Flamboyante, located in the World Trade Centre, South Mumbai, immediately creates a feeling of space – the restaurant is ‘spaced’ out over three areas: the courtyard and the deli, the bar and the Asian restaurant. The look is very contemporary and elegant and the open air area has been carefully designed around a gulmohar tree, inspired by its freshness and colour.

Weather permitting, it is best to sit in the sunny outdoors, that gives one glimpses of the crowd bustling about the commercial complex…and the eager staff – quite a few of them are fresh recruits – of the restaurant going about their business in the back-end areas. The aroma of fresh bread and coffee beans blends with the tanginess of the air.

There is a variety of cuisine to choose from for discerning palates. Items ranging from the hot, mildly flavoured chicken soup or a cool drink, accompanied by a basket of fresh bread…to freshly brewed coffee and sinful desserts at the end make for an extravagant meal. In fact, a selection like baked dim sums (vegetarian, prawn and chicken), golden fried corn and corn with watercress, piping hot ribs, gently flavoured chicken, a crisp pizza and the crostini platter leave little room for anything else on the table…and in the stomach.

Chicken ’n’ Lemon Grass
Ingredients: Lemon grass stick, 2 inches; Chicken minced, 200 gms; Finely chopped red chilly, 1 medium size; Finely chopped garlic, 2 pods; Chopped coriander, 1 tablespoon; Eggs, 2; Lemon juice, 1 teaspoon; Salt to taste.
Method: Bind all ingredients together on lemon grass skewers and grill on a non-stick pan for four minutes.