Chili's Grill & Bar

Chili's Grill & Bar, Powai

This place shall forever hold a special place in my heart. Though I am not going to divulge the reason for this let's just say I have fallen in love with this place. Now a days, I don't seem to get what I want but you will not find me complaining because what I do get instead is infinitely more beautiful, making me one very happy girl. 

I have never been to Chili's before. Well, I have but the one in Bahrain and I am quite proud to say for a change that I don't have to say "but the one in Bahrain does it better" like most international restaurant chains. Even though I have made Mumbai my home and I refuse to go back to my home land, up till now, I keep talking about the food non-stop. But this place retains that charm. I don't know what my companion for the evening would have said but who cares, as long as you are happy!

I was too busy enjoying the evening to even bother with taking a few pictures of the place, so apologies for that. But this is almost like any standard American Diner with a few customizations here and there.

You know another weird thing that has happened to me in the recent past is that I don't feel as hungry as I used to. I have always defined my appetite as a deep well, because I am eating through out the day, but now? I eat a little and I feel like I have eaten so much. And that doesn't make me happy even a wee bit. My relationship with food is the most important one to me. Though, I think that wouldn't make my near and dear ones to be too happy, to put food above them.  So even here, my intake was limited to sharing a Burger meal and an appetizer with my friend and mock-tails on the side. The main item that I had my eyes locked on? I was too full to even try. It was my what the bloody hell moment! Though that makes sure that I will be paying visit again. Especially since, I had fallen in love with the Burger. When my friend had actually placed the order for it, I had made faces, like seriously avocado? That doesn't sound so interesting or appetizing and he had promised me that it ain't so and that that is probably their favorite kind of sauce there is. More faces. AVOCADO??!! Though I guess I had to eat my words because I kept stealing it from him and almost finished half of it. Probably, why I wasn't so hungry after that. One of the best meat I have had and somebody please just get me one now!! Oh, the burger's name? The Guacamole Burger. For dessert we had their special Molten Chocolate Cake which is probably available in all the countries they are present in. Warm gooey chocolate cake topped with cold ice cream, drizzled with chocolate sauce and when you cut open this mountain of chocolate, more warm chocolate sauce. It gives me warm fuzzy feelings just remembering it.

I am in dire need of some charity in the form of a burger and if you happen to feel charitable, then I wouldn't mind your generosity. You could always try it out for yourself as well, if that's what works for you. You will walk out happy.

WHAT WE HAD - Texas Cheese Fries (Yumness)

                           Guacamole Tenderloin Burger (I WANT ONE NOW!)

                           Molten Chocolate Cake (Warm Fuzzy Feelings)

                             

Note - We also had two mock-tails which I don't remember the name of but to be honest, all mock -tails feel more or less the same to me now.

DAMAGES  - Rs 2500/- Approx

WHERE - Chili's West & South India., 13, Ventura Building, Hiranandani Business Park, Central Avenue Road, Powai, Mumbai

Genuine Broaster Chicken, Mumbai

Genuine Bro-aster Chicken, Andheri

Its been a while since I have written up any review. But trust me when I tell you, I have been eating more than ever. It is only today that I have actually gotten a little breathing space at work as well. Else, I have been carrying work home as well. No complaints though, as long as what you do makes sense to you, which now a days does. Yahoo on that front. 

Yahoo on another front as well. Genuine Broaster Chicken has arrived in India and because my sister had made a short visit to Mumbai, I have been dragging her to explore places. Our love food is what binds us together. Though I feel super jealous of the fact that she manages to maintain the weight, meaning stays thin. She works had at that too. I wish I had that kind of perseverance. 

This place will remind you of a baseball club. There are helmets hanging from the ceiling and little bulbs lighted under them. Innovative there. Also, if you look up, the ceiling has sacks adorned all over. Makes for a pretty sight. The place is a little smaller than what I had expected but it's well done. 

Now a days I have started to find that a lot of restaurants have started to realize the importance of interacting with the customer. Or maybe because this place is new and they need to make that mark. Either ways, the service happens to be great. The staff knows their way around the menu and can give you suggestions depending on what you fancy having and suits your palette as well. 

