The Runaway Project by PizzaExpress - Lower Parel, Mumbai.

There was this one episode in a satirical TV show where central characters manage to get into a fancy uptown restaurant only to be disappointed by the overly expensive minuscule portions of tasteless food.

Runaway project which tries to bankroll on the "goodwill" of its parent concern PizzaExpress is a real world example of that satire.

Located in the noisy second floor of the new Skyzone wing in the Phoenix mall complex, this restaurant has a classy lounge like ambiance where any notion of classiness fades away due to the deafening loud music that they play. Apparently, there is a competition going on between Runaway, Soda Bottle openerwala and Chili's where each tries to outdo the other by raising their volumes. The scene is worse than a foul mouthed politician's rally.

My small group decided to order two pizzas and an appetizer. Let me tell you that the pricing here is unforgiving. It is more expensive than the likes of Indigo and the food is neither good in quality nor quantity. I sometimes wonder if they are just extracting the prime location's expensive rent from the customers.

Here is what we ate : 

Cigar Club - Described rather fancily in the menu as Filo cigars of cottage cheese and marinated roasted peppers, spiced mayonnaise and balsamic glaze.

I wonder if they got a PR professional or a Food Blogger to write this fancy piece of falsehood.
The Spiced mayonnaise and Balsamic glaze were nothing but a few droplets sprinkled randomly in the ugly presentation above. Cottage Cheese translates to paneer here so its rather a cheap Paneer pastry snack that you can buy in most local street bakeries in Mumbai. The taste was dry and it required a dip like accompaniment which seemed to be missing. And I'd rather not call these six small pieces of puff pastry as cigars. Not to mention if your are paying INR 475 plus taxes for this - you expect a satisfactory portion size and a little bit of effort into making it look appetizing.

Hawaiian Pizza -  The Pineapple on pizza trope might trigger some pizza enthusiasts but fear not, they replaced actual pineapple with Pineapple paste(chutney). This pizza which is priced at an unforgiving INR 625 plus taxes, was smaller than the smallest of pizzas offered by most pizza exclusive places. It was rather unsatisfying to say the least. The menu strangely doesn't even mention the carpet bombing of Basil. The basil leaves completely ruin the flavor profile of this pizza. It seemed like a last minute addition by an inexperienced but over enthusiastic chef.

Giardiniera Pizza - Recommended by the server for the vegetarians in the group, this was a visually displeasing and overdone pizza (Burns on the crust). Needless to say that it was too less even for one person  - let alone be split by two people. The only thing big about this pizza was its name, one wonders if it was actually suggested by Dr. Shashi Tharoor.

This was definitely not worth the INR 625 we spent on it.

As the grub was far from satisfying or filling - we ended up going to Chili's next door to fill ourselves up. While there are similar expensive places around the city - the portion sizes there at least fill one up. Indigo has gone down in quality over the years but its pizzas at least feel satisfying, the same can be said for the pizzas at a place like Pizza by the bay.

The Runaway Project only appears to work on fancy nomenclature and paid promotions via "prominent"(but misleading) social media personalities. The ambiance is killed by the overly loud music, the pricing is bad and the food fails on all fronts.

Would I recommend Runaway Project to anyone? No. 
I'd have to say at this point - if you want a drink  - go to any bar themed restaurant in Phoenix. If you want a pizza go to Indigo or Francesco. If you want good mains - Go to Smokehouse or Delhi Heights.


The Captain's Score : 4/10

Map Co-Ordinates
S-1, Second floor, Skyzone,
Phoenix Mill Compound, S.B. Marg,
Lower Parel, Mumbai

Crave - Prabhadevi, Mumbai

I must admit that despite eating at Crave's for almost about a year, I never actually got around to write about the place. Though it is a hole in the wall kind of a cafe, the place offers some great food. The menu has changed recently and there will be a lot of older items that I can no longer write about. But better late than never.

