The Michelin Guide unveiled its first list of winners in Dubai on Tuesday, with 11 restaurants receiving at least one coveted star. Of these, Tresind Studio, led by chef Himanshu Saini, was the only Indian restaurant to take one home.
Saini began his journey with Tresind when it first burst onto the Dubai food scene by bringing liquid nitrogen to Indian cuisine in 2014.
Since then, he has gone from strength to strength. Not only has he been a noteworthy presence at various food festivals around the UAE, but Saini also often collaborates on one-off, highly experimental four-hands meals with some of the best chefs in the world, including Bahraini chef Tala Bashmi and Mexico's Jorge Vallejo.
Click through the gallery above to see the 11 Michelin-starred restaurants in Dubai.
Now, Saini can consider himself to be up there with the best.
Tresind Studio, which used to be tucked in the corner of the main Tresind restaurant at voco hotel, recently moved to Nakheel Mall on the Palm Jumeirah.
It serves a set tasting menu, which changes every four months: think wood apple pani puri, ghee roast crab with burnt cinnamon and curry leaf tempura and morel pulao with Assam tea dashi.
“Tresind Studio offers a single tasting menu. Through the experience, we serve comfort food to guests, yet ensure every person is leaving with a different impression and a changed perception about Indian cuisine,” Saini tells The National soon after taking to the stage to collect the award.
"The end game is to show the world that Indian food can also be gourmet.
“With our approach, I want to make people understand that Indian food is more than a takeaway curry, naan or biryani.”
It is an exciting menu, which serves a payasam pudding made with pink peppercorns and served with tomato rasam; or buttermilk curry ice cream with padron peppers and pickled chutney.
“There are many recipes, many stories, many cultural interpretations that are not explored enough,” the chef says.
It's a tall order, but one Saini is more than willing to continue serving up, especially in the light of his latest accolade.
“Getting a Michelin star is a great start and a proud moment, but what I'd like to do next is to reflect back on what happened today, to evolve the cuisine even further and to push for two stars next year," he says.
“Being the only Indian restaurant in Dubai with a Michelin star, the expectations will be huge, but I want to surpass those.”
Saini has some experience in the world of gourmet cuisine, having worked with Manish Mehrotra, the award-winning chef behind Indian Accent in New Delhi and New York.
On top of this, Saini says he comes from an “agricultural family”, which has made him inclined towards using locally sourced ingredients where possible.
“We have the same menu for four months only. So while I cannot recommend a particular dish that residents or gastro-tourists must order, I would urge all our patrons to explore Papadom, our botanical bar that works hand in hand with the kitchen," he says.
"All the scraps wasted in the kitchen are utilised in a curated drinks programme.” Think beverages made with cacao and fennel cordial, popcorn and fig acid syrup, pickled papaya and pineapple tepache.
“We've cultivated a terrace garden on the rooftop, where we grow a lot of produce even in this crazy hot weather. And it's a spot where you can expect equally crazy things on the tasting menu,” says Saini.
The restaurant's description on the Michelin Guide website reads: “An immersive dining experience awaits in this elegant Indian restaurant. The multi-course tasting menu is a masterpiece of originality and precision.
"The meal ... explodes with flavour [and] intricate, sublimely executed dishes. Add in wonderfully attentive service and you have all the ingredients for an evening that will live long in the memory.”
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
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GIANT REVIEW
Starring: Amir El-Masry, Pierce Brosnan
Director: Athale
Rating: 4/5
MATCH INFO
FA Cup fifth round
Chelsea v Manchester United, Monday, 11.30pm (UAE), BeIN Sports
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
The Old Slave and the Mastiff
Patrick Chamoiseau
Translated from the French and Creole by Linda Coverdale
