Chennai has truly never had an
issue with Italian cuisine be it pastas or wood-fired pizzas. However most of
the restaurants were the typical ones that dished out a variety of regular pasta’s
in different sauces or replicating the traditional pizzas from Italy. So if one
was looking for a more intricate avatar of the Italian cuisine, it was almost a
challenge. Considering how much Chennaities love Italian food and also the
business connection between Italy & Chennai thanks to the large leather
industry has provided an opportunity for a couple of Italian fine dine restaurant
to start shop.
One such restaurant that recently
went a grandeur makeover is ‘Prego’ at one of the prestigious hotels in
Chennai, the Taj Coromandel. With a new young and talented Chef Luca at the
helm of the kitchen, Prego has truly created an impression. When a restaurant
of such calibre decides to throw in a colourful pasta festival highlighting
what distinct flavours make up coloured pastas, it was something not to be
missed.
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| (Chef Luca at his Workshop) |
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| (Different Shapes of Green Basil Pasta) |
Prego is currently running a ‘Festa
Della Pasta’ which literally means ‘Feast of Pasta’, introduces us to the
different types of coloured pastas. And by colour it isn’t the sauce we are
talking about instead the pasta itself. The evening started off with a small master
class by the chef himself where he provided us with a live demonstration of how
pastas are rolled and shaped. Once we were awestruck at the pace at which he
was dolling out pastas, we just couldn’t wait to get our hands on them.
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| (Potato beignets with goat cheese cream, tomato coulis, leek puree and some caramelized cherry tomato) |
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| (Truffle scented provolone and Leek soup) |
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| (Ortolana and Feta Cheese) |
The five course meal began with
an Amuse Bouche. We were served with ‘Potato beignets with goat cheese cream,
tomato coulis, leek puree and some caramelized cherry tomato’ to top it off.
The beignets were crispy on the crust while delicately soft inside. The
combinations of dips gelled well with the dish and the presentation was top
notch accurately reflecting the passion of the creator. This was followed by a
fantastic ‘Truffle scented provolone and leek soup’ along with an ‘Ortolana and
feta cheese’ pizza. The soup was delectably light and creamy providing a very
comforting environment for the rest of the course that was to follow. On the
same tone, the pizza that was served was thin enough to hold the weight of the
toppings yet was very light. The fresh ingredients had a tremendous impact on
the flavour which made it outstanding.
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| (Tomato flavoured Tagliolini Pasta tossed with fresh Basil Sauce) |
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| (Flavoured Lasagna layered with Beef Bolognaise) |
This was followed by a sort of
mini main courses. My choices for the evening were one each from the vegetarian
and non-vegetarian menu. I chose ‘Tomato flavoured Tagliolini pasta tossed with
fresh Basil sauce’ for the vegetarian variant and a ‘Flavoured Lasagna layered
with Beef Bolognaise’ for the non-vegetarian dish. To start with the tomato
flavoured pasta was extremely flavourful with short burst of tomato hitting you
ever subtly as you dwell in the basil sauce and the crunchy vegetables that accompanied
the course. The topping of pine nuts helped provide a good textural balance
between the pasta and the veggies. Just writing about the next dish makes my
palate go gaga. I just have one thing to say about the ‘Beef Bolognaise Lasagna’
here at Prego, mind blazingly amazing. The best lasagne I’ve ever had by a huge
distance. This particular lasagne has redefined my standard for Lasagna and I’m
sure to be heading here more than often as lasagnas are my favourite Italian food.
The pasta sheets were of perfect thickness and it was delight to watch the Lasagna
which was demoulded hold it shape till the very last spoon. There were bits of
crunch in the sauce which was surprising and assume was because of the way the
beef was cooked. It was just WOW!!!
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| (Stuffed Chicken with Cheese Sauce) |
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| (Goat Cheese and Spinach Ravioli in a Saffron Sauce) |
After having such a gastrorgasm,
I was least interested on what was to follow as my mind was all set on when to
come again to savour the amazing lasagne again. However as part of the evening,
we had to continue our meal course and I was provided with a choice of catch of
the day or a stuffed chicken. Being someone who is very choosy on seafood, I
went in for the stuffed chicken. Not too sure if it was the Lasagna effect or
what, I felt the chicken wasn’t as great as I would have expected it to be. To
me it was a bit on the dry side but the disappointments were only with the meat
as the accompanying cheese sauce and the potato sides were flavourful. I don’t
know how the potatoes are called but it was in the form of thin slices
apparently marinated or soaked in some sauce that gave it a truly unique taste.
I would have loved to gorge on it all evening. With all this happening, Chef
Luca decided to throw us a surprise and dished out one of Prego’s most sought
after dish from their regular menu, the ‘Goat Cheese and Spinach Ravioli in a
Saffron sauce’. No wonder it is the sought after dish as the ravioli’s were
packed with some amazing flavours with the saffron sauce being the gloss on the
flavours contained with the ravioli.
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| (Bitter Chocolate Flavoured Lasagna) |
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| (Chef Luca’s Deconstructed Tiramisu) |
To bring closure to the evening,
we were served with two desserts, one which is a stronghold of any Italian
restaurant, the ‘Tiramisu’ while the other dessert for the evening was from the
Festa Della Pasta menu, namely the ‘Bitter Chocolate flavoured Lasagna’. Every
time I see chocolate lasagne or pasta on TV or online forums, I always wondered
when someone would dish one up in Chennai. So being uber excited dwelled into
it first. I found the lasagne didn’t have as much bitter as I was expecting as
the dish had bitter on it but nevertheless was a fantastic dessert and made my
first experience of chocolate pasta a memorable one. Now coming back to the
Tiramisu, the version we were presented with was a modern interpretation of the
classic. Aptly named ‘Chef Luca’s deconstructed Tiramisu’, the dish had all
elements that made it a winner just with a glance. Apart from structural
differences, the other major difference from the traditional variant was that
the ladyfinger biscuit was swapped with an equally soft and chewy sponge. The
espresso drizzle provided the kick that was required along with the other
elements to authentically replicate the same flavours as the original. This tiramisu
is now officially on my ‘Must have Desserts list of Chennai’. To realize that
we were taken on such a gastronomical tour by a Chef who was all of 27 is sure
to make us introspect on how talented people can become at very young ages.
The ‘Festa della Pasta’ is on
till the 19th of July, 2015 at Prego – Hotel Taj Coromandel located
in Nungambakkam. An A La Carte meal for two should cost about ₹ 3000 - ₹ 5000
depending on the number of courses. You can also select one of their pre-set
course meals that start from about ₹ 1500 per person for a 3 course meal.
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