Crave is to most cafes what pen drives are to Floppy disks. Small place, mostly delivery oriented but the food here is amazing. It is the kind of place to order pizzas from while watching the big game. It is also the kind of place to go to in the evening with a bunch of friends. There is not much to talk about the ambiance, its spartan and its comfortable.

Crave fries are the good old things that we have longed to eat since the vintage era of fast food. These fries are tasty and are the real deal. A much welcome change to super oily fast food fries or defrosted Mac/King fries. It goes well with the various dips available at Crave.

I framed a mix of the various appetizers that are available at Crave. The Brown Chicken Marinara Bruschetta felt herby and contained a lot of garden spices. It tasted great with the white cheese and chives dip. The Tomato Bruschetta tasted like it tastes anywhere else, though it was far cheaper than what one would get at a place like Moshes. Jalapeno poppers went well with the Chilli garlic dip. The garlic bread was far better than that from a mainstream pizza place.

The Roast was full of juicy chicken with caramelized onions and cheddar. It was a dirty, messy but an "oh so good" burger. This is one of my favorites at Crave.

Bacon of Hope had a perfect mixture of onion, ham and cheese. This trio can taste amazing when present in the right place and right quantities. The Bacon gave it a rough and meaty texture. If you love meat than this is the pizza to go for. While it was not quite the gourmet pizza that I longed for, it was several times better than the pizzas from popular pizza joints. My money is always better spent on Crave's pizzas.

The Chicktease was a naughty and a huge burger. This tasty whopper would leave your hands messy as well. It used sweet and spicy BBQ chicken with heap loads of coleslaw and cheese. The flavor was amazing and it definitely was a tease to the tongue. This is a good choice against my "former" favorite Roast.

The place offers packaged unbaked, cream based cheesecake which is not much different from those offered everywhere else.

Crave's Tiramisu seems to be using the similar cream material as the cheesecake above, though the flavor is a lot better and more authentic. The serving portion felt a little small though.

The place uses self service so no comments on that part. The store manager was quite a polite mister and was well informed on the food.

The pricing seems to be on par with Cafe type restaurants in the area like Home Chef for example. Its slightly lower than Starbucks and Cafe day though. The food quality is greater than what one would find at a Starbucks.

Since I have been to most places in this locality, I would safely say that Crave is the best American fast food eatery in this side of Prabhadevi. The food is amazing and appropriately priced. The only place that would come close to Crave in the Pizza-Burger segment in all of Dadar is Home chef but then Home chef takes a rather long time to deliver.

The Captain's Score : 8/10

Map Co-Ordinates
Crave,
Shivalik Building,
Adjacent to Tata Motors,
Prabhadevi, Mumbai



-Though I was invited on my latest run to the place and the meal was on the house, this post has elements from the times I paid for my own meal as well.-



 

1Tablespoon Pizza - Lower Parel, Mumbai

1Tablespoon Pizza(1TBSP) has quite an enigma around its name. Even the restaurant manager did not know about the name's origin. But it does do a good job of sticking in your head owing to its peculiarity. So I think its quite a clever name.

Pizza by the Slice is an interesting concept that was popularized in New York but it didn't quite get into mainstream in India. Sbarros did try a Pizza by the slice concept but they ended up making it look too artificial. This is where 1TBSP has excelled. The restaurant has a small menu but each pizza is memorable.

The pizzeria is a small parlor sized establishment which could be hard to locate if you do not know your way around Todi Mills. Its designed like a quick service/Delivery restaurant and for a pizza place they certainly are quick. My order was served to me within ten minutes of placing it. They have employed a good strategy which keeps the entire process clean, transparent and efficient. The way I see it, there are no delaying bottlenecks.

Do note that while they do have other items on their menu, best stick to their Pizzas because that is what they are best at. If you want to have pastas and the like, there are about a dozen other places in the neighborhood.

The Spicy Chorizo Pizza was not quite friendly to the camera but was rather amazing to the taste buds. Using the Goan-Portugese variant of Chorizo sausages, this was mildly salty, sweet, savory and spicy.  The sweetness came from spicy honey which gave it an addictive zing. To me, this was the best of the three slices that I tried. And might I add, the slice was quite generously loaded with meat.

