A New Hope

The jagged cave-like walls of the bar are dark chocolate brown and upon opening the doors,one is taken aback by the capaciousness. However,the stair-case is too narrow and the upstairs section is just asking for someone to try crowd-surfing from a height. While the prices are impressively reasonable (relatively),the cocktails aren’t particularly extensive and largely not up to the stratospheric mark. Sour Passion,simply passion fruit with vodka,is a keeper; Elderflower,while innovative,was polarising as the floral scent and flavour can overwhelm. We recommend staying away from Cross Fire,which is aptly named and flavourless; the best drinks are possibly the test-tube shots. The cigar selection is woefully inadequate,possibly in a bid to price them all below Rs 1,000.

The menu is eclectically western,more so than Indigo’s,with some aspects such as peach iced-tea jelly bordering on outlandish. The food is roughly very good,but the chef clearly loves pairing fat with sugar,which doesn’t always work. The foie gras with a duck burger on brioche were both excellent independently; the accompanying intense berry marmalade was as useful as Jar-Jar Binks. The octopus and chickpea starter from the bar was delightful,although it has a sweetish tinge. The mushroom and walnut tiramisu (made with gorgonzola mousse) was the only flawless starter. We suggest avoiding the polenta strudel,though,as it lacked character possibly due to the overly thick layer of polenta.

The star of the meal was the rawas with betel leaf; don’t get put off as there is only a harmless piece of paan leaf and the lemon butter is divine. The seared grouper with squid ceviche was lovely,but we would have preferred it without the peppers. We were suggested the agreeably mild green curry with soba noodles and cork cakes with pleasant results. The braised lamb shank was slightly disappointing as it could be more succulent and the barley biryani was just plain wrong. Dessert wasn’t spectacular; the dulce de leche ice cream with banana almond bread was the pick of the lot.

With Tote,deGustibus now has a slightly uptown base and a permanent showcase for the Movable Feast,their catering service. While it will always be compared with Indigo,we actually hope it exceeds it gastronomically; Indigo can be inconsistent. Tote has signed a lease with the RWITC that we are told is for 10-15 years; regardless of the lease,we predict Tote is here to stay.

Tote on the Turf,Mahalaxmi Race Course. Tel: 6157 7777. Meal for two approx. Rs 3,000