Is a visit to Andheri's Le Cirque worth it? Find out...

As we take a seat at a long table peppered with wine glasses of all sizes in the private dining area of Le Cirque Signature at the Leela hotel Chef Matteo Boglione walks in wiping the beads of sweat from his brow He slumps into the chair and takes a deep breath ldquoI am busy preparing the food for yourdquo smiles Chef Boglione who has flown down from the flagship restaurant in New York to head the kitchen in Mumbai Delhi saw its first Le Cirque two years ago Pumpkin Tortelli with butternut squash pecorino cheese fondue and sage The menu offers 40 per cent vegetarian options ldquoWe even have three Jain dishes Italian food without oniongarlic Imaginerdquo says chef Boglione throwing his hands in the air Le Cirque Signature at The Leela hotel Sahar lsquoIt happens only in Indiarsquo we blurt out in our minds Started by Sirio Maccioni in 1974 the Italian first opened Le Cirque as a French restaurant Chef Boglione tells us ldquoWhile French food is heavy Italian food is lighterrdquo adding that wine cheese seafood and oyster are some of the common ingredients that crop in both the cuisine ldquoIt is the butter and olive oil that changes the density It is a lsquocontrolledconfusionrsquo cuisine Mille Foglie is a white chocolate mousse and dark chocolate sauce is served with caramelised eggplant discs My idea of food is delicate flavouring An overpowering use of spice kills the mouth But I did taste the Indian curryrdquo he quips as he goes into the kitchen for last minute preps Service time We are now joined by coowner and son of Sirio Mario Maccioni along with his wife Maria at the table The chatty couple has downloaded the Google translator and is picking up Hindi phrases beautifully At a point even we get confuse the lsquokatarsquo and lsquochurirsquo ldquoLe Cirque means the circusrdquo says Maccioni Siriorsquos son and coowner of the Maccioni Restaurant Group We begin with a White and Green Asparagus Soup that comes with Brie fritters and Tuscan extra virgin olive oil This lightlyflavoured soup is served as a puree Each spoonful awakens our appetite for the latter The first appetiser is Panseared Foie Gras served with caramelised peach perigordin sauce and peach puree Perfectly crisped on the outside the Foie Gras is a meltinthemouth on the inside The duck liver goes beautifully well with the caramelised peach Folding tortelli is an art and the next dish Pumpkin Tortelli with butternut squash amaretto cookies on a bed of pecorino cheese fondue and topped with fried sage looks like a masterpiece Cut open and a sunset chrome of pumpkin is waiting to be devoured The sweet pumpkin the savoury pecorino and the sharp sage perform a juggling act on the palate Then an earthy aroma of black truffles wafts into the room The taste of the buttery risotto rice and the truffle shavings is aheady experience leaving a light pungentsour after taste forfirst timers like us The next dish is an uncomplicated Seasonal Grilled Vegetables on Polenta which comforts the taste buds with simple seasonings much needed after the flavorsome furor the truffle stirred Panseared Tuna with eggplant puree deepfried artichoke and tomato confit A chefrsquos specialty this dish is definitely a musttry Cooked rare the fish retains its intense flavour For an aubergine fan there is no greater pleasure than having the prized purple in different forms And I rediscovered it in the dessert Mille Foglie A fluffy white chocolate mousse and a sinister dark chocolate sauce is served with caramelised eggplant discs We fall in love with eggplant all over again When we come to the last dish on the set menu Le Cirquersquos signature Cregraveme Brulee Mario has a story to tell ldquoIn Barcelona my father was served a cregraveme brulee in a deep tumbler and the sugar coating was so thick that they served a minihammer to break it A fellow companion almost lost a tooth trying to bite that sugar At Le Cirque he asked the chef to decrease the thickness of the crust to make it ediblerdquo As we crack the sugar crust with a spoon we know that every Cregraveme Brulee we have after this will be compared to this one The only regret mdash there isnrsquot enough room for a second helping Food Artistic Service Confident Ambiance Casual chic At The Leela Mumbai Sahar Andheri East Call 91226691134445u00a0 We cannot rate the experience as it was a preview phorumdalalmiddaycom