The Americano was a milder pizza or at least felt that way after the spicy affair above. This one charmed the camera and my Instagram is a testament to that. It was generously loaded with American Pork pepperoni. The taste was that of a classical cheese and meat pizza. It is a safe choice for those not into spicy gourmet.

Spicy Salami was a meaty tasting whopper. It had more meat, less cheese and was topped by raw spices giving it a rough texture. The pizza was visually appealing as is resembled popular pizza pictures on social media. Though its named spicy, it is far lesser on the heat content as compared to the Chorizo pizza. A decent pizza if you want a lot of salami and less cheese. It also had a pleasantly earthy and appetizing aroma.

The staff is very professional and the entire process happens in front of you. Since the place is a QSR, service may or may not be offered.

The pricing is easy as far as slices of a 28 inch pizza go. The 11 inch (thin base) full pizzas are cheap too making 1TBSP an excellent place to order pizza from. Its better to order gourmet grade pizzas from 1TBSP rather than to order from the likes of Dominoes or Pizza hut. The pizzas here are far better and much cheaper.

To wrap it up, I think 1TBSP is like the little master - A small restaurant that has some of the best pizza in town. 1 TBSP definitely makes it to my top five pizza places in Mumbai. If you stay in Lower Parel or if you are in the area, do try 1 TBSP pizza. Mumbai may just have its very own Spontini Duomo.

P.S You can call and ask them for directions if you get lost in Todi Mills.

The Captain's Score : 9/10

Map Co-Ordinates
1Tablespoon Pizza
Mathuradas Mill Compound,
Todi Mills,
Lower Parel, Mumbai.


-I was invited to sample the menu by the Restaurant. My review however remains objective.-

Pizza Express - Powai, Mumbai.

We climbed down into the abyss, walked our course and easily climbed back on the other side. It was so easy compared to our ordeal before. We had found the place to be larger, deeper and spookier in the dark. Firsty fashioned a torch out of a piece of wood we broke from an old book rack. However, we faced a new challenge as we emerged from the structure. The island's remaining cowards who had no courage to explore the mansion on their own had surrounded us.

PizzaExpress(without the space) needs no introduction. Its a casual dining pizza chain located virtually all across the globe. The brand is quite a big player in Mumbai itself where they have four outlets in four different food districts.

The first thing that I noticed upon my entry was its dual styled ambiance - bird cutouts on one side and bird shaped lights on the other. PizzaExpress restaurants use a different theme in every outlet. Since this outlet was located in Powai, they used a lake and birds motif. One side appeared like a casual dining Pizzeria while the other side felt like a fine dine.

Ginger Fresca was a Ginger flavored fizzy drink that was cold, refreshing and quite comforting to the throat. Its flavor was dominated by Ginger ale with a hint of mint. A great choice if you are tired of the same old Mojitos and soft drinks.

Gamberetti Piccante was a healthy prawn based dish made in a spicy passata sauce. This passata is said to be sourced from the famed Greci family in Italy. The flavor was mildly spicy and savory. The Tomato passata dominated the flavor while the spinach and Italian herbs provided taste depth to the dish. The rustic home food flavor and the flamboyant red color concerted well together and made it quite a great choice for an appetizer.

Island Rogue : You may have beaten Cuvo but he was nothing more than a low level barnacle. I am the great Pirate Lord Roni and you will hand over the chest that you found inside that building to me.

Captain : Fancy title kiddo. Was the great Pirate Lord too scared to enter the dangerous structure himself? Sorry buddy, finders keepers.

Roni : Enough! My men have surrounded you. You stand no chance.

Captain(chuckles) : My, my we have quite the situation then.

Etna Pizza is named after the famous Sicilian volcano. Its texture appeared rough due to less cheese and its color was dominated by dry cured ham and sausages giving it an appearance like an active volcano. I thought the pizza appeared artistic. It was almost as if someone baked it in a Prisma Oven ha. The flavor was meaty, savory and the rough texture extended to the flavor as well. Its a great pizza to have if you enjoy good meat but if you are a cheese addict then there are other choices on the menu. The Jalapenos compliment the ham well.

