Etc - Quite an experience!

Introduction:
Etc has a lot going for it. The place is designed to excellence and makes you wonder at the level a place can be raised by the way it has been done up. It exhibits class all over and showcases vigour, vibrancy and vivacity. A vibgyor of colors envelop the surrounding and at no point of time you feel anything to stick out like a sore thumb. It's beautifully appealing and appealingly beautiful.

There is also a lot to reminisce and takes you on a trip down memory lane to the vintage years of 90's as they have a slew of artifacts and paraphernalia making you cherish and sweeten your childhood memories. It glistens with suave and swankiness and has a captivating atmosphere about it. Having been one of the early bird visitors to this cafe, this is one place which I can confidently recommend to my near and dear one's to try out. It's surely the most photogenic cafe's I have ever been to and if you're an avid shutterbug this is one place to call and place the shots.

Ambiance and Design:
It is located in a massive space on the posh Rutland Gate (5th street) area in Nungambakkam. It is a 2 storey building with the basement comprising of the restaurant and upper portion consisting of the cafetaria. The restaurant and cafe are further polarised into different enclosures of which there is a games room with a couple of tables depicting 'Ludo' and 'Connect the Dots' for you to play with, a snake&ladder drawing engraved on the wall, an area stacked up with books, board games and a fancy wind chime with kitschy bottles hanging in an angular direction, a cave like setup with a fountain, a kerala style tea kadai setup, a fish boat with net, chairs made to resemble olden style scooter shields, cycle with milk cylinder, aerated drink bottles placed as holder to plants, racquets and cool looking skateboards adorning the walls and attractive hanging paint boxes for splashing light and what not. The glass windows is another splendorous sight. There is no end to creativity here and you would not see one area left untouched. The design team totally deserved the plaudits.

                             

The Food:
On the food side, they predominantly serve North Indian, Chinese, Continental and of course a dash of desserts. We were invited as part of a bloggers group for the sea food festival currently taking place. Being vegetarian, I had my limitations but they were magnanimous enough to serve quite a sumptuous feast for the green folks as well. Listed below is a brief summary on the food side of things:

Soup:
For soup, I took a shot at the Cream of Mushroom soup which was well made with a aromatic flavoring of fungi. It was really creamy, suffused with a tinge of basil and basically set the tone for further things to look forward. 

Starters:
On the starter section, they were magnanimous enough to give us 4 varieties of starters;
- Crispy Corn Pop - A conical papad shaped cup holding crispy corn aplenty. The corn were fried well and gave a lovely crispy taste however the tortilla cups holding the same seemed a bit raw. The cups need to support by being crunchy which it was not but with a slight tweak this one can work wonders.

- Bharwan Panneer - This was deep fried and made to resemble a sandwich and was riveting along with the green chutney. Acts as the perfect foil for an evening snack.

- Olive Bundle - This looked pretty appetizing to look and the top half did melt in the mouth with an olive bunched along a layer of cheese. However the lower half of it had some sort of pasty mix which really didn't gel well.

- Malai Brocolli - Their signature creation and it really lived up to its billing. The presentation was delightful and the taste matched the looks to the 'T'. A little more judicious coating of cream can elevate it a notch further.

Main Course:
The main course had quite a number of items. The garlic naan was soluble, fluffy and well made. And the accompanying Malai Kofta was one of the star's of the day turning out to be a brilliant side dish. Just the right dose of cream and sweetness made it a delight to eat along with the Indian bread. We also got another gravy in the form of a Mangalore veg curry with a heady dose of coconut cream. Not many may prefer this coastal kind of dish to go with the naan but I fairly enjoyed it. It had the right mix of veggies and was pretty unique but acted as a nice substitute to the typical north Indian curry which you would otherwise usually get. Also got a shot at the kous kous rice with a brinjal based curry which was pretty good but however the last of the items the grilled tofu turned out to be quite a damp squib. It was pretty bland and tasteless and just didn't usher any excitement 
whatsoever.
                                   

   

                                             

Desserts:
The desserts are one area where ETC has a strong hold and boy they showed their class here. We were given 3 pastries - chocolate mousse, a sweetened puff roll and a white chocolate pastry and all of them competed among each other for top stakes. It was indeed a sweet way to end a satisfactory meal.

Pricing and Service:
The decor is comfortable with long elevated cushioned seating giving good space for the back to rest. Though this was an On the House meet, the prices seem on par with restaurants nestled around this locality. For the quantity served can be considered quite justifiable indeed. The service was exemplary with the staff wearing a smile on their faces and adhering to all our requests.

Conclusion:
On a pan optic view, Etc expanded as Etcetera wins on most counts. Go here especially to experience the superlative ambiance and the variegated cuisine.