Fiesta, Malad's popular cafe and bakery, has transformed into a cozy, multi-cuisine eatery but needs to learn from a few rookie mistakes before the neighbourhood can give it a thumbs up

Fiesta, Malad's popular cafe and bakery, has transformed into a cozy, multi-cuisine eatery but needs to learn from a few rookie mistakes before the neighbourhood can give it a thumbs up

Fiesta, the brainchild of couple Alka and Briston D'Souza began as a tiny cafe on Malad's Marve Road, in 2001 and since then, has built a reputation in the neighbourhood for serving yummy cakes and pastries.

Sandwiches, pizzas, patties and rolls soon found a place on the menu when their second outlet started in Orlem market, soon after.

Recently, the popular cafe was renovated to make way for a cozy diner. We dropped by on a Wednesday evening, and were greeted with empty chairs and tables.

The owners and a wall poster of trendy-lookingu00a0 junta at a cafe kept us company as we glanced through the barely there menu. Being a regular at its earlier avatar, one was familiar with Fiesta's hit-and-miss menu.

We started off with a Veggie Caesar Bonanza (Rs 75); here, lettuce, and smoked cottage cheese, is tossed in an in-house dressing of sun dried tomato and basil spread, topped with more cheese.

This one whetted our appetite and we were ready for more. Next up, we ordered the Roast Pepper, Cheese and Corn Tostados (Rs 75). Kernels of corn in a spicy salsa sauce fill up a toasted canap ufffd, which makes for an interesting starter, but nothing exceptional.

For the mains we ordered the Super-Topped Nacho with Chicken (Rs 175), which was essentially beans in a salsa sauce, served on a bed of nachos. The cheese dip was bland and tasted similar to the previous starter, the only difference was that beans replaced corn.

Craving for a variation, we decided to take the Indian route and ordered the Prawn Chilly Fry with Pao (Rs 225). What arrived were prawns tossed in onions, chillies, capsicum and potatoes, served with six slices of bread. It was delicious, but the steep pricing didn't gel with the portions that barely sufficed for one person.

Having said that we liked the fact that the owners were open to suggestions. When we pointed out that the Nacho with Chicken didn't exactly please the tastebuds, they didn't cringe at our feedback.
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The service was quick and attentive. However, oversights like the absence of water jars at each table and a limited beverage menu could do with a look-in, especially with its legacy it has to live up to in these parts.

At: Fiesta, Shop no 3, Oscar Classic Housing Society, Marve Road, Orlem, Malad (W). Call 28611313.
Fiesta didn't know we were there. The GUIDE reviews anonymously and pays for meals.