First Mate : Stop messing around mate, just blow them.

Captain : Aww shucks, I was having fun ya know.

Roni : I wait no more. Get them Boys. 

Captain : Ever been in the middle of a storm Great Pirate Lord :)?  (Opens Chest of Storms while pointing it at Roni's gang)

Roni : Oh Lord...NOO.
(A strong hurricane blows Roni and all of his men away)

First Mate : Wow they blew further than a pro Golfers Tee shot.

PizzaExpress' Cheesecake is the classical and the near perfect rendition of the Baked Philadelphia cheesecake. The flavor is amazing and its definitely one of the best cheesecakes in India. The only thing not traditional about it is that PizzaExpress uses McVitties Digestive biscuit crumbs instead of Graham crackers for the base. The latter tend to be more brittle.

Raspberry Cheesecake Gelato is a recent addition to the PizzaExpress menu. Its a decent emulation of a cheesecake flavored ice cream. Unlike the versions found in major ice cream outlets in town, this Gelato truly tastes like a liquid cheesecake with a tarty raspberry flavor. While I did enjoy the Cheesecake above, I must admit that this was the better of the two desserts.

PizzaExpress serves great pizza though I do feel its pricing is on the higher side. However, they use imported ingredients for a truly Italian pizza experience so that affects things. 

The service was excellent. My server knew every detail of every pizza on the menu, the places from where the ingredients were sourced and answered everything I threw at him. His conduct was very professional. This is the kind of service one desires at any place.

I love Pizzas, its one of me favorite things in the food world. And I love going to PizzaExpress whenever I can. Its a shame that there isn't a PE outlet in my neighborhood otherwise I would probably be giving them business at least once a week. But yes, if you live in Mumbai and if you love Pizzas - Do visit Pizza Express.

The Captain's Score : 8/10

"

Captain : We got this chest but still don't have a clue to the next spot.

Navigator : The chests inscription's resemble our map greatly. Could it be?

Nina : Nya :3

Captain : (Places the map on the chest) Wow the inscription is a near identical copy except for this bulge here.

Navigator : That bulge happens to be Faraway island. The worst place in all seas. If I had to hide a legendary artifact. It would be there.

Captain : Makes sense. I have a good feeling about the worst place on the sea. Set course to Faraway Island.
"

Map Co-Ordinates
PizzaExpress,
G14, A Wing,
Ventura Hiranandani Business Park,
Powai, Mumbai.


-I was invited to sample the menu by the Restaurant. My review however remains objective.-

The Playlist Pizzeria - Bandra Reclamation, Mumbai.

We stared at a secret chamber inside the secret passage that was supposed to lead us back to the surface. I switched me flashlight on and saw a large pool of water inside the chamber with a shrine like structure in the middle. Nina mewed innocently and looked at me as if beckoning me to go and explore. Cats do have a sixth sense about such things but what could possibly the secret structure be hiding? This place isn't even on the map for the blue compass. Nina better not be sending me after exotic cave fish.

What's the worst peeve one has when one goes into a restaurant to grab some comfort grub? Its the weird music pervading your ears. And worst still is the inability to change that for the better. Some restaurants have Jukeboxes but its kind of a buzzkill to leave your meal midway to go adjust the Jukebox. And that is where Playlist pizzeria comes up with its unique seller. Sit on your table, download a jukebox app and add your choice of music to a queue which will play when its turn comes. Sounds cool doesn't it?

Playlist pizzeria is a small cafe like restaurant located at a corner in the quiet inner lanes of Bandra reclamation. Its quite close to places like Desi Deli or Salt Water Cafe if one needs landmarks. The ambiance feels very typical of a modern bistro cum pizzeria. Being in a residential neighborhood, I am pretty sure the bulk of their business comes from home deliveries but I can see the place getting crowded in the evening as a community hangout spot. Its the kind of place that makes an ideal lured Pokestop (Pokemon Go folks will get this). The ambient temperature feels a bit warm but still cozy.

