A year ago, when this writer was doing a story on service charge and needed to do a photoshoot inside a kitchen, most restaurants were not on board. But at the newly launched Coast and Bloom, Chef Prasad Parab and Mitra Walke insisted that we should come and see their kitchen. What could have been a better sign?
Second-generation restaurateur Walke — whose mother Surekha is the force behind Dadar’s famed Malvani restaurant Chaitanya — told us that he wanted a bigger space for his kitchen.
While the large glass windows allow for plenty of natural light during the day, suspended fabric installations create the illusion of waves. (Image courtesy: Special Arrangement)
“Having spent years at Chaitanya, I know the demands from a kitchen and what it takes to execute them,” he said. The hotel management graduate has taken all his learning of running the restaurant as he put together a 110-seater fine diner in the same neighbourhood, offering not only Malvani but coastal food from across the world.
We began the evening with a bowl of crispy Kothimbir Poppers (Rs 295), Coastal Banga (Rs 425), a soup that served as a reminder of the homely chicken rassa, a famous curry from Maharashtra, and Mulligatawny (Rs 425), a thick comforting soup made from lentils and topped with coconut crisps.
Ishtew is served with fluffy appams. (Image courtesy: Special Arrangement)
Next up was Spanakopitas (Rs 525), a Greek savoury pie with crispy flaky phillo dough and generous filling of red spinach, feta and resin, served on a bed of red pepper sauce, and Horesegram Chaat (Rs 455, 2 pieces), featuring very tender horse gram tikki topped with curd, spicy and sweet sauces, pomegranate and sev. Tasting like Dahi Bhalle, it was their take on a popular and nutritional Konkan dish but in a manner that ensures that the humble Kulith (horse gram in Marathi) finds more takers.
We liked how vegetarian dishes aren’t an afterthought here, something that tends to happen at a lot of seafood restaurants. “Our menu is about 60 per cent seafood, 30 per cent vegetarian and 10 per cent poultry dishes,” said Walke, adding that they wanted to create a menu and an ambience that suits everyone.
The space designed by Nishant Umesh Desai effortlessly transports the diners to a beach. (Image courtesy: Special Arrangement)
Another appetiser that we thoroughly enjoyed was Crab Kakkori (Rs 1,295, 180 gm fresh crab meat). “Often people love crabs but they prefer having it at home because it becomes a little messy to have them. So, we deshelled them,” said chef Parab about the dish that borrows inspiration from the Mughlai dish.
It is interesting how the strong hand-pound spices used in making kakori kebabs in Uttar Pradesh are in sync with the crab meat. We washed it off with Rambatta, made using Kokum syrup and cranberry juice. The chaat masala added a distinct taste to this delicious mocktail.
For the main course, we went for the comforting Ishtew (Rs 525) served with fluffy appams and Sicilian Al Forno (Rs 755), a rigatoni-like pasta stuffed with spinach, nuts, ricotta cheese, reflecting flavours from Arab and Italy.
Motla at Coast and Bloom. (Image courtesy: Special Arrangement)
We also tried the spicy and well-cooked White Pomfret (Rs 955, 300 gm) and Kolambi Khichdi (Rs 655, 180 gm luxury prawn). While the former is coated with green cilantro sambal, the way it is done on the Malaysian coast, the latter is a perfect comfort-meets-indulgence dish from Maharashtra. Needless to say, each and every seafood item was freshly sourced, swearing by the reputation built by Chaitanya.
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We rounded off the meal with Mangalorean Idiyos (Rs 495) presenting steamed rice pockets filled with ghee-roasted nuts, grated coconut and jaggery and Puran Phyllo Parcels (Rs 555), a lovely take on traditional puran poli mixture.
Adding to the experience is the space designed by Nishant Umesh Desai, which effortlessly transports diners into a realm of coastal charm. While the large glass windows allow for plenty of natural light during the day, suspended fabric installations create the illusion of waves.
Complementing this beach vibe are wooden-beamed and soft-textured ceilings, hand-stitched jute chandeliers, stone-textured walls and a colour scheme featuring varied shades of green, blue and muted pink. The restaurant also has two private dining rooms, hosting 14 covers each, boasting of ocean-inspired murals and boat-shaped dome ceilings, paying homage to maritime roots.
