SOI - Blog

 

 Invited here to attend the food tasting session cum Bloggers Meetup by Communication 2.0 Like to thank here Shahbaaz Zaman for Suggesting my name to them. 

 SOI is an exciting new, casual dining experience from the house of Jongs. It encompasses all your travel experiences from the orient - a place to remind you of an amazing personal journey or to ignite the dream of exploring a new destination. Great tasting oriental food is at the heart of the experience. The interiors are authentic, offering an interactive dining experience with an open kitchen and a traditionally rustic surrounding. They have two obsessions at SOI - Serious Cocktails served in an unpretentious setting and oriental cuisine with full respect for the ingredients. It is the place to excite and educate your taste buds; experience true East-Asia. They serve Chinese, Japanese, Thai and Asian Cuisine. 

 Location - SOI was located in 26, Jawaharlal Nehru Road, On back side of Indian Museum, near New Market Area. 

 Décor - The Décor was classy, rich looking and traditionally Asian. It was very beautifully designed and decorated. They have one separate Classy and Old age looking wooden bar in a small open cabin. They have another bar which was established in a mini travel truck made by owners themselves. It was very cool in looking and a real one. One side they have bricks wall with some frames which shows some popular monuments and places of Asian countries for travellers. Their kitchen was fully East Asian styles both from outside and inside. Sitting Arrangement, tables and Chairs were classy rich looking, very comfortable and gives the feels of we are dining in an local Asian Restaurant. They have two three hundred years old vintage samurai masks on one side of a wall only for giving the touch of Asian ambience. Lights were simple looking but bulbs were classy golden colored which again shows richness on tables. They spend a lot of bugs in Decoration and designing and it's clearly visible. 

 Ambience - Ambience was really good classy and traditional. Hospitality was also very good both staff and owners were very friendly and helpful. Service was in reasonable time. Well behaved and maintained staffs. I liked the Presentation a lot. Dishes and drinks all were beautifully presented. They treated their customers very well. I enjoyed myself a lot. no complaint regarding ambience and service. 

 Now let's move on to the main part for which we are here that is food tasting and then reviewing. We Start with Drink First in which we have some refreshingly delicious mocktails to taste reviewed below - 

 * Sweet Thai basil and Rambutan Caprioska - most refreshing and ravishing looking drink. made with thai basil, lychee crush, lemon juice and crushed ice. taste was sweet and flavors were light. served in Carafe glass. In cocktail version it was vodka based.  

 * Galangal & Mint Old Fashioned - This was the cocktail and i tasted the virgin version of it. A fruit mocktail made with Fresh Galangal, Mint, Simple Syrup and oranges. It was refreshing, fruity and sweet in taste. served in whiskey jar. In cocktail it was whiskey based with added Angostura bitter which was a concentrated bitters, or botanically infused alcoholic mixture, made of water, 44.7% ethanol, gentian, herbs and spices.  

 * Kaffir Lime & Green Apple Martini - A heavenly refreshing and deliciously sweet non alcoholic martini made with fresh apple and kaffir lime juice with added some simple syrup. very tasty mocktail served in martini glass and garnished with green apple slice and kaffir lime leaf.  

 * Virgin Mojito - very refreshing drink made with the combination of apple juice, red cheery crush, lemon juice and mint leaves. tastes heavenly delicious with refreshment of mint and apple and tangyness & sweetness of both lemon & red cheery. garnished beautifully with fan made with apple slices and some mint leaves, lemon & apple cutouts in it.  

 That's all with the refreshments of drinks now let's move on the dishes we tried - 

 * Papaya Salad - Green Papaya salad is a Thailand dish called there as "Som Tum Thai". green papaya salad is made using a clay mortar, wooden pestle and a spatula. Smash a clove of garlic first. Then add green beans and halved cherry tomatoes. Pound a few times just to bruise the beans and get the juice out of the tomatoes. Add chili peppers and crush them just enough to release the hotness, unless you like your salad really hot. Add the green papaya, dried shrimp, toasted peanuts, lime juice and palm sugar. Use the pestle to push the mixture up in the mortar and the spatula to push it down so that the mixture is mixed well. It was very healthy and tastes juicy, tangy, spicy, raw and little sweet. too many flavors at a same time. loved it. recommended.  

 * Corn-Curd Pepper Chilli - Before tell you guys about this dish i would like to tell you something about chinese food because i'm a big fan of Chinese cuisine. So,Some say Chinese cuisine is 400,000 years old going back to the Peking Man and his use of fire. Some other accounts of the history of Chinese cuisine takes the beginning to the Chinese stone age. However today Chinese cuisine enjoys the distinction of being the most popular in the world. All this furore about Chinese food can make one wonder what is so special about this cuisine. To put it in one word it is wholesome. It has the characteristics of being nutritious, economical, balanced and delicious. It cannot be gainsaid that Chinese food is popular the world over and it can be adapted into our modern lifestyles as the strong link between diet and health of body, mind and spirit is epitomized in Chinese cookery. We all desire harmony in our lives and this works on the ancient Taoist principle of Yin and Yang in which balance and contrast are the key. Each Chinese dish reflects a balance of taste, texture, aroma and colour. Be it sweet, sour, pungent, hot, salty or spicy – all the six basic flavours are incorporated deftly in all Chinese dishes. okay so finally after i tell my "Dil ki Bhadhash" let's see hot to make this particular dish - Heat a Heavy bottom pan or wok on medium flame. Add butter and maida fry until raw flavor has gone. Add the cream style corn stir using a balloon whisk avoid the mixture to form lumps. Place the flame on low and keep stirring the mixture until the mixture separates the sides and starts to form a ball consistency. Remove from flame allow to cool. We can also set this mixture in a greased cake tin and cut into equal cubes. Once the mixture cools apply oil to your fingers take portions of the mixture and start to form equal ball or oblong shape roll in some flour and reserve. We can store these corn curds in a airtight container and refrigerate until use. Heat oil in a wok for frying gently drop the corn curd and fry until golden brown in color. Drain the excess oil and place on a tissue allow the excess oil to drain...follow the same process and fry the rest reserve. Heat a pan or wok add 2 tbsp oil fry the onion, garlic and chilies until light pink in color add pepper powder and salt fry a bit toss in the fried corn curd and garnish with fried onions, spring onions and dried red chillies.  

