Mamagoto, Andheri West, Mumbai: Experimenting with Asian food.

The Funky playful interiors, a menu that can be played with to combine different cooking styles, different dishes to match your palate, Mamagoto is the perfect place to be in if you want to play with your food and enjoy it too.

Recently they added another playful angle to their menu by introducing the Asian experiments lineup where they have used Chinese recipes and techniques to cook with those ingredients that are not necessarily Asian.

I went to check out this new menu last Wednesday at the Andheri West outlet of Mamagoto. True to their style, the place is very tastefully done using paintings, colours and many quirky elements that give the place a very young and funky feel, at the same time maintaining its elegance for the diners looking for a fine-dine feel.

After surpassing the initial lapse of coordination, I was shown to my table by an extremely courteous and forthcoming staff who despite having run out of a few dishes from the Asian Experiments menu, were kind enough to serve me a few other dishes from their usual menu.

The first things to come to my table were their house sauces that included a black bean jam, a miso based sauce and chilly and lemon based sauce, all of which were mind blowing, though I was a bit partial towards the miso based Isaan sauce.

Sipping on our kiwi based lime cooler called Kiwi Mint Collins (Rs.199) which was

essentially a mojito with kiwi base, we tried the first course of The Healthy Raw Salad which had rice vermicelli at the base and was topped with peeled cucumber, carrots, cashews and crispy wonton skins dressed with a Thai chilly peanut sauce which was tangy and subtly spiced.  The wontons and cashews were toasted hence maintaining the health quotient and the salad, despite its huge portion, was light and delicious. I wished that the rice noodles were in lesser quantity too.

The Pan Fried Old School Gyoza (Rs.289) was bursting with flavour and I found the filling to be quite wholesome. The Street Style Dumplings (Rs.299) were also quite nice with delicious prawn and chives filling inside a delicate translucent casing. Both the dishes were light on the stomach and flavoursome on the palate.

We were brought the Saigon Bowl (Rs. 529) next, which is like a meal in a bowl which can be ordered with either oyster mushrooms or chicken. We tried a bit of both and found the oyster mushroom version to be much tastier as the chicken seemed to be too heavy on black pepper.

The Silken Tofu in Schezwan Sauce with Chinese Bread (Rs.329) was super spicy with a slight sweet kick to it. Being averse to heat, I could not move past a few bites despite the sweetish bread providing some respite and went for the Thai Go Go Curry (Rs.419) which was served with Jasmine Rice. The dish was quite wholesome but a bit heavy on the curry powder. It was probably one of the weakest dishes of the day as I have certainly had better Thai curries elsewhere.

We closed our dinner with a Homemade American Style Chunky Caramel Sponge Cake (Rs 289) which was huge in portion and quite delicious. The warm caramel sauce provided the much needed playfulness to the dish as I savoured each bite of the moist caramel with the soft airy piece of sake.

Though the dining experience at Mamagoto was not entirely on their Asian Experiments line up, the dishes we tried that evening were quite good. The portion size was big and the order to service time was quick. The overall vibe of the place is fun and I could see a lot of families dining out with their children. The place surely lives up to its fun dining image and I will surely be heading there soon with my family to try some more interesting dishes from their menu.

Ratings (Out of 5)

Food: 3.5 | Ambience: 4.5 | Service: 4| Overall: 4

Meal for Two: Rs. 1800 | Credit Cards: Yes | Alcohol: Yes | Timings: 12.30 pm to 11.30 pm | Wheelchair Access: Yes | Home Delivery: Yes

Address: Andheri West, Opp City Mall, New Link Rd, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400053| Phone: 022 4005 9760

Disclaimer: This review was done on an invitation from the restaurant. Due judgment and care has been applied by the author to remain objective and unbiased in the review, but readers need to consider this review keeping this fact in mind.