This is my second visit to this much talked about, gone so-many-times-that-people-don't-even-want-to- talk-about-it place :-D. But what has given me the confidence to write about it is the relative ignorance of my friends living abroad to good eating joints in Chennai when they come down for a visit. Perhaps this post will help them narrow down their eating options.
Bombay Brasserie (BB) is a part of M Mahadevan's long list of restaurants. He is the man behind Hot Breads and subsequently of other successful restaurants which he partnered with others in order to diversify and thereby create job opportunities to people. Oriental cuisines will resonate with people as it has all fabulous eateries under its umbrella - Zara, Benjarong, Ente Keralam, French Loaf, Wang's Kitchen, Teppan, Planet Yumm. His latest endeavour, The Writer's Cafe which I have not yet got the opportunity to visit, employs burn victims. The man is known for his Midas touch, and not all of it seems to have come due to luck. Word is that he is a stickler to good quality food and makes it a point to eat in any of his restaurants almost everyday. Tough job, but I am sure a lot of people would kill to get a chance to fill in his shoes.
S loves a good kebab and naan lunch/dinner and so this Valentines' for want of a place to simply hang out, we chose the quiet luxury of this restaurant. Luxury, because it is not really cheap but was definitely lesser than some options we had in mind. Luxury, also because it is so hard to come across a nice warm welcoming eatery these days. The previous time I had been there was when I had a lovely girls lunch in honour of a friend who had dropped in from US.
On both occasions, I was happy to note that the service and the food did not disappoint. I have mused over this conundrum of service vs food in one of my earlier blogs and had hardly reached a definite conclusion of which option made people visit often. This blog post too, wouldn't help much I think, considering the service was mention worthy and the food is worth many more visits.
Ambiance: Superlative. I think that alone should gain marks for this place. It is situated in a leafy, tranquil part of College road, just next to the famous Marina (also Mahadevan's in partnership with Sunil Kapur). I love places with greenery and this one has some lush green plants in the waiting area - making people predisposed to waiting out their turn. There is this beautiful glass house surrounded by thick foliage and it has an air cooler which means you find yourself eating in a cool, jungle. The seating inside too has a good feel to it and you get a direct view of their open kitchen.
Food: All that I ordered on both my visits were yummy. I have read some not-so happy reviews of certain items on Zomato and I hope between this blog and the reviews there one can avert any disappointing eating experience. The place serves North Indian (Punjabi, Maharashtrian) and some Indian specialties (Bengali, Andhra, Goan) - so there are limited options in the menu but there is a popular representative from different parts of India that has defined Mumbai's cuisine.
We dove right into the Grills and Barbecue menu as it sounded very appetizing. So S and I ordered a Panch Mirch Ka Paneer and Murgh Sola Kebab. Both were very good, but the Chicken was absolutely mouth watering. This is the second time I was getting lucky ordering Murgh Sole Kebab. I think there is something about the marinade that really gives it an edge.
In my previous visit to BB I had tried their Nizami Seek Kebab. It was so smooth, melt in the mouth and just that bit spicy. A must try.
We settled for Butter Naans and Romali Roti with Dum ke kali dal for our mains, as we had indulged in two grills. I have mentioned in TripAdvisor perhaps, no other place can beat Kala dal as is made in Chola Sheraton (now My Fortune Hotel). So this one fell short for me, albeit it is a reasonably good side dish for the flavourful kebabs. But the piece de resistance was the Kheema Mughlai Paratha. It was pure poetry of flaky paratha with spiced, minced meat inside. I could have eaten only that and I would have written a review expresso! It was that good. We skipped the desert and I deliberately kept away from their Thirst Quenchers as I was not particularly impressed with the one I drank. But S ordered a Chaas and it was nice! I remember their Mutton Biriyani to be good too but did not even attempt ordering any rice this time as we were quite full with the kababs.
Service: Close on the heels of food quality. The service is personal and attentive. I had the same waiter wait on me on both occasions and I was happy. He was a nice chap and the others too were quick and helpful.
Value for money: Yes, I think. The portion sizes are good and so are the pieces in the kebab - they are juicy and succulent. Had a chat today with a couple of friends who had been there many times. They were totally unimpressed by the meat platter and the portion size. If you order for two, you can be sure it will be just about right for 3 people. We paid around 1500 INR for the two of us inclusive of all taxes (oh the taxes!). Though it was a bit heavy on the pocket, I didn't mind shelling it out for the attentive service and the good food.
