28 January,2011 09:27 AM IST | | Ashishwang Godha
THE GUIDE visits a quiet new eatery that serves world cuisine located around the bustling Pune highway
From the moment you walk in, the air you breathe smells of newness. It's the sort of freshness that shows itself on carpets that haven't been trodden much, staff whose smiles are still genuine and a restaurant that hasn't yet jaded to guests. Ista is the all-new five-star property and 88 is their only functional
restaurant yet.
Located on the second floor and offering both indoor as well as al fresco seating, 88 is a breath of fresh air. At dinnertime, the outdoor seating is candle-lit and offers the privacy of secluded pools of shadow around your tables. Sitting high up with sound of cascading water and shaded by the frangipani, even the loud and busy Nagar highway takes on a pretty, fairy-lit nuance.u00a0u00a0
The menu at 88 reflects their claim of serving signature world cuisine. Of course, that's because largely our culinary world is limited to Italian, South East Asian and Indian.
The starters go largely with the first cuisine and so we order a very basic Insalata Caprese (Rs 250). Our salad of sliced fresh buffalo mozzarella, slices of tomatoes and sprigs of basil seasoned with salt and pepper with a hint of Balsamic was a miniscule portion. Also, we couldn't see any more than a single line of the promised pesto.
Our server generously offered to make us a smaller sized pizza (88 serves 10 inch versions) and we took him up for it. The Classic Pepperoni (Rs 450) that we watched being made at their wood-fired oven, came with a crisp, thin crust. It was layered just right with mozzarella, tomatoes and high quality pepperoni roundels making it melt-in-your-mouth delicious. A big thumb's up. The mains ranged between a group of pasta and risotto options, regular Indian varieties such as paneer, mixed vegetables, a Goan curry, a dal, biryanis and even a dhansak. We instead chose to stick to 88's recommendation of world cuisine and opt for an Asian and an Italian main.
Our Baked Tagliatelli (Rs 450) was definitely the highlight of the meal. The pasta came al dente with a lovely paprika coloured smooth sauce infused with chorizos. The bite of meat alongwith our side of grated Parmesan elevated the flat pasta ribbons.
Our Nasi Goreng Ayam (Rs 425) was a portion of the traditional Malay fried rice served on a banana leaf, topped with a fried egg and with two chicken satays and crisp, round prawn fritters. Though the rice tasted just like regular Chinese fried rice, the honey-glazed Chicken Satay helped raise the authenticity of the dish.u00a0u00a0
Finally, we conclude our meal with an Apple Strudel (Rs 225). The Austrian dessert completely disappointed us.
The layered pastry was a tad soft and lacked bite. The baked apple filling missed the tartness of the fruit completely and barely lived up to the aromatics of cinnamon and spice. If our feeling of roof-top Zen was a bit disturbed by the dessert, the flawless service ensured we left 88 serenely satiated. Our server was fantastically well-versed with the menu, went the extra mile to help make our visit pleasant and yet we were unobtrusively left to ourselves to enjoy the experience.
88 is the kind of place that you would choose to indulge in if your business requires formal meal meetings or when you just want to let your hair down and be lulled by taste.
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At Nagar Road, adjacent to Aga Khan Palace, Yerwada. Open from 7 am to 12 am.
Call 41418888