This was positively the best Garlic Cheese bread that I have had, ever. The portion size was generous, being a large flatbread. This was loaded with cheese and had a beautiful blend of savory flavors . To be honest, this felt as awesome as a pizza itself. I absolutely recommend the reader to try this.

Half and Half Pizza. I love pizzerias that offer the option of combining two pizzas into one, I really do. In the picture is the Rapture Pepperoni pizza(Top right) and the Echo chicken pizza. I have no idea why these are named so but these were both delectable pizzas. The rapture combined aesthetics with the rusty meaty flavor of pork pepperoni. The Echo on the other hand is a traditional meat lover's pizza. It was loaded with cheese, chicken, chicken sausage and salami. Its the pizza you order for your pizza night or for the big game.

Captain : This water must be like thousands of years old. Hope I don't catch ancient bacteria.

Quartermaster : Quit yer yapping, we all have to wade through this pool. At least, it ain't deep. 

Engineer : Hmm, I don't think the water is that old. It tastes very fresh. Like off a glacier ya know.

The gooey chocolate cake in a polystyrene cup was disappointing in both visuals and flavor. I was a bit too full to try their renowned cookie pizza but its the dessert to go for at Playlist pizzeria. Don't settle for anything else.

Captain : This be strange. This golden orb is the only artifact inside this shrine. And it seems that sea water falls on it and gets converted into fresh water. 

Engineer : That's a treasure Captain. It solves an age old problem of getting potable water from sea water.

Captain : Yeah but I don't think these magic orbs are that common.

Quartermaster : Just take it. I don't think the townsfolk get their fresh water from here anyway. No one is gonna miss this ball. It will be immensely useful in our voyages.

The service was normal. Won't praise it or pan it.

The pricing was variable. A majority of their pizzas are of far higher quality than the likes of big chain pizzerias like Dominoes/pizza hut and cost lesser making them easy winners. There is a higher end of pizzas too like the Rapture and echo but these pizzas are of gourmet grade. Their pricing is similar to what one would expect at other gourmet pizzerias like CPK or Pizza Express. Though I do believe that their prices can be shaved off by 20%.

Playlist pizzeria is an interesting concept. It is still in infancy I believe and I would like to see it grow and reach other neighborhoods. This is definitely a place that I would like to visit again.

The Captain's Score : 8/10

"
Captain : Good girl Nina, you led us to a treasure.


Nina : Nya :3

Captain : Though I am curious about how you knew this.

Engineer : Save that story for later Captain, lets get back to the main passage and get out of here.
 "

Map Co-Ordinates
Playlist Pizzeria
St. Baptist Road, Near Mt. Mary Steps,
Reclamation, Bandra West
Mumbai


-I was invited to sample the menu by the Restaurant's PR. My review however remains objective.-

Cafe Cubano - Kemps Corner, Mumbai.

That could have been ours I thought as I looked at a wrecked ship that had mysteriously landed in the middle of the street. It was literally thrown by the ocean on to the island or so it seemed. As the local people crowded the structure, we decided to explore the ship. The ship seemed to have been abandoned ages ago. Ship wrecks often give us vital information like the one that gave us the map for the compass ha.

Cafe Cubano is a rather puzzling name as it serves neither Cubanos nor the famous Cuban coffee. The place was on my radar for a while as I had seen a lot of positive reviews by other writers. When the resident PR contacted me, I gladly accepted the invitation to give the place a shot.

The place looks less like a restaurant/Cafe and more like a pub with its dark appearance and industrial ceiling. The ambiance isn't much to talk about though it did feel comforting in the hot afternoon. The choice of furniture seemed a bit odd as it did not match the decor. There were too many different themes talking without any connection with one another.

The bar looked good but it was marred by the presence of the fish tank. This fish tank felt out of place unless one used a lot more of the aquarium tank and made the whole wall aquatic themed. Something like in Singapore's Sentosa. The bar chairs were comfy but one can't help note that they look plain weird, bar stools would have looked more appropriate.

