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| The first Gem Salad I have ever loved |
If there is one restaurant that should curse the pandemic it’s Americano. It was by some distance the best new restaurant in India. Everything was flawless. Perfect drinks. Great vibe. And food that was extraordinary. Most good restaurants ensure that you never have a bad meal. At Americano you couldn’t have a bad dish!
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| Sea Bass Crudo |
And the tortellini en brudo was easily the single best dish I had in 2019 (sadly now discontinued because Mumbai‘s wise food audience didn’t understand how you could have pasta with “soup”. A restaurant like that would have just crushed it, recovering its costs within 12-18 months of a wave of rave reviews and packed crowds and been a money machine for the founders.
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| Truffle and Pecorino puffs |
Alas, thanks to COVID they were never able to capitalise on that buzz and momentum. But no matter. Because Americano isn’t just about buzz and being relevant in the moment. It is a long term classic. It is the restaurant that changes how India looks at Italian food. The restaurant that brings fun and intimacy and playfulness to Italian cuisine in India. And all done with technical brilliance and perfection. The pasta work shines in every dish, the pizzas are the best in india and every dish feels fresh and bursting with flavour. Most of all, no one plays with acidity and texture like Alex Sanchez. I hate lettuce. Like really hate it. But that gem salad.. the lettuce is crisp as a cracker, the goat cheese and the Creme fresh vinaigrette provide that wonderful acidity and the candied walnuts give it a sweetness and crunch that take the dish from salad to an expression of genius. I shouldn’t be licking my fingers at an Italian restaurant but I had to, because to leave behind a single drop of that molten gold in the truffle and pecorino puffs would be a crime.
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| Casarecce pasta house made lamb and fennel sausage |
It’s sad that other cities don’t get to taste Alex‘s brilliance. That we don’t see enough pop ups or visits. Because we should all be grateful that this man left California and ended up at our shows. For over a decade he has helped shine a light forward for Indian restaurants. And along with Bawmra Jap, he is one of the two transformative figures that Indian food will always owe a debt of gratitude to.
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| Dark chocolate cake with Fior di latte gelato |
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