Mahjong Room at WelcomHotel takes inspiration from the intricacies of the game and seeks to carve a distinctive niche for itself in the city’s varied culinary map. The menu comprises select dishes from China’s Sichuan, Hunan and Cantonese repertoire.
The interiors are tastefully done in shades of red, black and copper and offer a relaxed environment for a quiet dinner. As we took in the minimalist decor and sombre paintings, we were served Butterfly Pea Flower tea. The refreshing taste livened up our brain cells and tastebuds and the fact that it changes colours on the addition of lemon made it more unique. Next was the Hot and Sour Sichuan soup; the veg version was light and appealing while the non-veg one was wholesome but very salty, something that soy sauce can do. There was slight confusion about which one was veg and non-veg so make sure you double check before eating.
In appetizers we were served Crunchy Corn Kernels (just okay), Crispy Lotus Stem with Sesame (nice combo of sweet and savoury flavours and crisp textures) and Golden Fried Prawns (crunchy but oily, prawns were soft and went well with sweet chilli sauce).
The dimsums were salty and light; so light that they broke quite easily, which was a turn-off. The taste of spinach in the veg version was slightly overpowering while the chicken and prawns were overcooked in the non-veg options. Hardly traditional!
The Veg Bao was soft and the chef did well to incorporate all sauces and spices from the non-veg version to make both as similar as possible. Again, nothing to write home about but worth a try.
In the main course, the Double Fried Beans with Minced Mushrooms and Pickled Chillies and Chilli Garlic Noodles were tasty, though nothing extraordinary. The Hot and Spicy Hunan Prawns were soft and flavourful while the Gong Bao Chicken Dry Chilli was juicy and had an interesting mix of sweet and sour flavours. The Lotus Leaf Wrapped Jasmine Rice, though a little strong on the nose, was quite pleasant on the tongue.
The desserts were our favourites — Passion Coconut Lime Shortcake and Hot Chocolate Cookie Over Fudge. Rich, sweet and melted in our mouths!
The restaurant also has signature concoctions though the quantity of alcohol might not be sufficient for everyone. If a light drink is all you need, then go ahead.
PS. The service is quite slow sometimes. Don’t be in a hurry when you go there.
Mahjong Room is located at WelcomHotel – ITC Hotels, 46, Richmond Road, Ashok Nagar.