it). Enter, main course.
Between the tandoor Lemon Mustard King Prawns, the Charred Asparagus and Emmenthal Crepe and the slow-roasted Kid Lamb, I lost calm over the very-Bengali tribute to prawn-and-mustard, its familiar piquancy at once accentuated and tempered by a side-serving of kairi (green mango) and coconut sago-pudding. The crepe, with its "tender greens and beetroot salad", which tasted nothing like the vegetables I've grown up mocking, took me by surprise.
Dessert consisted of Sweet-Corn Cake with spiced strawberry puree and lemon basil sorbet, and Flexi Callebaut Milk Chocolate with popcorn ice cream. The second, a spiral chocolate strip with the vaguest hint of guava, proved to be a master seducer. Even in the last minutes of the meal, the caramel popcorn cheeks, burnt and crisp against the coolness of the ice cream, bore testimony to the fact that if my story of the meal were to run rich in superlatives, it'd be well accounted for. It is.
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 "Fruits de mer smoked tomato broth with clams, mussels, scallop, lobster tail and baby octopus; lemon curd and champagne salt")
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