Brandy , you’re a fine girl.” Those are the last lyrics we hear upon exiting our vehicle outside the pyramid of reflection that is Monkey Bar Delhi in Vasant Kunj. That Looking Glass song about longing and loss juxtaposes nicely with what we have come to experience: a Fatty Bao pop-up at Monkey Bar.
For those unfamiliar, Fatty Bao is Chef Manu Chandra’s love letter to Asian dining (with ink that Chetan Rampal sourced on paper that AD Singh crafted), one that is still writ large across other metropolises’ dining scene, but missing from Delhi for longer than we care to remember. The Capital’s outlet bowed (get it?) out a while ago, and things have been a tad less flavoursome since.
Under the auspices of Chef Sumit Choudhary, Fatty Bao has made a brief comeback to test whether it can still make waves in Delhi’s waters. After going through the trenches for you, dear reader, and given the fact that the Capital is doublelandlocked, take our word for it that this is a welcome Tsunami of tastes, textures, and trite comparisons. We start our meal with a fattening bao, to wit, the Char Siu Bao, which is a literal rendering of BBQ pork with green apple slaw and slice(s) that greases up a supremely fluffy bun.
It is as delicious as it sounds, and it’s only because we finish it that we turn to what’s next, like a second-born royal if you will. Wasabi Prawns, comprising shellfish crispier than they have a right to be, get their comeuppance in the Japanese Horseradish, but go down real smooth our Indian gullets. The Brie Tempura, which is globules of glorious tempura fried French cheese, elevated by charred pineapple of all things, takes us on to the other side.
This is where the pop-up curries favour, with its Pork Humba and Ca Ri Ga, and we’d stop right here but the devil is in the details. The Humba comprises a brazenly braised pork belly accoutred with everything from chilli and beans to pineapple and pleasure, while the lady Ga is a more retiring velveteen chicken curry a la Vietnam. There is also more sushi than you can shake a prawn tail at, along with a cocktail collective to help whet your beak. So help us, and bring Fatty back to Delhi.
TILL: March 28 AT: Monkey Bar, Vasant Kunj