25 January,2010 07:22 AM IST | | Anjana Vaswani
A new eatery on Hughes Road offers a vegetarian menu that's likely to satiate even the staunchest meat-eaters at prices that should draw in crowds. With a hands-on host and an American-diner experience, this one seems poised to turn into SoBo's very own Pop Tate's
With a coke vending machine positioned at the entrance, bright red interiors and a host who's honest enough to suggest, "you'd probably prefer our pastas to the pizzas," Tease is off to a good start.
Co-owner Sonu Lalvani was supervising the place while we visited, and despite the presence of four uniformed stewards, he attended to our order personally (although he didn't know we were press), informing us, during the course of our conversation, that he once ran a restaurant in London.
From what we got off the Internet later, Yatra, Lalvani's bar/ restaurant in London's Green Park, was the antithesis of this simple, little place that's overshadowed even by the modest Kobe sizzler joint it's positioned next to.
And while the fancy London restaurant offered Asian fare, Tease serves a blend of Continental, American and Middle-Eastern cuisine.
We took Lalvani's advice, and ordered one of the pastas Tagliatelle Alfredo (Rs 145) and although this materialised as a Spaghetti Alfredo, it did deliver on taste.
The Spinach and Cheese Crepes (Rs 105) here and the Mushroom Cilantro Soup (Rs 80) are positively scrumptious, as is the trademark Chocolate Volcano Dessert (Rs 80), perfectly complemented by a serving of vanilla ice cream.
The Strawberry Mousse(Rs 90) was light and mildly sweet: not a big hit, we imagine, with those in need of a sugar-fix, but nonetheless a great option for diabetics and weight-watchers.
Now, if you add up those figures, you'd see that our bill should have set us back by at least Rs 500, without any service charge or tax.
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And, you could add another Rs 35, if you chose to include the crisp Garlic Bread we sampled. The Rs 480 we were charged, therefore, left us a tad puzzled.
Without any decipherable letters on the faded bill we received, we could only deduce that we may have inadvertently availed of some mysterious discount that's always a welcome surprise, of course.
The great news for kitty and kiddy party groups however, is that Tease has a small area upstairs that's equipped with a plasma screen and comfortably seats 16. The restaurant also undertakes catering orders for groups of 25.
At: 11, Sukh Sagar, NS Patkar Marg, Opera House. Call: 66102345
Tease didn't know we were there. The Guide reviews anonymously and pays for meals.
