The REPUBLIC OF NOODLES (“RON”) is an award winning Pan Asian restaurant which is now also available at the newly launched Lemon Tree Premier Hotel, Aerocity. The RON was first launched by Lemon Tree in Goa in 2009 & soon earned an enviable reputation for itself winning many awards for its Pan Asian cuisine from Thailand &, Vietnam, Singapore, Cambodia, Indonesia & Myanmar.
The Lemon Tree Corporate Chef is Rajeev Janveja (a man with many feathers under his cap having launched many successful restaurants in the past such as Machan & Ricks in Taj, Delhi & Thai Pavilion in Taj Vivanta, Bangalore) who is responsible for all their 25 hotels that fall under 3 br&s – Lemon Tree Premier (upscale), Lemon Tree Hotels (midscale) & Red Fox Hotels (economy).
The 92 cover RON is tucked away in the alfresco area, cozily overlooking the poolside. It is between the 24 hour Coffee Shop on one side & the Bar on the other. They have a wall of stamps right at the entrance where stamps of all the Pan Asian countries from where the food is being served have been put up. There are also some Indonesian & Thai artifacts & a statue of Buddha which blend with the orange & brown interiors & the big bamboos used as flora.
The Chef had prepared a special menu for us with a refreshing welcome drink of apple juice with cinnamon & mint. This was followed by Corn & Green Scallion Fritters with Orange Chilli Sauce – the sweetness of the crispy corn was well complimented by the surprisingly refreshing, tangy chili sauce.
The wonderful teaser trailers above were followed by one delight after another….
The Grilled Prawns with Cambodian Sauce – the prawns were soft & juicy & the peanuts, coconut, galangal & mustard in the sauce gave the sauce a well balanced sweet & delightfully different taste.
Sliced Chicken with Roasted Chili Sauce – this soft & succulent chicken had a robust flavour of chili, basil, onion, bell peppers & other spices – a must try.
Banana Leaf Wrapped Grilled Basa in Balinese Spices – the juicy, soft fish enveloped with flavours of galangal, tomato, chili paste & garlic was an absolute treat to the taste buds.
After the above, the perfectly balanced Tom Yum Veg Soup was a wonderful interlude where the tanginess was totally complimenting the heat. It was so yummy that I, for once, did not miss the meat in my soup.
The soup was followed by the Thai Chilly Basil Noodles with Garlic & Vegetables whose aroma was so arousing the taste buds that I couldn’t wait to dig into them. I could eat the noodles just by themselves.
The Minced Chicken with Chili Garlic & Basil (not quite sure why it was named minced as the chicken looked more diced) was excellently made. Attempting to go into intricate details will still not bring across its exquisite taste to a reader so all I can say is that it is a must try.
The Prawn Green Curry was surprisingly quite mild but the Vegetable Red Curry with Bamboo Shoot took me back to Thai& with its Ying complimenting the Yang in as much as the heat of the red chili paste in the dish intermeshed perfectly with the sweetness of the coconut milk. The lemon grass, galangal & basil leaves, the balance of which is important for this dish, were perfectly used too.
Lamb with Young Peppercorn & Fresh Herbs – juicy lamb with comes alive in your mouth with the green schezwan peppers.
Both Tofu with Exotic Mushrooms & Seasonal Vegetables with Garlic & Basil were dishes with subtle flavours & a weight watchers paradise.
To round off this exotic meal we got the most delectable Water Chestnut Rubies & Longan in Coconut Milk. Thankfully, my friend accompanying me for this meal was watching her calories & I came to her rescue & polished off both our desserts – that should tell you how good it was.
As you can make out, I quite obviously loved RON but here I have to strike two discordant notes :
Firstly, many of the dishes were served at a temperature which was a tad too low (in the case of starters, it was cold !).
Secondly, the toilet is a long way off from the restaurant – so if you are going with kids, better make sure they empty themselves out before entering the restaurant J
In conclusion, all I can say is that in RON, your taste buds are in for a royal treat. I loved the fact that the chef did not believe in holding back spices & chilies & served the dishes as authentic as can be, thus keeping the soul of the dishes intact. I am dying to go back again & again to try all the other dishes that RON has to offer.
RATINGS OUT OF 5
Food 4.0 | Service 4.5 | Ambience 4.0 | Overall 4.0
Meal for two (exclusive of Drinks & taxes) :Rs 1800 | Alcohol: Yes | Timings: 12 noon to 3pm & 7pm to 11pm.
Address: Republic Of Noodles, Lemon Tree Premier-Delhi Airport, Asset no.6, Aerocity, Hospitality District, New Delhi 110037.
Telephone: +011 44232323
– Post by Rohini Ghosh
