Asian food lovers of Pune (yours truly, included) have lately been spoiled for choice with all the experimental and traditional places opening up. It just means we have more options when planning for a good Asian dinner.
Recently, Panash - the Asian themed restaurant at Four Points by Sheraton revamped the place and relaunched the menu. Chef Tenzin has personally curated the menu and it boasts of pan-Asian dishes and flavors.
It hopes to introduce Asian flavors with Indian twists so as to make the food much more comfortable for newbies who are just testing the waters. Hence, in comes fusion sushi with new and interesting flavors like tandoor cottage cheese for stomachs too weak for raw fish.
The interiors spell class and is done beautifully with the signature oriental reds and wooden accents and soft light.
We were welcomed with glasses of delicious Sangria which kept magically refilling :D
We kicked off the tasting with the sushi. The HARU MAKI which was a refreshingly crispy maki roll of tuna and salmon. The crispiness of the outside with the gooeyness of the mayo and the fish made for a delicious sushi.
I also quite liked the CALIFORNIA MAKI with the cucumber, crunchy prawn bits and mayo. However, I didn't quite warm up to PANASH FUSION MAKI with the paneer tikka in it.
Though vegetarians and people averse to raw fish might want to give it a go. But why would these people want to eat sushi in the first place is something I won't comprehend.
The DIMSUM course treated me quite well. I loved the CHICKEN JIAOZI which was steamed dumpling with filling of minced chicken and mushroom. The filling was seasoned very well and was juicy and tasted amazing.
The GREEN DUMPLING was a vegetarian dimsum and was stuffed with spinach, mushroom, celery and like. It did dull in comparison to the JIAOZI but it put up a good fight.
I also loved the PHUKET STYLE BARBEQUE CHICKEN which packed bang on spicy flavors.
LAJIAN LIAN OU was crisp lotus stems which were sticky, sweet and spicy. Served with peas and delicious to boot, this was definitely one of my picks of the night.
Mains consisted of LOTUS LEAF CHICKEN with the chicken served in lotus leaves which made sure the chicken came to the table all tender and juicy. The seasoning was on point and the onion and garlic mix was beautiful to taste.
Now, I am a sucker for good PHAD THAI and I found the noodles here very delicious. As the chef mentioned, their plating is directly inspired from the street food of the Asian countries and they want to serve the dishes as it would have been found while strolling through the streets of say, Thailand.
So the PHAD THAI noodles were served separately with all the condiments around it, leaving the diners with the decision of how the dish ought to look.
The best of the mains was the PRAWNS IN XO SAUCE for me. I haven't had XO sauce before but I have heard a lot of this spicy seafood sauce that's popularly used in parts of China. The sauce did justice to the fresh prawns and it made the dish delectable.
One of the major let down of the night, however, were the desserts. And as you'd know me, I survive all the courses for dessert. Needless to say, I was a bit dejected and had to actually go somewhere else to make sure I had good dessert to end the night.
The LEMON GRASS PANACOTTA sounded good concept wise and would have tasted just so if the panacotta wasn't as rubbery as it was. Was it because the panacotta was sitting out for a while? I don't know, but it refused to be spooned out when I tried. The unyielding and thick panacotta was a downer for me.
COCONUT PANCAKE is usually one of my favorite things to have. Not only because its Asian inspired but also because you find adaptations of it in Bengal as well. Its a festival time favorite and simply delicious. The pancakes in Panash were definitely a good attempt. But I found them a bit dry and mealy. But it did taste a lot better than the PanaCotta that definitely hated me. (Well Panacotta, the feelings were mutual!)
Hence, the Panash tasting was a mixed bag for me. There are certainly incredible dishes to try and enjoy. However, personally, desserts are a big deciding factor when it comes to choosing a restaurant. Hopefully, the highly proficient chefs at Sheraton will work on them to make it just perfect.
A big thank you to Devendra and Bhakti for the invite. And immense amount of love for being so patient with me :D
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