SRK goes all starry eyed staring at a billboard of Deepika, actually meets her
one fine day and faints. No, no, no, I am not gonna croon like him; Ankhon main
teri ajab si ajab si……
recently when I was invited, by a friend, to a tasting session at All Stir Fry
with the exception of staying on my feet.
Every day, on my way to work, I would pass
by this hoarding by Water Stones Hotel at Andheri, hosting All Stir Fry.
Being one of the legends in the culinary world, who introduced the Quick Wok
concept in Mumbai, I always wanted to dine there. With ASF firmly rooted in South Mumbai, the
other side of town, I would have to plan a visit specifically to get there. But
with them opening their doors in the suburbs, closer to my work space, it was
an excuse for me to jump in.
Cradled on the 2nd floor of the Water
Stones Hotels at Andheri East, All Stir Fry is an Oriental restaurant from the
very same hospitality group which owns Waterstones Hotel & Club, Pizza by
the Bay and Eat Around The Corner to name a few.
Hotel: One of Mumbai’s trendiest hotels, located within a few minutes from the Sahar
International airport, it boasts of different nature inspired themes like
Glacier, Mountains etc. along with other hospitality facilities. The staff was
kind enough to glide us through a tour of this awe inspiring foundation.
Wok adorned ceilings with vivacious
hues, Mason jar bulbs on the tables and large window panes to soak in the
beautiful natural surroundings add to the uber chic look and heart-warming
ambience. They also have an alfresco
section with comfy couches in the garden area. It was like a different world all together, a
calm quiet place to relax and enjoy a meal. It had been quite a while since I
experienced this great feeling of dining at a place this comfortable and yet so
splendid.
As soon as were seated, we were surrounded
by the hotel’s courteous and knowledgeable staff. They were well-versed with
the items on the menu & were happy to help with any suggestions.
 |
| Summer Cup |
I started with a customary drink, Summer Cup:
Fresh fruit (apple slices) doused in Cranberry,
Grape & Lime juice and garnished with
mint leaves, the perfect cooler to tackle the city’s heat. The tantalizing
taste of Cranberry & grape with a hint of fresh lime & mint balanced
the sweet & tangy palate with every sip.
With nearly more than 20+ starters to
choose from, we opted for Chin Win Chicken, Pan Fried Fish Chicken Teriyaki,
Squid Chili (maintaining the balance of wings and fins). We missed a Lamb
starter in there, could have been a carnivore trinity (wings, fins & hooves).
 |
| Chin Win Chicken |
Chin
Win Chicken: The crispy chicken & vegetables
tossed in spicy chilli, garlic & soya sauce was simple yet so flavourful. Succulent
pieces of chicken mixed with crunchy veggies were a heavenly duet of these splendours.
 |
| Pan Fried Fish |
an aromatic chilli, ginger & oyster Sauce: I am a seafood person and this
perfectly cooked, melt in the mouth basa fish reeled me in 😉
 |
| Chicken Teriyaki |
Chicken Teriyaki: Chicken
simmered in Japanese teriyaki sauce and tossed with Veggies. This dish in
particular, was quite flat to taste & could not work its charm on me. The
Teriyaki sauce could not save this near low-spirited dish and could afford a
skip.
Chili Squid: Deep fried
with shichimi on lettuce with house dressing, this slippery item on the menu
was the undisputed Star of the day. I am always hesitant to try squid due to
its chewy & rubber-ish texture. ASF once again impressed with this flavourful
& crispy yet succulent squid delicacy prepared in shichimi
(seven spiced sauce), contributing to its sweet & spicy taste.
While enjoying our Chicken & fish starters I witnessed my
veggie pals enjoying his fair share of veg delights. I was pretty sure a bite
into their portion of veg starters would not hurt their appetite.
 |
| Chili Potatoes |
paste provided a spiced twist to other wise regular fries.
 |
| Bulgogi Paneer |
flavourful sauce. The paneer was soft and juicy. However I was happy with my
carnivore selection.
