The elegant and petite-sized Tuscan Room sits at Radisson Blu Hotel & Spa, Nashik, promising an authentic Italian restaurant experience to diners.
Straight off the bat, Italian restaurants aren’t my friend or foe. It’s one of those cuisines that shines with good ingredients and pales when pitted against any other in terms of flavour. But it’s comforting, and therefore, always around.
And now for the gourmands of Nashik, the promise of authentic Italian flavours comes through the Tuscan Room, Radisson Blu Hotel & Spa, Nashik. Sat beside a rather grand-scaled restaurant, The Smoked Vine, this eatery is much smaller in comparison, and seats around 30 people. Headed by Chef Ashley Nunes, the menu is full of both staple dishes and some interesting new experiments.
Staying true to the spirit of the cuisine, an opulent fully stacked wine bar forms the centrepiece of the restaurant. But more on that later.
A traditional, authentic Italian restaurant is not what you’d expect in the quiet little city of Nashik. But as the focaccia and unsalted loaves arrive at the table accompanied by three dips, we’re off to a promising start. The grape with feta and spicy tomato dips are excellent, although the bread at times is too dense an accompaniment.
As your eyes scour the restaurant, you can’t help but notice the wine-stacked walls. Featuring the best from the Tuscan region such as Antinori, Masseto and Tenuta San Guido, there are also Indian staples like Sula, Fratelli, and more. The servers are sufficiently knowledgeable and always at hand to assist you with good pairing options.
Like all Italian cuisine, the fundamentals of Tuscan cooking revolve around the use of the freshest, simple, and seasonal ingredients. While most might focus on the meat and pasta, there’s a healthy use of legumes, cheeses, vegetables and fruits. Typical dishes are often based on what you find at the market that week, enhanced by minimal spices and sauced. Though the food is simple, it’s the technique that enhances the dish. And of course, all meals follow the three-course format, with sides and some bread.
We kick off the meal with a Topinambur soup, a creamy concoction made with Jerusalem artichoke puree and garnished with truffle oil. The smooth velvety texture of the soup is comforting, but the flavours are too mild to keep you hooked till the last drop. While sunchokes, as they’re referred to in India are a commonly used ingredient in home cooking, it’s interesting to see it featured on the menu of an Italian restaurant.
For salads, we sample the Burattina salad with a passion fruit glaze. The dish was a good balance of cream, tart, and umami. Next up was the golden fried Fritto Misto de mare sale Pepe. A traditional dish, it’s an assortment of deep-fried calamari, prawns and fish breaded in semolina flour and served with tartare, garlic oil and parsley. The dish was not terrible but could’ve used a little more cooking and seasoning, and a little less breading so it was more crispy than chewy.
India’s first beech ovens were installed in Nashik, and the team is understandably immensely proud of the Neapolitan-style pizzas they offer. We sampled an ambiguous chicken pizza, which was a satisfying slice. And you can often tell that by the crust that in this case, wasn’t leftover for anyone on the table.
One of the more fun things we tried out at The Tuscan Room was the octopus. It’s marinated and cooked to perfection, not over or under but perfect and very interesting in every bite. A definite recommendation for all adventurous foodies!
If you live and breathe pasta, the dishes here, unfortunately, fall a bit short of what you’d expect from a traditional Italian restaurant. The Fusilli alla carbonara is made with pancetta, egg yolk and pecorino cheese. The use of a non-traditional pasta is hardly the issue with this carbonara though, with the sauce being slightly acidic and not having enough pepper. It’s a good pasta dish, but it doesn’t scream carbonara.
Things only looked up from here though, beginning with the Chicken pizzaiola. It may not look like much, but the meat is tender and juicy, complemented by a tart housemade tomato sauce. Similarly, the Ravioli cacio e pepe, served with a black pepper sauce tasted far better than it looked.
The best dish though was easily the Slow-cooked Agnello brasato braised lamb shank. Served with creamy polenta and gremolata, the meat was fall off the bone tender and made for a delicious bite each time.
While not a sweet tooth myself, the desserts at Tuscan Room certainly came close to changing my mind. The Tiramisu here is served by the chef in traditional old-time Italian fashion, straight from a large bowl into a delicious heap on your plate. Even as you dig into it, don’t forget to leave room for the intensely creamy Roasted almond gelato. It’s so good, flavourful, and indulgent, that you’ll definitely end up reaching out for more.
With The Tuscan Room and Radisson Blu Hotel & Spa, Nashik overall, the team envisions creating a tourist spot for people beyond the usual wineries and views. While the menu here features both hits and misses, it’s definitely worth a visit on one of those elusive long weekends!
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