I have by now been to just about all the Olive branches across India, and wherever I go, I am always charmed by the interiors and the service. Food is normally competent but so far it has not wowed me. So when I get an invite from Chef Sujan, the new wonderchef at Olive to come and taste his new Summer menu, I go hoping to have some food moments this time.

Chef Sujan is a passionate craftsman, most interested in following the latest cooking techniques as well as discovering the forgotten herbs and tastes that our rich country possesses. Over the long conversation that I have with him, interspersed with some good food, I am very impressed by the depth and the width of his knowledge and of course his live laboratory with food technologists working nonstop to bring out new flavours and textures from some of the most common ingredients.

I taste some great dishes this afternoon. The vegetarian beetroot, goat’s cheese, walnuts salad (Rs 700) is pleasant and cooling to taste and visually quite captivating. The salad has slow poached marinated beetroot served with beetroot sorbet, melting goat’s cheese croquettes, and caramelized walnut. Beetroot and goat cheese pair beautifully.

                                Beetroot Salad

Tuna tartare (Rs 900) is one of my favourites, and I have been looking forward to trying it here. The experience is not what I expect – the egg yolk perched on top is not runny, and the dish could be chilled a bit. The dish is served with pickled summer vegetables and diced avocado. Seafood escabeche garbanzos (Rs 900) is the start of my food moments. It has pan grilled pickled crisp prawns and perfectly cooked squid with chickpeas, wine, cherry tomatoes, roasted shallots, garlic, olives, chilli and chives. This clearly is a dish to be ordered and savoured.

              Tuna Tartare                                         Seafood Escabeche

In the main course, the vegetarian artichoke and ricotta tortelli, seasonal roots (Rs 850) has homemade pasta stuffed with ricotta and spinach, served with sautéed artichokes, pine nuts and parmesan, making it a perfect vegetarian pasta dish.

                               Artichoke and Ricotta tortelli

Chilean sea bass (Rs 1950) with its perfectly flaky 24 hour marinated fillet of sea bass in honey and mustard, baked in oven and finished with fire flame is the star of the meal. It is served with confit potatoes, braised fennel and sweet corn lime veloute. I thoroughly enjoy this dish, wiping it off the plate. 

                                  Chilean Sea bass

Australian lamb rack (Rs 2200) has herb crusted grilled lamb chops finished in oven, served with barley and beans cassoulet, confit solo garlic, slow cooked tomatoes, and potato mash. It would be enjoyable if the lamb were to be juicier and a bit more yielding to the cut of the knife. I end the meal with good mango panacotta (Rs 500) served with fresh mango, honey comb, broken meringue, mango jelly and ice cream.

            Australian lamb rack                                 Mango Panacotta

Chef Sujan is already working on his next menu where he promises lots of surprises. Food at Olive has gone up on the interesting quotient!

Please note: This review was done on an invitation from the restaurant to taste their food, and no bill was presented to the author. While the author assures you of objectivity, the review may be influenced by the personalized attention the author got.

Ratings (Out of 5)

Food: 4.0 | Ambience: 4.5 | Service: 4.0 | Value: 3.5 | Overall: 4.0

Meal for two: Rs.3000 | Alcohol: Yes | Credit Card: Yes | Wheel chair friendly: Yes

Address: One Style Mile, Haveli 6, Kalka Das Marg, Mehrauli, New Delhi | Tel: +91 9810235472, 011 29574444