Chili's, Powai
13, Ventura Building, Hiranandani Business Park, Central Avenue Road, Powai, Mumbai Phone No 022 67419003, 67419002
1400 hours, 29th November, Saturday:
"So I cross my heart and I hope to die
(Yeah)
That I'll only stay with you one more night
(Oh)
And I know I said it a million times
(Yeah)
But I'll only stay with you one more night
(Yeah)
Yeah, baby, give me one more night."
Maroon 5 crooned away as we, the daughter and I, settled down at a corner table of Chili's.
Chili's Grill & Bar is an international casual dining restaurant chain that features Tex-Mex-style cuisine. The company was founded by Larry Levine in Texas in 1975 and is currently owned and operated by Brinker International.
The $2.9-billion company runs 1,500 restaurants across 32 countries including India which it entered in 2009 with its first Chili’s in Bangalore. TexMex Cuisine India Private Ltd, has the master franchise rights for this brand in the country. At present, the chain has 10 restaurants across the country – five in the South and West (Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Pune) and five in the North and East (Delhi, Kolkata and Chandigarh). They have plans to open 10 new Chili’s restaurants at an investment of $1 million per restaurant, spanning 3,000 – 4,000 sq ft each in Kochi, Goa, Chennai and in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai.
Chili's Grill & Bar is an international casual dining restaurant chain that features Tex-Mex-style cuisine. The company was founded by Larry Levine in Texas in 1975 and is currently owned and operated by Brinker International.
The $2.9-billion company runs 1,500 restaurants across 32 countries including India which it entered in 2009 with its first Chili’s in Bangalore. TexMex Cuisine India Private Ltd, has the master franchise rights for this brand in the country. At present, the chain has 10 restaurants across the country – five in the South and West (Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Pune) and five in the North and East (Delhi, Kolkata and Chandigarh). They have plans to open 10 new Chili’s restaurants at an investment of $1 million per restaurant, spanning 3,000 – 4,000 sq ft each in Kochi, Goa, Chennai and in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai.
The little one was amused to see a gargantuan red chili objet d'art hanging by the roof and the brilliant mini tiled table tops. The colors were vibrant and lively, the decor imaginative, the lighting bright, the music soft and soothing, the seating cushy and the overall environment seemed unhurried, fun filled and that of insouciance. Laid back, more of a space for casual diners coming over here to watch a football match over a drink or two rather than a rendez-vous for corporate honchos meeting to seal a billion dollar deal.
We were offered three different kinds of menu cards, one for food, one for desserts and drinks and one for the new limited period launches.
We took our time going through each. For drinks we called for a Cherry Cola for the lady and one watermelon lemonade for self. Thick beer glasses, large clunking ice cubes and coolers filled to the brim. The Cherry cola was a soft aerated drink - a cherry flavored version of Coca Cola. The watermelon lemonade was a true blue innovation - the lemonade mixed with watermelon puree such that both the flavors remained distinct in the drink. Nice touch.
For starters we called for a delicacy Pulled chicken corn cakes. This was indicated as Sweet Smoky and Hot all together, and it stood true to its description. The corn cake was soft and subtle, the toppings on it included a generous quantity of chicken married with sour cream, honey chipotle sauce and pickled red onions.This was sprinkled with crushed feta cheese and bits of fresh cilantro. This food was contemporary, the pulled chicken seemed rightly slow cooked as it was easy to shred without it being lumpy or rubbery, and the garnishing went along with it perfectly. We loved it.
The fact that the menu card mentioned exactly a description of each item made selection an easy task for us.
Next we called for the Smoked quarter chicken. This carried a large portion of smoked chicken brushed with sweet and tangy barbecue sauce. This was served atop mashed potatoes and alongside exotic veggies - broccoli, zucchini, bell pepper, carrot and sprinkled with a liberal dose of sweet corn and cilantro leaves. The overall presentation was very colorful and tempting, the chicken seemed appropriately cured with smoldering, aromatic wood such that it was rendered tender and with a smoky flavor, and the other mish mash complemented to the overall fare.
