The Quilon
Louise Elgin sampled
a showcase of fine South Indian
cooking
Last
night I sampled ambrosial heaven
when I dined at The Quilon.
This has to be one of the best meals
I have ever eaten whilst acting as
a reviewer for Dine-Online.
A
little off the beaten track although
situated in the centre of town, The
Quilon takes its name from what used
to be the largest railway junction
in times of British India: it's tucked
away just off Victoria Street only
a few minutes walk from Victoria
Station. Inside, the atmosphere is
very relaxed, with low lighting and
well-spaced tables, all geared towards
an intimate evening's dining. The
walls sport attractive murals of
the River Ganges, whilst the Indian
staff are highly professional, striking
the perfect balance of being attentive
without being obtrusive.
The
menu consists of 13 starters, ranging
in price from £5.50 for the Quilon
Salad - the chef's creation of exotic
vegetables in a chilli, coriander
and curry leaves dressing - to char
grilled scallops, £8.25, marinated
in chilli, lime juice, turmeric powder,
salt, and then char-grilled. We were
at a loss as to what to eat, as everything
sounded tempting: so we let the manager
select some dishes for us. To begin
with, I was presented with an attractively
arranged plate containing several
small samples of starters from the
menu. The mini Marsala Dosa was crisp,
light and totally more-ish comfort
food; the thin rice and lentil pancake
melted instantly in the mouth, giving
way to the light potato filling -
so good, yet rarely seen on a menu
anywhere outside the Far East. There
were a couple of totally tender scallops
with a good kick of spice and just
a hint of barbecue about them. Some
battered chilli-fried cauliflower
had been tossed in yoghurt, green
chillies and curry leaves. Last but
not least was some Bunt Chicken,
delicately spiced with a hint of
garlic and tandoori undertones. By
now my taste buds were in raptures
with all the subtle spices and flavourings
that I had been sampling. In between
courses, we were each served a glass
of Rasam. This turned out to be a
comforting glass of spiced tomato
and other accompaniments, served
warm with a dash of chilli. The more
we drank, the hotter the effect seemed,
a very interesting palate cleanser.
For
its main courses, The Quilon being
a Southern Indian restaurant, specialises
in fish and seafood. There was a
veritable feast, priced around about
the £18 mark. We were served a selection
of what was on offer, beginning with
one of the chef's signature dishes,
Black Cod Vattichathu, £20.50. It
came served baked in a thick black
coating of tamarind and jaggery,
a derivative of molasses; it was
beautifully cooked, the cod thoroughly
permeated with the flavours of the
marinade. We also tried a lamb biryani, £18.00,
that was cooked with traditional
malabar spices in a sealed pot, and
also the chicken Masala, £15.00.
Both were moist, tender and delicately
spiced. To accompany our dishes we
were served some Pineapple Pachadi, £3.00,
made from yoghurt, pineapple and
spices which I'll warn you is rather
on the sweet side. Other side orders,
all of which are vegetable dishes
priced at £8.50, included mixed vegetable
green curry with a hint of coconut, £8.50,
and some crisp asparagus and French
beans.
The
wine list is split under headings
such as classic, modern, adventurous
and even aristocratic! Most of the
selection was reasonably fairly priced
around the £20.00 mark, although
we splashed out and had an excellent
Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough,
New Zealand at £39.00. It had gooseberry
overtones with added lychee, was
crisp, light and highly drinkable.
There's also a well stocked bar serving
cocktails, £6.50, beers, including
Kingfisher, £4.00, and various spirits.
South
Indian cuisine is renowned for its
lightness, so for once the thought
of pudding was an absolute must instead
of a challenge to the digestion.
We finished with a selection of desserts
including ice cream, normally £5.00
each. The flavours included jackfruit,
a kind of cactus, sorbet-like in
its consistency, and black pepper,
whose surprisingly subtle kick of
flavour is not to be missed. We also
tried the jackfruit pudding, £5.00,
which was a sort of Indian version
of our rice pudding, and was moist
and more-ish. Finally, we tried The
Quilon special, Bibinca and Dodhol, £5.25;
a very good Portuguese desert made
with palm molasses, and served warm
with vanilla ice cream.
Although
at present The Quilon does not serve
a menu enabling one to eat a variety
of dishes like we did, I hope this
may change, as it really is the best
way to sample Executive Chef Aylur
V. Sriram's fabulous cooking. He
has been ranked amongst one of the
top 5 chefs in the country.
They
say the way to a man's heart is through
his stomach…with cooking like this
I think I think it could well be
the way to a certain woman's as well!
Louise
Elgin, August 2004
The Quilon
41 Buckingham Gate, London SW1
Tel 020 7828 5802
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