Delectable fare from China

Can there ever be too much of a good thing? It all depends on the definition of ``too much''. To me that point is when Tom Cruise, Mel Gibson, Antonio Banderas and the sexy Sean Connory line up together. Last Saturday, I had a similar fantasy, a gourmet one come true.

Chef Hardy is back and the Golden Dragon at the Taj Coromandel has regained its sheen.

Chef Hardy by himself is enough to make me lose my rather tenuous self control. Shi-xi-lin, master chef from Golden Dragon, Taj Mahal, Mumbai and Lo ka yan, master chef of Tea House of the August Moon, Taj Palace, New Delhi, are also here for the on going Master Strokes festival.

Sampling the dishes from the festival offerings and the revamped restaurant menu was something like setting a chocoholic free in a chocolate shop.

Being a dim sum fan, it was difficult for me to decide which part of the lunch was better, the starter or the main course. The popular golden prawn would become even more hot with the patrons with crumbled egg yolk flavouring. The steamed dim sums were exquisite, particularly the one with vermicelli and pakchoy. Another winner in the genre was the steamed Sichuan chicken wanton served with red chilli oil.

It was the delicacy of the jasmine tea fish that made it stand out from the rest. There was no overwhelming sauces, no numbing garlic or chillies. It was just the fish and the faint taste of the tea.

In the similar vein was the steamed tofu, an item in the newly introduced low calorie section of the regular menu. The soft, trembling tofu was set off by a light soy based sauce and garnished with fried shallots. Another notable addition was the chilli garlic twist, a yeast bread, to the array of steamed and fried rice and noodles.

Ah! The Peking duck. I am yet to decide what was more delectable, the crisp skin or the tender flesh. By the way, not just dish, even the birds are Chinese as they are flown in from Beijing.

Winding up the meal, there is good news for those with a sweet tooth. Golden Dragon has finally moved forward from the much done Dar saan - Toffee apple routine.

The ginger coconut pudding, a steamed creation, was very good. Steamed apple, a more intense dessert, was easy on the eye too. Reddened sago stuffing made the apple look as though it was studded with pomegranate seeds. A very sober reminder to end with: in the big, bad capitalistic world out there, the more gilded the lily is the dearer it becomes.

MARIEN MATHEW

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