Beginning with the starters, we had asked for the Genuine Broaster Chicken, because what's the point if you haven't tried what they are known for right?! I had wanted to try the cheese chicken pillows, which was out of stock unfortunately. So instead we had the Lucknowi Seekh and Smoked BBQ Franchos. All on Point. The broaster chicken is smaller in size and works more as an appetizer only. Though I was left wanting for more. Both the seekh kabab and BBQ fries were game on point. Within minutes the table was cleared because we jumped on the food. We had ordered for drinks - Iced Tea, Bulbul soda and chocolate milkshake. Bulbul Soda is your Mirinda infused with Caramel, innovative take. The chocolate shake could do with being a little more chocolatey. For the main course, my sister and friend went for their Burger range - Lamb Rogan Josh Burger & Peter Punjab Burger. Served with a side of fries both are filling and have the Indian infusion in it. I had a bite of both and each burger patty has distinctive taste which is also a little rare as in most places, it is the sauce that creates the distinction. So brownie points for that. I had ordered the Ghotala Khichdi which comprised mutton pieces, chicken pieces and fried egg mixed with rice and served with papad and dahi. Ah-mazing is what I would say it was. Also, the amount of protein used in these is on the higher side which tells you they are not stingy. Stay that way. 

I had also wanted to give a try to their Gulkand Muffin which was out of stock, unfortunately. This is where the points of improvement come in. There were 3-4 things that were out of stock. As a customer being told that is disappointing. It is a good thing that you are careful about stocks and not throwing away food at the end of the day. But we came in the evening, and I am guessing many would drop by after us as well because well Saturday evening are peaks hours. Also, I expected more from their actual broaster chicken menu in terms of variety. There should maybe be like breast pieces and stuff served with buns, greens, coleslaw, fries which makes it a complete meal. I had expected something along those lines as well. 

I will be back to try out a few more things that I missed out on this time. But genuinely speaking, this is a place you should drop by. There are many places that are innovating and reinventing their menu, but this place is one where they hit the right notes.

WHAT WE HAD - Genuine Broaster Chicken (Yummylicious)

                           Lucknowi Seekh (Da-Yum)

                           BBQ Franchoes (Game on Point)

                           Peter Punjab Burger (Yumness)

                           Mutton Rogan Josh Burger (Yumness)

                           Ghotala Khichdi (Game on Point)

                           Iced Tea

                           Chocolate Milkshake (A little more chocolate please)

                           Bulbul Soda (Kuch hatke and damn good)

DAMAGES - Rs 2200/- (Incl of Taxes, We were 3)

WHERE -  Broaster Chicken India., Shop 1 & 2, Tirupati Tower, Opp. Thakkar Sweet, Versova, Andheri (w)

Gallops, Mumbai

Well, in one of my friend's words - I now know where I will be giving my retirement party". This place has long been on my list. We have also made plans to head here many a times but they have always had to be reworked. It is the kind of place however I would head for very very special occasions as it tends to burn a hole in your pocket.

The one word that defines this place is royal. We have all seen Titanic, I would assume. Remember the dining halls and ball rooms on the Titanic. This place is well designed along those lines. I even felt a little like "I have come to the wrong place". Well, not wrong place but rather a misfit or an impostor. A little too classy. Not that there is anything wrong with it. It is just I don't generally head to places like these. A suggestion for anyone coming here would be to actually make it here for lunch rather than dinner to really take in the scenic beauty that this place is. I would have, only it is the month of Ramadan and it translates to eating only after sunset.

The service here is par excellence, very attentive. It is funny that way as just for water 3 from the wait staff including the manager (I think!) came asking us if we wish to have regular or mineral. I had at one point dropped the white napkin that they had provided. I didn't even realize that I had dropped it but I was immediately presented with a new one. Something to write about right. The servers were efficient and every time you picked the spoon to serve yourself were immediately by your side (Downside - I couldn't take pictures of the dishes served as well, it just didn't seem I could :( )

