What
a wonderful treat of a place, bang at the Vatika Business Center on Sohna Road!
I liked the name to begin with, but I had pretty much a pre-conceived notion
that it was possibly one of those hippie chic places that would have made the
20 something crowd their focus. So though I go with the young-at-heart concept,
I was skeptical it would have anything to spark and hold the interest of round
ol’ me! And boy was I surprised! The minute I entered I was completely taken it
by their warm colour scheme of muted tangerine, rich reds and toasty browns.
Very appealing to my cultured aesthetics…wink wink. There are MAD magazine
covers adorning their walls; I wanted to do a whoopee in the air just for that,
and thinking it couldn’t get any better I went rushing to the loo... And bam! What do you think meets my eye as soon as
I open the door? A big huge Wonder Woman on the wall!! Yes, yes, yes…the super
iconic superhero! This place sure has got the idea right! And you might think
it crazy, but I kinda judge a place a lot based on its loo. It better be good,
haha ..
So
obviously now, I find the place awesome and I go click clackety happy, taking
pictures left right and centre. Take a look at the pictures; you’ll know what
I’m talking about. Next up, my buddy and I seat ourselves next to the stage
that they’ve set up for live performances. Hope to see one in action there
soon. Meanwhile, the big screen kept us entertained with Coldplay videos.
Since
it was lunch hour, we decided to kick off with cocktails. It was the classic
Bloody Mary for my friend and the noveau chic Espresso Martini for me.
Perfectly mixed would be my verdict. The cocktails were neither drowning in
alcohol nor shamelessly skinny. They were wonderfully full-bodied and just
right for a kick start. Our soup selection for the day was a chicken clear and tomato
basil. Delicious, flavorsome, served at the right temperature; I couldn’t find
a single fault. For the salad course we had the Classic Caeser and Greek.
Again, faultless. By now I was feeling so satiated and mellow, I could just
skip to dessert and call it a day. But that wouldn’t be fair on a review now,
would it? Round me geared up again and ordered more.
Sizzling
platters of Indian vegetarian and non-vegetarian appetisers – the stuffed
mushrooms were tender, creamy and absolute bliss paired with gently flavoured
dahi kebabs, papad coated hara kebabs and luscious chunky paneer tikkas. The
non-vegetarians will just love the melting galoutis, the fish and the malai
chicken tikkas. We also ordered the Fish n Chips just for a change of taste. It
was a very generous portion and thankfully sole fillets and not basa. The fish
was crisply coated and very tender and flavorsome. For the main course, we
tried the green thai curry which was good. I felt the Bakra Josh Mein could
have been done better, but the Dal Makhni was just fine. Paneer Rasse Wala
lacked flavor but the Biryani was good. Whew! That was a lot of food…really. The
Dessert available was only the Gulkand Ice Cream ,so we skipped dessert
altogether……
Now,
there is this other peeve I have. I need to polish off a meal with a double
shot of espresso. And yes I know its unfair to expect good espresso everywhere,
but hey…if you offer it on your menu, it better be the real deal right? Here, I
would suggest you just give it a skip :/
So
here’s what I think. I love the place even if the main course wasn’t any great
shakes. What they do with soups, salads, appetizers and of course the drinks,
is admirable. It’s some of the best fare I have tasted in a long time!!
Caffe
Mad House, you made us very happy! I give you Four Rounds out of five!! Good
luck to you; may you get better and better with each passing day.
Psst…people…this
place is one any age group can go to and be pleased as punch, so do give it a
tasting ... Stay Round, Stay Happy!
CAFFE MADHOUSE,
Block 1, Unit 4, Ground Floor,
Vatika Business Park, Sohna Road, Gurgaon
Authored By : Sonalini Chaudhary
Compiled By : Vickrham (vicky)
email : vickrham.m@gmail.com