Eden pavilion ITC Sonar Kolkata – Its #trendingatpavilion

#TrendingatPavilion …yes, it was all about the ‘hash tag’ along with some responsible luxury culinary initiative from Eden Pavilion, at the ITC Sonar.  Pavilion across the country went through a major transformation in their effort to bring about caringly selected and mindfully prepared dishes into a brand new menu. Eden Pavilion did the same too and like everywhere, the difference was in the local touch which varied from city to city.

We were a whole bunch of bloggers and influencers at a lunch meet and to present the menu to us was the Executive Chef himself along with his team of chefs; explaining the process of the menu creation, the thought that went behind and the final execution. While everyone at the table was busy #ing, the juices from Pavilion Pure came in. We have already spoken about pavilion Pure when it was first introduced at Eden Pavilion. In this case, they did make some interesting combination- a refreshing drink with dates and tender coconut water; a super hit combination in a dessert and unheard of in a drink. However, honestly speaking, some may have liked it but it did not sit quite stunningly with me as I thought it would. Well, that’s just my opinion and it does not take away the love and the innovation behind it.

The menu was carefully curated with handpicked ingredients, some from their own backyard kitchen garden and all locally produced, making it all about reducing carbon footprints. Even the bottled water, SunyaAqua is being bottled in house in their brand new plant and it comes in 2 different flavours other than regular water. Forgotten grains and pulses like ragi, amaranth etc, antioxidant rich Indian superfoods, vegetarian cuisine in the form of Sattva, a special section for local love with regional specialities and so on form the backbone of the new menu.

We got to taste a whole lot of dishes from each section of the menu and a few of them stood out without a doubt. I would highly recommend the molten brie with a pretzel crust that came with a jar of a very interesting apple chutney spiced with panchphoran- quintessentially Bong. The chicken ton Katsu burger and the Pizza with lamb bresaola, poached pears and gorgonzola from the World Kitchen were just not a treat to the eye but were made with painstakingly selected ingredients each contributing to the greatness of the dishes. We were all a bit let down by the kosha mangsho, which was not really ‘kosha’ or slow cooked, however the slow braised panch phoran pork from the Local Love section was the winner of the day. Every bite of the deep caramelised pork was packed with flavour and left me craving for more.

Many more dishes came to the table, including interesting breads made with forgotten grains, some artisanal pasta with pulled lamb ragout (another clear winner), bean mushroom fricasse and lamb tagine from Soul Food. Both the desserts were confectionary masterpieces. While one was rich and indulgent chocolate fudge with a generous drizzle of the exotic nolen gur caramel sauce, the other was quite calming in the form of a milk chocolate parfait with a Darjeeling tea nameleka.

The aim of ITC Hotels has always been towards social responsibility and this initiative brings it closer to home ground of putting nature above all, even while creating a culinary adventure.

Madhushree