But let me step back first, and start with the hotel itself. The hotel is located in Udyog Vihar which is one of the busiest places in Gurgaon. If you’re planning to go there on a weeknight, better plan to be stuck in traffic for a while, since all roads going there are likely to be jam packed. However, once you get there you will never know that you are in the middle of hustling bustling city.  The moment you get in the place, you are taken in by the immense architecture of the hotel. It’s like stepping into a different world all together (see below the photo of the entrance – photo by Sanctu)

The reason it is so important to mention so much about the hotel, it’s architecture, it’s lobby and so on is because it puts you in the right mood for a relaxing meal.

Now let’s move on to the restaurant itself. The restaurant that I went to recently is called Saffron and it serves Indian food. I have been here several times. And I cannot say that it has always been the best food, but this last time, the food was really good.

Here’s the review.

Food:

I have normally ordered A La Carte here, however this time around they had an option of a set meal which includes starters, main course, and dessert. We chose this option. Basically, this is similar to what you might get at The Great Indian Kebab Factory, or at Barbecue Nation.

So, they started with the starters (no pun intended). There was an assortment of veg and non-veg stuff. I liked everything, and it was a large variety. They will keep coming back with more of these till you tell them to stop it and bring on the entrees.

The main course it self was pretty tasty, and the as was the dessert (an assortment of 4-5 types). Combine this with their extensive wine list, and I would say that the food is definitely good.

Service:

If I quickly summarize the service, then here it is:

• polite people
• no one rushes you
• they know how to pour wine properly
• basically what you would expect from a five star hotel

Ambience:

Very nice. It is the same as the rest of the hotel. The place is done nicely (see picture below). There is live Indian music (some tabla, sitar, and sarangi) which is very melodious. The space is small, but that has the effect of it not being filled with a lot of people and so doesn’t feel very crowded.

Conclusion:

Its a very nice place to go to for a nice lavish dinner. Lavish because the price will be very high; but I think that just the entrance to the hotel is worth the price tag.

Good place to go for a celebration, an official dinner if you need to wine and dine someone important, a special date, or just to treat yourself once in a while.

Bad for budget conscious dining.

But, I am jumping all over the place here. Let me introduce this place first. The restaurant is called FresCo. It is located towards the backend of the Ambience mall food court (a little behind the McDonalds).

They have both A La Carte and Buffet menus, and I have enjoyed both, and liked them both. A friend of mine however would differ as she didn’t like the soup that they served her (but she is vegetarian).

The staff is very polite and is always watching out for you, and makes you feel very much at home. There are two seating areas, open and closed. The benefit of the closed area is that you don’t feel like you are in the middle of a mall with people passing by all the time.

They have a decent wine list as well, so you should be able to order good accompaniment to the largely Italian/Med cuisine that the place serves. We enjoyed their desserts as well when we tried the buffet. However, if you are really a dessert buff, then you may want to check out IndiJoe’s which is a couple of restaurants down (once we ate at FresCo’s and then walked to IndiJoe’s for dessert).

Overall, the place is recommended. Do try it out, and leave your comments here on whether you liked it or not.

Here follows a review of the place.

The place serves beer of course (the name kind of gives it away, doesn’t it). But its no ordinary bar. They have their own brewery inside the restaurant and all the beer is fermented fresh. Now, that makes it different (if not unique, as this is not the only micro-brewery in town).

The Beer – I don’t normally like beer. However, I did develop a taste for a particular type of beer which is common in Germany (its called wheat beer or Weizen). And surprise, surprise, they offer wheat beer at Rockman’s. And it was pretty good as well. They do offer a number of other brews, and you can choose to order a large glass or the regular ones (the photo shows the regular ones).

We were joined by a couple of other friends and all of these beer-drinking guys said that the beer was good (remember that I am not too big on beers).

The Food – the food was nice. We ordered a variety of starters and dishes, and there were no complaints with the food quality. The menu is varied, though it is heavily biased towards the non-veg variety of food. So, you vegetarians will have only a handful of options to choose from.

The Ambience – the environment in the restaurant (I call it a restaurant) was pretty bright and cheerful. They have this little booths which look like barrels/kegs (call it whatever you want), in which you can sit 4-6 people. But you can only use them if you are only going to have some beer, as the tables in them are tiny. Other than that, there are normal tables and of course a bar space where you can sit if you happen to be alone or with a friend.

The Price – the place is very expensive. That’s all I can say.

Conclusion – nice place but very pricey. Will probably go back though.

Have you been to Rockman’s? If yes, please leave your impression of the place in the comments.

The Look and Feel

The restaurant is nicely decorated (very American), with nice bright lights on top of the tables (but otherwise subdued lighting). The decor keeps you interested while you are waiting for the food to arrive. Of course, if you are with interesting company then you probably don’t need to be kept occupied by the decor. Its very reminiscent of Ruby Tuesday or Big Chill (of course, if I was a professional critic, I would know the actual word for such decor).

The people waiting on you are courteous and friendly – big smiles all around. Even the person who showed us in (the one standing at the door) was very professional and courteous. I love going to restaurants where the patrons and the staff are happy to see you – they make you welcome. It just adds another dimension to your dining experience and makes you want to go back.

The place was not crowded when we went there (it was a Sunday night) – this was a surprise because we found it to be quite a nice joint with good food. Of course, its not that old a restaurant, so it may take some time before it becomes popular.

To give you an idea on how to get there – Get to the food court and face McDonalds. There is a passage that is going further in from the left side of McDonalds. You will see Punjab Grill at the beginning of this passage. Just keep going along it all the way to the end (where there is a Chinese restaurant). IndiJoe is just before the Chinese joint.

