Carnival by Tresind Season 6: The Bookmark Menu Review

This venue & its delicate handcrafted menu is a celebration of Indian cuisine, where Indian food comes of age to shed its erstwhile glamorous avatar and take leaps ahead to enter the post-modern era. Dining at Carnival by Trèsind is a gastronomic fiesta that pushes boundaries to transcend into a nostalgic culinary experience, taking you back to days of yore. For the sixth season, Carnival has created a six-course tasting menu that includes a detailed bookmark explaining each course, telling its ‘story’ and explaining the logic of why it’s been included in the season’s menu. We encountered it late but did not regret it as it was an experience to remember.  

   

   

   

• The mocktails we tried were stunning, with the black lemonade coming in a book and the super innovative popcorn drink. Yellow tail is always been my favorite as ususal.

Pre-Starters:

• Bao Bhaji bun amuse bouche, This bite-sized spicy treat comes along with a large, vintage looking magnifying glass stand to allow for closer inspection. Hmm what a striking first impression for the season made us so very famished.

 

   

• Dilli 6- This, in my opinion, is season’s best feature & our favorite part of overall dining affair. They have created this innovative street side style dedicated area to host a “food cart” tasting experience in old-Delhi street style. Pani Puri was super delicious & served from this Tanga. Jalebi & Taco Chaat along with Bhel Puri was yummy too. Kudos to the team for Chaat Munching experience taken to a whole new level.

 

    

Small Plates/ Appetizers:

• Tiger’s Milk –Carnival’s take on ceviche; a vegetarian version with mosambi yuzu marinade and root vegetables chips. It was insanely good.

 

   

• Who moved my cheese? was a delicious baked cottage cheese pinwheel with pomegranate sauce. Unique taste !
• Momo-fuku: Chicken momos with red chili chutney & charred cucumber salad; yes pleasantly spicy!

 

   

• Hot Sauce nation: Shrimp mezhukkupuratti with addictive homemade black pepper tobacco.. Hot!

   

I could feel the thrilling spices in Momos & shrimp. If this is your introduction to Indian food you may advise the server to keep it low on spice level. For me it simply amazed me .

• Meatilicious – Grilled lamb chops with Mysore masala and mini dosa crisp.
• Samosa – Chicken Samosa with a peanut salad was yummy too.

 

   

Sorbet Plant pot was the palate cleanser- which is actually a guava and passion fruit lolly, offered to us to prepare for the main course dishes. Mains – Big Plates: It is my first time trying Artichoke masala and the dish stands out. it is basically slow braise artichokes in smoky aromatic sauce. Five shades of pumpkin – pumpkin kofta, seed sauce with flower pakora and the Artichoke masala. Both were vegetable dishes and both very exciting to the tastebuds. I can still remember the taste of the sauce, and I didn’t even notice I was eating all veg. By the time we finished the main course, we were full and satisfied.  

     

     

• Encyclopedia of Nilgiri – Nilgiri chicken korma, aromatic green spices.
• Fish Tajine – Seabass curry with preserved lemon and Kalamata olives. comprises seabass curry, preserved lemon and delicious olives.

The curries tasted outrageously delicious. Bitcoin was crisp bread roundels with a scrumptious mixed veg topping served with sesame and chili sauce. We also tried the crunchy and comforting Red Hot Chili Peppers from their a la carte menu.  

   

Deserts: The desserts were seriously next level, and you need to keep space for it. The Gajak – Caramel, peanuts, and chocolate – done the Alinea way was presented best way dessert could be served; very theatrical. All the toppings are spread across the table on a sheet and you break the pod with ice-cream and other ingredients on it – Messy Yumm! –

   

• Newton: Caramelized apple shahi tukda was so good and unexpected.
• When life gives you lemon: Lemon tart, strawberry sorbet and dehydrated meringue.

 

   

Dessert at Carnival by Tresind is always an indulgent, creative, and rich affair. The Newton was a standout for me. We tasted many dishes which are not part of the Bookmark menu but was offered to us to sample.     The season 6 menu at Carnival by Tresind is outstanding and comes highly recommended. It was a lovely experience with the course rhythm soon grows on you. From the whole experience of pain puri being served till the creativity of serving mains inside the books, the attention to every single detail in presentation till the theatrical representation was amazing. If you are looking for a modern twist on Indian favorites, Carnival by Tresind is well deserving of a visit. The food is excellent, remaining true to authentic Indian food, while at the same time, adding something entertaining and unique. Team is dedicated in making food service exciting. Every dish has a story to tell with creativity, flavor and presentation on point. Kudos to the team for reinvention to come up with ways to showcase their food.  We cannot wait to see what their next season has in store. The Bookmark Tasting Menu-AED 259 per person You can order dishes from season 6 from their a la carte menu For reservations call: 04 421 8665/ 052 242 4262.