ITP Indian Travel Places: Food, Travel, Tourism Business Events and Trade Shows
Address: Ground Floor, Raheja Towers , Near Dena Bank, Bandra Kurla Complex, Bandra, East, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400051
Time: 12 – 4 PM, 8 PM – 1 AM
Meals for two: Rs. 1,800
Cuisines: Thai
Facilities: Full Bar Available, Outdoor Seating, Wifi
Bangkok, Singapore, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and now, the Nara Thai chain comes to Mumbai. For some inexplicable reason, there’s been a famine of Thai restaurants in Mumbai. So, when the dapper, high-profile newage Bollywood producer, Atul Kasbekar, gourmand amongst gourmets, recommended Nara Thai (after his great meal there), we made a date. And wow! What a date. Three sure was company. Food, film, fun. Live-wire charmer, “incorrigible” foodie, industry veteran and film producer Tanuj Garg was joined by the brilliant actor Anuj Choudhry, also an athlete and aesthete. We not only discussed how they were redefining the content game with their super-cutting edge films but also put Nara Thai’s food under the scanner. And found it not as consistently good as Atul’s earlier experience…
Nara Thai, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai: DECOR
In the brightly-lit space (we loved it) with bevelled mirrors, it’s the colour purple that leaps out — purple sofas, purple plates, purple drinks, purple orchids, et al. It celebrates the main Thai import ingredient here, the butterfly pea flower, which pops up in the food and drinks, too.
Nara Thai, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai: FOOD
When some of the dishes hit the sweet spot, they enveloped us in the sweet heat of Thailand. Fresh notes of lemongrass, sparkle of Thai basil, ginger, galangal, mellow velvety coconut, shine through. We recommend the refreshing Pomelo Salad enlivened with chilli, cashew and fried onions. Also the fleshy aubergine spiced to perfection. The depth of flavour in the silken green curry, the flavoursome John Dory,boldly spiced chicken and moist butterfly pea rice met with our approval. As did the Thai Tea Crepe Cake, lusciously piled with a dozen stacked crepes, enrobed in velvety yummy vanilla cream. Tasty DIY dessert of Coconut ice cream with colourful condiments (steamed corn, sticky rice and coconut jelly) too.
Nara Thai, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai : MINUS POINT
Many a jarring notes, starting with the music followed by the confused, slow service. Tasteless and inauthentic Massaman Curry. Oversweet mango salad. Many a disappointing vegetarian dish. Gloopy mango sticky rice. Crisp watercress not available.
Nara Thai, Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai : MY POINT
A track record of high mortality rate of Thai restaurants in Mumbai. Even the celebrity-driven ones (Ian Kittichai’s ‘Koh’, Suniel Shetty’s ‘Thai Me Up’) couldn’t survive.Thai Pavilion continues to rule the roost from its five starred perch. We definitely need more standalone Thai restaurants.And for that, we thank the brilliant, young, go-getting Karyna Bajaj (of the Yauatcha, Hakkasan group) for bringing in Nara Thai. Do not go expecting Nara Thai to be the upscale, stylish Thai twin of Yauatcha. It’s not. It is simple, elegant and it keeps the price points VFM low. Now if only it would raise its bar of service and fine-tune some of its dishes. My two vegetarian guests were not planning to go back in a hurry. But for sure, Atul and I will do so. On another exciting, value for money foodie date.
