La Carte Blanche, Pondicherry

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. And that is what our group of friends wanted to do on a recent trip to Pondicherry. We wanted to actually sample the essence of this quaint French colony. While the prime reason of most gangs of bachelors headed to Pondy (being a Union territory, alcohol in Pondicherry isn't taxed as much and hence very affordable) is to get mindlessly sloshed in a hotel room or bar, this time we were eager to try some of the local cuisine.

Pondicherry's unique history gives it a cuisine that's an amalgamation of our own Indian and of course, the French culinary preferences. The Indian and particularly the Tamil influence is strong. And since a good friend was footing the bill this time, we tried our best to go to the best place (as far as ratings go anyway). For once, money was no object. ;-)

The main options that we zeroed in upon were Le Dupleix and Carte Blanche both in "White town." White town has a lot of history behind it and is the place where the "Whites" or Frenchmen used to live. Both seemed to be classy restaurants that served authentic Pondicherry cuisine. We spent so much time planning where to go that it was almost 2:30 pm when we headed out. And we had forgotten to make reservations anywhere. To our dissapointment, Le Dupleix said they couldn't admit us since their kitchens close from 3-7 pm. Carte Blance being quite close we decided to go there immediately. Luckily they were able to accommodate us. However, orders would have to made fast so that they could wind up the kitchens.

Ambiance

As soon as we entered, we knew this was exactly what we sought. The setting was extremely good indeed. A cool, laid-back afternoon spent exploring Tamil-French cuisine with friends in the most charming of settings- the courtyard of an erstwhile French mansion. What more could one ask for?

Carte Blanche is the restaurant of Hotel De L'Orient (literally means Hotel of the Orient) which is owned by an interesting chain- Neemrana Hotels that claim to be "non-hotel hotels." They restore heritage sites that even include palaces all over India and provide an experience that's "reminiscent" of times gone by to refer to their self-description in the menu. They seem to emphasize they don't provide luxury for the sake of it but rather that simplicity and authenticity are worthy substitutes to lavishness. And after the experience here one gets what they're driving at. They have about 13 rooms if I remember correctly each with a unique                                                                            theme from history.

 
      There was a tempting array of liquor spread out on a wooden table so rather than go through the menu, one could just check it out and order from the displayed bottles. There were olden maps of the area framed and hung on the walls adjoining the tables. Since the place was deserted (3 pm on a Saturday afternoon) we could choose any table we wanted. We avoided the exposed courtyard which would be warmer this time. Occasionally, the courtyard is host to dance and song performances.

   Service was relaxed yet not inattentive in chime with the place. The waiter was happy to answer our queries. The word "Creole" in the menu left us wondering. He said it was basically a curry that would be accompanied by a side of our choice either steamed rice/jeera rice/breads like chapati. Interesting!

Starters

For starters we ordered the Poulet 65 (Chicken 65) and the Calamari grilled with garlic and herbs, both of which came after a while. In the meantime we got started with a couple of cold pints.The Chicken 65 looked "neatly" fried and tasted good. Crunchy without the right amount of batter coating it and not overly spiced yet with some zing. And oh, the dip provided was thankfully not the same old mayo but a yoghurt based one. 

 

        The squid was an interesting experience. This was my first time eating squid that wasn't fried! So was wondering how it would taste. It looked lovely and the texture was wonderful without being chewy but the strong taste and smell of fish was surprising to me. Perhaps I should have squeezed some of that lemon juice. Still I had a few bites and enjoyed it to an extent. Will get used to this soon enough I'm sure.

Main Course

The main course didn't have a whole range of options so it wasn't hard to choose. We could try either the creole or the steaks. There was pasta too. I opted for the Creole that included chicken in creamed cashewnut and traditional spiced curry while the others had the Mutton creole in a coconut based curry and the Chicken fillet with a side of cubed potatoes(rs 370).





   In a bit the main course arrived. The Chicken fillet looked amazing with the grilled texture reaching a scrumptious shade of gold. While the cubed potatoes were grilled skin on and added that crunchiness too. My friend who ordered the chicken dish said the  meat wasn't the tenderest but very fresh and the crunchy crust made it a yummy dish to have.






The mutton creole (rs 450) ordered by the other friend was excellent he said. I had a taste and it surely was good in a different way. The combination of coconut and a tomato base made it interesting. He loved it.

The Chicken creole with a creamed cashewnut base (rs 380) ordered by me was excellent! Subtly flavored, it reminded me of the  mutton stews that are loved in Kerala but without the taste of coconut instead with a thicker cashew one. Couldn't find a trace of cashew it was all blended in well. With the steamed rice, the curry was a delight to have. I would not have complained if there was ghee added to the rice as well!







So that's it from this visit to Pondy. The other place we visited was Zuka Choco - la which is amazing for it's chocolates. A must visit too!