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Creating cross-cultural cuisine is a fine line to walk – requiring innovation and respect for all involved cultures, without breaching into appropriation – and Fusions by Tala does just that, while living up to its name, as GulfWeekly discovered last weekend.
The signature rooftop restaurant, headed by the enigmatic Chef Tala Bashmi, is for gourmets who appreciate the difference between eating out and dining out.
Our experience there was a true symphony for all our senses, as Chef Tala served up a delightful smorgasbord of courses, after asking a simple yet loaded question, “How adventurous are you?”
Since embarking on her culinary adventure, Chef Tala has competed in the popular Top Chef Middle East cooking series, and has been serving up her unique ‘fusionary’ creations at the eponymous Fusions by Tala restaurant, located at the Gulf Hotel Convention and Spa Bahrain.
Walking in, the restaurant’s interior leaves no doubt that it exists at the fringe of flavour. As we were greeted by the restaurant manager Esperanza Alvarez Del Puerto, I couldn’t help but notice the exposed brick wall – a trailer for the old-meets-new adventure to come.
Esperanza guided us to our table, overlooking a phenomenal view of Juffair, and we talked about the renovations upstairs, which would rejuvenate the open-air terrace in time for winter.
As we sat down, we were served up a unique breadbasket with sourdough-and-olive slices, a brioche bun, Bahrain-inspired pita bread infused with fennel seeds, and the highlight, a machboos-flavoured crispy bread, all served alongside whipped date butter with rose salt.
While we nibbled on the breads, and talked about the return of the dine-out experience post-Covid, as one does these days, we were also served a citrusy-cucumber concoction as well as a lovely low-sugar lychee juice.
We didn’t have to wait long before Chef Tala surprised us with an off-menu item – the ribeye kushiyaki, which redefined melt-in-your-mouth with its grilled soft chunks of prime ribeye cooked to perfection.
As we devoured our garlic-honey-glazed kushiyaki skewers, we watched Chef Tala bustle around the ‘fish bowl’ kitchen, interacting with her staff to prepare the next meal on our mystery adventure.
Next up was an appetizer of scallops (BD6.5), served in a dashi brown butter foam, and topped with finger lime. The fresh flavours of the scallops astounded us right away, paired with fresh green beans, and the citrusy tinge from the finger limes, making each bite delectable and leaving us wanting more.
Before long, the Ghoozi tacos (BD5.2) wafted over to our table and we knew right away we were in full-blown fusion territory. After eyeing the tacos suspiciously for a couple of seconds, wondering how an entire ghoozi’s worth of flavour could be packed into such tiny shells, we squeezed a bit of lemon and took our first bite.
Traditional flavour met unfamiliar texture in our mouth and both my colleague and I nodded in approval, the meal having passed our cultural check.
To cleanse our palate for the main course, Chef Tala sent along a mystery sorbet, challenging us to detect its flavours. And although we got one third of it right – passionfruit – unfortunately our senses were not acute enough to detect the cucumber and lime flavours. Alas, this is what a year of eating take-out does.
For the main course, in true Bahraini style, we traversed the land and the sea, with Bamia (BD17) and Seabass (BD12). Of these, the Bamia was my favourite, with the wagyu beef cheek, served atop tomato broth rice and topped with a crispy sheet of ‘okra glass’.
With wagyu, melting in your mouth is a given, but the dish was a pure flavour heist, the beef working with its partners-in-taste, the okra and tomato broth, to steal our taste buds and send them on a journey they won’t forget anytime soon.
While my taste buds traversed new planes of existence, my colleague devoured the fresh seabass, alongside a vine leaf risotto, coconut lime leaf sauce and roasted vegetables.
Of course, no meal is complete without the sweet finale and here Chef Tala excelled as well – with a deconstructed baklawa (BD4.5) and a lavender cake (BD6). The baklawa brought another round of confused looks and our nose began to turn skywards in disdain, before we smashed through the crispy filo, scooping up the pieces alongside the mango ice-cream and caramelised pistachio.
The real show-stealer was the lavender cake, layered with blueberry, lemon crème brulee and lavender sponge and topped with edible gold foil, served atop a delightful almond snap.
And as an extra special treat, Chef Tala brought out some hand-painted Valrhona chocolates, two filled with fresh local dates turned into a cheesecake, and the other two with a passionfruit curd filling.
Fusions by Tala is an ideal location for a date or dinner with friends. Gear up for an unforgettable experience if you let Chef Tala steer the ship and take you on a voyage through textures and tastes, surfing a variety of sights and sounds – a true sojourn of the senses.
For details, follow @fusionsbytala on Instagram or call 1771 3000 to make a reservation.