The zomato research told us that we just had to, had to order the dori kabab and we indeed did, and with that we also ordered Italian Grilled Chicken. The dori kabab has a thread fit on the outer area of the kebab which you need to remove or else you will be eating the thread as well (I have tried researching why a thread is used and didn't find the answer :/). The kebab is one of the softest juiciest piece of meat I have ever had and by itself is probably the best dish on their menu, they claim it themselves. The one appreciative thing here about the service is they tell you the name of the sauce they serve along side, otherwise I generally never know and always wonder what was that wonderful sauce I had. They had served pesto sauce with the italian grilled chicken. I don't know about Italian, but it was grilled to perfection. For the main course we all ordered different things, I guess the way to go would have been to order the Indian Main Course and not the Continental counterpart. I ordered chicken mexicana, one ordered the Ocean fried fish, the third ordered the Ham & Bacon Lasagna. In order for rating, the Lasagna comes first though I had not tried it for obvious reasons. My friend had rave reviews. The Ocean Fried fish was nothing spectacular, it is your general fish & chips and was good just not extraordinaire. They had served french fries to go with it. Here, I was a little disappointed as the french fries though not bad, it somewhere felt more home-made than the quality it should have been. The Chicken Mexicana was a rather disappointment. I guess it was more to do with the fact that I expected more in terms of taste and quality. This could easily be found in other comparatively cheaper restaurants as well. We had also ordered for garlic and herb rolls and they were FANTASTIC. I think I have a thing for bread, just smear it with butter, herbs, garlic and anything else for that matter and you are good to go. Now, I have kept the best for the last. One of my friends, ordered Keema-Pav. Who orders Keema Pav right? More like why do you want to spend 600 bucks on Keema Pav and I am still indecisive on whether it was worth the money, but it indeed was the best thing on the table. He had then ordered buttered naans to go with it as well 2 pieces of pav is not well, especially with the quantity they give of the keema (Easily serve 3!). The butter naans were heaven. It just melts in your mouth, is that soft.

Also, how can we forget dessert. The dessert that has been written about so many times in so many reviews, the very famous Jalebi Cheesecake. Sounds delicious right?! But it was a tad disappointing to me. The fusion of cheesecake and jalebi is good, I am not saying it isn't. However, the issue I found is that the cheesecake isn't exactly sweet. The reasoning for this is that they give you saffaron syrup to pour on top, which is to add the sweetness factor. Unfortunately, it doesn't do it's job. Just a little of this syrup and it is way too sweet for anyone's tastebuds. Also, the cheese cake on itself would have rated higher if it was just the right amount of sweet.

A classy place. If you have got a special day coming in, this could be your destination, you will not regret. Be prepared to splurge though.

WHAT WE HAD - Chicken Dori Kebab (Heaven)

                           Italian Grilled Chiken (Heaven)

                           Ham & Bacon Lasagna (Yumness Personified)

                           Ocean Fried Fish (Yum!)

                           Chicken Mexicana (Okayish!)

                           Keema Pav (Heavenly!)

                           Garlic & Herb Roll (Yumness)

                           Jalebi Cheesecake (Mixed Feelings)

DAMAGES - Rs 6300/- (Approx) (Inclusive of Alcoholic Drinks)

WHERE -  Gallops., Mahalaxmi Racecourse, Mahalaxmi, Mumbai

Sammy Sosa, Mumbai

SAMMY SOSA, Andheri

Some places are just so darn worth it! Another strike from the bucket list, and one that had been pre-planned for three months. If this didn't work out, or got canceled or something else came up, I would have been furious. I know that there are quite a few places in my bucket list. But we had already zeroed in on the date as a friend was flying from Delhi and this was planned for then.

I realize I enjoy food the most when there is some one who devours food equally, and more so if they are non-vegetarians. I have been meeting a lot of vegetarians lately and my close circle consists of them a bit too much to my liking (I love you guys but you know what I mean :P). When you hang out with a vegetarian crowd, 70-80% of the food on the table will be vegetarian whether you like/admit to it or not. It's a recent realization. Whereas, when you hang out with fellow non-vegetarian crowd, you will not find any trace of any greens or anything except for probably french fries. Come to think of it, it is we non vegetarians that end up compromising (Haan, theek hai kha lenge, hum toh sab kha sakte hain. How many times has this dialogue been repeated by a chicken lover??!!) This day, it was about two hard core non-vegetarians and one picky non-vegetarian a.k.a. my sis, meeting and sharing our joint loved for food so everything on the table was non-veg barring the drinks. What a feeling indeed. :D

This place is pretty small, a fine example of crammed spaces that is evident of this city, though it doesn't look so from the pictures put up on the internet. In terms of ambiance I would say it's a 3/5. I wasn't all that impressed with the interiors as such. They have attempted to use every possible space and it just ends up looking a bit too crammed up for my liking. However, I would give them full marks for hospitality. I say hospitality and not service, this was truly one of those rare places where I felt a star guest, if you are familiar with the concept of "Atithi Devo Bhava". They took into consideration every request made by us which is absolutely fantastic including our desire to be seated in a particular place (No, we are not one of those people who bring the place down if our whims and fancies are not met with :P). We would just be more comfortable with a little breathing space between us which they easily made available telling us that just give us about 15 minutes. So Kudos! Highly impressive. Also the manager/owner (I have no idea if he owned the place or not, but from the looks of it he probably did) addresses each person coming and takes the trouble to ensure they are actually comfortable, which is another reason why i would give them full marks.

