Mumbai Food: New BKC eatery offers Japanese cuisine with a twist

Chef Vikram Khatri left and AD Singh PicsMilind SaurkarDont you have to remove the price tags from the television sets AD Singh asks his manager The managing director of Olive Group of restaurants has just returned from a trip to New York and has only now set his eyes on the finished product Jetlag doesnt seem to have dimmed Singhs enthusiasm Dressed in a crisp white shirt teamed with a light blue linen blazer he admits that the final countdown to the launch date is usually the bestThe interiors of Hello GuppyWeve taken a centretable at his latest offering Hello Guppy a Japanese cafeacute and bar in the Godrej BKC building right next to the freshly opened Toast amp Tonic Its our photographers idea that we sit in the centre so he can capture the expanse of the place While well come to the food the real superhero of the space lets look around the space that opens on WednesdayThe Ramen BurgerFashion designer turned interior decorator Anshu Arora Sen has fashioned light fixtures from red trumpets and dial phones robots and walkie talkies are wall art and disco balls have grown bunny ears There a bright yellow Pikachu doll suspended from the ceiling The bar done up in sleek steel and white tones gets an uplift with a string of orange floats Cutlery plays along with geometric polka dots and starry designs While the space is smartly designed to offer a casual and affordable introduction to Japanese food we must admit the cuisine does intimidate us bitMango and Raspberry ParfaitContemporary Japanese is not a cuisine it is a vision pioneered by chefs Nobu Matsuhisa of Nobu and Rainer Becker of Zuma We expect the office crowd during the day and so have created a quickservice lunch menu In the evenings we hope to attract people who love Japanese food The space has been designed to create two different experiences he says We spot executive chef Vikram Khatri shuttling in and out of the kitchen He sets us on a flavour trail with the Spicy Salmon Miso Soup Rs 209 Seaweed silken tofu and flaky salmon floats in fermented soy bean paste and infused in Bonito dashi Its a salty seafood stock People ask me how am I so lean being a chef I tell them it is the Japanese food he laughs There is a certain hesitation regarding Japanese cuisine in India he says Thats because we didnt grow up experiencing it Its perceived to be all about raw food and highend restaurants says Khatri who sources his black rice and bamboo rice from Shillong AD narrates an anecdote I organised a meeting at Guppy that launched in Delhi in 2013 With great trepidation the board members mostly vegetarian tried the food and loved it They wanted to roll out the brand on a big scale says the restaurateur A server in a super hero apron and polkadot shoes places the vegetarian sushi roll Rs 310 on the table Stuffed with soft avocado crunchy cucumber and moistened with cream cheese we love the taste of sweet black rice topped with sesame We also try the Tenderloin Tataki Rs 369 comprising thin strips of rare tenderloin topped with white onion a deep citrus soy garnished with spicy dikon radish and garlic chips A burst of flavours awaken the umami We then dig into the Chicken Tsukune Ramen Burger Rs 490 made popular by a New York chef Keizo Shimamoto mdash Ramen noodles pressed into a lean disc to replace the bun The patty is marinated chicken covered in cheese on which sits a fried egg that oozes sunshine when you cut into it It is served on a bed of tomatoes and sake braised onions Messy but irresistible we dunk each bite into a spicy kewpie mayonnaise and pickleLast April New York chef Darren Wong debuted the raindrop cake at weekly food market Smorgasburg Khatri gives the translucent jelly drop made of agar agar a passion fruit twist topped with edible flowers The drop looks a bit flat but it has that refreshing fruity jelly flavour We cut the sweetness with the white and dark chocolate soil served on the side This ones got the makings of an Instagram hit Our favourite though is the Mango and Raspberry Parfait Rs 240 with its layers of chocolate soil cream pattiser and a lemony homemade yuzu icecream While the food hits the right spot we miss the performance cocktails Thats for another day as the bar is yet to pour its first drink For now the verdict is this Yes Japanese food can be fun and you dont need martial skills to appreciate it