From being known as 'Pot Pourri' to going 'Lemon Grass' and now rechristened as 'Lemon Leaf', This eatery has held that spot at the corner of Turner Road & Ambedkar Road for many years now.
So in the last week on one humid night went here for dinner with a few close friends. As usual, The place was packed for dinner but we 3 got a table just as we entered and i guess that was the only one that was empty. The AC enclosure was filled too so we didn't have much options. The outside was in fact not bad. The coolers at the either ends did a good job.
So food was ordered - Assorted Veg Dumpling Basket, Chicken Stir Fry with Sticky Rice & Thai Style Rice with Chicken. Mind you, out of these 3 orders only the Basket was listed on the menu and the other two were one offs made to order since i myself requested for a portion of rice and gravy in one dish which no restaurant is interested to serve. So if you're picky with the price while ordering customized dish you will be left guessing till the bill arrives. So the restaurant should make it clear that either we do not have such customization or come up with some kind of meal combos. Thus everyone is happy.
The outside dinning area at Lemon Leaf.
The order arrived. First one was the 2 tier Veg Dumpling Basket. Hard to decipher what was what, but the Spinach & Garlic filled one was my pick of the lot. Dumplings although freshly steamed did not pack much flavours. Very average fair. The Dips were the saving grace. So to be true, at 625 bucks this basket is steeply priced and not worth the money. Next was the my plate of Sticky Rice and Chicken Stir Fry gravy. It was served with a below average tasting salad. For some reason that salad was garnished with chopped coriander. That just kills the whole point of having a near authentic meal. The rice was great in texture and so was the stir fry on my plate. Portion size is quite neat too. Tasted a few spoons of the other rice dish which was more or less bland. Lightly stir fried rice with Chicken and chunks of Cabbage and few more veggies. It tasted well but not nothing i can rave and recommend others.
Overall this place is a miss in my books for now. It could well be that we went for just the average run-of-the-mill dishes from the menu. May be if the person in-charge was attentive to us and recommended us something worthy of trying from the mains this wouldn't be the story.
These 3 orders made up for 1789/- including taxes. Not bad but definitely i've had better Pan Asian cuisine at that price point.