The newly opened Mahjong Room is for those times when you want to experience an authentic, wholesome and epicurean dining experience
BY NAMITA GUPTA
Housed inside the WelcomHotel, the Mahjong Room is the latest offering in the city for the lovers of Chinese cuisine. Combining a medley of modern and traditional Chinese eats, this fine dining restaurant is spot on in terms of taste and flavour, with masterfully crafted servings of dreamy dim sums, dumplings, gyozas, hargaos and more.
Ambience: Inspired by the intricacies of the Mahjong, a tile-based game that was developed in China during the Qing dynasty, which requires skill, strategy and calculation – the Mahjong Room is a distinctive culinary celebration where skilled chefs have reformed select dishes from China’s Sichuan, Hunan and Cantonese repertoire with equal finesse. The game that spread throughout the world since the early 20th century became so popular back then that dynasties flourished around it. The gourmet restaurant named after that game offers a carefully curated, extensive Chinese alchemy of food highlighted by the precise skills of shaping, heating and flavouring. There’s no Chinese carnival-like ambience akin to most Chinese eateries. Thankfully! Contemporary interiors sans the ubiquitous dragons and lanterns with the customary red coloured upholstery are quite inviting and welcoming.
Food: When traditional recipes meet modern techniques, the result is flavourful and one that lingers on your palate long after. Signature dishes include appetisers such as Crisp Lotus Stem with Sesame, Golden Fried Prawns, Lotus Leaf Chicken and Shitake and Black Mushroom Gyozas. Some of the must-haves include the delectable doughy purses – Shrimp Hargao and Chicken Sui Mai. Vegetarians will love the Vegetable Crystal Dumplings. Steaming parcels of delight! The Sesame Prawn Toast, a timeless classic of sesame crusted, minced prawns topped on toast is also worth the wait. For the mains, try their signatures like Crisp River Sole with Oyster Sauce and Seasonal Greens, Mapo Tofu with Black Bean and Chili Flakes or Wok Tossed Crisp Pak Choy and Lotus Stem Dumplings in Hunan Sauce. We loved the Tianjin Red Snapper with Spicy Lemon and Garlic with Lotus Leaf Wrapped Jasmine Rice. Pick from their array of desserts like Banana Split Toffee, Passion Coconut Lime Shortcake, Hot Chocolate Cookie Over Fudge or The Real Orient Mahjong.
Drinks: The in-house bartenders have designed a diverse and distinctive choice of cocktails and mocktails. Some of the perfectly paired concoctions include Sakura Cosmos, The Battle of Chibi, The Monkey King, The Chinese Emperor Iced Tea besides others.
Where: Mahjong Room, WelcomHotel – ITC Hotels, 46, Richmond Road, Ashok Nagar, Bengaluru. Call: 080 6704 1790 / 2500 1700. Meal for two: Rs 2000.
