Mumbai's only dedicated Szechwan restaurant, Ming Yang, offers patrons a fine dining experience, where the ambience is truly Oriental, the cuisine delectable and the view, simply breathtaking.


Photographs: Swapan Mukherjee

The nice thing about Mumbai, is that no matter which corner of the world you may hail from, you're sure to find a restaurant that'll make you feel just a little bit less homesick. For those hailing from the hilly Szechwan province of China, the Ming Yang restaurant at the Regent Hotel, with its authentic Szechwan fare, will transport you back home before you can say dim sum! For all those passing through this melting pot of a city, the restaurant promises to treat you to a royal Oriental repast, peppered liberally with spices and sauces that are characteristic of cuisine from the region. And a view of the Arabian Ocean that's sure to balance the fiery fare!

A meal at the Ming Yang is an experience in fine dining that few restaurants in the city can offer. The moment you step into the Regent's open, three-storied atrium lobby one is overcome by a sense of grandeur and airiness. Soft piano music accompanies you as you wend your way to the Ming Yang. The first thing that strikes you as you enter the restaurant is a sense of space, which seems to be the underlying theme throughout the hotel. To begin with, tables on both levels of the restaurant are placed at a considerable distance from each other or separated by trellises and partitions, giving diners a sense of privacy and exclusivity.

The tables at the Ming Yang are covered with starched white linen tablecloths and bedecked with black Noritake crockery, crystal glasses, gleaming cutlery and encircled by heavy wooden chairs. The sophisticated black and white look is accentuated by a multitude of plants, which serve both as partitions and sunscreens to keep out the harsh afternoon sun. Exquisite paintings and glass etchings of cranes, flowers and other natural motifs, coupled with soft gamelan music and the sound of water trickling in a corner, complete the ambience. And once you've feasted your eyes on the interiors of the restaurant, look out through the giant bay windows and let your gaze rest on the magnificent Arabian Ocean. Rest assured, it'll draw you back, every now and then.

When you go to a speciality restaurant, it makes sense to waver from the tried and tested and experiment with a few of the house specialities. In the case of Szechwan cuisine, you've got to be a little careful about what you order, simply because some of the dishes are pungent enough to put the spiciest Indian curries to shame. As the cuisine complements the weather in this chilly province, ground chillies are used liberally along with a Soya bean paste to balance the pungency. The result is delightful array of dishes, where spices blend with salty and sweet ingredients and crunchy textures with smooth ones to tantalise the palate -and spring a surprise or two!

Our culinary tour de force began with an unusual assortment of starter. Ching Kai Sui Mai (chicken dumplings) and Ching Choy Sui Mai (dumplings stuffed with exotic vegetables) served with an assortment of accompaniments like hot garlic sauce, a Soya based sauce and sweet and sour sauce. For the uninitiated, dumplings are like bland, steamed samosas stuffed with a vegetarian or non-vegetarian filling. The dumplings were steamed to perfection and best eaten with the spicy hot garlic sauce. The next round of starters consisted of Ye Heung Ha (prawns in hot garlic sauce). The prawns were the size of small golf balls that melted in the mouth, leaving a slightly sweet 'n' spicy aftertaste. Since there are so many different influences and textures in Szechwan cuisine, it is advisable to have a sip or two of mild Chinese tea before you proceed from one course to the next. The tea, apart from being an anti-oxidant, also neutralises the taste lingering on your taste buds and tongue, so that you can savour every nuance of the spices used in each preparation.

In our case, the next preparation, tri-coloured dim sums, left us spellbound. Each dim sum consisted of three tiny pockets filled with boiled egg, chicken and mushrooms. They looked so colourful it seemed a pity that we were expected to eat them! The dim sums, dipped in the Soya based sauce were delicious, as the salty sauce complemented the flavours of the various stuffings perfectly. We washed it down with some more tea and waited for our soups to arrive.

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