A couple of days ago, my family and I had the delight of dining at The Periodic Table, Ooty. Everything from the outstanding service by Narosenla, Jeeva and Smith alongside the best ambience and cutlery/dinnerware, right down to, of course, each and every part of the meal bursting in flavour and finesse thanks to the incredible team of Chefs led by Chef Gomes, was simply perfection.
We started off with a complimentary corn and cheese quiche, followed shortly by an intensely flavoured set of black tacos with exotic mushrooms. This second dish was certainly a highlight, a standout example of how Mexican cuisine can meet the Indian palette in the most exquisite way. The Blue spritzer mocktail was another delight, with beautiful blue ice pieces slowly melting away into a refreshing slush as one drinks it. Thid is the point at which Smith (the head of the restaurant) told us of The Periodic Table’s mission in bringing diverse foods to create something entirely new, in other words, to showcase Transformation. From ice to liquid, from one continent to another, transformation was everywhere in the dinner!
We now come to the main dishes. We was greeted by a roasted pumpkin soup that tasted like no other of its kind, and also served in such an elegant manner! Pumpkin seeds and some olive oil patterned the bottom of the bowl before the soup itself was poured for us by Narosenla and Jeeva. Every sip of this was like experiencing pumpkin in its fullest sense, not to mention it feeling light as well!
Before we received our next two dishes, we were had a surprise visit by Head Chef Gomes himself, who had come out from the kitchen to show us magic that I’ve only ever seen on TV/Masterchef! Presenting, molecular gastronomy. The pinnacle of transformation within the food industry, and something that played right into my interests as a recently graduated Chemical Engineer! Molecular gastronomy refers to the scientific discipline concerned with the physical and chemical transformations that occur during cooking, and Chef Gomes brought this to our table through little fruit spheres. Using a process known as spherification, little pink and yellow spheres were made by Chef Gomes and presented to us in glass cups. He told us to drink this as though it were fruit juices in a shot glass, and to experience the joy in doing so afterwards. And that we sure did! To our surprise, this little sphere burst open upon contact with our tongue, sending strawberry/mango essence along with mint and herbs swirling in an instant. What flavours, and what an understanding of something as simple as fruit juice. The presentation, the science, and the taste, were well beyond anything I’d experienced before. Chef Gomes, you truly are a magician, and we thank you for giving us this experience of a lifetime!
We mistakenly thought things couldn’t get any better, proven wrong by the two main dishes were served soon after the spherical fruit shots. These dishes looked like architectural phenomenons at first sight. A black rice paella with plants used as decor served using Tagine clay cookware, and an eggplant-tofu Mille-feuille with a stunningly crafted circular structure that gave a crunch to the dish arrived at our table, and were gone within just a few minutes. Not only did these look like they should be in museums, they tasted incredible.
After these main dishes, we finally came to the end of our meal at The Periodic Table with a Hazelnut soufflé, served with strawberry sauce and little pistachio cakes. Another 10/10 dish, and one that ended our time at The Periodic Table (for now) on the sweetest of notes.
We sat back, relished in the flavours presented to us that evening, and thanked all staff profusely for the amazing dinner. I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone passing by or residing in Ooty, as it’s far beyond food, and more so a wholesome experience. Thank you Chef Gomes, Smith, Jeeva and Narosenla, and hope to see you all very soon for another set of mind-blowing dishes!
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