Toscano, Lavelle Road (4/5)

Was catching up with my best buddy who was visiting from Bombay. He was one of my early food companions and together we have conquered several cities. Considering his fascination for Italian fine dining decided to take him to Toscano. 

Ambience (4.5/5)

This place has one of the best outdoor ambience in UB CIty- is my personal favourite. I have heard live performance are their highlight and unfortunately for us, we were visiting on a weekday. 

The restaurant was kinda packed and mostly filled with expats and foreigners. They have an extensive selection of wines and I am assuming that could be the reason. 

Pricing (3.5/5) 

Surely overpriced but the food quantity makes you think otherwise. We were full just with the starters and thats commendable considering our appetites.  

Service 

No qualms about their service. 

Food (3/5)

I ordered for a chicken starter and was looking for guidance from the staff. Was particular on not wanting to eat fried food and mentioned the same to them. My order was lost in dialogue and was served a chicken nuggets kind of dish. It was served with french fries and two dips. Tasted quite ordinary. 

Our other starter was a veg hand tossed pizza bread (four cheese piadana and oregano). This was dry and bland - did not completely suit my Indian palate. 

Dessert (4/5)

Chocolate kahlua mousse in almond tuile creme anglaise:

The kahlua mousse was amazing and the almond tuile was possibly the best crust to mount it on. The let down for me was however the creme anglaise. It pulled down what could have otherwise been a perfect dish by a few notches. 

Mocktail (5/5)

Mango zombie - easily one of the best mango mocktails I have ever had. Its a delight to watch the frozen mango puree melt and blend with the crushed ice. 

Though the food orders went wrong, I believe it is not fair to judge based on just their starters. Hence rating them 0.5 higher.

La Cucina, Kilpauk (2.5/5)

A bunch of my foodie friends were raving so much about the food at La Cucina that I was compelled to try it out during my recent visit home. 

Food (2/5)

1. Ferrero rocher shake- Since I had my lunch not too long before the visit, I ordered myself a ferrero rocher shake to start with. My initial thoughts on the drink was very positive but as I had more of it, I felt it was too creamy and sweet. Also, I have a very low tolerance towards the presence of ice cubes in milkshakes and this made this a poor order for me.

2. Some veg thin crust pizza

The restaurant took the word 'thin crust' way too seriously. The crust was wayyy too thin and that killed what could have otherwise been a good pizza. 

3. White sauce pasta

The pasta was cheesy but flavourless otherwise. 

The restaurant serves only vegetarian and thats another motivation dropper for me. 

Service (3.5/5)

The staff were friendly and reasonably quick with their service. They dropped in to know our feedback and seemed genuinely interested in customer views. 

Pricing (3/5)

Pricing is moderate 

Ambience (3/5)

When I entered first there was a bunch of kids celebrating one of their birthdays. Was way too noisy that I decided to get back in half an hour. When I revisited, the floors were strewn with burst balloons and party poppers. 

Considering the above as an exception the interiors are done up well. Their lighting is dim and the pull down hanging lights is something I haven't seen in other restaurants (interesting!). There is a lot of empty space in the outlet and this is something they could work on - more tables perhaps. 

Parking - The parking space seemed adequate for just one car; however, the restaurant offers valet parking to its customers.

Eatalica, R.A Puram (2.5/5)

Was here for dinner with a bunch of foodies. Having studied in Loyola this is a place that was quite prominent and accessible from college (that was their second branch which is no longer open). In all of the last decade of their existence I have visited both their outlets exactly once each and both these experiences have not been something I enjoyed. Considering the same I was slightly reluctant to revisit; nonetheless, the restaurant proved to be a mixed bag with few dishes proving the revisit was not too bad after-all.

Ambience (3/5)

They have done an internal renovation and the new look of the place is definitely more attractive. But if I were to judge I would say its just a simple outlet adorned with superhero and comic character pictures and logo'ish designs.

Service (3.5/5)

The management was actively involved in service and it was quite prompt. They were running a full house so the order took a short while longer to be served.

Pricing (3/5)

The food was moderately priced. If you ask me was whether it was VFM- I would say maybe not 100%.

Food (2/5)

Most of the dishes are inspired by Hollywood movies. stars, singing icons, etc. There was a lot that was ordered on the table but I am rating purely based on my orders.

1. Jeniffer cupriati - an oregano chicken soup - thick white soup with few chunks of chicken. Tasted ok!

2. Ethan Hawke - spicy chicken wings

Probably the worst wings I have had in recent times. The wings were burnt fried and sauce was salty.

3. Maria carey - mixed chicken sub - the sandwich was presented well and was quite filling. However, one of the layers of chicken was too rubbery/chewy and hard to bite (assuming it was roast chicken ham).

The french fries that accompanied was totally sub-standard.

Unlikely that I would revisit.