From Asian-inspired sushi bars to avant-garde dumpling houses, our hearts are all aflutter with the extraordinary contemporary Asian dining options currently gracing our fine city. Whether it’s sashimi sorbet, avocado tartare or that sushi donut you’re after, Gong has got you covered.
I was so impressed with Gong that I took Mr. A who loves asian food for the anniversary lunch and yes we did have a great time devouring that sushi platter along with a selection of dimsums on their menu. For the background, Gong is the newest restaurant on the Balewadi high street block. It is a part of the speciality restaurants chain whose flagship brand is Mainland China, Hoppipola and Sigree and with Gong they present their take on the Modern Asian food Read on for the experience
Caprese Burrata Salad…This is what summers are made of. Fresh plump tomatoes drizzled with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, soy and served with fresh burrata cheese and with the fragrance of fresh basil pesto.
AvacadoTartare – A tall margarita glass holds the avocado tartare, crowned with corn dashi and crispy potato chips, on a bed of ice. A complete refreshing start to the meal
Sushi’s universal popularity has resulted in various forms and veg variants like cucumber sushi roll, asparagus tempura roll, avocado and pickled vegetable rolls or California rolls that pay heed to local tastes. All sushi variants at Gong are served with soy sauce, wasabi and pickled ginger.
The Asparagus tempura roll and the Ebi tempura roll at gong are great initiators to the sushi experience
From their progressive sushi section Gong presents you with the sushi donut where the veg comprises of Avocado, Pickled cucumber, Cream Cheese garnished with sesame seeds
And the non-veg comprises of salmon, tuna, pickled ginger and with fish eggs and sesame seeds
The Crispy Prawn Cheung Fun, I declare, was with its twist and turns. The very crispy prawn tempura wrapped in silky, smooth, steamed rice paper with its sweet soya sauce was an astounding example of simplicity in complexity.
Edmame and Truffle Dumplings: Gong presents a starter of edamame dumplings in which the vegetable becomes a velvety puree tinged with white truffle oil and stuffed into wontons. Though the mouthfeel was more ravioli than true dumpling, we enjoyed the aroma and flavor that radiated from the dish. A nice, light start to any course.
Asian Crab Ravioli: The concept was great but the sauce in here comletely overpowered the crab. Plus I thought there not enough seafood in the raviolis to taste the flavor of the crab
Mock Meat Char Siu Puffs and Siu Mai Chicken Croissant showcase the quirky side of gong but the puff pastry here needs to be worked on
The Dynamite Tofu will impress you here with deep friend silken tofu in a sriracha and wasabi sauce. They just melt in your mouth and a good side to your cocktails. The Vietnamese Fish comes along in a DIY format wherin you can make lettuce wraps with crisp fish fingers along with your choice of kimchi, peanut or hoisin sauce.
The Mushroom Cappucino was another fab dish on the menu..the addition of truffle oil gives it another dimension alotogether
In the mains my favorite was the the Lamb Shank with Peanut Curry, Lamb Shanks are so tender and moist that the meat just melts off the bone, and this perfectly braised lamb goes well with the the mellowed down peanut curry. Along with it I thoroughly enjoyed the Soba Yaki Noodles, Smoked Duck and Asparagus Fried Rice and Burnt Garlic Fried Rice.
I love sriracha and using it to replace the conventional Tabasco hot sauce Gong creates an equally satiating, but slightly brighter and spicier cocktail. Just the way I like it!!!