Post the appetising starters, we continued towards the mains.
First up was a speciality of ASF – “WOK”. They have their own noodle bar where
you can walk to the Wok counter, create your own meal and watch it being
cooked. To simplify the vegetarian vs non vegetarian chaos, bowls are marked in
traditional red and green.
 |
| Proteins |
 |
| Exotic Veggies You choose a base – rice or noodles, then the protein – paneer, tofu, chicken, prawns, squids, meat, egg, pork, throw in some exotic veggies and pass the bowl over the chef at the kitchen counter. You can actually view the chef preparing your meal with the requested sauce and topped with condiments. A feeling of the Masterchef sets in while choosing the ingredients for the wok. |
I opted for Wheat Flat Noodles, Sea food and Chicken, tossed in Kungpao sauce (my all-time fav). It was scrumptious and prepared with perfection. I take pride in myself knowing I can cook so well… LOL
Next on the mains was Burmese Chicken Khao Suey. As a Khao
Suey fan, I would never think of passing this Burmese delicacy. I do not prefer
dishes prepared with coconut but when it comes to Khao Suey I break all the
rules.
Burmese Khao Suey is a traditional Burmese dish which
features layers of noodles, dunked in coconut milk curry, meat & grounded
spices, along with condiments of Birista (fried onions), chilli flakes,
peanuts, lemon, spring onions and mint leaves.
Suey, my brain cells dig into my childhood memoirs when my friend’s mother had prepared
Burmese Khao Suey in her little kitchen and that very taste still lingers on my
palate.
present by a big bowl of khao suey noodles. It seemed like the perfect bowl of
happiness until I tasted my first morsel and found it to be dry. The proportion
of the noodles to the curry was very unbalanced. The curry was not as rich
& creamy as it was supposed to be. Dejection set in as this eye
pleasing dish quickly turned into an average experience.
With true friends around, dull moods do not seem to last.
They quickly dashed through the sweet section of the menu to help cheer me up.
all eagerly awaited.When it arrived we all started to whisper among ourselves to
confirm if this was actually a matcha cake. Our doubts reached new heights when
one of our fellow bloggers called on the chef to investigate the ingredients as
it appeared different than the actual matcha cakes.
bad at all but the visual appearance was that of a sponge cake which looks
unappealing but tastes divine.The cake had a subtle flavour of green tea, was light &
moist not overly sweet with drizzle of green tea sauce and served warm. The
pictures may not be attractive but you have to trust me when I say my friends
ended up ordering seconds.
Caramel Custard: It was just a regular wobbly custard and not
as good as authentic lagan nu custard (Parsi custard).
 |
| Tum Tim Grob |
Tum Tim Grob: A preparation of coconut and chestnut milk
providing the pink and white layers to this unique Thai experience. Not
impressive enough for me to break my no coconut rule this one can manage a skip.
 |
| Date Pancakes |
Hoping to try something unusual yet delicious, we called for Date
Pancakes with Vanilla Ice cream: A traditional Chinese dessert involving a crispy
pancake, layered with dates, nuts and served hot with Vanilla Ice cream. The crispy
pancakes were tender on the inside and beautifully complimented the smooth
Vanilla ice-cream.
 |
| Darsaan |
Darsaan: Fried noodles and Vanilla Ice cream are an
inseparable duo in this prevalent Chinese dessert. The fried Wonton noodles
were drizzled with Honey and Sesame seeds. The “crisperfect” noodles when
dunked in vanilla ice cream could not have been more sensuous.A sweet and crispy footnote to a delicious meal.
I would most definitely visit them again. Chili Squid, you better watch out, I’ll
be back for more. On a more subtle note, considering the moderate prices, the
food was as delicious as it could get and the overall ambience and hospitality
was spot on.
#LipSmackingMeter : 4/5
Service 4/5
Until next time,
Ashfina
That was such a extensive read .. I seriously need to pick up some lead from u Mam.. Excellent write up
Thank you Rakesh 🙂 coming from a Food Guru means alot 🙂