Trishna (*) – Mayfair, London

We accidentally snagged a reservation at trishna on a whim and regret nothing. We both did the tasting menu and wine pairing – about £180 per person. You can also order a la carte.

Cocktails were delicious – mine was a spin on a gin sour, husband got a spin on an old fashioned. They had a bunch more that sounded tasty as well. Presentation was lovely.

Course 1: (this didn't really count as a course) papadams and chutney. Mango chutney, mint chili chutney, and a shrimp chutney. The mint chutney was deeply herbaceous with a heat from the chili that hits just after you swallow a bite. Have never had a shrimp chutney before, but really enjoyed it – a nice briney hit with both some sweetness and some heat. Mango chutney was essential to cool the burn from too much of the other two

Course 2 – scallops and coconut and a paratha with a guinea fowl pepper fry. Scallops were perfectly cooked and served with a lightly spicy coconut chutney (the red canelle). Neither the coconut nor the scallop overpowered the other, well balanced. Guinea fowl pepper fry was unctous on top of a crispy/flaky buttery paratha. Delicate guinea fowl flavor.

Course 3 – sea bream in a mint, cilantro (coriander), and chili sauce, and a trio of venison preparations. Sea bream was tender, and the sauce is something I now wish I could regularly slather on all fish I have. Herby, a little spicy, but subtle enough not to overpower the fish. The trio of venison was a fried meatball-like preparation, grilled, and then pickled. Pickled sounds odd, but was actually my favorite. No gamey taste, meat was nicely tender, and whatever the yellow sauce was made of was delicious.

Course 4 – lobster and tandoori cooked lamb. I cannot recall what the green sauce was that the lobster was in, but it was very tasty! (This is about where that notebook some of you talk about would've been handy!) The lamb was one of the best dishes I've ever had and absolutely the best lamb I've had. The mustard pickled white radish on the side was a bonus, but I could have easily stuffed myself full of lamb shank without a second thought.

Course 5 – Dorset brown crab curry and lamb gongura (curry). These were served with a saag side that somehow evoked the essence of fresh corn (corn kernels and mini corn mixed in definitely lent a hand to that), and a daal, plus jasmine rice and naan. The naan and daal were fine but not memorable. The crab curry was incredible. Sweet from the crab, and either toasted coriander seeds or mustard seeds mixed in. Delicate but flavorful. Lamb curry was spicier and had more complex spices, definitely more of a heavy flavor punch.

At this point we were both pretty darn full, but we soldiered on to dessert!

Course 6 – chocolate mousse cake and a dessert style take on a mango lassi rice pudding with pistachio. The chocolate mousse cake was excellent – candied nuts embedded in the crust, ice cream with what I think was cardamom. Mango pistachio dessert could have had more punch (more whole mango chunks or maybe a mango pate des fruits or something would have amped it up!), but still was tasty.

Ended with two extra dessert bites – a coconut/rose sweet and a chocolate bon bon rolled in spices. Chocolate one was great – had some caraway seeds stuck to the outside that worked surprisingly well with the chocolate.

Service was great! Atmosphere was more casual and relaxed than other places (jeans and a nice top were fine, there were a few families with small children), definitely not as polished as a two star, but all around excellent and would recommend!