The grand finale of the ongoing 18th anniversary celebrations of Wasabi by Morimoto at the Taj Mahal Palace proved to be a bit of a dampener, with the eponymous chef not being able to make it to Mumbai, it is believed, due to a delay in the processing of his visa.
The legendary Masaharu Morimoto, who launched Wasabi, the first restaurant in India to offer contemporary Japanese cuisine in August 2004, was scheduled to create an omakase menu for patrons over the weekend. The omakase (the Japanese concept of letting the chef decide what you should eat) prepared by Morimoto was expected to be the crescendo of the month-long celebrations, which saw the introduction of a new menu by chefs Shimomura Kazuya and Atusi Kohara.
According to the Taj, Wasabi regulars and Morimoto fans, who signed up for the ₹20,000 experience, were refunded the booking amount as soon as it became clear that the chef would not be able to keep his date with Mumbai. Morimoto, who runs 17 restaurants across the world, is now expected to be in the city in either November or December.