Restaurant review: A special cook-off at Tresind Studio

Trèsind Studio, an intimate fine-dining experience in Dubai for only 20 guests on a first-come-first-serve basis, is celebrating exclusivity in the New Year.

The novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) had roiled the hospitality sector last year. There is no better time than now to turn a new leaf and pander to connoisseurs’ taste buds in Dubai, when global travel has hit the contagion air pocket.

Italian chef Riccardo Camanini alongside his brother Giancarlo and Himanshu Saini, corporate chef of Trèsind in Dubai, Kuwait and Mumbai, came together recently to curate an exclusive collaborative dining experience for two days.

Tickets to the reservation-only fine-dining experience were sold out within four hours, while another seating added by popular demand was sold out within minutes.

This unique gastronomic collaboration of Indian and Italian cuisine was powered by Ristorante Lido 84, the recipient of The World’s 50 Best Restaurants ‘One to Watch’ award.

Lido 84 was started by the Camaninis in 2014 in a dilapidated building in Gardone Riviera on the shores of Lake Garda in northern Italy.

Delhi-boy Saini, who was intrigued by smoky aromas since childhood and is a protégé of Manish Mehrotra of Indian Accent fame, teamed up with the Camaninis to rustle up a unique mélange of global ingredients and blend disparate cooking styles. It’s like an instrumental duet between Oriental and Occidental musicians, where rhythm and tempo hold the key.

The Camanini brothers and Saini were in fine form, as they whipped up 15 dishes on the go for select gourmet guests.

The fusion was captured in innovative starters: First up was caprese pani puri, where Indian gol gappas were teamed up with a salad of mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, and fresh basil.

Focaccina, or a flat oven-baked Italian bread, was served with fried perch and cod tripe, a dash of honey and bergamot. The starters were like the slog-overs of a T20 thriller to savour the melt-in-the-mouth experience.

The last item on the light bite menu chaat gelato sandwich paired with mint and coriander water. It was exquisite in taste and a celebration of innovative fusion food.

The small plates – an assortment of the main course – captured the smoky flavours of Italian food.

Breadsticks, also known as grissini, served with raw cuttlefish, smoked eel butter and Jerusalem artichoke embodied Italian food at its creative and delectable best, lamb and coconut stew accompanied with Indian sourdough bread and curry leaf pesto is Chef Saini’s culinary tango with Camanini. Saag, duck paratha with a dash of corn ice cream was an exhibition of the melting of food frontiers in an increasingly globalised world.

Italian seasonal vegetables such as warm fusilli, marinda tomatoes, pistachios and basil were fused together to create a molecular harmony of gastronomic delight.

The 15-course meal packed in a punch, thanks to small helpings. The curtains for the scintillating evening came down with a signature Saini dish called Indian bedding ceremony, where the rituals of a wedding were captured through a bed of roses and sweet savouries.

Taste (5): Melt-in-the-mouth experience of bites and small plates that compete with pre-dessert and dessert

Ambience (5): Exclusivity is the hallmark of the fine-dining experience. The tastefully done-up interior amid the live cooking in the backdrop is an ideal setting to hold intimate conversations with your loved ones.

Service (5): One of the highlights of the evening was personalised, yet unobtrusive attention, which elevated the fine-dining experience like no other in Dubai, because of only 20 guests per seating.

Presentation (5): On the money. Because fusion food’s visual feel is a tough act to follow. Unless, the chefs’ explain the ingredients that have gone into a dish, you will continue to lick your fingers and rack your brains

Value for Money (5): At Dh595 per person (food only), every dirham is worth for an awesome fine-dining experience, where the Camininis and Saini give you a up, close and personal feel of food as high-brow art

Venue: Trèsind Studio

Address: Level 2, Voco Hotel, Sheikh Zayed Rd

Dates: Thursday and Friday (January 21 and 22, 2021)

Time: 6:30 PM onwards

Price: AED 595 / person (food only) For reservations: +971564209754