It's all about the food, so let's get talking about it. For beginners we had initially pre-planned on ordering the Nachos - names in the menu as Sammy's Tostatada which is a magnanimous portion of nachos which has everything nachos have plus chicken ham and then baked with cheese. Yes, we know. That's exactly how we felt. But the guy attending to us actually told us that he would not recommend it, not because it isn't great but because the portion is on the higher side and the 3 of us will not be able to finish it. We looked at each other, and went is it really that huge that between the 3 of us we will not be able to finish it and so we went for the downsized version of it called the Texas Nachos which is the same thing only less in portion. It was as good as promised. Only thing? We were left wanting for more and realized they under estimate our appetite. We could have definitely had more but that can only be judged better if we have the mammoth portion. For drinks I went for my regular peach iced tea (I have stopped experimenting in this department, unless and until something different catches hold of my attention). My sister went for the Strawberry Margarita and it was Ah-Mazing infused with actual strawberries and the friend went for the Mojito with mint and lime which was refreshing. For the mains we each ordered ourr own favorite, mine was the Boatman's dream - a mexican dish made with prawns (My absolute favorite. I really wasn't expecting a huge portion for 430 bucks to be frank - like 10 king sized prawns with a huge serving of rice - heavy would be the word to describe, the buttons of your shirt might just pop out after eating this. I however am not complaining. I loved every bit of it. Hot, spicy, zesty are some of the adjectives I can think of while describing this particular dish. I havn't felt this satisfied after having my food in quite some time. My sister went for the Grandma's Lasagna which in her own words " is the best lasagna she has had in Mumbai till date". The balance of the sauce, the cheese, the chicken, the pasta sheets is just perfect creating a medley of flavors that words fail to describe. I don't often order a lasagna, as I always find it to be full of just chicken and cheese and I prefer a little balance, but I will say that I almost wish I had ordered this. The friend in question, order for herself Santa Fe Chicken, another mexican delight. If you are a chickenatarian - consider this your wish granted. I have to given a special mention to the potato wedges served as a side to this sizzling dish, out-of-this world. I believe the world is divided into two kinds of people - the ones that like potato wedges and the others who prefer french fries. Not that you can't like both. But you will always like one a little more. Me? I am a potato wedges person and this place has the best potato wedges I have tried till date. 

Their menu is extensive and I actually wish to head back soon, to try their other offering because this place truly deserves high rank for the quality and taste of food that they bring out. You need need need to pay visit here. AH-MAZING is what it is. There is not one thing, that I could say lacked something anything in flavor. They will go to the extent of understanding how you like your food prepared.

WHAT WE HAD - Texas Style Nachos ( Redefining Yum)

                           Grandma's Lasagna ( Redefining Yum)

                           Santa fe Chicken ( Redefining Yum)

                           Boatman's Dream (Redefining Yum)

                           Strawberry Margarita (Yumness!)

                           Peach Iced Tea (Refreshing)

                           Mint and Lime Mojito (Refreshing)

DAMAGES - Rs 2700/- , approx. incl. of taxes ( Rs 550 as Taxes, taken as a pinch of salt but the only thing that got me thinking - I am paying 20-25% as taxes, and that is more than just a pinch of salt) 

WHERE -  SAMMY SOSA RESTAURANT., Shop 18, Meera CHS, Near Mega Mall, Oshiwara Link Road, Oshiwara, Andheri (W), MUMBAI

TGI FRIDAYS, MUMBAI

Nostalgia is what I feel about this place. During my Post Graduation Days, I think I used to drop in here at least once a month. It had become my "Adda" as they call it. One would think why I would fancy the place when I am a teetotaler. The Food! One of the rare places that serves a mean steak or should I say used to before the unpopular ban of Beef in this wonderful state of ours. But never the less, this is one place that lives up to my expectations when it comes to their food counter as well. 

