Mint Leaf is a fine dining restaurant proud to present classic Indian flavors and ingredients. Perched on the 15th floor of Emirates Financial Tower, south tower in the heart of DIFC. Its a subsidiary of Mint Leaf group and famous for its authentic indian cuisine with a twist of contemporary touch.
Last week I got an opportunity to visit this infamous place for lunch. I was excited to visit this place not because I was going there for the first time but this place is now having oe and only Chef. Pradeep Khullar. He is my favorite chef and one of them who has the power of turning ordinary into extraordinary.
Now lets get back to my experience. We were welcomed warmly by the staff and glad to see the chef himself was there. After engaging the spot near the window, we geared ourselves to bask in the aroma and relishing flavors.
We started our culinary journey with some refreshing drinks. Right after it we were served amuse bouche to open up our palates. Expect something unique, after all the menu is curated by Chef Pradeep :). Crips gol gappa with a filling of wasabi flavored yogurt topped with peas and pomegranates, this will melt in your mouth leaving you with a kick of wasabi at the end.
In starters we tried
- Crisp green, avocado and mango salsa
- Lamb chops
- Duck seekh kabab
Have you ever tried cold dhokla? No? then get ready to have it here in this crispy yet light salad that will definitely delight your taste buds with avocados and mango salsa. Being a carnivorous it was no less than a treat to get lamb chops as a second starter. Chops were perfectly medium done to retain its juice and softness. You must have tried duck everywhere in Dubai but am pretty sure duck seekh kabab is totally new for you like us.It was served in a cute small fry pan with chutney and salad.
To prepare our taste buds for the main course we had a palate cleanser in the shape of Popsicle. Mango, lychee and basil were the main ingredients of this chuski doppelganger
In main we tried
- Silken Tofu Masala
- Chicken Dum Biryani
- Crumbled Stuffed Kulcha
- Dal Makhni
- Chicken Chettinad
Chicken Chettinad made with in house spices served over the bed of lemon rice with curry on the side topped with crisp to give it a texture, it was beautifully presented and we gobbled it in no time. Chicken biryani was top notch exactly the way I like to have. Silken tofu masala was new for me as am not a big fan of tofu but my husband seemed to quite liked it.Dal Makhani is something not to be missed here, its creamy and has all the flavors that will linger on your taste-buds for long. We were totally full by then but couldn’t stop to much on crumbled khulcha, stuffed with cottage cheese, cumin, onion and chillies.
Last but not the least Desserts, we got to try two lip-smacking desserts first one was PB&C Nougat Bar and the second one was The Lotus Mess. PB&C reminds you the iconic chocolate bar of peanut-studded caramel and nougat, over here its not chewy but creamy and rich. The second one is my favorite due to lotus and its rightly named lotus mess because it messed by diet and I had no control but to finish it to the last bit.
`Go and check out this place as now it has all more tempting reasons to check, new menu & Chef pradeep’s magic. You won’t be dissapointed 🙂
Engineer With Flair 