Right after I mentioned sometime back that Din Tai Fung was my first F&B invitation to 313@Somerset, I received another invitation—for The Muthu’s Flavors. This is the second outlet of the restaurant (think of it as a newer, younger line of Muthu’s Curry) after the one in Dempsey opened sometime back in November (both share the same menu). I found Muthu’s Flavors quite easily in basement three—just look for the requisite orange décor and happy staff clad in orange. The focus here is authentic Indian flavors presented in a modern setting—with a slight twist to the concept of communal dining. In fact, I was quite surprised to see how casual the set-up was, and how beautifully the dishes were individually plated. Feel free to order per person, and not worry about having to order for everyone at once; or having too much food all of a sudden—as it often is with communal dining (neat, huh). Take your pick from North and South Indian culinary favorites —with individual sets falling under “Muthu’s Signature” section, while à la carte dishes can be found under “Muthu’s Favorites.” I highly recommend you start your meal with the delightful pappadum bruschetta—an ingenious starter that sees a crispy pappadum doubling up as a bruschetta with onions, tomatoes, green chili and coriander on top! I also loved the morumoru vendakai—a yummy dish comprising okra (ladyfingers) marinated with cumin and chili powder, coated with gram flour and then fried. Dip them in the accompanying mango chutney and tamarind sauce—delish. Out of the three mains I tried—tandoori chicken, lamb rack ananas and masala mussels—my fave was the masala mussels, simply because the chili-onion-tomato sauce went famously with the molluscs. Though I must say peeps who are fans of tandoori chicken and lamb will find both meat dishes succulent and satisfying. After all that spice and exotica, I was really looking forward to desserts—and I wasn’t disappointed. The masala chai flan and beetroot halwa with ice-cream (pastry cup of fresh beetroot topped with beet sauce and vanilla ice-cream) were both intriguing desserts that I’d never tried before. The former held the fragrance of masala most sweetly; and the latter was an eye-opener in itself: I never knew beetroot could make such a fab dessert. All in all, I found that there was much to discover and taste at the reasonably priced The Muthu’s Flavors. Just bring an open mind. Oh, and a whole bunch of friends. Belinda Wan