Our first option for the day was actually Cafe Mocha, which has altogether stopped serving Alcoholic Drinks and even though it did not matter to me, my companion on the day wanted to down a beer or two and TGI's being in the same place, I could not turn it down. It is still the same and has the same vibes as it did then, even more livelier probably because it was still Happy Hours. Its been forever since I have entered a place during Happy Hours. By the time I leave office and reach anywhere, the good hours come to an end and have to pay full price. Actually, it does not matter much because I anyways pay full price as happy hours are mostly designed for those who like to drink. But never the less, Its always nice getting in at the time because of all the buzz you feel around you.

Designed like a Sports Bar in the 70's probably. At least I for one feel like it pays an ode to the 70's. It is done up in hues of red, I am charmed by the color red I guess, it adds an edge I have always felt and most places that are high on my rating list are done up in red including Red Box, The Unites Sports and even TGI's. 

Though you keep having to bring to the attention of the servers that you indeed require service, I would not put down their service. Its quite the contrary, I would say they manage well because there is not a single table that is not already occupied on the weekend and even in these circumstances, as soon as you call out for some one, they ensure that your are attended to without any delay, and if no one is available, the manager himself comes down to your table. So all in all, I have always believed service here to be above par. This is the only place that I have come across where the servers take a round at all the tables just as happy hour is to end, if they would want something else off the offers before the clock strikes 8.30! 

Since it was happy hours, we ordered almost everything off the Happy Hours Menu because hey! who does not like discounts :P So a mocktail for myself at Rs 77 only (cheapest I have had!) and King Fisher Premium for my friend and some starters, all of the happy hours menu which includes 2 plates of chicken pyramid, 1 chicken skewers and 1 Potato canapes. I think we ordered so many starters only because they mostly came at half price. The chicken pyramids are actually what we plainly called chicken samosas, at first when they serves samosas, I was disappointed, I mean you said chicken pyramids, this is cheating but then 1 bite and I was more than happy. So much that another plate was ordered for. The Potato canapes I was not a big fan of, it seemed liked baked spicy potatoes and I would have preferred wedges to it. I have a soft corner for potato wedges. The chicken skewers however were my favorite of them all and a winner, served on sticks, it was mildly spiced and was simply wow! A cross over between Indian and Continental is how I would put it (Also at Rs 77! such a steal, I tell you!) Since we had had a lot of starters, we ordered just one main course, because the one thing that makes me respect the place is that they are not stingy in their servings, probable because its an American outlet and the difference I find between Europe and America is that Americans are generous with their portions, the Europeans not so much ( Please don't beat me up if you think I am wrong :P I just say what I have observed in my experience). Since the menu had not been updated and The Steaks were still on the menu, I for a nano second felt maybe they are one of those rare places that is still serving Beef (as I think they should!) but when we asked, we were told that they don't which led to long faces on our end because if you are a beef-eater, you would know that this places whips up some of the best steaks and burgers in town. But alas! we make did with Sizzling Chicken Mexicali which was not bad but could have been better. I don't know if it was because I had come in with the expectation of steak, but though I enjoyed it, I would not repeat the same the next time I stepped in here. The sizzling cheese and the rice with mexican flavors were like a match made in heaven but the chicken breasts were just a little bit dry. They need to work on that.

The only thing that I really hope they change is their Taxes. Our Billing came upto 1600 Rs originally and all the taxes were around 400 Rs, 25% as taxes??!!You have got to be kinder to your customer.

All in All, chill, take it easy and for the next IPL match, land here simply because it is a good place to do so. The awesome offers on the Happy Hours help quite a lot. 

WHAT WE HAD - 1. Chicken Pyramids (Yum!)

2. Mini Potato Canapes (Not something to write home about!)

3. Spicy Chicken Skewers (Leaves you wanting for more!)

4. Sizzling Chicken Mexicali (Good!) 

5. November Breeze (Mocktail, Okay!)

TIP - Don't order Pastas and Pizzas when you step here, eat what the Americans would and you will not regret it. 

DAMAGES - Rs 2000/- Approx (Including drinks & Vat)

WHERE - Ground Floor, R City Mall, LBS Marg, Ghatkopar (W) - MUMBAI