A Good Japanese meal is something which I always look forward to. When I arrived at En, at the Ambawatta One Complex (which also houses Lavaash by Saby), I felt a little disappointed to see an almost empty restaurant. It was only when I realised that the regular Japanese clients finish dinner at when we in Delhi would call an unearthly hour (almost around when we would finish the office evening snack), I knew I had made the right choice.
My starter of
Tuna Tataki ‘En’ Style went a long way to make me. The flavours were spot on and the texture of the tuna told me that it was of the highest quality. Taking succour, I spoke to the maitre d and told him to make up a menu for me, in the lines of the traditional
kaiseki meal (this is a Japanese banquet meal consisting of dishes with different textures, they include steamed, boiled, fried, grilled and of course raw).
I began with a selection of appetizers. A potato salad, a
dashimaki or Japanese omelette with fish stock and a
namanzuke, a pickled fried sole—all three very traditional and perfect beginnings to what turned out to be an absolute feast.
The fried course was a dish of tempuras, a mix of prawns and vegetables, which also highlighted the freshness of the produce being used in the meal.
Next came a dish which the restaurant is rightly very proud of, their 28-hour melt in your mouth
Buta Kakuni or pork belly, which has to be tasted to be actually appreciated.
They also served a very interesting textured
chawanmushi or savoury egg custard, which may take some getting used to, if you aren’t used to Japanese food.
And finally, I got to dig into the sushi and sashimi selection which was served—there was salmon, not really my favourite but soft and oily as it was supposed to be; tuna fattier than what I normally had in other restaurants; super fresh squid, yellow tail and ebi or prawn sushi. For a meal which always looks like just a few mouthfuls, I must confess, I had eaten way too much. Now a meal at En, which I found served traditional Japanese food, like Sakura used to (I haven’t visited there for ages), is not cheap. It’s also, I feel a difficult place to decide what to eat and to order right, which is why, the best way to be introduced to the restaurant is through their Sunday sushi brunch.
On offer during the brunch are three starters (similar to what I ate), ten kinds of sushi, karage of fried chicken, kushiage (seasoned, grilled) pork, not to mention chicken braised with egg, chicken with bell pepper and fish and chicken teppanyaki. A menu to please everyone, even vegetarians can have their full of vegetarian versions of the dish, not something I personally would eat at a Japanese restaurant.
There’s also a selection of salads, noodle dishes, the obligatory miso soup and desserts. An adult can have this meal with unlimited liquor for Rs 2,800 (Rs 2400 without), children till the age of 15 pay from between Rs 500 (three to five year olds) to Rs 1,200 (11 to 15 year olds). All prices are before tax and a nice way to get to know the menu.
And, if you go this Sunday, that’s on November 22nd, you can also take part in a Japanese Indian fair which includes music, activities for children and of course a very special Sunday brunch.
En - The Japanese Restaurant, H 5/1, Ambawatta One, Kalkadas Marg, Mehrauli, New Delhi. For Reservations: 011 26646472 or +918826297103. Meal for two without alcohol: Rs 3500 to Rs 4000. Sunday Bunch all you can drink: Rs 5600 plus taxes