 * Paneer Tempura - This was the japanese version of pakodas! this is the authentic version of the tempura. Mixed sliced vegetables in melting cottage cheese coated in tempura batter and deep fried. Serve this hot tempura with tempura sauce consisting of vegetable stock, soya sauce, sweet wine, ginger, radish and salt. It was Crispy, Crunchy and very delicious in taste.  

 * Green Thai Curry - Before we start with this dish i would like to tell something about Thai cuisine because i'm a huge fan of it from the first time i've tried it's dishes. Indeed, despite the fact that Thai food uses many of the same core ingredients as other South East Asian countries – chilli, garlic, ginger, lemongrass, fish sauce, palm sugar and lime juice – it manages to retain a unique flavour all of its own. The essence of Thai food is all about balance – achieving the perfect harmony between sweet, sour, hot and salty. Pungent fresh herbs, such as lemongrass and galangal, tone down overpowering spices, while salty sauces are tempered with sugars and offset by acids, such as lemon and lime. Thailand’s various regions all have their own complex cooking styles, flavours and unique dishes. For example, in the north of Thailand steamed glutinous rice is preferred to the soft-boiled rice of the central region and curries tend to be thinner, without the coconut milk and cream that is widely used in central and southern cooking. The influence of neighbouring Burma and Laos are also more apparent in northern Thai cooking. Southern Thailand sees greater rain and has many coconut and banana plantations and a strong fishing industry. As a result, seafood dishes are highly popular here and the richness of coconut is tempered with sour fruits and hot chillies – southern Thai food is the hottest in the country. The food of the central plains is perhaps the most complex of all, with the influence of Royal Thai cuisine being most strongly felt here. These sophisticated dishes, which use many ingredients, represent the type of Thai food that foreigners tend to be most familiar with. Rather than being served in courses, a Thai meal is presented all at once, so that diners can enjoy the juxtaposition of contrasting flavors. Rice is an integral part of every meal; such is the role its cultivation has had upon the country’s development that a Thai meal without rice is unthinkable. Typically on the table there will also be soup, a couple of curries and some side dishes. With the beautiful variety of tropical fruits available in Thailand, fruit is popular for dessert but there is also a wide variety of colourful Thai sweets. The Thai have a saying, gan gin gan yu, that translates to “as you eat, so you are”, which is reflective of how integral food is to Thai culture and identity. Now let's talk about Green Curry - The Thai Green Curry features chunky veggies in a lip-smacking green curry, constituted of aromatic herbs and spice powders, tangy kaffir lemon juice and rinds, and of course, onion, ginger, garlic, lemon grass and the usual repertoire of flavour enhancers. Like in most Thai preparations, coconut milk does the balancing act making the curry perky yet pleasant to the taste buds. The veggies in this preparation have been chosen to balance colour, flavour and texture. However, you can comfortably use other vegetables of your choice.  Thai Mushroom Curry - Creamy, little spicy and delicious mushroom curry made with mushrooms, chopped lemon grass, onion, garlic, ginger, tomato puree, salt, sugar and lime juice and coconut milk. true taste of thai cuisine. very tasty totally loved it.  

 * Mixed Green Vegetables With bean Sprouts and Sesame seeds in Coriander sauce - Another Thai Dish which is also tastes heavenly delicious. boiled seasoned green vegetables with bean sprouts tossed in coriander sauce with added some kaffir lime drops with topped roasted sesame seeds tastes really amazing. it was very healthy and high of protein and vitamins.  

 * Moon Faan Rice - Classic Chinese Moon Faan Rice fried in wok with butter, mushrooms and coriander leaves. served in sizzler tastes very delicious.  

 * Cantonese Pan Fried Noodles - Cantonese style pan fried plain noodles comes with thai green seasoned vegetables, onions, lemon grass and roasted red chillies cooked in soya sauce and chinese hot sauce tastes spicy, little tangy and amazingly delicious. That's all with the food we tastes. they were extremely delicious and tastes true Asian. We ended our delicious journry with a yummylicious Dessert reviewed below - 

 * Banoffee Pie - It was totally different and way better then the regular ones. comes in wholesomeness. crispy banana flavored base topped with yummy cream and waffers tastes superbly delicious and comes with complimentary vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce coated cheese cakes. We had a most memorable experience here which we never forget. like to thank everyone from the restaurant for that. One stop solution for Asian Delights. Must visit restaurant. highly recommended.