Goddy's - The Entertainment Cafe!

Goddy's is a new resto cafe that has emerged in the ever happening Nungambakkam area in a complex off Haddows Road. The outlet is done up nicely and looks sporty and elegant. There are some couches to sit upon, a space for jams and open mic arena. It is believed that it will soon be a music cum food cafe with music being belted out by various bands in the evening hours.

Another point to note about this cafe is that it is open throughout the day starting as early as 7 in the morning. There's plenty of breakfast options in store apart from a very large main course as well as a dessert variety. They have 3 different menus with one each being reserved for starters, main course and desserts. It is stacked up with items aplenty. You are really put on a quandary with the varied spread running into pages and pages.

We were here during a sub afternoon time to savour in some breakfast as well as lunch options. The food was largely good with no real complaints. We tried a couple of avocado based toasts with one being the Californian bunched up with corn and Bell peppers. The other one was termed 'Avacadough' submerged with hard boiled eggs sprinkled with salt & pepper over a bed of avacado spread. Both of these were thoroughly enjoyable. With respect to the starters the cheesy bread pockets were of the melt in the mouth kinds. We also had a shot at four versions of their fries with all proving to be delicious with the honey chilli fries especially claiming top stake. They also gave a number of dips of various kinds which made the French fries eating experience all the more better. On the eggs side, the sunny peekaboo was slurpy to say the least with the eggs being super fluffy with the yolk right at the center.

In the main course, we tried the baked mac'n'cheese. This was well done up stuffed with a pop corn mixture spread over the pasta to give it a crunchy twist. The item of the day for me was however the mushroom pocket waffle. This was lip smacking to say the least with the waffles being engulfed with a rich creamy mushroom sauce.

On the dessert section, I tried my bit at a refresher popsicle which came interspersed with plenty of fruits. It was icy and decent but not something to take your breath away. The red velvet pancake was soft and juicy. A mock tail which we had with a tinge of coconut cream was kind of bitter. The cherry milk shake however was very well delivered and they got the taste bang on. We ended our sojourn with a binging waffle called the Dutch storm. It was of the bubble kind and loaded with chocolate enswirled on all sides making it truly a delectable delicacy.

All in all the majority of items seemed impressive. The pricing is a little on the higher side. The service needs to get a little quickened up as we had to wait a long period of time to receive our dishes. On the whole however it has a peppy sportive atmosphere and with music being central to the theme it gives itself an appearance of being a pretty happening themed cafe.

Melting Pot - Magnanimous Sunday Buffet!

The Sunday brunch at Melting Pot, Intercontinental can be considered hands down one of the best buffets I've ever encountered. It virtually had everything you could think of and much more. They had literally laid out a feast for the food craving denizen in all it's splendour. Consuming this kind of a spread also requires some carefully worked out strategy as there is just so much on the table and you're completely spoilt for choice.

I wouldn't go in to the specifics of each of the items as it would end up being a thesis but instead will highlight a brief on some of the stand out stellar stars of the day. One counter which caught our attention happened to be the 'Mediterranean' where they had stacked it up with various hummus dips ranging from the usual plain one to a beetroot based to a spinach slurp to a cream cheese layered to so many more and all of em which I had a shot tasted absolutely jaw dropping. Even the pita breads were of different kinds and they did full justice to the region of Mediterranean by bringing out the best of each of the nations. Also it was beautifully presented with some nice diagrams showcasing a culinary trail.

Another area where they lorded big time was on the continental front. This was a sumptuous feast of epic proportions. I tasted perhaps the best ravioli I've ever had and it was not just one version but a couple of varieties with cheese floating along like a marmalade and the pockety pieces of pasta floating on a deck of cheese sauce both of the red and white variety with cream and herbs infused was just simply out of the world. On the baked section, the Lasagne was a total stunner. Softish squares in a prancing red sauce was simply sinister (pun intended). The Mac'n'cheese pasta was enveloped with cheese flowing from all sides like an avalanche and even the most hard core cheese lover would be taken by surprise with the way it was melting along with gay abandon.

The Indian side of things was no less. From exotic curries delivered in sterling style be it the panneer makhni, black dal, malai kofta and much more. And we had the roti's, naans and biryani to back them up really well. The Pan Asian section too did justice with a potpourri of stuff worth all it's weight to make you go gaga.