Address: No. 3, College Lane, Nungambakkam, Chennai
Average meal for 2 - INR 1500
Bombay Brasserie (BB) is a part of M Mahadevan's long list of restaurants. He is the man behind Hot Breads and subsequently of other successful restaurants which he partnered with others in order to diversify and thereby create job opportunities to people. Oriental cuisines will resonate with people as it has all fabulous eateries under its umbrella - Zara, Benjarong, Ente Keralam, French Loaf, Wang's Kitchen, Teppan, Planet Yumm. His latest endeavour, The Writer's Cafe which I have not yet got the opportunity to visit, employs burn victims. The man is known for his Midas touch, and not all of it seems to have come due to luck. Word is that he is a stickler to good quality food and makes it a point to eat in any of his restaurants almost everyday. Tough job, but I am sure a lot of people would kill to get a chance to fill in his shoes.
S loves a good kebab and naan lunch/dinner and so this Valentines' for want of a place to simply hang out, we chose the quiet luxury of this restaurant. Luxury, because it is not really cheap but was definitely lesser than some options we had in mind. Luxury, also because it is so hard to come across a nice warm welcoming eatery these days. The previous time I had been there was when I had a lovely girls lunch in honour of a friend who had dropped in from US.
On both occasions, I was happy to note that the service and the food did not disappoint. I have mused over this conundrum of service vs food in one of my earlier blogs and had hardly reached a definite conclusion of which option made people visit often. This blog post too, wouldn't help much I think, considering the service was mention worthy and the food is worth many more visits.
Ambiance: Superlative. I think that alone should gain marks for this place. It is situated in a leafy, tranquil part of College road, just next to the famous Marina (also Mahadevan's in partnership with Sunil Kapur). I love places with greenery and this one has some lush green plants in the waiting area - making people predisposed to waiting out their turn. There is this beautiful glass house surrounded by thick foliage and it has an air cooler which means you find yourself eating in a cool, jungle. The seating inside too has a good feel to it and you get a direct view of their open kitchen.
Food: All that I ordered on both my visits were yummy. I have read some not-so happy reviews of certain items on Zomato and I hope between this blog and the reviews there one can avert any disappointing eating experience. The place serves North Indian (Punjabi, Maharashtrian) and some Indian specialties (Bengali, Andhra, Goan) - so there are limited options in the menu but there is a popular representative from different parts of India that has defined Mumbai's cuisine.
We dove right into the Grills and Barbecue menu as it sounded very appetizing. So S and I ordered a Panch Mirch Ka Paneer and Murgh Sola Kebab. Both were very good, but the Chicken was absolutely mouth watering. This is the second time I was getting lucky ordering Murgh Sole Kebab. I think there is something about the marinade that really gives it an edge.
In my previous visit to BB I had tried their Nizami Seek Kebab. It was so smooth, melt in the mouth and just that bit spicy. A must try.
We settled for Butter Naans and Romali Roti with Dum ke kali dal for our mains, as we had indulged in two grills. I have mentioned in TripAdvisor perhaps, no other place can beat Kala dal as is made in Chola Sheraton (now My Fortune Hotel). So this one fell short for me, albeit it is a reasonably good side dish for the flavourful kebabs. But the piece de resistance was the Kheema Mughlai Paratha. It was pure poetry of flaky paratha with spiced, minced meat inside. I could have eaten only that and I would have written a review expresso! It was that good. We skipped the desert and I deliberately kept away from their Thirst Quenchers as I was not particularly impressed with the one I drank. But S ordered a Chaas and it was nice! I remember their Mutton Biriyani to be good too but did not even attempt ordering any rice this time as we were quite full with the kababs.
Service: Close on the heels of food quality. The service is personal and attentive. I had the same waiter wait on me on both occasions and I was happy. He was a nice chap and the others too were quick and helpful.
Value for money: Yes, I think. The portion sizes are good and so are the pieces in the kebab - they are juicy and succulent. Had a chat today with a couple of friends who had been there many times. They were totally unimpressed by the meat platter and the portion size. If you order for two, you can be sure it will be just about right for 3 people. We paid around 1500 INR for the two of us inclusive of all taxes (oh the taxes!). Though it was a bit heavy on the pocket, I didn't mind shelling it out for the attentive service and the good food.
Address: No. 3, College Lane, Nungambakkam, Chennai
Average meal for 2 - INR 1500
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