While I devoured this, the kid seemed to be equally enjoying her plateful of Smoked Shrimp pasta. This was one of the rare occasions where she feasted on shrimps. I guess the overall show of the dish, the spicy Alfredo sauce, the soft and mellow well cooked meat, the presence of golden corn succotash, the sprinkling of veggies, the topping of Monterey Jack and the utter richness of the fare seemed to have delighted her. She gobbled up the food quickly and licked her lips impishly, grinning like a Cheshire cat.
The portions here are American sized (and I am amazed by the complaints of little quantity by some of my fellow bloggers) and we already wanted to call it a day. But we were lured by one more new introduction, the Green Chile Chicken Enchiladas. We bravely summoned for one, but congratulated ourselves once the dish arrived.
These were not one, not two, but three fair sized enchiladas filled with seasoned chicken and Monterey Jack and topped with green Chile sauce, melted cheese blend and corn and black bean salsa.This was served with black beans and green hued rice.
Sigh! Every bite was heavenly and we vehemently ignored the nudging given by the stomach asking us to stop. We gorged on the soft cheesy enchiladas with the succulent chicken within, and the black beans and the spicy rice gave perfect accompaniment to it.
We had some tiny space left within to call for a dessert item, we had heard quite a lot about their Molten Chocolate Cake. Bring it on, we accepted the challenge of Vishal, our friendly server and waited with bated breath.
And the wait did yield sweet fruits. Sweet cake ice cream, rather. This was a hot gooey chocolate cake with a fair sized scoop of vanilla ice cream sitting atop, which itself was covered by a generous dose of hot chocolate sauce. The hot - cold - hot presentation came out tops, the uppermost layer of chocolate sauce forming a crusty crunchy shell after being shock frozen by the cold ice cream, and the ice cream in turn melting like a glacier when unable to bear the warmth of the cake, and the cake, in turn, again bearing within a ribbon of silky chocolate lava, which oozed out when the slicing happened. The resultant combination was black magic.
I had a small tete a tete with Liby, the Restaurant General Manager. He came across as a simple, unassuming smiling chap who took pains to bring out the ethos of the restaurant. He had been seen everywhere all along, interacting with the patrons and enquiring if all was well. There seemed an effusive quality around him which made people warm up to him.
The verdict: I am forever seeking a good trailblazer, and this is all Chili's is all about. The food is starry, the choice enormous, the bar with some unique concoctions, the service A One (I love the way the servers kneel down on the floor to reach to your head levels to talk to you), the ambiance peppy and the experience one of its kind (pun intended, as this is the only one location in Bombay so far). The prices are on the northern side, but aptly justified by the quality which is premium.
The ratings, they go like this.:
The Food Quotient : Food Quality 4 / 5, Food Choices 4 / 5, Food Portion - 4.5 / 5, Food Presentation - 4 / 5
The Other Determinants : Location 3.5 / 5, Cleanliness 4.5 / 5, Warmth 4 / 5
The Hygiene Factors : Ambiance 4.5 / 5, Space quotient 3.5 / 5, Delivery time 3 / 5
The Conclusives : Food Price 3 / 5, Honesty 3 / 5, Overall Experience 4 / 5, Will I Visit again 4 / 5
PS: Bouquets / brickbats on the review can be addressed to [email protected] or submitted below.
The ratings, they go like this.:
The Food Quotient : Food Quality 4 / 5, Food Choices 4 / 5, Food Portion - 4.5 / 5, Food Presentation - 4 / 5
The Other Determinants : Location 3.5 / 5, Cleanliness 4.5 / 5, Warmth 4 / 5
The Hygiene Factors : Ambiance 4.5 / 5, Space quotient 3.5 / 5, Delivery time 3 / 5
The Conclusives : Food Price 3 / 5, Honesty 3 / 5, Overall Experience 4 / 5, Will I Visit again 4 / 5
PS: Bouquets / brickbats on the review can be addressed to [email protected] or submitted below.