‘Tasting 5.0’, a new menu from Ekaa, highlights dynasties that had a significant impact on history

Ekaa introduces a menu that illuminates the global dynasties that had an impact. Chef Niyati Rao has prepared Tasting 5.0, which includes meals that beckon you to travel the world and explore historical landmarks.

With each dish providing a distinct window into the history of these dynasties, the 10-course tasting menu presents a culinary portrayal of the Kingdom of Siam, the Tzars, the Pharaohs, the Qings, the Aztecs, the Marathas, the Rajputana, the Travancore, the Meiji Restoration, and the Vikings.

The meal starts with Koi Pla, a salad that was popularized by the Thai royal court (formerly known as Siam). The meal is served with pomelo, cured and smoked Kashmiri trout/eggplant, and a sauce made of coconut, pandan jelly, and edible frankincense at the restaurant.

The opposite path then travels to the lavish ball of the Tzars’ Kingdom. Tzar Nicolas Il of Russia and Poland was notorious for bringing the delicacy “eggs on eggs” to a wider audience and for often throwing lavish parties that included his caviar, or fish eggs, and chicken eggs. This is replicated at the Fort restaurant with fermented shiitake spice, beets cooked in terracotta, a relish of kale, and trout roe/apple caviar.

With mugwort-flavoured Chinese lap cheong, specially prepared for Ekaa, and a soup made with goji berries, tapioca pearls, and spices, Ekaa transports you to the Kingdom of the Qings and its therapeutic food. Fresh Indian black fungus that has been marinated makes up the vegetarian variant. Additionally, there’s an onion oil flavored with house-made ‘Tsaoko’ powder, a traditional Chinese spice. Pickled “golden” seaweed from the Ratnagiri shore, which is locally cultivated, is served on the side. This meal represents the dynasty’s love of intricate, multi-textured foods, such as edible bird’s nests and shark fins.

The palette cleanser that comes before the Aztec meal is designed to evoke the traditions and topography that influenced the empire of central Mexico. As a sacrifice to the Aztec gods, the tomato sorbet is painstakingly fashioned to resemble a sunflower. Made with Pistola Joven, our agave jelly lines the sorbet’s perimeter. Sliced into patterns like crystals, it is a metaphor for Mexico’s Giant Crystal Cave. The dish is served with a tart, green juice prepared from Thai coriander, or culantro, which represents the now-dry Texcoco Lake.

A small variation on the dates that are often put into the dough, The Kingdom of Pharaohs finds expression in a bread that is 110% hydration, fermented with wild yeast, flavored with coriander seeds, and served with house-churned white butter and date palm jaggery.

Traveling to the Indian subcontinent, the eatery explores The Kingdom of the Marathas, serving up a meal fit for warriors that includes khichdi and a variety of legumes, raw kalbhat rice, quince achaar, a mildly smoked tomato sansav, roasted potato thoy, grilled greens, and cured lamb sweetbread/lions mane mushrooms.

The Kingdom of Rajputana’s arid landscapes come to life with the methods and materials that would have been collected and prepared during hunts. This dish includes a house-made raab, mathania chiles, and sautéed sangria, or seared duck.

Thuvial of kulith, or horse gram, is a dish that hasn’t received enough attention. It is served with Ghandasale rice from Kerala, a rare, fragrant, short-grained varietal, a broth made of pickled bor and nendran bananas, a harmonious blend of flavors that is synonymous with the renowned “Kerala sadya,” and it honors the bounty of the coast.