Turyaa - A Rooftop paradise

The rooftop scenic view of Samasa amidst the night lit sky and blow of the breeze is a spectacular sight to behold. You feel the serenity in the air and the serenade of the music. It ignites an eternal private feel and this is a one of a kind setting if you're looking for a peace oriented dinner getaway amidst life's usual hullabaloo.

There is an open seating arrangement at the top as well as a nicely done up pent room which is all dressed up and looking really royal. The decor is done up so well and this is an ideal place if you're planning a special surprise for someone.

The food comprises of varied cuisines consisting of North Indian, South indian, Italian, Mediterranean and Continental. We were here on an invite and got to savour some of the special stuff served in the restaurant. Given below is a brief on the mail experience :

Welcome Drink & Appetiser : we got a chill Cranberry cooler as we arrived and this was a perfect thirst quencher. And for condiments we got buns and bread but with a twist as they gave us 4 unique versions of dips as side on. Also a delightful dollop of pesto butter to soak in the bread sticks.

Soup : This was served in a tray comprising of 3 cute cups with the extremes containing the soup and the middle having bread sticks and a pizza layer garnished stick bridging the 3 cups together. The soups were absolutely delightful and the essence of flavours were hitting on the mouth and pointed to the positive on all directions.

Starters : On starter front, we got plenty of stuff. The Indonesian kalimirchi vegetable kabab was deep fried and crispy. The Awadhi smoked Broccoli was well played with it being nicely marinated and served tawa style like a sizzler. The bharwan mushrooms were one of the best. They were small cute buttons with succulence in abundance and having a rich creamy taste. The chettinadu panneer tikka marinated with southern spices and cooked in a clay pot somehow missed the beat and felt a little extra burnt thus taking away the taste. The malwani style tofu served in satay style was well presented and hit the thumbs up on the taste front too.

Main course: Though I am not too fond of dry pasta's, the fusili pasta with butter gravy vegetables was kind of different and decent in taste. And the Dal Makhni was of high standard and went well with both the rice and roti.

Desserts & Drinks : The standout here was the dessert platter comprising of 1) Mango Exotic Pastry 2) Molten Milky Bar and 3) Sri Lankan Wattalappam. They were super duper delectable and melt in the mouth material. With the mango season in full bloom, they also got us an assorted mango platter which was refreshing. And in the drinks side both the cookie man being the chocolaty kind and the cranberry cooler being of the refreshing type were both appealing and apt.

The service was spot on and they really made us feel very comfortable. The pricing is not mentioned as it was over an invite. On the whole, if you're looking for a lovely laid back leisurely evening to spend with your near and dear one's over food and drink, Samasa at Turyaa can certainly be a good consideration.

Sunset Grill - A surreal sky lit roof top dining encounter!

There is no better dining setup than a rooftop terrace with shrubs of palm trees placed evenly along with dim lit lights suffusing the oh so pleasant feel and to boot the zephyr from outside gently caressing the mind and soul. The sunset grills absolutely nails it on the ambiance front and this is one place where you will truly enjoy your dinner sojourn with peace and quietude surrounding the atmosphere. The mild music adds to the feel good factor and the passage passing across the swimming pool to get to the restaurant space of Sunset Grills makes it look all so exquisite.

Another rarity here is this is one restaurant in a star enclave specialising exclusively in middle eastern and Arabic based cuisine which places it in a different league from the rest. We were here as part of the celebrations of 'Mezze and Grill' festival where a sample few items from the Ala carte menu have been specially handpicked and re-designed as a set piece menu. The night lit ambient is just perfect to gorge barbeques and with drinks added to the fray, this becomes a superlative wine&dine option.

First up was the mezze side of things. We got inklings of fried pita bread with Maskatare - a yoghurt based dip and pickled vegetables. This was just an initial feeler as what arrived next included a platter of breads consisting of Zhatar, Iranian and soft pita breads and for able company were a delightful bunch of dips in the form of hummus, baba ganoush and burani spinach. I make no bones in saying that the hummus was one of the best I've ever had and it just made you thwack your bread with gregarious coating of it and it was quite a wonderful feeling slathering the dip jocularly over the breads. The Baba ganoush had a slight sweet tinge to it and the spinach one having hung curd was pleasantly good too but have to say it was the Hummus which stole the show on this front. We also got some very nice well made soft focaccia bread with olives inscribed on them.

And in the grill section was the main course comprising of veggie skewers and cottage cheese subzi kabab along with flavoured saffron rice and a pomegranate based veg dish. I found the skewers to be pretty routine stuff and they didn't really appease. The panneer pieces though were super succulent and melt in the mouth kinds. The rice though flavoured lacked the zing and the gravy didn't do much to help. There was romesco sauce spread out in the plate which was absolute wow stuff. We ordered a separate plate of cottage cheese and the repeat was even better than the first in terms of taste and presentation.

It would be a crime if I don't mention the intermediate and finishing stuff amidst the Mezze and Grills. The lentil soup was totally enticing with an esculent aroma of green vegetables and cumin. I was just bewitched by the soup. For drinks I was pretty content with my big glass of Hoegarrden which was quite a refresher in between consuming flavoured middle eastern cuisine. The AG47 wine from Argentina also played able foil. The little sip of the mock tails which I got to drink seemed pretty good as well. And in the dessert draw the Baklava and Omali both blew us away. The former is a specialty and they did great justice on it. The latter was an absolute revelation with the twang of sweetness prevailing long after the tongue being smacked with this delight. The service was really hospitable and it was a pleasure to enjoy a lovely dinner here. The rates don't come into equation as it was over an invite. It may seem a tad pricy but the experience will bowl you over.

On a holistic picture, Sunset Grills have pulled off this 'Mezze and Grill' festival with elan by showcasing their repertoire and playing to the gallery by bringing out a well suited set course menu going perfectly in sync with the wondrous ambiance.