Restaurant review: Arriba

Yesterday I was invited for food review of ARRIBA- The Mexican Grill and Tequileria. The restaurant opened on 5th of May (cinco de Mayo). The restaurant offers Delhites Mexican cuisine that combines fresh and authentic ingredients. It is supposedly India's first Tequileria. This means that their innovative chefs have used Tequila in their dishes to infuse that extra punch. An extensive Salsa and Guacamole bar boasts 8 dazzling types of Salsa. 

The bar menu has been specially curated keeping in mind that Tequila can be enjoyed simply on the rocks, blended with fruit and ice into margaritas, or slammed as shots with salt & wedges of lime. They certainly have a choice of wide-ranging Margaritas section with all the classics and also an inventive selection of signature margaritas.

  

I had a Mexican friend with me who is a connoisseur of Mexican food. He told me that the food was from state of Yucatan, where there are Maya ruins. The food is supposed to be fantastic there. My friend helped this review turn out to be more authentic, knowledgeable and interesting. I gained a lot of insight about the Mexican cuisine and culture. Inspired by the Aztec and Mayan culture, the cuisine of Arriba is a mix of tex-mex and tapas.The restaurant has large selection of margarita cocktails. 

Arriba brings to town a true reflection of the incredible flavors, colors and aromas found throughout Mexico.They have a fabulous selection of small plates, soul satisfying main courses and refreshingly different cocktails.

The space evokes a colourful yet laid back spirit of Mexico, giving the perfect vibe for a delectable meal at a cool restaurant. The interiors boast of dramatic architectural details, symbolic of Aztec/ Mayan characteristics against a vibrant palette of coral, aqua, cobalt, burgundy and gold. The decor reflects drama with elegance and everything that one would love while dining in with a relaxed vibe and set up.

The cuisine is faithful to the traditional roots of Mexico while incorporating modern, fusion twists with inspired innovations. 

I would highly recommend this place for girl's afternoon lunches, family dinners, parties where you can throw a Mexican theme, etc.

Venue Details: 

Address - The Village Restaurant Complex, Asiad Village, August Kranti Marg, Khel Gaon Marg, New Delhi

Time - 7:00 pm - 1:00 am

Contact: 011 26497706

Our ratings:

Rating: Very Good

Effort: 5/5

Authentic: 3/5

Fusion: 4/5

Ingredients: 3.5/5

Ambience: We found the music too strong. Only Colombian salsa was being played. Wish they could also put some Mexican music or from Venezuela.

Decor: It seemed bit fusion. I would say Indo Mexican. I specially did not like the lights from cut out colorful bottles. But for originality, I would rate them high.

Service: 5/5

Uniforms of the staff: I loved it. It is like mariachi. 5/5

Value for money: It is not cheap. Meal for two: Rs 3000 plus tax approximately.

Read on to know more about my recommendations.

Chef Noah Barnes is the man behind the success of The Hungry Monkey, TabulaBeach Café and Arriba. He seemed very young, very enthusiastic, extremely polite, discerning, warm, boisterous, affable, ready to take suggestions and offer his take. It was a pleasure chatting and interacting with him.

He has won first place in AAHAR, an annual International Food & Hospitality Fair held in Delhi and the state level held in Bangalore and then went on to qualify for the Hans Bueschkens, a competition organized by the Culinary Competition Committee on behalf of the World Association of Chefs Societies (WACS) . At 22, Chef Noah Barnes was the first Indian and one of the youngest chefs to qualify and represent India in the Hans Bueschkens Junior Chef Challenge at the Asia semi-finals held in Hong Kong. Due to his exceptional training in world cuisines, he garnered a bronze medal at Bocuse d'or, a biennial chef championship, often referred to as the culinary equivalent of the Olympic Games. 

The restaurant won me with this personalised board placed on my table. Little things like these certainly win customer's heart.

I loved the upholstery that matched with my bag so well.

A tiny lamp on the menu. Again a little detail but shows how carefully every bit has been taken into account.

Notice the mariachi uniform and our margaritas- mango and cinnamon tamarind ones. I would highly recommend the cinnamon tamarind margarita. It was refreshingly different.

The famous salsa carnival. It has 

Mango coriander and Habanero (too hot. If you cannot have too spicy food like me, do not try this)

Watermelon Togarashi and feta (did not like)

Fresh and pickled Jalapeno

Charred tomato, spiced green tomato (Yum)

Fresh Guacamole (Yum)

Served with homemade tortilla chips.

For appetisers, I would highly recommend tequila and white wine marinated roast mushrooms. They were delicious.

Tortas are mini Mexican burgers that come with layered fillings that vary in taste and texture. I loved them. We also tried Panuchos. A Panucho is a Mexican food specialty from the Yucatán made with a refried tortilla that is stuffed with refried black beans and topped with chopped cabbage, pulled chicken or turkey, tomato, pickled red onion, avocado, and pickled jalapeño pepperThey are supposed to be softer but I believe since the cornflour is different, what we got was not so authentic.

Spiced sweet potato, cottage cheese and zucchini skewers. It had guajillo chilli sauce. I liked this dish and would recommend this as a vegetarian option.

Special recommendation- Chilli Rellenos in walnut sauce. These are mexican chillis stuffed with spiced corn and bell peppers served with Mexican rice with cheese and salsa. I loved the rice. 

For desserts we chose churros with chocolate dips- dark chocolate and chilli chocolate.

If you want to try something authentic and different, I would recommend this. It is fried and full of calories but yum.