odette and Joe Mascarenhas
There are 12 months in our calendar…and twelve animals in the Chinese Zodiac, and 2010 is the Year of the Tiger. Why did this number 12 get fixed in my mind? Was it just coincidence that we feasted on 12 items from the menu which is now being showcased at the Goenchin? And what is the importance of the tiger in this system?

There is the legend of the Jade king.
The Jade King was bored, having nothing to do in Heaven. So he decided that he wanted to see the animals that inhabited the earth. His advisors brought him twelve animals. The first invitation went to the Rat, telling him to also bring the cat. Invitations were sent to the Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, Monkey, Rooster and the Dog. That would make it twelve.
When they lined up, the king, found that they numbered only eleven, instead of twelve -the cat missed the invitation because the rat did not give him the invite. So the servant went to retrieve a twelfth animal. He ran into a man carrying the Pig, which he grabbed and delivered to the king.
The Rat, being small hopped on the Ox's back and proceeded to play the flute. The king was very impressed so he gave the Rat the first place. The second place was given to the Ox for its good sportsmanship, and third was given to the Tiger, who appeared so courageous. Then the others in order were the Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Ram, Monkey, Rooster and the Dog. By default, the twelfth place went to the Pig. After the ceremony concluded, the cat begged the king to reconsider, but was told it was too late.
So this is the year of the Tiger- associated with the earthly branch symbol. We remembered that as we placed the josh sticks at the entrance and made a wish at the behest of Poorwa Kamat Tarkar, the Marketing executive, before entering the restaurant. Would the wish come true? I wondered as we sat down with Mr Rajan Kamat and Poorwa.
The appetizers a khimchi tray (Korean (cabbage), Thai (radish) and Indonesian (cucumber and mustard) - novel indeed…till I realized that Mr Prem Pradhan is an International award winning chef when he participated in a food exhibition in Dubai.
After a nibble on the khimchi, we were ready for the starters…Panjei Pipa prawns..the presentation was superb and when mixed with the chefs special soya and peanut sauce…superb. Following this were the chicken Dim sum(in bamboo baskets) and Crab pincers. I hurriedly reached out for the crab before Joe could pinch them all off the plate. No breadcrumbs coating this…the mild corn flour wrap did wonders to the taste of the onion, ginger, garlic seasonings…..I gingerly held it by the claw as I dipped it into the celery dip (another of chefs innovations) and chewed it right till…( not the bone but its orange claw).
That made it three….I looked up to see the waiter offering us Roast Lamb with baby corn and mushromm. Soft succulent..red chillies and soya; what a combo…The plate was wiped clean. The Mongolian chicken..pan fried with a superb marination of ginger/garlic paste and one of chefs special sauces…believe me he has a heady mix of Shanghai, Schezwan, Peanut, Cinnamon and soya, Sweet and sour…his wok swishes with the needed flavors to create perfection.
But the female Dragon still had to make her presence felt…the Fish Phoenix. The tender filets were tossed in a spicy combo of Shanghai and Schewan and chefs special…Delicious. I heard the term…Rise like a Phoenix from the ashes….I raised my posterior from the chair hoping to take in more of that delightful preparation.
Reached number seven and I am halfway up in heaven….the main course. Fish Burmese curry influenced by the two neighbouring countries (India and China) with steamed rice, crunchy beans and chillies, Prawn Malacca fried rice with red tomatoes and egg roll and stir fried Chinese vegetable. Goenchin is going Oriental was my first thought. Mr Rajan agrees. ‘We have a delightful range of curries, Malaysian, Thai, Chinese and Indonesian,’ he smiles, ‘great for luncheons.’
Old favorites like Date pancake and honeyed noodles bring the banquet to an end, but they have more on offer. The year of the Tiger offers children specialties like Dragon chicken, Malaysian chicken to name a few…and as Poorwa says ‘a complimentary Hang Pao (gift of blessings).’ Well one does not need to feast on 12 items or ask for 12 animals like the Jade king…its time to celebrate this special year of the tiger….you might even hear your self roar with delight.