The tony lanes of Central Delhi are home to some of the oldest and grandest hotels in the historic government district. The Shangri-La – Eros Hotel underwent a cosmetic refresh and now boasts of some of the coolest culinary gems in town.
After hearing rave reviews from Club members about Sorrento – their spanking new Italian restaurant named after a coastal town in the southwest region of Italy, we cancelled all evening meetings and made our way to this Italian oasis. After a warm welcome and introductions with Chef Luigi Ferraro, who grew up in Calabria, served us a meal with all guns blazing and one we doubt we’d forget for ages.
The menu is extensive, one that will make your tastebuds dance (read, drool heavily) and we promise this place deserves multiple visits. We let Chef Luigi take over and order for us, and boy-oh-boy was it a culinary carnival on the table.
Chef Luigi Ferraro
We kicked off the meal with a stunningly simple salad of locally hand-crafted buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes, Napoletano basil and extra virgin olive oil. Sometimes it’s the simple yet precise flavour combinations that strike a note and make you want to go back for repeated bites. We followed that with another smashing flavour packed fennel and fava bean soup. Creamy, comforting and delicious – this is a sure-shot cracker for the upcoming winter.
The meal was complemented beautifully with wine pairings which were expertly suggested by the in-house sommelier. We progressed to the Parmesan Stuffed Ravioli which is every cheese-mafia’s dream come true. Served with delicate spring vegetables that added layers of texture and flavour to this dish, definitely something we’d highly recommend you to try.
Starting to feel the after-effects of greedy eating, we stepped out to the lovely patio with our glass of vino for a food-coma induced break. We got chatting with Chef Ferraro who spoke passionately about the quality of ingredients used in every dish on the menu. Whilst we love a good ol’ cheesy pasta from Big Chill after an all-nighter of the (in)famous Secret Tipples, there is nothing that turns our world around like authentic and traditional Italian food. The menu boasts of paradoxical bold yet subtle Italian flavours and what we loved about our supper is his beautiful usage of herbs in every creation.
Sous Vide Chicken
A goblet of vino and three cheeky ciggies later, we made our way back to the warm interiors of Sorrento where a delectable bowl of Truffle Risotto awaited our arrival. Lyrical adjectives would be an understatement about this dish where the hero of the dish was the spot-on cooking of the Acquerello rice. What followed was a whirlwind flavour explosion where we demolished plates of Stozzapreti with Italian sausage, onion and fennel seeds, Sous vide chicken with macaroni ziti, black truffle, Modena cream and a stunning ratatouille and homemade ricotta tart with mixed greens, fresh chilly and air dried tomato relish. Each dish was a symphony of flavours where the complexity of textures was carefully placed in balance with the simplicity of the seasonal ingredients.
What seemed like a fitting end of this harmonious meal was the duo of sinful desserts that Chef Neeraj Tyagi personally came to the table with. The first, Mount Vesuvius, a medley of Hazelnut chocolate cremeux, almond biscuits, cocoa soil and raspberry sauce. If you love some dinner-table-drama (no, not that kind), this is high on the #DSSCRecommends list. The second, Tiramisu, tender biscuit moistened with coffee and amaretto, mascarpone cream, coffee gelée and bits of almond biscuit.
Mount Vesuvius
We strongly feel there is no other city in the country that’s currently offering standout food that not only showcases the craft of culinary wizards, but also make seasonal ingredients the true heroes of the dish. Chefs Tyagi and Luigi have painstakingly curated a smashing menu with a vision and culinary camaraderie where the final winner is their guest.
To book a table for a smashing supper, call 011 3080 6536. Find them on 19, Ashoka Road, Janpath, Connaught Place, New Delhi 110001.
