A spread for vegetarians

Chefs prepare delicacies in front of you at live counters at the Lush on Race Course Road.

Vegetarians, long forgotten in the culinary map of the city, now have a reason to rejoice. Lush, the signature all-day dining restaurant of Renaissance Hotel, has come up with the concept of a ‘vegetarian brunch’ on Saturdays.
Replete with live counters and a vegetarian cocktail bar, it offers a wide array of green choices in different cuisines.

The salads are a treat in themselves. Unusual and delectable combinations of fresh produce that is either locally grown or exported, these are available in raw formats, DIY options or slightly Indian variations too.
At another end, the ‘live chat’ counter is a hit with kids with its ‘pani puri’, ‘samosa’ and ‘tikki’. We wandered away to try out the ‘Homemade pasta’ (creamy and succulent) and the grilled veggies (flavourful and light).

The Beetroot-flavoured vegetable dumplings were slightly spicy and are highly recommended even for veggie-haters. Don’t worry, you can’t get the taste of it, just like in the popular drink ‘Beat The Heat’, though that too is made from beetroot.

It was a problem of plenty that we faced. The Mezze counter had authentic offerings, including an array of differently flavoured hummus, dips and breads. The Cheese counter had everything from Provolone and cheddar to Gouda and our very own Amul.

Elsewhere, a ‘nachos tikka’ gave a unique Indian twist to the snack, a strategy followed with the Avocado toast too. Apart from this, there are soups, dim sums, pizzas and more.

The main course is inside though (yeah, we haven’t reached the mains yet). Continental, South Indian, North Indian and Oriental cuisines jostle for space while an inviting spread of desserts covers another table in the room.

We couldn’t try much (our stomachs were tired though our taste buds were not) but whatever we did was good enough to warrant an exclamation of satisfied pleasure.

Pro tip: Starve yourself before you go. Even then, it is not humanly possible to try out all the offerings.

The brunch is priced at Rs 1099 plus taxes and is available from 12 noon to 4 pm on Saturdays.