22 July,2015 08:00 AM IST | | Dhara Vora
Keen to get away from the madding crowds? Colaba's Havana Café and Bar's extensive bar menu and interesting finger food will keep you nursing your drink for a long, long, time
Chicken Aioli Skewers
Havana Cafe and Bar
Food: Good
Service: Regular
Ambiance: Den style
The all-white interiors at the entrance of The Gordon House Hotel serve as a stark contrast to the dark-yet-cosy Havana Café and Bar. With a fountain at the centre, arches to create a separate section and plush chairs, this bar has a distinctively different vibe when compared to many watering holes in the city that have follow the industrial chic theme. Havana follows a Cuban theme; so we were happy to spot a cigar/smoking room, Cuba Libre pitchers and a host of other rum cocktails in their extensive bar menu.
Chicken Aioli Skewers. Pics/Tushar Satam
We picked Zombie (Rs 500, all prices exclusive of taxes) and Red Cobbler (Rs 450) from their signature house cocktails section; they didn't disappoint. The Zombie was loaded with white rum, dark rum, gold rum and absinthe, yet it was mixed with finesse, where the alcohol did not overpower the flavours of the different fruit juices that it contained.
The oft-seen Che Guevara is seen on a wall
The Red Cobbler tasted more like a sangria as we couldn't gauge the flavours of pineapple, orange or Triple Sec over the wine and bits of fruit in it. From their minimal food section, we first ordered the Chicken Aioli Skewers (Rs 270) and Olive and Cheese Dumplings (Rs 265). Tender chicken pieces that were bursting with fresh flavours of herbs will make for perfect appetisers for conversations over Cuba Libre or sangria pitchers.
Zombie made for a delicious cocktail
The fried dumplings pleased the cheeseball-lover in us, especially when paired with the creamy dip they were served with. Not much to order for vegetarians, we picked Giant Bruschetta (Rs 250), which was the only dish that didn't appeal to us in any department; flavour or ingenuity. The Chicken Cubano (a sandwich, Rs 350) made with a delicious multi-grain bread brought their stocks back in favour with mustard sauce enriched chicken and veggies making for a perfect sandwich.
Though the food menu is minimal, if you wish to have a few drinks in peace, with your friends sans blaring music or youngsters getting tipsy on pocket-friendly deals, make a move to Havana.
Time:12 noon to 3 pm (buffet lunch) and 5 pm to 3 am
At: The Gordon House Hotel, Battery Street, Colaba.
Call: 22894400
Havana Café and Bar didn't know we were there. the guide reviews anonymously and pays for its meals.
