The Roseate's Chi Ni Finally Opens Up For Lunch

Enter the beautiful property, surrounded by almost 100 trees, lots of pools and a lobby which feels like it belongs in the future. A longish walk takes you to Chi Ni. Expect lots of natural light, crisp white tablecloths and crockery in whites, blacks and greys. Whereas Chi Ni has always been one of the most sought after spots for romantic dinner dates, it has only recently started opening up for lunch hours too- and has a set four-course menu in place for you.

We had the pleasure of sampling the lunch menu and were pretty floored by it. A plate with a face welcomed us to our tables and post an amuse bouche comprising pickled cucumber garnished with peanuts, it began.

The ash gourd seafood soup was a lovely start to the meal. We loved the tiny bits of shrimp and vegetables. The texture was a little unusual, though- a little on the gelatinous side. But the taste more than made up for it. You can also opt for a hot and sour soup or a sweet corn soup.

This comes as a pre-plated affair including blanched spinach {this was topped by a sesame paste and sesame seeds and was surprisingly tasty}, crispy spicy mushrooms {tempura mushrooms}, lettuce wraps and the best of the lot, wasabi shrimp. You can substitute this with a vegetarian shrimp {soya}.

For main course, you can choose between wok fried chicken, Schezuan steamed Indian sea bass, bean curd with three kinds of mushroom and vegetarian chicken with three chillies. Needless to say, we chose the sea bass and didn’t regret it one bit.

The fish was super soft, the Schezuan sauce a beautiful accompaniment to the fried rice {you can also get noodles instead} and the chopped green chillies sprinkled on the fish only made us like the dish even more. The vegetarian chicken {a soy concoction} was interesting but failed to convert us from the carnivores that we are.

The dessert really was the icing on the cake. Between Senses of Chocolate and Splendid Baked Yogurt, we chose the latter and it may have been the best decision of our life. The yogurt was served in a glass topped off by a paper-thin cracker holding a dollop of sorbet. We broke this and enjoyed our yogurt with it: Spoonfuls of creamy fruity yogurt with a dash of crunch. We tasted orange, ginger, coriander, mango, mint and raspberry. So much win.

Off to bed for an afternoon siesta.