The Indian palate has been expanding its frontiers, far beyond the pale of the mundane domestic fare. To complement this pursuit a number of restaurants have either opened or evolved in the city. Spoons, located in a local shopping centre in Masjid Moth, GK-II, has in a way both evolved and opened anew recently. In its older avatar this restaurant was called Amigos and specialised in Mexican cuisine. However, with the passage of time it was transformed, both cuisine and décor wise. As Sanjay Singh Yadav, the restaurant's chief chef, tells us, “Earlier we were known for Mexican food but then we decided to give our guests a taste of a more varied international cuisine, as they want to try out newer things all the time.” So now guests can choose their food from among Spanish, Mexican, Turkish, Lebanese, Italian, French, Vietnamese, Thai and even Egyptian delicacies.
The decor and ambience is eclectic and graceful, spread across two floors (with a well stocked bar on the second level) this 70 cover restaurant has an interesting reproduction of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel fresco covering its entire ceiling.
Spoons opens quite early at 8 in the morning, as it is also serving breakfast till mid-day.
In breakfasts, one can tuck into a host of omelettes and scrambled egg preparations like the guacomele omelette, Spanish omelette , Turkish Menemen (scrambled eggs in tomato and pepper served with pita bread and hummus) and more. Also there are crepes, waffles and sandwiches like the Vietnamese grilled chicken, chicken salami etc.
Now the main meals. Say for the hors d'oeuvre, one may try something like the crispy calamari, mushrooms and corns rolled like cigar (called cigar rolls), chilly prawns with tomato margarita, Turkish chicken souviaki (a Mediterranean grilled chicken with talattouri). Also there is the soup and salad menu — seafood broth or chilled melon and red wine soup can be sipped with a portion of Malaysian rojak (pinneaple salad) or molacajete, a salad which is prepared at your table with your choice of ingredients and served with nachos.
Beginning with sopa de tortilla, it reflected the fieriness of its Mexican provenance. This is a fairly hot soup with generous dose of chillies and pepper. Grilled chicken with olives was a treat, the white meat rolled into balls and stuffed with olive. It had a smooth texture, so tender that they melted inside the mouth. The prawns in chilly prawns with margarita were fresh and the tanginess of the tomato based sauce counterbalanced the sweet and crunchy flavour of the prawn.
In the main course, the non-vegetarian mezze platter was a sumptuous feast. The meat fattayer had a lightly spiced lamb filling within a crispy coating. The sheesh touk was soft and when had with freshly baked pita breads, baba ganoush and hummus could have obtained even an Arab's approval. The kushari was a pleasant curious jamboree of Egyptian macaroni on a bed of rice and lentils with tomato sauce, quaintly reminding of the desi khichdi. The strong point of Spoons, however, remains the Mexican fare, the crunchy tacos served with a mix of chicken, sour cream, salsa.
The sweet craving was satiated with a portion of the apricot and peach Bavarian, a fruity mousse, which is refreshing light and delectable. A meal for two would cost Rs. 1500 (without alcohol and taxes).
