Tea took centre stage at a boutique hotel on Russell Street last Friday, when chef Smriti Iyer – known for her ingredient-forward, modern vegetarian cooking – hosted a six-course tea pairing menu, in collaboration with the property, whose tea from their Darjeeling estate accompanied every sip. CT was there, and we watched six cups become six personal stories, each brew matched with a bite built to echo it. Landing in a city fiercely loyal to its own tea traditions, chef Smriti flavours that were wacky, by her own admission, but rooted in years of morning experiments.Tea & pairingsVanilla No Vanilla: Calendula, marigold & moonshine tea served with a flower cookieGreen Guava: Guava leaf with green tea, served with thattai, cashew and cucumberSlow Sunday Morning: Lavender & blue pea tea with lemon, and beet kulcha, potato, apricot, mintAutumn in Ladakh: Seabuckthorn and autumn crescendo tea, with hummus & vegMountain Walk: Rosella, pine needle & eucalyptus tea, with rosella, local cheese, timur khariChocolate Chai: Orange, fennel, rooibos & black tea with chai cake, apple butter, coconut
My relationship with me began over a cup of white tea I had in college. Now nine years later, my husband Anant and I are still enjoying our tea rituals
Chef Smriti Iyer
Pics: Aatreyee Mohanta
‘Gondhoraj lebu is the sexy lemon on India’Chef Smriti’s approach to cooking, she explained, begins with restraint: “I am just as good as my ingredients… so much already happens in the soil itself, I can only just present it in a different way.” That philosophy shaped her impressions of Kolkata’s markets, where the Gondhoraj lemon stood out in particular: “It is the sexy lemon of India at the moment… when I’m here finally I could smell the lemons in its freshest form and I must say that there is a reason why it’s the sexy lemon of India right now.” She was equally taken with the local mustard oil and posto.
Every course tells a unique story through ingredients. I don’t want my patrons to just taste tea; I want them to taste a memory through the cup
Chef Smriti Iyer
