“If you look at Indian restaurants in Australia ten years ago, most people only thought of them as takeaway joints, but it’s changing now,” says Mani Waraich. Originally from Punjab, he knows what he’s talking about: he owned Babu Ji and Piquancy, two Melbourne Indian restaurants, for a few years, and has just opened his latest establishment, Elichi.
Things are a bit different at Elichi (pronounced eh-lychee). Firstly, it’s just outside of Melbourne, by the beach, in Black Rock. Secondly, there’s a strong focus on local ingredients and, thirdly, Waraich has enlisted Punit Fernandes as head chef, who trained at Rockpool Bar & Grill and was an Australian-Pacific finalist for the San Pellegrino Young Chef of the Year Award.
Both men share a hunger for Indian food that goes way back. As a child, Waraich spent a lot of time on his grandparents’ farm. “My grandma cooked really delicious food for the whole family. That’s how she found happiness, when people would come to eat, have fun and laugh,” recalls Waraich. “I have that in me. I don’t like cooking for myself, I find it boring; but if I have friends over, I love it.”
For Fernandes, who hails from Mumbai, the love of food came from his mum. She’d make him wake up early to study for school. “But I’d always fall asleep on the couch, so she’d make me come in the kitchen to keep an eye on me. She’d be making breakfast and I was wondering how does she make chapati so round and so perfect?” he says.
What’s on the menu?
Elichi’s menu is divided into two main parts, “snacks/street tour” and “traditional”. The traditional section is where you’ll find trusted dishes like lamb Madras, butter chicken and dhal. The street section is where Fernandes’ creativity shines.
Waraich had one request for him: to pay respect to the land by marrying Australian native and local ingredients with Indian flavours. It means that instead of serving pappadums with a mint dip, they come with Davidson’s plum chutney, and the pani-puri contains finger lime.
My grandma cooked really delicious food for the whole family. That’s how she found happiness.
A yoghurt emulsion accompanies the tandoori chicken, Fernandes’ favourite. “If you have a bit of spice, of heat, you want something to mellow it down, but it shouldn’t be heavy, it should be nice, light and airy,” he says.
The beloved samosa also has been revisited with a spiced potato mousse piped into the shell.
Most of the menu is gluten-free, even the naan. Vegetarians will also have plenty of choices with dishes like roasted Jerusalem artichoke chaat and mushroom kebab. On Tuesday nights, there will be a special on vegetarian and vegan dishes.
It’s no surprise that Fernandes can push the boundaries of Indian cuisine. But the main draw for Waraich is not so much his chef’s brilliant CV, but how invested he is in Elichi. “I’ve always been told that good people are like the branches of a tree and ordinary people are like leaves, they’re seasonal, they come and go. He looks to me like a branch,” he says.
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6 Bluff Rd, Black Rock, Vic
Daily 5:30 pm – 10 pm
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