The Food

Although we went for dinner, I have been told that they also have a buffet for lunch (no buffet at dinner time). That makes it a great place for working lunches. The menu is not huge, but not small either. There is enough variety. The best part about their menu is that they have a decently large Desert Menu, so make sure that whatever you are eating, you leave space for that.

Aside from the food, they have a pretty large drinks menu as well, and a well stocked bar. So if you are in the mood to knock back a few and relax, you won’t be disappointed. They have a large selection of cocktails that they will mix for you, if you don’t like your alcohol straight.

We ordered something called “The Maggie’s Farm” and I must tell you, it was delicious. It was the most succulent piece of chicken that I have ever had, and my wife agreed. Maybe we were just lucky or very hungry or both. But still, it tasted very good. And unless you are really hungry or you have a large appetite, that one dish is good for two people (we both had our tummies full in one order).

Value for Money: Given the fact that we only had to order one dish, and the drinks alone were for over 650 bucks, the food came out to be relatively cheap. Our entire bill of Rs. 1,100 meant that this is not an expensive place at all.

The Bad

Every place has some flaws – no place is perfect. The flaws at IndiJoe were not major though. Actually, we counted just 3 (and two are similar).

One – we ordered a Martini. They came back to us and said, sorry, we are not serving Martinis. I hate it when a restaurant has a flashy menu and they aren’t serving half the things that are on the menu.

I forgive them however as they are a new joint, and I know that until recently they didn’t have a bar license. So maybe they are still stocking up.

Two – we ordered a particular desert (don’t remember the name anymore, but it was a lot of fruits in chocolate, or something). They weren’t serving that either. Again, I hate that. The excuse for this one was that fruits are seasonal, so they didn’t have that dish.

What a silly excuse. There are some great fruits to go around during the winters in India.

Three – we ordered a frozen lime Margarita. I am pretty sure that the bar tender forgot to put Tequila in the Margarita (or he may have ran out of Tequila after putting a couple of drops). Or maybe it was just me.

Conclusion

All in all, we will definitely be going back to this place. I might even take some clients there from time to time as it was a very nice place.

I put together a list of the ones I know. I have included those that are relatively safe to get to, and are in or near Gurgaon. Typically, you can get to any of them in less than 15-20 minutes from anywhere in Gurgaon (after midnight only).

Here’s the list:

Plaza Solitaire Hotel

This place is located on Old Jaipur Highway behind Sector 14. They serve North India, Chinese, Thai, and Continental food. They have both outdoor as well as indoor seating. I have been to this place MANY times, and though it is not the classiest joint in town, but it does fine. Here are some details:

• Meal for Two: Rs. 500.
• Address: 30, Sector 14, Old Delhi-Gurgaon Road
• Phone: 0124-2323043, 0124-2325832, 0124-2325833

Bonitos

This is a coffee shop near the international airport. Technically, this is in Delhi, but the highway makes this very accessible. It is located in Uppal Orchid. Details:

• Meal for Two: Rs. 2,500.
• Address: Uppal’s Orchid, NH8
• Phone: 011-25061515, 011-41511515

Citrus Cafe

Citrus Cafe is the name of the coffee shop in Lemon Tree hotels in Gurgaon. There are two such locations in Gurgaon. Although, I haven’t been here at midnight, I have had lunch here, and the meal has always been good. Hence, it is recommended. Here are the details:

• Meal for Two: Rs. 1500.
• Address 1: Lemon Tree Hotel, 287, Sec 29
• Phone 1: 0124-4160303, 0124-4160304
• Address 2: Lemon Tree Hotel, 866, Udyog Vihar, Ph V
• Phone 2: 0124-4423232, 0124-4423205

New Town Cafe

I have visited this coffee shop many times. And I highly recommend it. I even wrote a review about it recently talking about the Biryani Buffet. It is located at Park Plaza, and is definitely one of the better places to go at night.

• Meal for Two: Rs. 1800
• Address: Park Plaza Hotel, B Block, Sushant Lok II
• Phone: 0124-4150000

NYC – The Fun Cafe

This one too is not within Gurgaon, but is a short drive away on the highway. It’s inside Radisson hotel. I haven’t been there, but if its Radisson, how bad can it be?

• Meal for Two: Rs. 2000
• Address: Hotel Radisson, NH 8, Mahipalpur
• Phone: 011-26779191

Palmyra

This is yet another coffee shop located in the Bristol Hotel. I have been there, and although the place looks big, the food is alright. I had ordered their house speciality Chicken Burger, and wasn’t impressed. Other items on the menu sounded good though.

• Meal for Two: Rs. 1800
• Address: Hotel Bristol, Sikandarpur, DLF Phase I
• Phone: 0124-2356030

Axis

This place is a coffee bar plus restaurant. Once again, I haven’t seen this at night, though have been there during normal hours. They did have a nice wine list as per what I remember. The food was average though. This is located in the Galaxy hotel behind 32nd milestone.

• Meal for Two: Rs. 1500
• Address: First Floor, Galaxy Hotel, Sector 15.
• Phone: 0124-4565000

Cafe RoadHouse

Located inside 32nd milestone complex, this is one of the cheaper places on the list. The place is clean and I have visited it many a times. The clientele can get a little ordinary at times, but I haven’t had any trouble ever. The food is usually decent.

• Meal for Two: Rs. 750
• Address: 32nd milestone, NH8.
• Phone: 0124-2332571-75

Well, that’s it. These are all the proper joints that I know of. If you know of any other, please leave a comment. Also, if you have eaten past midnight at any of these, please leave  a comment mentioning how your experience was.