#lagnaa

Master Chef, the proprietor and chef of his 3d generation Michelin-star restaurant, Lagnaa Barefoot Dining in Little India, Singapore. 

What a delicious fun experience we had over many dishes and a whirling offering of interesting conversation. 

Master Chef cooked up a spice menu for anyone and kings. 

The level of heat in the curries range from 1 to 10. 

1. Not Hot (Anyone Can)

2. Hot (Almost Anyone Can) 

3. Hotter 

4. Show Off!

5. You Are Crazy!

6. Show Off!

7. Where Angels Fear 

8. Say Your Prayers

9. Make My Day 

10. You Are King 

The Master Chef will pay you $10,000 if you manage to get through a bowl of #10 chili. So far, nobody has taken the prize. Though a Nepali man, who lives in Australia, managed to complete a bowl of heat #9. 

Of course, we had to sample some ‘Chili Shots’, a collection of little shot glasses filled with 2ozs. of #1-6 chili sauces. Our table managed to drink all six, though 5 and 6 were too hot to really enjoy fully. 

The chef explained that the intention behind the spice rating project was only to educate about spice levels. But of course, it’s now a race to become King! 

Seriously though, according to Master Chef, if the heat of the chili sauce makes you even slightly uncomfortable, you’ve gone too far. We stayed comfortable with #4 with our main dishes.

The dining space is upstairs, open and airy, with fans on the ceiling and friendly staff that comes to your table to shoot the breeze. 

We will return again and maybe order take-out soon. 

We step off of the busy street in Little India and into Lagnaa, a barefoot dining restaurant. 

As we slip off our shoes, we leave them on the stairs next to teacups filled with jasmine and floating tea lights. We pad up the stairs and sit on cushions. Conversation that sounds light and feels bright is the only music in the room.

We put our elbows on the low tables. We meet Shanti, a former teacher, and she radiates peace. 

Later, we head downstairs as our cups are refilled. Shanti gives us red bracelets for luck, and we light sparklers in the street. Suddenly, everyone feels like family. We sit with the head chef, Kaseven, as he eats tandoori chicken. He tells his story: he was an investment banker and felt unfulfilled. His family had started a catering company, and a bit sheepishly, he said his mother told him to cook. He was hooked.  

After events, he would invite other workers to his home where they'd sit and talk, like we are doing, he says with a wave of his hand. He said everyone wants to belong, and it's what we do here. We recognize and appreciate our customers. 

He lets us peek into the kitchen to look at the Tandoor. We met Guvarth, a sweet and shy busboy who Kaseven says is a sly charmer.

The night slows, and as we step outside, I think of what Kaseven said is the meaning of lagnaa: come as you are. 

I was slightly hungover when I woke up and, thanks to the Body Rock routine yesterday, my legs had me hobbling around the condo.  I suppose that means it worked.  It made my gym visit this morning rather...interesting.  Fortunately it was a chest and back day.

After dinner last night I found myself heading out to Kawara Cafe and Bar to check out a show Bryan and Adrien were putting on.  They act as VJs, running a projection show, along side some DJs they're friends with. Adrien runs animation and and old movie clips that he lines up with the music and Bryan runs a program that creates graphics which are driven by the movements of people and the sound waves of the tracks being spun.  It's quite interesting.  It also makes for a good excuse to go out an have some fun.

We finished the night at 5 bar on Emerald Hill with soho martinis and chicken wings.

My afternoon was spent story boarding and convincing my computer it didn't want to overheat so I could continue to story board, all to the backdrop of the olympic games.  Phelps not making the podium in the 400m was rather shocking.  It was also surprising how biased the Singaporean commentary was during the events featuring S'porean athletes. I know you're always routing for your own country, but it was a bit ridiculous.  I don't recall it ever being quite so bad back in Canada.  The mens beach volleyball matches were the best watch on the day.  They do lack a certain je ne sais quoi when compared to the womens matches though.  John and Chris may disagree with me.

A bunch of us met at Lagnaa for Tiffany's birthday dinner this evening.  Convincing my legs to allow me to sit down was a challenge, but other than that it was a fun time.  Lots of laughs and good conversation.  Daniele and I got into a discussion over whether or not working out serves a purpose.  His standpoint is that working out serves no purpose in our modern society other than to increase universal entropy, thus slowly destroying the universe.  I obviously took the opposing standpoint, stressing health reasons and saying that he was taking a narrow view of things to further justify his reasons for not wanting to work out.  By the end everyone was involved and it because a rather interesting discussion.  I don't think Daniele managed to convince anyone to come over to his side.  I'm not sure why he needs such an elaborate reason to back up his not wanting to work out.  If he doesn't like to work out, then he doesn't like to work out.

Tonight our hard-nosed team of experts hit a tourist hot spot.

Lagnaa came highly recommended to me buy a number of people as the 'go-to' curry experience in Little India, and I had been wanting to hit it up for a while. It's #3 for on Wikitravels, and it kind of knows it. Needless to say, expectations were very high. Jess called Lagnaa a "concept" restaurant. You sit on the wooden floor, pick your spice level on a ladder from 1 (you're a wimp who probably shouldn't be eating curry, you big wimp) to 6 (Satan's eternal hellfire, and that's just your digestive system the next day). Though the curry ladder goes up to 10 (ominously marked by a skull), the chef only cooked curries up to grade 6. Let it be said, you would have to be on a death wish to order anything above a 4 - and I love spicy curry as much as the next lunatic.

We loved the community style concept of Lagnaa - where coming together over food is considered as important as the food itself. The hostess sits on the floor with you and talks about the menu. The curries spin on a lazy susan and our group bonded over our aching bodies as the wooden floor punished us for neglecting yoga. There's sign-up lists for Indian cooking classes and chilli challenges and birthday specials. Hundreds sign up for their monthly taste test, I'm told. Lagnaa has truely embraced its role as self-appointed curry ambassador to the many visitors to Singapore.

Lagnaa encourages guests to scrawl messages all over walls - check it out:

But the most important part to us curry purists is the quality of the food, so onward:

Chicken masala, grade 3. I thought it was hot, others thought I needed to harden up.

Prawn goa, grade 2. Prawns were really tender. Have had a couple of really sub-standard prawn curry experiences in Singapore, but these were really good. I guess my only complaint was that there weren't enough prawns!

Chicken and mushroom something. Quite mild but a really good curry.

Mattar paneer. Trying to live up the the lofty paneer of week 1, I ordered this but frankly it was average. You couldn't even taste the paneer because it was so finely chopped. The search for perfect paneer continues.

Garlic naan (forever and always): Some of the best naan we've had yet. I can't help but feel there's some type of naan turf war going on in Little India, in which I am quite happy to be a pawn.

The service and concept of Lagnaa was really great - a number of our group signed up to their mailing list, and they've already sent me a coupon to redeem a free bottle of wine for my birthday next month. I'm looking forward to taking one of their cooking classes soon. But (and there's a but), Lagnaa was let down by the quality of the food. It was good, but it just wasn't as authentic as many of Little India's other curry places - which is probably reflective of its tourist demographic and the lack of local custom.The food was a bit by the book, whereas some of the other curry I've had tasted like the fruition of decades of family recipes.

Ratings:

Service and restaurant concept: 5/5

Food: 3/5