The dessert front ignites the cheshire cat instinct making you smirk with merryfull excitement. An entire tray was laid out with exquisite delectation, with which just a mere glance would make you all sugary eyed. The mounded up toothsome delicacies is sure to make the mouth all mushy with ghee and tongue wag with glee abandon. From ice cream cones to cookies to sweet pulps to cupcakes to lollipops to cotton candies to pastries to many more variegated sweetened avatars, this stall right royally packed a punch for the sweet craving aficionado.

It was a sunny afternoon raided with all kinds of food to make the heart quench with satisfaction. I seldom have seen such a lavish spread where items kept overflowing like a volcano. It was a marvellous feast of epic proportions. This is a kind of brunch that I have never experienced before. It was one thing packing the brunch with stuff aplenty but the other and more important thing which they nailed was getting it right on virtually everything that was put forth which happened to be truly laudable giving this place a huge huge win.

The service was more of self serve being the buffet kind but they were more than willing to aid us whenever required extending their hands on all occasions we needed them. The pricing is not mentioned as it was over an invite. I must say that even though it may seemingly be high, the kind of takeaway that you get will not be a debar in spending for this celebration fit for a king.

The whole experience was one of a kind by being very engaging and pleasant. The place is pretty far off from the city but if you're the one looking forward to chillax a Sunday afternoon away from the hustle and bustle of the city and wanting to spend a laid back relaxed day with fantabulous food for company amidst the scenic ambiance of this gigantic waterside property, you just cannot think or even dream of a place better than the Melting Pot, Intercontinental.

Asia Kitchen stirs up a Chinese Buffet!

There isn't much to fault with Asia's kitchen by Mainland China. The ambiance is chinese centric with a powerful presence of red and black colors, lovely little woodwork with chinese script inscribed at places. There are also beautiful portraits showcasing Chinese culture in all it's splendour. The lighting is mildly dim and just perfectly apt for a dine in restaurant of this kind. Being situated as part of a hotel, you also have the advantage of having a shot or two of cocktails. Apart from this the seating arrangement is very comfortable with a number of 6 seaters placed exclusively for families and the open kitchen with the smelling aroma adds a beautiful buzz to the surrounding.

We were here on a weekday afternoon and I had a swish at the lunch buffet priced at 565 bucks. The options were plenty in number and it felt pretty reasonable consuming high quality chinese food for this rate. The soup which was a 8 treasure Island one was more in line with the sweet corn one but with much more veggies to the fray.

The starters which were served directly on the table was my most favourite of the lot. The veg spring rolls were wonderful to eat with the sweet chilli sauce, potato kafir lime which were loosely fine thin french fries based with a dash of lime was delightful. But what took the cake was the crispy vegetable chilli plum which had such a delectable confluence of a tangy taste with a bit of sweetness infused to the mix. Equally jaw dropping were the basil dumplings which I thoroughly enjoyed which had a beautiful veg stuffing inside those soft and juicy greenish momo's.

The main course section was kind of decent. They had a veg hakka noodles which was nicely flavoured and a usual veg fried rice which was more run of the mill stuff. The sides had a nice variety with the broccoli corn water chestnut in chilli garlic sauce and the vegetable dumpling chilli soya sauce. On the less spicier side there was stir fried chinese greens.

The desserts were a good way to end the meal. There was darsaan, hot chocolate rolls, cake, mousse, fresh fruits and ice cream. The darsaan had a nice sweet tinge to it. The rolls were cute and stuffed with chocolate sauce. The cake and mousse was par for the course and in ice cream they had 3 different flavours - vanilla, butterscotch and strawberry.

On the whole, it was a pretty good meal and very much worth for the price. The service was quick and they did a good job in refilling the plates. They were always available at our beck and call. Other facilities like parking is not an issue as they have valet facility.

Overall, a good place for trying out Chinese cuisine. The buffet especially is a very good choice for those looking to hog a lot without striking a hole in the pocket.

Cafe Central - Striking the right chords!

The cafe culture has caught on big time in Chennai. There is no better place to spend some lazy laid back time than in a cafe. Earlier these were generally perceived as a mid evening hang out spot but nowadays they have even become a viable option for lunch and dinner. There are no dearth of cafe's in the city​ and are spread across every nook and corner and Cafe Central is the latest one in the fray having spread it's wings in Dr Nair Road in T Nagar.

