I was all set to shake my fist at the stars, or whatever it was that came in between me and a meal at Guppy. On several occasions, we had planned a meal at the restaurant in Lodhi Colony, and every time something or the other happened forcing me to call it off.
This time, it seemed as if all was in order. Our food loving friends had booked a table for us, and we landed up there, all eagerly licking our chops. Turned out we didn’t have a reservation after all, for they don't take bookings after 8.30 p.m., and the restaurant was full.
We were about to go somewhere else — and that was when I was getting ready to tick off the stars (or whatever) —when a helpful server squeezed us in. We sat in the waiting area for a bit, soaking in the aromas that wafted all around us, and then were finally led to a quiet corner.
I am not shaking my fist any more, for this was one of the nicest meals I have had this year. Each dish was cooked with care, with light sauces, the wait staff was most helpful, the single malt mellow — and the evening simply wonderful.
Guppy is a restaurant in the Lodhi Colony main market (Phone no: 011-24690005) serving Japanese food. I was looking forward to its pork belly and tenderloin, which my friends had been raving about. So, once we were seated, we asked for those two special dishes — Signature pork belly and tenderloin cube steaks. Then there was a sushi platter, prawn gyoza, grilled chicken breast, exotic teppanyaki vegetables and garlic fried rice with bacon.
Cold smoke Kampachi sashimi
Wonderfully crunchy
The crisp and juicy gyoza, pan-fried dumplings filled with prawns, and served with a chilli and citric soy sauce, came first. Then came the sushi platter. This was delicious, with the fish as fresh as it could be and lightly seasoned. The nigiri with pieces of moist tuna and salmon sashimi on spiced rice and the maki rolls — wonderfully crunchy with sesame seeds in a spicy dressing — were superb.
The tenderloin dish consisted of pan-seared cubes tossed in a thick sauce tempered with sesame seeds. The meat was soft, thankfully not well-done, and the sauce was mildly sweet and delightful.
The veggies — assorted mushrooms, water chestnut, beans and asparagus — glazed with sesame sauce were not bad either, but what I really enjoyed was the grilled chicken breast with an orange soy glaze. The chicken was soft, yet crisp, and the mild orange glaze added just the right flavours to it. We had all this with garlic fried rice with bacon, and the strong flavour and taste of the rice dish deftly complemented the main dishes.
But I suppose the dish that I enjoyed the most was the pork belly, which was juicy and soft with fat and carried the heady taste of mustard. Slow braised and glazed with soy honey, it came with a mustard miso sauce.
I want to go back there to try out Guppy Ramen burger — with pork belly, bacon, lettuce and tomato.
Guppy’s prices are high — the dishes we ordered came in the price range of ₹550-2000 — but the food is excellent. We ended our meal with a scoop of chocolate ice cream, and went home happily thereafter.
No, I am not shaking my fist anymore. I’m planning to shake hands instead.
