Thursday 31 October 2013

For anyone across the globe familiar with Indian cuisine, the first thing that strikes their mind when you mention the word "Thali" is the large variety of dishes served on a single plate. This is different from a platter as the Thali is not shared amongst others on the table and is is usually ordered one per person and often forms a complete meal own its own. The usual components of an Indian Thali consists of 3-4 different currys, some short eats, Indian breads, rice and desserts. The Thali's do differ dramatically between North and South India and savouring one is an experience all by itself. 

Now, if the Thali's are so accustomed to Indian cuisine then take your imagination to the next level to what could be available at Tuscana on Chamiers, an Italian restaurant based in Chennai. I'm sure you might have guessed it by now. Yes for the first time in Chennai, we now have an Italian Thali. This innovate concept was the brain work of those behind Tuscana on Chamiers. In the right spirit of what a Thali should constitute, the Italian Thali available here have all the elements a conventional one would have such as salad, starters, mains & desserts. 

On offer are 5 different Thali menu with 2 options for the vegetable lovers and 3 for the carnivores out there. Being a group of three in which I was the only meat lover, I decided to go in for the Thali with Chicken as the main course while my peers decided to order both the vegetarian Thali so as to have a complete experience. While we were waiting for our Thali's to make their appearance in style, we were informed that Tuscana on Chamiers has also started catering to the Jain community by making Jain friendly pizzas. Now thats a big step for such a restaurant as it is quite challenging to dish out a Jain dish without losing the flavours that you would get in the regular version.
(Stuffed Capsicum - Jain Style)
(Another Jain dish)
(Jain Pizza)
(Jain Pizza)
After a few chit chats, the Thali's made their grand appearance. The moment I saw my Thali, I was taken back with the large portion sizes for each of the component. They were humongous and big a big eater, felt it would be too much even for me. My Thali had a 'Pan Seared Chicken Escalope' for mains and they were accompanied by a portion of garlic bread, salad, pasta and a dessert. The dessert was an 'Apple Pie with Vanilla Sauce'. Savouring the Thali was an wholesome experience in total as the different elements provided the right oomph factor for a complete meal. The vegetarian Thalis had Risotto Cakes & Crepes for their main dishes while the accompaniments were a soup of mushroom or tomato along with a portion of garlic bread. The other desserts that were part of the Thali options are the dense Chocolate Fudge cake and a walnut cake with honey syrup.
(Chicken Thali)
(Vegetarian Thali with Crepes)
(Vegetarian Thali with Risotto Cakes)
How can one visit Tuscana and not savour their amazing Tiramisu. And precisely for this reason even though we had reached our threshold, we went ahead and ordered for a portion of the yummylicious Tiramisu. As always it never disappointed us. Along with the Tiramisu we were also given another fantastic dessert available here, the Panacotta. To end up the evening, we were told we had a surprise dish. When it brought into the room, all of us had to heave a heavy sigh. It was a dessert pizza. The base was spread with Nutella topped with caramelized bananas and chocolate chips. With absolutely no more room for anything related food, we still couldn't give up the temptation and dived into it straight. It was just mind-blowing. If it was served earlier on during the evening, I'm sure I would have gorged upon two such pizzas. Just can't wait to go back for another one.
(Panacotta)
(Tiramisu)
(Tiramisu)
(Chocolate Pizza)
So if you need a twist to the contemporary Thali that you have been savouring for all these years, head straight to Tuscana on Chamiers to try their twist on Thalis. The Thalis are in the price range of ₹650 to ₹850 plus taxes. But mind you, it is a complete and filling meal so its worth every penny spent.

Tuscana on Chamiers is located on Chamiers Road opposite to Hotel Park Sheraton.

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