Fix the Bulb. How many Food writers does it take to change a light bulb? One in this case as I fixed the bulb by emptying its contents in me mouth. The flavor was dominated by fruit juice, notably orange. It used Dark Rum and a bit of a flavoring from Elderflowers. The kick was mild and the drink seemed to be more on the fruity sweet side but it provided ample relief to my parched throat.

P.S : One does not need a screwdriver to change a light bulb. These screwdrivers are a turn off and need to go.

Chocolate Margarita was disappointing. It almost had no kick and Hershey's Chocolate sauce doesn't always make the best Chocolate drink. There was far too much powdery ice in it making the drink watery by the time I reached the half mark. The glass should also have been rimmed with chocolate granules, a traditional part of chocolate margaritas. The only appreciable part of the drink was that it was slightly pepperminty which made it a good cooler after spicy grub.


The Food at Cubano seems like a mix of Indian and Progressive Indian. Progressive Indian is a term that is being used too often now days for places that tend to fuse Indian food with other cuisines.

Peri Peri Chicken was very very good in flavor. The superficial plating with the sauce art however was unneeded and I felt that this dish would have looked better without the saucework. The chicken morsels were juicy, savory and spicy. Each bite had a Tandoori flavor with an African twist. Makes a great appetizer or a bar nibble, you choose.

Captain : This ship looks like she hasn't sailed for decades. 

First mate : Ain't that obvious? This vessel is using a design from the previous century.

Khairul Shaikh Ke Kebab was made of minced Lamb meat inside chicken meat on a skewer. The meats were well done, apparently both cooked at the lamb's temperature. However, the two meats were indistinguishable in flavor which was a letdown. The Kebabs were spicy and this seemingly paired well with "Fix the Bulb" since it fixed both the dryness and the heat. I should actually call that drink Bulb the fixer.

P.S Get rid of that sauce work, really.

Malbari Curry tastes and looks like Malabari curry. Not sure if there is some reference behind the misspelled name. This dish doesn't look aesthetically pleasing but it turned out to be the underdog champion of the day. The curry had a lovely aroma, enough to knock off the drinks from my bloodstream and open my eyes wide. I eagerly put in a spoon and ate my first bite.

Moments later, I was scrapping the last drop of curry from the bowl. The pleasant mixture of coconut, tamarind and possibly jaggery felt like the ultimate homemade dish. It was a mix of salty, savory and the  pungent. I did not enjoy the chicken pieces in it as much as I enjoyed the liquid curry.

Captain : No treasure, No chart and no clue.

Navigator : There are burn marks all over the top deck.

Captain : There was a fire here?

Navigator : Nay, more like someone burnt something intentionally on the deck.

Cutting Chai Panna cotta with a Indian shortbread biscuit(Naankhatai) was a poor execution of a layered dessert. Firstly, Panna Cotta is best served on a plate. This serves both aesthetic and gustatory purposes. Second, if one must add whip cream and compote on top of a thin layer of panna cotta, why even call it a panna cotta?

After an annoying fight with the top layers, I managed to dip in my spoon into the panna cotta and it turned out to be a bitter version of condensed tea. It seemed to lack the consistency of a true panna cotta feeling more like a thick granulated paste instead.

Banoffee Pie Pudding. I am quite supportive of fusion food or new methods of cooking food but I actually had to stare at this for a while. What exactly was this? It was a loose mixture of buttered graham cracker crumbs, regular bananas, some whip cream and chocolate flakes. A heap of lackluster ingredients tossed into a glass. The bananas were not even caramelized. I could not finish it because it tasted horrible and I rarely leave a dessert midway. I feel that this one has to be either reworked completely or be taken off the menu.

My first choice of dessert - Chocolate Mousse was not available that day.

The service was decent as my server knew his stuff (Save the desserts part) and accommodated my trips with food near the window for better pictures.

The pricing seems to be acceptable for food but as far as drinks and desserts go, one needs to punch in some quality to make it worth the buck.

