Doing India proud: Asheesh Dewan’s Ananda

Dusk approaches Dublin

Some memories stay in my mind, waiting for me to revisit, every once in a while, think of the day they happened with a smile. A hint of nostalgia... and this is one of them. I knew it would become precious the moment it happened, and I tried memorizing every nuance, to unwrap slowly, remember and cherish.

Almost at the end of our visit to Dublin, we met Asheesh Dewan, thanks partly to the Eden owners, Aparna and Shuba who told me about him and to Atul Kochhar. When I met him, as we talked about my daughter going to Dublin for her Masters he set up a WhatsApp group with Asheesh, and promptly informed him of our Dublin plans.
Asheesh took over and made sure we met. Not for a moment did it feel we were meeting for the first time. He showed us around and took us to his favourite spot in the hills, a secret that not many tourists know of. Up, amidst the clouds and the mist, we saw Dublin in all her miniature beauty, watching her change moods as darkness slowly crept on, ending another enchanted day.
Once all the lights twinkled on, we headed to Asheesh's Ananda. The restaurant that serves fine Indian food in all its splendour.

From my notes:

Even at 10 pm, Ananda is buzzing.

Gorgeous Ganesha presides over the bar.

Buzzing with conversation, wine and food

Large, opulent without being gaudy, the décor here is themed around the warmth that is India. I see Ganesha, the lord of creativity, wisdom and remover of obstacles in different avatars, portrayed in glorious joy all around Ananda. In fact, I notice, even the logo is a stylized Ganesha, and that makes me happy. As a writer and a food lover, I have complete faith in His divinity. He was a food lover too. On his birthday, India feasts instead of fasting - like they do for other God's birthdays.

“Please, Lord Ganesha, let the food be good,” I send up a quiet prayer, having tasted lots of Indian food in every nook and corner of every country we visited all over the world. A lot of the Indian food I ate in Europe tasted the same, thanks to the fact that the restaurants relied on ghost kitchens to actually make the food they served. The dal in restaurant A would taste the same in restaurant B, C, D and so forth. To the extent that even the samosas were made in a single kitchen and served at different outlets.

My prayers were answered, and I begin with Old Delhi Chaat.

“If only all Old Delhi Chaat would look like this,” the Brain whispers, as the eyes feast on the platter in front of me. It’s actually a crisp mathri roll with a dot of chutney, and look, there are flowers on it! Can I even eat this beauty?

“Yes, and please hurry, that stomach is about to rumble.” Brain cautions, sounding impatient.

I oblige and flavours explode in my mouth. That combination of mathri on a bed of channa and sweet curds is a complete winner. Before I ask for one more, the Kilkeel Scallops arrive on a bed of cauliflower korma puree, accompanied by chorizo chutney, if there is ever such a thing. I am amazed at the mastery of cooking these scallops. Five seconds more and they would’ve been overcooked, and five seconds less would spell disaster.

Precious, very expensive, and totally trendy in the fine dining segment, Kashmiri Morels mark their stunning presence at Ananda too. Conical, looking like mini beehives, they always intrigue me. Stuffed with the pine nuts, the whole dish spells mastery in creativity. Umami kichadi, crunchy purple potato dimes and asparagus heads all come together on one single plate. And guess what? I’m not sharing this one.

If there is one thing I never imagined would ever strike a chef, it is this Barbary Duck Tikka that comes along with a tiny samosa, dots of plum muraba and thick tarty twirls of passionfruit coulis.

Quick in its wake, assuaging my pleasantly surprised taste buds, the goat butter drenched mini naan with Dal Makhani bring some semblance of familiarity.

Strangely, in Dublin, diners like hard paneer, maybe to remind them of a robust cheese. This Paneer Kofta on a bed of spinach puree, with its hint of jeera, is robust, indeed. It reminds me a little of the palak paneer we make at home, except that this has a dash of natural sweetness in the kofta from local apricots.

"You've eaten enough," the Brain cautions.

Dark Chocolate Cremeux

"Not quite," I reply. "Dessert isn't here yet..."

As if Chef Karan Mittal heard me, I see a platter making their way to our table. The first: Dark Chocolate Cremeux. Smooth, elegant and easy to enjoy, I find it is sweetened just enough to let the chocolate have its way.

If one wasn't enough, Chef has more in store. The palate pampering continues with a semi-circular orb that could be anything, is this very pretty Kulfi, offering me an explosion of flavours and unexpected textures. Familiar by themselves, I don’t expect to see them sitting on the same plate with Kulfi. None of the expected - tulsi seeds, falooda and dates - are ignored. But, those flowers are a stroke of genius.

Kulfi, no less!

"Don't they look like a pretty crown on a bald king's head?" Brain giggles.

"No," I whisper. "They are edible, add colour and lend their unique flavours and textures to the precious Indian Kulfi: the dessert of kings, eaten like kings."

And, just like that, the Kulfi is gone too.

I must mention here, that Asheesh Dewan studied in Chennai at Institute of Hotel Management (http://www.ihmchennai.org/ihmchennai/), an institute that has mentored several leading chefs across the world. His protege, Karan Mittal, whose brain is behind all the food I ate, is also a Chennai boy and a product of the Dewan's alma mater. Asheesh and Karan met over Dosai and Pongal at what is now known as Crowne Plaza Adyar Park.

And here is the young Chef who created all the food I ate... Karan Mittal

Before I leave, I manage to get an autographed menu from the entire team and notice Ananda’s tagline on the menu: Bridging cultures thorough food – authentically Indian; truly Irish.