Pa Pa Ya, BKC — Restaurant in Mumbai

Visiting Pa Pa Ya has always been a pleasure. The flavours , the gastronomy, the happy quotient that they makes the meal extra special and my tummy super happy....

Pa Pa Ya recently opened an outlet in BKC.

The ambience is nice and cosy. The seating arrangement has been designed intelligently to accomplish a family, group of friends or just a two people.

The service was spot on. Siddharth was excellent and knew his food really well. There were a few dishes that he recommended and oh boy it was lovely.

So let's review my meal

DILL LICIOUS - Every meal has to start with a nice refreshing drink. This one was a concoction of melons, dill leaves, Sake, Gin , Tonic water etc. Served elegantly with dill leave this was truly refreshing..

LOVE POTION - This would have been a good valentine's day drink. Sticking to its name, the drink was a lovely concoction of berries and litchi. Served with a frozen rose, this did steal my heart away.

SHIKOKU COOLER - It was a little gennie in the bottle. The drink was a mix of Kaffir lime leaves, oranges etc. I wouldn't say that it's a unique drink cause I have had it before, but the cute gennie glass made all the difference.

#LOVE YOU-ZU - for me this was an average drink. It tasted more like a paan flavoured drink. Ok ok.

#GRILLED CHICKEN AND AVOCADO TACOS - Grilled chicken tacos and avacads with a Asian influence. Though nice, I was not awestruck.

Sushi Platter - One of the few good places to try fresh sushi. Though I am not comfortable with raw fish, I did try a few. They also have a good cooked fish option that u can try along with a veg option. I really loved the veg sushi. You should too.

#ROCK SHRIMP TEMPURA - Rock on baby!! Yummy dummy prawns fried and tossed in two sauces.the first one was a nice red pepper based sauce while the other was mustard. The mustard was magical as I needed nothing else after this.. full points

#TWICE COOKED PORK BELLY FRAGRANT CHILLY -. Quick stir fry pork belly dish that manages to captured that sweet tangy flavour. The best part was that meat was fork tender and melted in your mouth.

#PENANG STYLED GRILLED SNAPPER - This was a dish that I was not sure but I was asked to try it. I am happy I did. Fillets of fish steam with a Thai sauce, wrapped in banana leaves and served with fried garlic. Yummy...

#DEHYDRATED CORIAND CHUNKING STYLE BHUMMELO TEMPURA - Deep fried lotus stem tossed in honey dressing and served with mayo avacado. Though sweet it can get a little overpowering.

LAMB RENDANG CURRY - Cooking a meat to perfection is an art. This was spot on. Again the meat was tender enough that it melted in mouth and still had that firmness to hold on to the bone. Paired with the roti. I couldn't ask for more..

GONG BAO PRAWNS - A dark soya sauce based prawns with peanuts and lemon grass. Ok for me

KHAO PAD KAR PAO SEAFOOD - Fried rice with fish and prawns. Cooked in a red spice blend this was tasty and build for the Indian pallet.

LIQUID HAZELNUT FONDATE CAKE - when it comes to deserve Pa Pa Ya does not fail to suprise me. This entire dish was a piece of art. The fondant cake had a molten centre, the fig artistically placed, the blue berry ice cream was just perfect as it balanced the sweetness. My I was in heaven.

CARAMEL ICE CREAM BAO - More than a Bao this was a Lovely doughnut. Served sandwich style I was already in heaven. The caramel sauce, the caramel coated fried cashews, the ice cream wow.. magical. Inspite of me being full, I managed to finish this completely.. sorry but guilt as charged..

Overall

This is a stunning place to just go for some really good food. Don't think and just eat should be the motto. Go for an extra hours jog and compensate. Great food great staff and great...

