Gregory Bazire and Pritha Sen discuss how essential mustard is in cooking

Atria Mall woke up from dormancy with the launch of nightclub Maatahari in January 2017 followed by Swey in February Since then Spare Kitchen has made it its second home after Juhu Soon there will be a zingier reason to visit the mall with upcoming restaurant Mustard If youve been to the Goan outpost in Sangolda your mouth is watering already rightTwo chefs from different parts of the world mdash Gregory Bazire from Normandy and Pritha Sen from Bengal mdash celebrate their love for a common ingredient in their native cuisines mustard And dont sweat not all the dishes want to overwhelm you with it The two have stuck to their cuisines and dug out homestyle and complex urban recipes to give you the best of both worldsMoules Gratinegravees a la Dieppoise This dish comes from the north of France Prawns mussels and salmon are mixed in white sauce and topped with crunchy bread crumbs and bakedMy food should bring a smile on your faceBazire grew up in Trouville in Normandy where his parents ran a brasserie Les Vapeurs At the age of 13 he started working in the summers to earn a quick buck I did the job of a waiter from loading wine in cellars to placing butter and bread baskets on tables I then moved to the back of the kitchen peeling mussels and fish and during the winter I was a coat collector says Bazire who went to the US to work under chefs Michel Richard and Jean Louis Paladin at their Michelinstarred restaurants in Los Angeles and Washington DC respectively He followed this up with a stint at a culinary school in Strasbourg In 1996 when he went back to work with his mother in Normandy the concept of bistronomy mdash a more refined style of cooking in a casual cafeacute mdash was already on his mind and Bazire incorporated it into his work philosophySouffle Glace a l Absinthe A frozen souffleacute it comes laced with absinthe on a pool of vanilla bean sauce The cool taste of fennel in this iced version of the 18thcentury French dessert is rather uniqueIn 2005 he wanted to travel and ended up in Goa I wanted to settle in Chile or Goa the village life suited me I like the generous people in Goa and life is simple says Bazire who ran Le Poisson Rouge and set up Om Made Cafeacute in Anjuna Then there was no looking back He started consulting for restaurants across IndiaChef Greg BazireIn 2015 he met Poonam Singh the owner of Mustard who brought Sen on board to set up the restaurant We are doing the food of our roots and each dish is prepared to bring a smile on your face says Bazire whose focus is to offer familial or homestyle and bourgeoise cuisines that are more elaborate and refined But you will get a taste of classic France There will be no tweak in the recipes for the Indian palate he addsAccording to Bazire there is a contrast in French and Bengali flavours Bengalis pack in one strong punch but with the French you have to bring all the different condiments garnishes and sauces together for the final flavour The French use mustard in condiments to complement meats We do sauces for fish and meat and preserve fish with mustard It is also a base for mayonnaise he explainsKanchkolar shammi kebabs The sweetness of green banana kebabs is cut with a spicy green chutney and a roasted chilli and mustard relish Served with coriander chutney and banana chips this is a perfect monsoon indulgence Bengali food is big on mustardOver a phone call Pritha Sen whose food is all about the culinary history and gastronomy of the region that was once undivided Bengal stresses that the entire menu is not about mustard Its typical of what the Bengali culture of eating is and obviously mustard plays a big part mdash we use mustard seeds in tempering mustard oil to cook mustard paste to flavour We have a strong connect with mustard It has grown here from time immemorial so is a readily available source she says explaining that mustard paste is a fresh paste usually used in fish curries while kasundi is made after fermenting mustard seeds and adding spicesPritha SenHer idea of the menu is to encapsulate the culinary history of Bengalis The food goes through complexities imbibing influences and styles to create more intricate recipes The traditional styles were all about steaming boiling sauteacuteing and making soupy curries without the use of overbearing masalas or oils With time we imbibed influences and made it the Bengali food that it is today complete with garam masala green and black cardamom cinnamon star anise and dry fruits she signs offMal pua Our heart sinks when we get our thick pancakelike mal puas with just a gentle slather of rabri We need more of the malaiCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates