By Poonam Thapa

For those who haven’t yet experienced the luxury of Michelin-star dining, Yauatcha gives you a sumptuous experience of modern Cantonese cooking, in its tasteful and alluring setting.

As we entered the restaurant through the reception, we were instantly in a world reminiscent of old Chinese tea houses. Even so, modernity was palpable in its contemporary settings, replete with cosy black and pine decor and soft lights. Yauatcha, at the Ambience mall, as its name suggests, is a casual Dimsum tea house that offers all day dining experience. A couple of expatriate diners seated nearby enhanced the feel as they chit chatted over the spread on their table. The restaurant is expansive with an unrestrained ambience, the core of Yauatcha’s design is to give diners the experience of space. An impressive bar occupied the centre stage as skillful chefs busied in eventful activities in an open kitchen.

We were offered the 5 course meal which comes in the vegetarian and meat options. (You can also order à la carte) Each course offers 2-3 options, except the dimsums section which offers 5 options, that you can select from.

Since both vegetarians and non-vegetarians were present as my fellow diners, I was lucky to be able to sample both fares. The meal began with a mixed salad with lotus root for me, while others decided to go for sweet and sour soup. I loved the crunchiness and big thin slices of the lotus root that came with fresh green lettuce and the slightly sweet dressing. The non vegetarian sweet and sour soup, my sister mentioned, was done perfectly with the right tang that does not close on to your throat.

In the main course, the vegetarian crystal dumpling and the chive dumplings were the first to arrive, followed by the wrapped chicken in pak choi with schezuan sauce. The chive dumplings looked resplendently green with pink gems of pomegranate decorating them like sparkling tiaras. The chefs here put in a lot of effort in the presentation along with an emphasis on taste. It tasted perfect with the mild aroma of the culinary herb. The crystal dumpling (named perhaps due to the glazed and translucent look of the dimsum) looked kind of alien and decided to stubbornly stick to the sides of the dish. However, after a tiny struggle, I was able to relish the perfectly cooked vegetables full of tasteful flavours. The chefs, I believe take recipes from all over China and use the age old traditional cooking methods, of course, with a modern sensibility. The wrapped chicken in pak choi was the prettiest to look at in its mini cabbage avatars and the chicken was tender and succulent with no strong flavours to overcome its delicate taste.

The next to come was the spinach roll with prawn and water chestnut which was truly a gastronomic delight with the wholesomeness of the prawns. All the dishes were served in three pieces in just the right size. Our main dish was the Hofan noodles, which turned out to be flat noodles and the spicy vegetable fried rice with taro and spring onions but by then we were almost full. I wish I had restrained myself a bit earlier so I could enjoy more of the flavoursome noodles.

Desert time and we were toying whether we should give it a pass but one look at the menu had me wanting to try the jasmine tea cake. And I am so glad we did!  Two of us ordered lychee sorbet and chocolate hazelnut mousse while the rest of us ordered for Jasmine tea cakes which was elegantly presented and full of wonderful flavour of jasmine tea and a tiny oblong of caramelised honey ice cream with heavenly chocolate sauce! We unanimously agreed that dessert was heavenly.

Yauatcha is a magnificent place to enjoy a complete Cantonese meal with friends and family, in a luxurious setting. Interestingly, Yauatcha can also cater to Jain dietary preferences and chefs can alter wok dishes to accommodate an allergy condition of a guest. Now isn’t that marvellously thoughtful?