Destination Pit-Stop:Asian This asian is all about modernity:This has upped its stake in cooking with tapas & modern sushi:Avocados cm from neezealand:Rice is only the best:Baby spinach sourced:Japanese mayo:U want it:They hv it:Just order-up. Ambience:Vibrant textures furbishments on colomns:Cheerful:Pine wood ceilings:hardwood floorings:Cream upholstered circular sofas and chairs Staff:Sr:Supervisor siddharth takes care of the entire order;U will appreciate one thing abt pa-paya tht each server knows there asian and will describe each dish in detail;so u can order without a hitch & u cant blame anyone😜 Tapas:Smll Plates:Beer Battered Avocado Tacos Corn & Scallion Kimchi:Taco shells made inhouse made by rice flour water:Crispy shells filled with crunch:avocado which is 90% ingriedent:30% warm corn which is perfect food blanket in winter or rains:& scallion tomato concasse just on the top like a drop in the ocean which makes the ocean so it counts right😜which has mint;garlic:seasoning:kimchi grated mozarella cheese:this is a burst of flavours and textures:Must hv! Modern Sushi:Layered Sushi Pizza;ZuchiniCarpaccio;SteamedEdamame:Corn tortilla base made inhouse with their waffle-maker:The best sushi rice tht u cud get ur hands on(koshikari rice)japan:after the rice is cooked the ponzu vinegar and sugar r added:newzealand avocados:edameme pods steamed:japanese mayo sourced from japan which has a bite:U hv eaten sushi!Plz try the modernity to it!U will cm back! Wraps:Chilli Tofu Wrap Beetroot Lavash:Beetroot lavash baked inhouse:This is a delicious vegetarian wrap;frankie:frankie:frankie:ohh!i love those too:All u tofu haters will scream YUM:Corn tortilla wrap chilli garlic sauce with soy sauce add as a superb complimenting sauce:home-made barbecue sauce:which is sweet:smokey:Silken tofu with lettuce:bellpeppers:shwarma,sriacha mayo adds depth towards the final bite:beetroot crisps:ohh!these lovelies are made-inhouse:Full of crunch Mains:Wok Tossed Seasonal Vegetables Young Spinach & Tofu Mala Sauce:Mouth numbing sichuan peppercorn chilli simmered in hot oil:Wok:Wok:Wok:Lessen The Talk:Original cantonese prepartion:Sichuan peppercorn named after the region in china which produce a pleasent numbing in the mouth which in chinese is called mala not anaesthesia:There is also has a bit of fennel and cumin seeds adding a lovely texture:the all spice and the hint of nutmeg round this sauce up:Mala sauce is usually used to cure meat:The young spinach sourced which comes rarely called kangkong spinach:which isnt bitter towards the end like the regular spinach:Medley of vegetables:snowpeas:zuchini:brocolli:crispy tofu:Crispy tofu had 5spice:hint of sweetness and togarrashi spice Yaki Udon Noodles:Smooth Thick Japanese Wheat Noodles:These arent frozen so dont boil them till they loosen😜Olive oil wok tossed noodles with hint of soy sauce;lovely fragrant spice of ginger:medley of vegetables.Counting ur calories?Slurp these! Fragrant Crispy Chilli Fried Rice:Shrt grained rice tossed with cantonese chilli with medley of vegetables:This is ur basic fried rice from indo-chinese cuisine:Light:fiery:fragrant:go eat it Price Factor:1800 for 2 all inclusive Should u visit?Are u tired of regular asian?Are u tired of road-side asian?Are u tired of getting parched:being bloated:looking tired asian?If u tick one or all of the above then head here and eat ur heart...

Had the misfortune of eating dinner at this establishment. On the surface, this place seems trendy and sophisticated.

Upon arrival, was greeted warmly by the hostess and was seated promptly. The evening went swiftly downhill from there.

The restaurant was not very crowded when we were seated. However, we were placed between two table with large groups, although there were multiple tables open. Was hard to converse with the each other over the noise.

Wait staff made no attempt to explain the menu and their special offerings. We had to figure that out for ourselves.

We ordered drinks and appetizers. I forget which drinks we ordered but recall that they were solid.

The mushroom truffle dumplings were great. My friend had some vegetarian sushi which seemed ok for what it was. The end of our first course was punctuated by one of the waitstaff dropping a heavy highball glass, the shards of this went everywhere. Several of these pieces ended up under our table.

After plodding through the menu, we placed our orders for the main course. I ordered the lamb rendang curry. Seemed like a good choice based on the description on the menu. We waited several minutes for our food to arrive. My friend’s entree finally arrived. However, more time went by without any sign of my food.

We flagged down wait staff who informed us that the lamb was not “up to the mark” and had been sent back to be redone. While I appreciate their attention, it would’ve been appropriate to inform us promptly. Finally, the lamb arrived. The lamb was well cooked, but the gravy seemed greasy and undercooked. This paradox of an entree was difficult to eat. However, I didn’t dare ask for a replacement, given the considerable delay we’d endured already.

Interestingly, the wait staff clearly brought this delay and the issue with the lamb to the attention of the manager. This conversation happened within earshot of our table.

Given the fine dining establishment claims to be, I expected that the manager would come over to our table to offer an apology and possibly attempt some service recovery.

Much to our dismay, he didn’t even attempt to come see us, let alone make things right.

We left feeling underwhelmed and quite offended. I’m sure some folks would argue that we needed to be vocal about our experience. To this I offer a simple counter- argument; at an establishment that advertises such great food and service, staff and management should be acutely aware of the guest experience and must do everything to ensure guest satisfaction.

TL; DR: supposed fine dining establishment fails to deliver in the promise of great food. Staff needs a refresher on...