Cafe Cubano needs to fix its house. Other than the Peri Peri Chicken and Malbari curry, everything else was dismal. They need a dedicated dessert chef to redo the sweet stuff.

The Captain's Score : 6/10

"Our experience felt unsatisfying and we decided to explore a different part of this ship. There must surely be some good somewhere."

Map Co-Ordinates
Cafe Cubano
Ground Floor, Habib Mansion,
Kemps Corner, Mumbai



-I was invited to sample the grub by the Restaurant's PR. My review however is objective.-

 

AKA Restaurant - Worli, Mumbai.

Stuck on a strange island, we decided to explore the place completely. There be some strange magic in these parts. Perhaps, we could find some information for me quest. We returned from our excavation in the jungle and saw a restaurant in the midst of the busy town street. It was hot and I could bloody well use some grub and grog.

AKA can be a little hard to find for the first timer. Its hidden on a street behind the buildings on a main road. I suppose, calling it opposite the Nehru science centre works better for directions. I came here on a hot day. A single minute of walk in the hot summer sun had made me resemble a lost traveler in the midst of a scorching desert.

AKA is huge. The dining area feels like a mix of many themes. There are modern European, American and classical Indian style fine dining elements present here. The dim yellowed lights make the ambience appear golden. However, there seemed to be some issue with air conditioning on the day I dropped by. It was either running too low to be perceived or there was some unseen glitch. The temperature felt warm and slightly discomforting.

At this point, you may probably be wondering why the restaurant is named AKA. I am that told it is based off the owner's initials. Three partners, three letters.

AKA offers continental grub with a simplified menu which feels more like an elevator panel than a cockpit dashboard. It is thus easy to make a choice.

The Performer was a simple molecular cocktail which was made of Vodka, Apricot Brandy and Cranberry tea. It was infused with smoke made of Rosemary, Thyme and orange zest. The drink was sweet(Candied kind), tangy and mildly potent. The smoke added to the zesty flavor. Good for fellas who want to keep it light. If you need something stronger then go for a more generic cocktail.

Captain : Ah yes, good grog to beat the heat. 

Crewmate : I need some too Cappy.

Captain : You can have the smoke.

Lamb meatballs were made in a paste which was reminiscent of the Arrabbiata sauce. The balls were soft and full of flavor. The pistachio slivers on top added to aesthetics but not flavor. I am not used to having meatballs alone, preferring some form of roughage like pasta or at least some bread. I felt that a thin slice or two of Focaccia won't have been a bad thing.

Mascarpone Chorizo Pizza was a decent pizza if one is to compare it with the likes of Dominoes or Pizza hut. But it wasn't quite a gourmet pizza. Mascarpone was far too less to make an impact on the flavor which was dominated by mozzarella. The base sauce was weak on chorizo as well. The flavor was clearly adapted to Indian palates.

Chicken and Mascarpone Burger. The burger was quite salty and the patty a little chewy. This was a messy and juicy burger which had almost everything in the right place. But just like how a stray stroke can ruin a masterpiece in the making, the salt dampened the other elements.

Chocolate Gianduja Mousse was an impressive looking dessert. A shallow stream of toffee sauce flowed in between two gigantic pyramids made of chocolate mousse along with mounds of whip cream with ultra thin discs of chocolate. The mousse was eggless but still tasted amazing. Very few dessert makers get an eggless mousse right. The dessert was a decent consolation over the salty mains.

Its difficult for me to comment on the service as I was invited to sample the place and it was late in the noon with very few customers around. From my experience, I felt the service was professional and decent. The server knew his stuff.

Captain : This looks pretty, just like one of those master chef desserts. 

Crewmate : Can I have a bite?

Captain : Sure, I will keep the pyramids. You can keep the stream.

The pricing is on the higher side. It feels a bit high for the drinks, appetizers and mains. But it feels cheap for the desserts. Won't mind if the prices are about a fifth lesser.

AKA has got most of its elements right but it needs to work on the glitches. That being said, its a decent continental place and its current problems could just be teething issues.