It's constructed in a 2 storey building having ample parking space. The ambiance strikes of being quirky and trendy. It doesn't adopt a particular theme but gives that shiz vibe about it. The rustic wall setup, the woodwork in place, the sparkle of different shades in the seatings/pillow designs, the colour papers sticking out, the lighting etc all give a lovely new age feel to it.

The menu in a newspaper style in different sections with a predominant red shade is quite elaborate. They are well categorised and options available almost equate to a fine dining restaurant. This is impressive as it gives the customer plenty of choices to gorge upon. We were here on an invite and below is a brief summary on the dine side of things.

- Fries in Ishtyle : Fries have become too cliche off late coming in different concoctions but what we got were the namma fries smeared with podi and infused with ghee. It had a liquidy bright dripping touch to it and we even got additional cup of ghee as condiment for the fries. This was totally different from all the kind of fries I've tasted and signalled a buttery way to start proceedings.

- Fry it out : Under this section, we got served the crumb fried paneer and I must say this was delightful. It came with potato wedges, salad and a dip for company and the rolls were well battered and breaded with juicy pieces of paneer going well with the accompaniments.

- Tit Bits : Here we got served the beer vengayam with the onion rings battered with beer with curry leaves and a dash of lemon giving it a chettinadu twist. They were fairly decent in taste but I would have preferred a more spicier dip as opposed to the regular mayonnaise.

- Cold Beverages/cold press/smoothies/milkshakes : We tried quite a bit in this side of the draw and what impressed were the healthy&mazedaar cold press juice which felt very fresh with a tonic of several fruits and the kiwi soda where the frothy layer over lemon ice cream did the trick. The melon breezer beverage was kinda nice but lacked the punch and the vanilla frosty was rather decent. Beat the Heat comprising beetroot, coconut water and flesh just didn't set ice with any of us and had a very putrid taste.

- Salads : Took a shot at the Greek salad where instantly I was appealed with the immaculate presentation. Feta cheese, olives and lettuces always do the job well and needless to say this one hit the mark.

- Mummy Ka Magical Maggi : This maggi thing has picked up quite a bit and I see lot's of places adopting the same. Different flavors of maggi are whipped up and what we were served was the chilli cheese version. It felt a little dry and being more soaky would have helped. Maggi being a home made snack, the jury is still not out on me regarding the feasibility of paying a higher premium for something you always eat in your house as a quick bite.

- Burger : Tried the Don't call me burger which was more of the usual stuff. It felt well curried with the insertion of tempura fried chilli pickle which added a bit to the zing.

- Sapad : In this section, we had a bite at the Mac & Cheese which was undoubtedly the star performer of the day. They nailed this one completely with the melting cheese macaroni being super slurpy and going jocularly well with olives and jalapeno's in being partners of cheesiness. The soft pieces of garlic bread were added joy. Every one of us thoroughly enjoyed this lip smacking dish. The other try we savoured was the Indian based Ghar ka Khana containing ghee rice, jeera aloo and dal makhni. This one too didn't lack intensity with the black based lentils being absolutely spectacular and enjoying a tete-a-tete with the flavoured rice. The jeera also too was made to perfection having a riveting aroma to it. You give particular importance to the main course especially and this one won the day hands down.

- Desserts : We had a shot at all 4 of the one's which were mentioned in the menu viz drunken doughnuts, crazy custard, golden ice cream and treslechees. Especially took favour to the fried coconut golden layered ice cream with tinge of jaggery. The drunken doughnuts infused with a chocolate coating and cream was pretty nice too. The custard and mango based one didn't really set the ball rolling. The waffles served with the maple syrup though was really soft and great to munch.

Overall it was a full on very satisfactory meal. We got to try a number of items from the attic and a majority of them were rewarding. Extra brownie points especially for dishing up the main course which pleased us to punch. The service was bang on time never really making us wait and also felt very friendly and hospitable. Pricing goes out of the picture as it was via an invite but however must say they are priced to the point and competitive.

Cafe Central is definitely a nice little place to head to if you're looking for a relaxed and comfortable time to spend your day over with the much important supplement of good food for company.