My few previous meals at Wasabi by Morimoto, The Taj Mahal Hotel’s award winning contemporary Japanese restaurant, have been a la carte. Needless to say, they’ve never disappointed. The ambience is always just right, with plush seating, soft lights and quiet style; and the food, plated like so many paintings, always tastes delicious.
This time, I visited Wasabi just a little after the launch of their specially curated sushi menu, Sushi Galore, which promised unlimited assortment of sushi, in your pick of vegetarian or non-vegetarian options. What also caught my attention was another new initiative, one that really does chalk up several brownie points in the restaurant’s favour. The “No Wastage” initiative is a step towards reducing over-ordering and food wastage. As per the policy, all extra food not consumed is charged separately, a la carte. So far, Chef Umesh of Wasabi tells me, the initiative has worked well. “We explain the policy to the guests when they come, so that they are aware of it. Most of them order keeping the policy in mind.”
The policy becomes especially useful when Wasabi launches special menus that promise unlimited servings — the unlimited sushi galore menu, for example. Delicious food does tend to make us all go a little overboard, a fact driven home especially during buffets. But even unlimited food comes with a limited appetite, and Wasabi’s attempt to minimize wastage is an important reminder to order smart. It ensures that the restaurant doesn’t find itself throwing away uneaten food, and also works with only fresh ingredients every day.
Of course, the food at the restaurant is good enough to drive out all thoughts of wasting it. Wasabi’s sushi is fresh and delicious, plated beautifully with edible flowers, delicate and tiny baskets, and a little serving of wasabi grated right in front of you. I sample a range of both non-vegetarian and vegetarian options, and take pleasure in the delicate finesse only great sushi can bring to a meal. You can see, in the way it is prepared, rolled and served, the fine skills that it demands of its Chef. Whether it’s the spicy tuna rolls or the asparagus tempura roll, the soft shell crab roll or the vegetable California roll, Wasabi gets its sushi right, with textures balanced perfectly, flavours blending in a way that’s both exciting and original, and the freshness and crispness of the food obvious with every bite. The flavours Wasabi works with are traditional, and on its menu is a long list of all the usual suspects, along with some new, experimental ones — the yellowtail roll and shrimp tempura roll, as well as the crispy salmon skin roll and the avocado mango roll. Sushi lovers will find themselves very happily spoilt for choice.
