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Akbar Restaurant at 11 Holborn Road, St. Andrew.
Chester Francis-Jackson, Gleaner Writer
It was some old sage, who asserted with Desiderata that even the dull and ignorant have their story. Take, for example, the latest mantra of the truly dull and ignorant: Kingston, is a boring city, with not very many entertainment options!
As those of you in the know, already know, nothing could be farther from the truth as Kingston is not only one very vibrant city, but she is the hottest English-speaking city this side of the world.
Rich in history and interwoven in a tapestry of social classes, political and social intrigue, the city is like a chanteuse, never giving up all her alluring secrets, vocal or otherwise, in any one session, and therein lies the heart of her infinite beauty!
Anyway, while the dull and the ignorant are busy bitching about the perceived absence of recreational endeavours, those with that discriminating sense of style and those endowed with utter good taste have no such complaints.
They create their own recreational exploits and one such exploit is the simple art of fine dining!
Dining experience
The immensely pleasurable activity has been experiencing something of a renaissance in recent years. And to complement the rise of fine restaurants and eateries, there has been consummate rise in wine merchants, dealers, brands, sommeliers and enthusiasts.
Now, an off-shoot of this is the fact that with the increase in wines and restaurants, there's more of a hunger, not just merely for wines, but also for the attendant etiquette, language, style and substance of the art of fine dining, and perfecting that experience with a glass or bottle of one's favourite wine.
Without a doubt, the Akbar Indian Restaurant is not only one of Kingston's finest restaurants, but it is offering up some fabulously tasty genuine Indian dishes as would be found in that country.
Curiously enough, however, pairing fine wines with Indian cuisine has never really been attempted. At least, not until recently here.
Enter Chris and Kerri-Anne Reckord and their company DeVine Wine Services limited, offering the very best in wine consultancy services.
To take their services to the chic, last Monday they teamed with Akbar to produce 'A Gastronomic Evening of Fine Wine and Indian Cuisine'.
With the pairing of Indian cuisine and fine wines being an unknown quantum, not only was the affair greatly anticipated, it was oversubscribed by food lovers and oenophiles like a hot product going out of style!
Gastronomic evening
Monday's gastronomic evening of fine wine and Indian cuisine at the rather modest charge of $7,500 per person was not only money well spent, but it was a culinary experience of the fabulous kind!
The evening began with a reception in the neighbouring Thai Gardens with guests being warmly welcomed and greeted by the principals of Akbar, Rajiv Bakshi and Anil Kapoor along with the Reckords. The fare on offer was caviar and assorted shaslik, paired with Cordorniu Brut Classico, a charming sparkling wine.
Cocktails taken, guests were then ushered into the new look Akbar, (the decorators have been at work) for the start of a six-course meal.
Hats off to the organisers of the affair as the pairing of wines and dishes was nothing short of a masterstroke.
With wine buff Marilyn Bennett and sommelier-in-training Chris Reckord guiding guests through the wine-pairing and Anil Kapoor through the Indian courses, guests embarked upon an adventure.
The pairing of the navgiri kabab and the Delicato Chardonnay for the evening's first course; the third course, kachumber, served with a Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Sauvignon Blanc; and the fifth course, a combination of jhinga and lobster tandoori, leg of lamb, served in succulent trips, a basmati/peas pillau and the navrattan korma served up with the unbelievably flawless Clay Station, Old Vine Zinfandel was all devine!
The dessert, gulab jamun, served with the Bourdin, Anjou Blanc (1995), was so fine it caused the palate to sing in glorious appreciation. Gulab jamun is a most deliciously decadent milk pastry, topped with pistachios and served with a sweet rose-flavoured sauce and was so dee-vine, it was a symphony of sweetness that made for a heavenly cantata!
Not that courses number two (a lovely cream of tomato soup, paired with xxx Shiraz 200x); and number four, (a faultless fillet of snapper served in a white wine and korma sauce and paired with a Bollini, Pinot Grigio D.O.C, 2003) were not spectacular, but it seems in the rush of things and maybe because of the volume, that these two dishes did arrive a tad on the lukewarm side of fab, and so while tasty, this made the pairing that much more difficult to fully appreciate dishes. But this little snafu aside, it was peaches and cream all the way; and good company too.
Enjoying adventure
Among those out enjoying the epicurean adventure were: security conglomateur Kenny Benjamin; former housing minister Easton Douglas; Junior Tourism and Industry Minister Dr. Wykeham McNeill and his stunning wife, Sheila Benjamin-McNeill; the Azan family represented by Elda Azan and her daughters, Ramel and Lila, along with Carmela Azan-Richards and her hubby Robert Richards; celebrated architect Rivi Gardener and his lovely wife, Margaret Gardener;Vincent and Helen Chen; the elegant Shirley Golding; the lovely Valerie Juggan-Brown, and her son, Mark-Antoine, in from Canada; the charmingly lovely Janet Farrow; the lovely Allison Reid; Vinay Walia; the simply gorgeous Debra Taylor;Raymond Ivey; the lovely Sonja Sutherland-Dumetz;David Cover; Heather Hunter; R. Christene King; Ian and Rosey Moore; Michelle Neita;Angus and Christene Gordon; the lovely Nadine Reckord; Michelle Jones; John and Lori Ralston; Yulit Gordon; Winston Hepburn;Sharon Carvalho-Murray;Gilbert and Marie-Noel Adolphe; Andrew Williams; the fabulous Nicole Shirley; Johnny and Grace Orelue;Keena Brown; Michael and Jessica Northover and a number of others.
