Mumbai Diary: Tuesday Dossier

Chef on the move
If you're dining at By The Mekong, do order the Crispy Shredded Chicken, Spicy Stuffed Shitake or the Sichuan Pepper Spiced Chicken.

After all, these are some of the signatures of Shi Xilin (in pic), who has joined the restaurant of a Lower Parel five-star as a chef de cuisine, after honing his culinary chops for over a decade at the Taj's iconic Golden Dragon restaurant."I have learnt risk-taking, ambitious experiments, and gauging and fulfilling the guests' demands.

Now, I am familiar with preferences of city residents and visiting gourmands," shared the Beijing-bred chef, who arrived in India in 1996. He is often remembered for making it to the papers when terrorist struck the Taj in 2008. He was lucky to have escaped.

When asked if the city's palate for Oriental cuisine had changed over time, he replied, "Oriental cuisine comes from traditions and flavours, which I've always believed in. Now, the demand for innovation has taken over. Visual appeal adds to the guest experience apart from the impact of its flavours. I have introduced my signature touch, where the traditional and contemporary will merge."

Govinda comes three days early

Pic/Nimesh Dave

Going by his antics at an event in a suburban mall, Ranveer Singh is in the mood for Dahi Handi festivities early. The sagging is entirely unintended.

A slice of Simla
The re-opening of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Olympic (MGMO) swimming pool on Sunday after a controversial one year closure has spelt happy times for the area, not just its swimmers.

From health, we might just see an improvement in wealth. Rasul Hussein, Simla Canteen owner, laughs at that. The small no-frills eatery is located near the pool complex and beside the landmark Mayor's Bungalow. The 60-year-old cafe is back in business.

Hussein says, "Business was down for one year, when the pool closed, Now, I hope it picks up." Swimmers who had emerged from the MGMO were seen chomping on missal pav and omlette seated under the trees outside. With no seating space, patrons have to make do with a seat under the tree.

"The place was greener earlier, and our canteen earned its name from the ambience of the neighbourhood," grinned Hussein, whose family hails from Iran.

Masala bah!
Reservations. Check. Heady cocktails. Check. Quirky appetisers. Check. All seem to being going according to plan when this diarist visited Bandra's Masala Bar with friends. Until, at 9.45, as we readied to call for mains, our attendant politely told us that we had to vacate our table by 10 pm for a private party.

Shocked, we imagined that we'd heard wrong as the EDM playlist blasted in the background. We hadn't. Apparently, this was part of the shift dinner system that several city restaurants had introduced a while back. Here, at a given time, a new set of patrons step into the same space. Except, usually a diner is informed about seatings, and offered a choice for early or late, at the time of reservation.

But in our case, despite showing the restaurant manager the SMS alert and convincing him that no such information was shared over the phone, shoulders were shrugged, and we had to leave. We wonder if the rules-are-rules approach would've been adopted if we were one the sunset celebs of Bandra.

Mumbai to Manchester City
Mumbai girl Shayaan Oshidar is all set to perform at the legendary Etihad Stadium (home to Manchester City Football Club) with her band Hicari on August 24. The five-piece band comprises five students.

Shayaan Oshidar

Oshidar is currently in her third year at Liverpool University. The band recently launched their single, Catch Fire, and they have been invited to play a set of four songs at the second leg of the Champions League playoff game between Manchester City and FC Steaua Bucuresti.

But talk about irony, Oshidar is a Liverpool fan. "I enjoy watching the game with my friends. I am more a Liverpool supporter, like my band members since we study at Liverpool University," she shared over the phonelines. She is also the first Indian student to showcase her talent at the venue. The band calls itself multi-cultural referring to Oshidar's Persian origin and Indian roots, as guitarist/ saxophonist Tatsu Saiki ties with Yokohama, Japan.

Taj Mahal on the ramp
Come September, and Archana Kochhar's designs will be on display at the New York Fashion Week. Excited at showcasing her collection for the second time here, she shares, "The digital collection Crown Of Palaces is inspired by the Taj Mahal and India's colours. The line features intricate digital prints and symbolic motifs."

Archana Kochhar; (left) a sketch

The palette is a visualisation of the ivory marble of Taj Mahal. Ivory dominates, and is offset with bright colours." Interestingly, UP's Tourism Minister has supported the idea. We wish there was a more contemporary idea than a 17th century mausoleum for Indians to tom-tom about.