Around Town: With a mentalist on board and bartenders in masks, Carnival by Tresind offers a fun dining experience

We took a seat by the vibrant bar, and Rahul Kamath, their bar manager, introduced himself. Although his mask was still intact, his voice made us comfortable and soon we were going through their cocktail book. It featured 10 cocktails, all inspired by carnivals across the world. We ordered a vodka-based Flower Power (Rs 825), which borrows inspiration from Nice Carnival. Garnished with a pickled grape, it was a well-made concoction with green apple and grapes lending their sweet and tart taste profile.

During our conversation with Kamath, who was dressed in a blue chef’s coat because he sees himself and his team as “liquid chefs,” we learned that the team has been making in-house liqueurs. We sampled some of them: one was an alternative to limoncello and another was crème de cacao. “These are free from synthetics and we use black jaggery over sugar in their making and keep it under five percent,” shared Kamath, who is looking forward to creating more liqueurs in the future. Our favourite from their present collection was Kahlúa-inspired coffee liqueur, made using coffee sourced from Coorg. The usage of cinnamon and black jaggery elevated its flavour profile.

Chaat sundae

With a little buzz, courtesy of the sampling, we moved to the dining area, which lived up to the expectations one has from a carnival but presented in a fine dining style — imagine a carnival in a big-budget film. Separated from the bar area with a series of rose gold-hued metal tree installations, it featured bold colours in its interiors.

The food complements the cocktails — almost every dish we had had a spicy kick to it without making it fiery, courtesy its corporate chef for India, chef Sarfaraz Ahmed. We began with an icy cold Chaat Sundae (Rs 495), featuring a khatta-meetha mint and tamarind granita topped with a yoghurt ice cream disc and sprinkled with sev and pomegranate.

Chocolate fondant

Next was Avocado Galouti Kebab (Rs 625), served in taco style with a kebab made from avocado and green chana and topped with salsa and guacamole. It delivered on looks and taste, both.

A dish that surprised us the most was Jackfruit Cutlet (Rs 625), presenting the said cutlet on a bed of a gentle mousse made from blue cheese and coconut, and topped with a Sri Lankan style spicy coconut relish with curry leaves.

For non-vegetarians, there are options like Tom Yum Rasam (Rs 395) with dimsums and Lobster Vada Pav (Rs 725). The latter marries Maharashtrian and Japanese flavours — expect a ladi pav packed with potato and lobster vada, togarashi lasooni chutney, fresh shiso leaves and yuzu kosho. It is made live at your table, adding to the immersive experience that one gets at a carnival.

We were in the middle of the meal when Mayank Chaubey, a mentalist, visited our table and indulged us in a couple of card tricks. Each was done so smoothly that it was mind-baffling, the most being him asking us to think of a number and then showing the same being represented as a time on his analog watch. We soon ordered another round of drinks, and Saz On The Rocks (Rs 1,625), their take on an old-fashioned, came to our rescue.

Chana martabaan

For the main course, we went for Chana Martabaan (Rs 845) which lived up to its name (an earthenware jar used for making and storing pickles is called martabaan) and presented a pickled chana with goat cheese bhatura. Ram Babu Paratha (Rs 875), a tribute to Agra’s famed eponymous eatery, was authentic in its preparation but was too oily and fried for us. We, however, enjoyed the accompanying aloo sabji, which was a take on bhandare-wale-aloo, if you have ever tasted it in northern parts of India like Delhi.

We wrapped up our meal with Aam Sutra (Rs 495), which featured a mango sorbet with coconut rasmalai, and a delicious and warm Chocolate Fondant (Rs 595) with vanilla ice cream. Our only complaint: we ordered the latter for the hazelnut kalakand, which was too little and too out of sight — it was placed beneath the chocolate fondant. We hope to see this dessert plated differently so the kalakand gets a fair chance at being savoured.

Overall, we enjoyed having a relaxed and fun evening, complemented by good food. We see ourselves going there again for the fun atmosphere as well as to try the remaining dishes.

Where: 7th floor, Krishna Curve Building, Juhu Tara Rd, Santacruz West, Mumbai

Price for two: Rs 3,000 (without alcohol)

For reservations: call 9152100123