In recent years, Delhi has established itself as the culinary capital of India with food from every imaginable corner finding a home on its busy streets. But with so many flavours and so little space, restaurateurs are always looking for new ways to get their food noticed, the latest popular way being the convenient and portable food truck. In a land where street food reigns supreme this is not necessarily a novel concept. However, the gourmet food trucks have far surpassed the humble vada and dosa fare of yesterday and are serving up treats worthy of the most elite destinations.
One such exciting spot is Sushi House Mafia, which sets up shop in Sector 29 of Gurgaon and serves up a host of inventive sushi creations. Owner Vikrant Misra is already familiar with the restaurant business having set up the highly popular Eggjactly food truck in 2015, but getting a cuisine like sushi to be appealing to a wider Indian audience proved to be a bit tricky. The concept began as a Pan Asian restaurant but they realized that there were already so many Chinese and Oriental options and decided to give themselves a unique edge to put them ahead of the competition. Even so, it took them about 4 months to be accepted by the public, the higher price point and unfamiliar offerings took people by surprise but once they had a taste, they kept coming back for more!
Although they aimed to bring sushi to the public at large it was impossible to match the pricing of Indian street food. The fresh fish, prawns, sticky rice and even the Nori (seaweed wrappers) are much more expensive than the average ingredients so they were forced to compensate for that because they were adamant that they would never compromise on the quality of their dishes. Even so, they have managed to supplement their income with Oriental dishes which allows them to keep the cost of their sushi comparatively low.
Raw fish isn’t exactly an Indian staple so they started adapting dishes to be a little less intimidating. A sushi novice or the extremely picky eaters can start with the Teriyaki Chicken, work up to the Tempura Prawns, progress to the Wasabi Prawns and then perhaps graduate with honours by trying the Salmon, Tuna or Crab rolls. Vikrant recommends the Crunchy Salmon, the Biggie Roll and The Dynamite but they try to introduce 3 to 4 new varieties each month so keep checking in for exciting new combinations!
More than anything, Sushi House Mafia’s dedication to quality is what sets them apart. They have taken the essentials of a glorious Japanese tradition and incorporated the heart of Indian flavours. Every visit to this food truck will bring you a new experience, and as Vikrant says “Every part of sushi making is very deep in context and an art for sushi chefs. Though this is no rocket science, the more you work on the sushi rolls, the better you get at it.”
Check out their site to find out what’s new on the menu!