Curry and caviar at Mumtaz

Thought to be the first of its kind in the UK, Mumtaz Director Rab Nawaz has scoured the globe to find the perfect king of caviars to appear on the newly-revamped Mumtaz menu.

Rab took ownership of the former Mumtaz restaurant on Leeds Dock earlier this month, following a four year hiatus when it was managed by an independent third party.

Originally opened by Mumtaz in March 2009, the restaurant enjoyed a lavish £3.3m fit out. The 250-seat, 10,000 sq ft restaurant – one of the largest in Leeds – changed its name to Chandeliers in 2012 following the transfer.

However, the story of Mumtaz in Leeds was far from over and four years on Rab bought back the restaurant, revitalising the interior and remodelling the menus to suit the modern diner.

He has now partnered with one of the world’s leading caviar producers to bring the world’s first organic Caviar de Riofrío to a UK restaurant for the first time.

“Caviar de Riofrio was brought to the culinary world’s attention by Gordon Ramsey and I know both Harrods and Fortnum & Masons are currently extremely

interested in this caviar. We hope it will bring a truly unique flavour to Mumtaz Leeds.”

He added: “Caviar is sometimes seen as an acquired taste but it isn’t as expensive or inaccessible as many would think. I wanted to bring something very different to the table at Mumtaz Leeds and our new tasting menu will allow both connoisseurs and newcomers to enjoy this amazing delicacy.”

Caviar de Riofrio is created in the crystalline waters of the Río Frío (Cold River) in Andalusia. The water springs from the depths of the mountain rocks just a few meters from the facilities where the sturgeon to swim and thrive. These clean, cold and pure waters are unpolluted and the water is then returned to the river in perfect condition following a purifying process – all leading to its certified organic status.

This particular species require six or seven years just to be able to distinguish if they are male or female. Then, the females are separated. It then takes a further nine years for them to grow and mature, where the valuable caviar can be extracted.

As well as the top of the range Caviar de Riofrío, Mumtaz Leeds will also stock a selection of other distinctive caviars from around the world to suit different palates and price brackets. The team are planning to host monthly Caviar & curry tasting events. It will be by advance bookings and limited numbers.

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