Food review: What you need to know about this new Bandra eatery on Hill Road

On Hill Road in a beautiful building built in 1914 that houses Bandrarsquos famous Yacht Bar a unique cafeacute has recently opened doors Itrsquos a place to indulge in oldschool comfort snacks such as puffs patties quiches bhurji and kheema pao and journey through time and memories NostalgiamdashThe Old School Bakery is the brainchild of Ranji Trophy cricketer and restaurateur Sinan Khader and his uncle Salim Kader the folk behind The Bandstand PantryAs we stepped inside on a grey drizzling afternoon we were greeted by large planters with bright yellow sunflowers and other flowering plantsmdashkept outside for sale at nominal rates Inside the air is fragrant with the aroma of baked goods and buttery delights The homely decor with its cafeacute curtains quaint knickknacks retro lamps antique wooden furniture and benches was designed by Neetika Daga Design and Namrata Saigal Design Atelier Peppered with cassettes and vinyl records posters of Bollywood classics collages of favourite TV shows scattered handwritten scrapbook notes magazines and vintage artefacts the cafeacute is aninvitation to travel back to carefree days and simpler moments Oh and yes you can write letters and post them outside in the functioning mailboxSinan Khader with his uncle Salim Kader started Nostalgia The Old School Bakery to bring back Bandrarsquos lost charm PicAditi HaralkarSinan greets us with his trademark smile sharing how he wanted to create a place where people could leave their worries behind and reflect on the best days of their lives ldquoWe want guests to reminisce about their childhood stories discuss their favourite music and movies and make new memories while cherishing the old ones We have a couple of brands that we have started around the cafeacute culture but we have always dreamt of an oldschool bakery in Bandra Luckily we got this property that we thought was the perfect backdrop for a concept cafeacute that can cater to a wider audiencerdquoSpeaking of small spaces Salim says ldquoBandra is all about small spaces that have a characterrdquo Sinan adds ldquoItrsquos about how you breathe life into it with every small detailmdashthe interior the brand story the food you serve the packagingrdquoThe staff wearing berets is memorising the menu and taking notes of operational glitchesmdashall with a genuine smile Looking outside as raindrops keep falling on the window pane takes you back to a time when Bandra didnrsquot worry which plantation their coffee beans came from or how they were roastedmdashyou just slurped the beverage had a cake cookie or brownie to go with it and made memories The glass counter is a sight with a tempting display of deep forest pastry baked cheesecakes blueberry muffins and more reminiscent of cafeacutes like CandiesCHOCOLATE MUFFINWe tried their kheema pao which was intended to be on the go but we would have preferred if the kheema and the pao had been served separately The chicken patties puff and quiche were ideal and the chicken mayo sandwich brought back memories We ended with Dutch pastry which was gooey and very oldschool with a rich ganache We donrsquot know when was the last time we sipped on Milo Boost Horlicks or a raspberry or lemon floatmdashbut this time they were the perfect accompaniment to watching the world go byCHICKEN PATTIESComing from a family in the restaurant and canteen business for decades Salim tells us ldquoMost old Bandra bakeries only survive on nostalgia The quality and cleanliness of these places and the food are pretty questionable We wanted to change thatrdquo Sinan adds ldquoOnce we start we will have the resident lesserknown but talented home bakers here to showcase their goods giving them a platform and a space they can call their ownrdquo We step out to pick our raspberry float cross the street walk on the pavement and think of how in all these years Bandra has changed and not