The restaurant is famous for its exquisite and, more often than not, eccentric menu. They offer such shocking dishes as Jellyfish Mesoglea, Tapir testicles, Venice fly trap, filled with spiders, and many more. “We are very excited to present our new entry. It’s a traditional Mumbai dish from the Malabar Hill, Hanging Gardens Grass,” shared Pierre Dumont, the owner, with visible exaltation. With a high pitched voice, he continued explaining how he came to the decision to offer grass as a 120 Euro salad:
“Well, I went to Mumbai on business, and I reserved a small hotel near Malabar Hill. During my morning jog, I decided to get to know the area a bit better, so I took a different path every day. One day I crossed through Hanging Gardens, where on the lush green fields of the park, people were sitting and eating. But they were not eating sandwiches or burgers, but the grass. Since that day, I always went for a jog there, and every morning it was the same thing. Around 7:30-8:00, people would come down from their apartments, get down on their knees, and start chewing the grass. I was sure it must be something extraordinary. One day I tried it, and I personally didn’t find anything appealing in it. But since so many people eat it every morning, I don’t have a choice, but to believe it’s something special,” the French entrepreneur explained.
He elaborated that he took some grass seeds and grew them in the same conditions that they were grown in Mumbai. Now when his first harvest came to pass, the restaurant is ready to offer it.
Meanwhile, our team went to Hanging Gardens, asking some locals about the grass. “Nothing special about it, I guess,” said one citizen. A member of the maintenance team explained, “It’s the same grass as anywhere else. There is nothing special about it whatsoever.”
Unsatisfied with the answers, we went back the following morning to meet the people who eat it. At 7:30, the first person came down to the garden and started his morning routine. The other people didn’t seem to bother him at all. We asked the local why he and his neighbors are eating the grass.
“Well, we haven’t got time to prepare fresh breakfast, we don’t have any fresh products, and neither shops nor bakeries are open at this time, so the grass is our only option. But, hey, breakfast is breakfast. And it works wonders with the gastrointestinal tract,” the man replied.
The French restaurant will serve the Hanging Garden Grass as a morning salad. One portion will be precisely 120 Euro. If you are not ready to go to France and sell your liver on the black market so you can afford a plate of grass, you are always welcome to Hanging Gardens to graze from the source.