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WE WERE HUMMING a tune way before our first bite at Nila, the latest peak in the city’s rising restaurant graph. The name of this freshly minted, fine-dining eatery, the Tamizh word for the moon, spliced itself into our memories. Immediately, stray echoes of the hit 'Ilaya Nila Pozhigiradhu' composed by the great Ilaiyaraaja from the 1982 Tamil blockbuster Payanangal Mudivathillai were escaping our pursed lips. And over the 12 courses of our meal, interludes from this filmy tune built up to reflect the crescendo of this excellently tempered and thoughtful meal helmed by Chef Rahul Sharma.
Within the cool, cocoon interiors of this establishment that channels the whispered flair of the Japandi aesthetic, the progressively pretty plates of food are squarely in the limelight. The marriage of Japanese minimalism and Scandinavian functionality reverberates through the dining room’s design – curvy, corrugated cement surfaces are quietly illuminated by diffused light; the sturdiness of this ubiquitous building material is softened by the circular lightwood tables and roomy chairs, and the gossamer, ombre curtain that flutters between the foyer and the dining room. There’s a grounded body yet gentle buoyancy in Nila’s design, achieved by Prachi Joshi, the restaurant’s designer and Sharma’s wife. And this aesthetic direction certainly aids in the feeling of floating above the ground at Nila.
Chand moments
In this uncluttered, spare dining room of 24 covers, seated in direct sightline of the burnished black countertop acting as a pitstop between preparation in an open kitchen to plate and then palate, we are thrumming with anticipation. Over the past year, Sharma, who has previously worked at NOMA, Mumbai’s Masque and Araku in Bengaluru, has channelled all this experience into offering a contemporary Indian degustation menu at this restaurant. Like the phases of the moon, the cuisine at Nila, a fruition of Sharma’s lifelong ambitions, will evolve every quarter, with each culinary chapter exploring the diverse, ingredient-rich geographies of our country.
For its debut menu, Sharma has gathered the curious ingredients and cooking techniques of the region around Nagaland. It’s a bold move. He isn’t reproducing or replicating a culinary tradition, but rather bringing together his curiosity for these eating traditions with his years of experience and the execution and presentation of the modern menu. A Black Rice Momo is the opening act, a striking visual, a tiny triangle on a textured black plate with a brilliantly orange spot of chilli chutney. The sturdy starch of tapioca flour casing acts as a great foil for the nutty, treacly texture of the rice; we opt to slather our momo with the spicy chutney, contributing to a tingly sparkle with each bite. Next, the Tree Tomato Custard served in flat, round caviar tin chilling in the embrace of a mound of ice continues to trope of eating first with one’s eyes at Nila. Tree tomato, an egg-shaped, GI-tagged tamarillo from Nagaland that packs the juiciness of a tomato with the plucky tartness of a berry, has been silvered into an orange bloom that floats on a pond of white broth. This dish is a delightful standout – it’s tangy, creamy, savoury, fleshy and sweet. And it doesn’t simply rely on the drama of having served up the unfamiliar.
While most degustation menus run over hours, the pacing at Nila is prompt yet measured. A tick mark in the pro column (if we were keeping score). Soon, we popped a Black Soy Bean Tart: curried soy bean, crispy chilli dip, charred chives – an absolutely delish morsel. We made quick work of the Pickled Celeriac Kebab: charcoal grilled celeriac, crab meat, pickled onion, and perilla seeds enrobed in nasturtium leaves – succulent, smoky and still subtle. And polished off the Jewel Corn Toast: native corn charred, transformed into cornbread capped with a smack of corn custard and purple corn snow – earthy and lush.
At this point, it set on us, these were just the flashy top notes of this region’s cuisine. And Sharma had handled them with such restraint.
Moony tunes
There’s confidence in the skilful employment of ingredients and techniques that reflects Sharma’s rigour and respect. And this thread runs through all of the courses, the Yam Milk and Bamboo Broth sits in the place of a palate cleanser in the degustation menu. Sharma’s take on this course is subtle and satisfying. Yam and tender bamboo shoots are turned into a wholesome, gently sharp, silken broth garnished with charred machinga leaves, the Sichuan pepper plant, contributing to the dish’s tantalising tingle and the smoky profile. We’re granted pause to graze with house-made flatbread served with five dipping sauces: coriander and feta cheese, raw mango, charred onion and tomato, sweet peppers and fermented bhut jolokia. It’s a spectrum of creamy herbiness to smoky sweetness to criminally hot.
And then, the ‘feast’ section of the course kicks off with Roasted Chicken (substituted with squash for vegetarians) with anushi, a Naga delicacy of dried, smoked and fermented colocasia leaves. The chicken terrine acts as the springboard to showcase this funky condiment. 21st Century Smoked Naga Pork (substituted with taro for vegetarians), the most delicately seared, smoked slice of pork belly allowed to shine all on its own. And it knocked it out of the park with the intense earthy spike of the accompanying Lakadong turmeric. And last dish in this section, Black Wheat Noodles with Smoked Fish in a luscious and light bamboo broth and musky, moreish bamboo floss ‘XO’ sauce, which really punched up this complex, layered dish.
A deep breath later, we’re digging into a treacly banana, toasted Sichuan pepper ice-cream with chocolate cake, a dense cake with a subtle herby prickle of local Naga basil and other little wonders.
For Chef Sharma, the indigenous ingredients and techniques from the fertile region of Nagaland become the building blocks of this meal that meander through the levels of deliciousness. It’s satisfying yet subtle, it’s hearty yet intelligent. Our dinner at Nila was a wonderful reminder that flavours can be delectable without a heavy hand. Listening to the Ilaiyaraaja hit in the cab home, I started reading around the song. I found heated discussions on the non-Western use of the guitar and flute, the ways the maestro composer coaxed familiar classical melodies from these instruments. Sharma’s culinary explorations seem to mirror this musical approach: don’t replicate, rather remember, and then re-enact; in short, make it your own.
Nila is at 9-1/2, Cambridge Road, Halasuru, and opens 7 pm onwards, Tuesday through Sunday. Call 9999360545 for reservations (dinner only); a 12-course tasting menu without alcohol costs Rs 4,550 plus taxes.
