Date: All through May 2019
Venue: ITC Maurya, Delhi

When we came to know about the Summer barbeque Festival at Ottimo, ITC Maurya, we were curious. Barbeque is ordinarily a winter activity so we had to see how it was part of summer buffet.  To this end, our dinner last evening was at Ottimo.

And thank heavens for that; we had a delightful experience.

The whole menu was fairly divided between vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Among the entrée we loved the Spinach ricotta that was melt in the mouth. The Salmon caper mousse was also extremely tasty, we couldn’t stop at one.

But it’s the main course that stole our hearts.  The non-vegetarian items on the menu were mind blowing. We selected salmon scented with fennel, prawns and lamb chops for grilling. The chefs grilled these from medium to well-done. The meats had absorbed the flavours and were tender that came off on a fork. We were tempted to try more and so went for a second round with pork chops and barbeque chicken. These were the most delightful pork chops – slightly crispy outside yet succulent inside.  The grills came with a slice of lemon on the plate. There was a choice of sauces and relishes to enhance the taste. We tried the kiwi relish, sweet mango relish and perhaps berry relish. The sweet relishes were a burst of taste on the tongue and we did not need any further sauce with the barbequed items. They also had steamed/grilled vegetables and salads to balance the protein and add raw fibre to the meal. Wine that was served on the table was the perfect accompaniment with the barbeque.

The desserts were arranged in a showcase and we could not stop from trying some. We had a mango – white chocolate pannacotta, the mousse like inside texture resembled an egg yolk in egg white. The white chocolate shell went very well with the mild sweetness of the mousse. The portion was huge but worth every calorie. There was apple pie too and that went well with the coffee.

To summarise, given the variety in the items, the creative marination with fennel, cinnamon and other unusual flavours and the perfect grilling – it was a standalone experience. We have never had better grilled food in all our food blogging practice. The menu was balanced and the beautiful Ottimo, with its soothing décor and excellent view opening to Delhi Ridge, we forget all about the weather.  To add to the experience, there was a live singer who belted out old pop numbers. The barbeque menu is served only for dinner. If you are a fan of barbeque style of cooking and don’t try this summer barbeque festival at Ottimo, you are indeed missing something.