Kanishka By Atul Kochhar. Re-imagined Indian Fine Dining In Mayfair.

Andy Mossack reviews Kanishka by Atul Kochhar, an Indian dining experience in Mayfair and is seduced by chicken pie.

Kochhar’s storied career as both a chef, cookbook author and TV personality really took off in 2001 when he earned a Michelin star at Tamarind, the first Indian chef to win one. He achieved a second in 2007 at his own restaurant Benares on London’s Berkley Square.

I was first introduced to Atul Kochhar’s culinary skills when I reviewed Riwaz in Beaconsfield, a rather well-heeled commuter town deep in the Buckinghamshire countryside. It was one of his six restaurants spread around London’s home counties, and the Sunday lunch tasting menu was quite a revelation.

Similarly, Anthea Gerrie, a regular contributor to our content, reviewed another Kochher restaurant, Essence in Tunbridge Wells and was also deeply impressed.

So it was with much anticipation I ventured into central London to eat at Kanishka by Atul Kochhar, his flagship restaurant in Maddox Street he’s had since 2019. I was intrigued because running a successful clutch of restaurants in suburban towns is quite a different prospect to central London and Mayfair in particular, where Indian fine dining competition is fierce.

Kanishka by Atul Kochhar certainly makes a good first impression as you walk in, a spacious room dominated by a handsome bar and walls lined with intriguing, mirrored head portraits of striking Indian women. Quite flamboyant, unlike many Mayfair restaurants that can often feel like stuffy membership clubs.

Restaurant manager Nipun showed us to a cosy corner table at the far end, perfect for people watching in-between courses.

Atul Kochhar has a reputation for crating imaginative variations on traditional Indian fare and matching it with unusual drink pairings. I’ve always found Indian food difficult to pair with wines or anything for that matter because the spices are so complex. Yet Kuchhar seems to have a knack for finding solutions. From ambitious whiskey experiences to sourcing unusual wines that manage to work perfectly with curries. I was looking forward to seeing what they might conjure up for us.

There was a 7-course tasting menu we could have sampled, however we were intent on cherry picking off the a la carte menu. While we were perusing, two morsels of chef’s delight appeared delicately perched on a wooden tray; a duo of puff pastry filled with tangy marsala cream each topped with a purple flower.

Almost as an afterthought Nipun suggested a wine. “If you like a crisp white, we can recommend a very good Indian mango wine?”

“Mango wine?”

This turned out to be a game changer. Alphonso mango wine from the Rhythm Winery in India. A chilled glass of what might have been a fruity sauvignon blanc, became a delicious mango version of it. It was extraordinary and perfectly matched the three starters we kicked off with which we hoped reflected Kochhar’s imaginative variations.

Jalpari Nilgiri (£26) an indulgent dish of three Orkney hand-dived scallops seared with nilgiri herbs from Tamil Nadu, curry leaves and coastal seaweed and topped with caviar. Three Cheese Tikka (£21) paneer, brie and halloumi served with quince preserve and pickled onions. These first two were certainly tasty and quirky, (it takes a brave chef to pair halloumi and brie with paneer) but honestly, they were the support act to Kuchhar’s signature starter, the chicken tikka pie (£22).

This was simply heaven on a plate. Like a mini Cornish pasty stuffed with pulled chicken tikka. The just-baked pastry deliciously crumbly and the chicken soft as butter. An absolute belter.

The main courses proved to be quite challenging to pick; Bhuni Macchi (£22.50) was a roasted monkfish that sounded promising, as did the Batak Salan (£37) Gressingham duck breast with a duck Khurchan (scraped off the pan) brioche.

In the end, I chose a south Indian dish: Chettinad kodi curry (£31) a spicy chicken curry with peppers, chillies and coconut, while my dining partner went for the Royal Kanishka grill (£39) off the Kanishka specials menu which was essentially a kebab platter taster mix.

I have to confess a second glass of the mango wine once again paired perfectly with my spicy chicken and the coconut in particular, considering mango is pretty much a staple in southern India cuisine.

We rounded it all off with a freshly baked Peshawari naan (£7) served very regally on its own tray, and a bowl of simple steamed rice (£6).

Speaking of regal the Royal Kanishka Grill had a generous selection of grills consisting of a juicy chicken tikka breast adjacent to a mound of tikka sauce, plump tandoori prawn, spicy sea trout and a very tender lamb chop, all resting patiently on a giant banana leaf.

My personal take on a mixed grill is that it does give you a bit of a taster of a few things, but I’m not convinced you get the flavourful spice hit on your palate that comes with a full main dish.

My Chettinad kodi in contrast was a full on blast of flavours with the chunks of chicken portioned very generously.

Kanishka by Atul Kochhar demonstrated some impressive and delicious variations on traditional Indian fine dining and demonstrated just why it is Kochhar’s flagship restaurant. After all, the joy of Indian cuisine is the flavour journey you can experience from all over the sub-continent, and seeing it expressed in such creative ways only makes the experience that much better.

One thing’s for sure; I’ll be dreaming about the chicken tikka pie for a long time to come. Oh, and that mango wine of course.

All food images (C) Andy Mossack