Just the other day, Christophe Gillino, executive chef at The Leela Palace, New Delhi, decided to pay a surprise visit to his restaurant, Qube. He had just recently introduced a new menu and this was his way of keeping quality and service checks. That night, almost nothing went wrong but Gillino wasn’t satisfied. He plans to visit again soon, to ensure that everything remains perfect.
Since the time he joined the restaurant a few months back, he has made a lot of changes at Qube, the most significant one being introducing variety into the menu. ‘‘The first thing I noticed was that there were a lot of Indian dishes being served at the restaurant which was unnecessary because the hotel already has a very fine Indian restaurant—Jamavar. There was no need for more of the same thing at Qube so I introduced Mexican, Continental, Italian, Thai and French, in addition to the popular Indian cuisine,’’ he says.
The signature dishes include Maryland Crab Cakes, Mexican Sarrandeado Chilli Glazed Red Snapper, Araguani Chocolate, Wagyu Tacos, Mexican Quesadillas and Gianduja. Some of the other items that you could try are Goat Cheese and Arugula Salad, Calamari and Peach Salad, Seared Scallops Carpaccio, Wagyu Tacos, Lab Gai, Som Tam, Seafood Risotto, Potato Crispy Cigars and a lot more. He perfected the technique of making all of the above dishes through years of practise and during several of his international assignments, the last one being, Four Seasons, Marrakech, where he played a critical role during its opening and in all its culinary operations.
Experimentation has been the key to his success, both professionally and personally. In the kitchen, he experiments with flavours and at home, he experiments with the various ‘flavours’ of music.