This Project is a Delicious Import from Mumbai to Delhi

Pizza is undoubtedly the favourite food of the millennials, and probably of the generation before and after! We all have our preferences from the cheesy and loaded Chicago style deep dish to the thin and flavourful Tuscan style pizzas. No matter what we choose, with all the cheese and carb overload we hardly ever associate pizza with weight-watchers! How about one that suits this all-important strata of restaurant-goers? Leggera pizzas, inspired by Naples’ classic fresella bread that is hollow in the center, allows enough room to add a refreshing salad to keep a healthy balance to this soul-satisfying dish. Chef Jerry Thomas has introduced this at Delhi’s newest import from Mumbai – The Runway Project.

Clockwise from Top Left: Leggera Pizza; Orange is the New Black
Baby K; Lust-Have Prawns.

Following a successful stint of The Project Series in Mumbai, The Runway Project has come to wow the capital with its trendy and trendsetting fare. Just as one witnesses seasonal collections on a designer’s runway, so will this venture by PizzaExpress feature a changing menu. On offer currently is the ‘Autumn-Winter 17-18 collection’ with dishes entitled The Micro Mini, Size 0, Wardrobe Malfunction, The Makeover, Red Carpet and so on that live up to its fashionable theme. The show window outside the restaurant actually showcases some of the latest fashion, hence tying in couture with the bar and kitchen.

“We definitely have a strong Italian backbone from PizzaExpress, but want to showcase Italian cuisine from around the world,” explains Chef Jerry. So while you have Calabrian style pizzas, the Leggera pizzas will have us going back for more. There is a wide range of toppings to choose from – pomodoro pesto to extra hot American, margherita with bufala to lamb meatball. For a change, we opted for pizza bianco or white pizza with alfredo sauce, truffle oil and blue cheese crumble. A good choice, this was complemented with a refreshing arugula and green apple salad in the center.

From the small plates, Baby K is a super hit! This vegan mousse is made with baby spinach, kale, walnuts and tofu, served with rosemary and sea-salt crackers, it is as delicious as it is healthy. Another trendy dish is Orange is the New Black. It’s a tuna salad with orange segments, olives, capers and a tomato aioli. The extensive list of mains will leave you spoilt for choice from halloumi and millefeuille to pork chops, pulled lamb and lamb shank. While the red carpet is a Norwegian salmon, SS18 is a sashimi-grade grilled tuna.

Vegetarians are well thought of with dishes like the Imitation – a delicious mock duck and spicy barley preparation – as well as eggplant stuffed fresh, warm ricotta and the flower arrangement which is a pretty plate with broccoli flowers, roasted shallot petals, charred leaves and feta espuma. Going by all that we sampled, this restaurant proves that quantity does not necessarily hamper quality, giving us enough reasons for repeat visits.

The cocktails too are Runway Chic.

Although the dessert menu is limited, with just three options when we visited, the list of cocktails matches the extent of the food on offer. From the show stopper to the blonde, the drinks are mixed well and served in chic styles.

Details: 

The Runway Project by PizzaExpress, 21A, 2nd Floor, Select City Mall, Saket, New Delhi 110017.

An edited version of this article first appeared on LivingFoodz.com on April 25, 2018.