It146;s a Pretty Room

Amid the designer boutiques and antique furniture stores sprinkled across Hauz Khas Village, a cafeacute; has opened doors.

The Living Room is cosy enough, though the deacute;cor, with autographed Cher shots, gets the better of the grub

Amid the designer boutiques and antique furniture stores sprinkled across Hauz Khas Village, a cafeacute; has opened doors. The Living Room: Cafeacute; 038; Kitchen, situated close to the popular south Indian restaurant Naivedyam, embraces all the quaint characteristics of the urban village it is tucked in. The stairway to its two-level setup is lined with flickering candles. A narrow path pecked with marble pebbles then leads you to a dimly lit diner that for one moment makes you wonder if you have mistakenly walked into someone8217;s living room, presumably a Bob Marley fan8217;s, with old reggae playing in the background.

Each table has its own idiosyncrasies, and the lamps hovering over each comes in varied shapes and sizes. The walls are plastered with autographed Polaroid shots of John Travolta, Robbie Williams, Kate Moss and Cher 8212; if you really like 8217;em, they can be yours for Rs 8,000 each.

The cafeacute;, set up by 30-something Gautam Aurora, opens early and rolls out a breakfast of smoked bacon, ciabatta and baked beans. For the other meals of the day too, the menu is mostly Continental, with bits of Moroccan, Italian and Spanish thrown in8212; a mishmash of pasta and lamb burgers, the Spanish prawn pil pil and salmon. The drinks menu lists hot coffees, chilled shakes and iced lattes.

We begin with a portion of lemon chicken soup Rs 150 that brings in a porcelain handi of steaming broth with slivers of spinach and spaghetti. Splitting a portion is not such a great idea here, since the soups just come up to a quarter of the serving bowl. We then dig into a serving of garlic chicken Rs 250, accompanied by hummus and several triangles of pita bread. Hummus is tasty but the four portions of chicken turn out to be quite bland. Either the kitchen plans to strictly cater to the spice-wary tourist8217;s palate or the chef simply forgot to season it. Spanish Potato Rs 200 is a bright, colourful platter with tuber rings simmered with red peppers. Pastas can be made to order, if you don8217;t like any of the six selections they list. We try spaghetti with minced meat, which turns out to be just right.

The restaurant is good with their brews and the coffee is a must-sip. We try Irish Cream Coffee Rs 90, a frothy, caffeinated full stop to our meal, while the ol8217; Jamaican whips up One Love.

Meal For two: Rs 1,000
Contact: 46080544
Location: 31 Hauz Khas Village