The Captain's Score : 7/10

"
Captain : What is that rumbling?

First Mate : Could it possibly be the empty stomach of your poor crew, you insatiable glutton?

Captain : I am serious mate.

First mate : Well, it came from outside.

(Crew goes outside.)


First Mate : What in the world! What is this?

Captain : We are definitely getting close to that compass.
"

Map Co-Ordinates
AKA Restaurant
Ground Floor, Lotus Cinema Building,
Dr. Annie Besant Road,
Worli, Mumbai




 -I was invited to sample the grub by the Restaurant's PR. My review however is objective.-

1441 Pizzeria - Fort, Mumbai.

Storms, monsters, pirates - we faced them all but none perhaps was more terrifying then what lied ahead. The fabled sea of shipwrecks. It boasted of beautiful islands and legendary restaurants but all of that came at a price. Of every ten ships that would enter this sea, only one would successfully sail out. Me and the crew had a discussion late in the night. Yes, we all desired the blue compass but was it worth the risk? Just then the lookout rang the bell. 

We were passing a rather small isle with nothing but a single tavern on it. The island was the last piece of land before the dark dangerous sea. It was always better to discuss matters of such importance over food. Maybe we could get some useful information as well.

1441 Pizzeria at Fort is a new outlet of an already established brand. The restaurant feels like a small bistro and may sometimes resemble a quick serving restaurant. 1441 is named after the co-ordinates of the town of Naples that is 14 East and 41 North. 1441 boasts of being the only wood fired pizza place in Mumbai which lets people design their own pies. Its a true pizza parlor in that sense.

I was invited to a pre-launch meet by the restaurant's PR. The meet was attended by fellas who wrote on Zomato. Though, a little oversight saw far too many people being invited and crowding the little restaurant.  I was asked to shift a couple of times to make way for groups of "foodies". The joys of being a solo writer, ha. The staff for the most part was nice which was commendable given the chaos that had descended upon the room.

The restaurant had a lovely neighborhood cafe like appearance. The walls showed scenes from Naples and there was even a map of Italy. Had the place been less crowded that day, it would have actually been a nice little sanctuary from the busy road outside.

Dough Balls make a nice replacement to the overused garlic breads. Traditionally, these must have a smooth surface, golf ball like shape and soft texture within. 1441's variants were were tough, chewy and I was also unable to cut these with a knife and a fork. It is likely that I got a bad batch since a lot of folks seemed to enjoy these.

BBQ Chicken Pizza. Though 1441 brands itself as a pizzeria where one can design their own pizza from scratch, I was strangely recommended to try one of their pre-made combinations. Being privy to the horrors that can be unleashed by laymen in a kitchen, I decided to take their advice and play safe. Though not wanting to go home without testing the customization bit, I decided to add a few more toppings to the fixed design. No worries, I knew these combinations worked from experience.

I was a little saddened that pork options were missing from the menu. Parma ham and Chorizo make some great gourmet pizzas.

The pizza was very different from my expectations. This was not due to my additions, mind you. It was due to two factors.

A good napolitana pizza always has a leopard print base which was present here too but the base's appearance and flavor also signified a bit of overheating. The spots should never become too big because that can be a turn off to the rustic experience. Subtly charred should never become burnt.

The Mama's sauce used in the pizza resembled Pumpkin puree and was a bit a mismatch as far as flavors go. I would have preferred San Marzano tomato paste instead. I am told that they do offer an Italian tomato sauce, so thats for next time.

Thankfully, the sauce had not invaded the entire pie and was only present near the edges. The rest of the pizza was a satisfactory experience. Pesto chicken, herbed salami and spicy sausages made a delectable combination in flavors.

Captain : Rather small place eh?

Crewmate : There are a lot of sailors here. Are they all going to the sea of shipwrecks?

First mate : Unlikely. Think these be traders passing by these routes.

The Nutella Pizza has been a darling of instagrammers. There are so many images of it floating around from the first 1441 outlet that it definitely becomes an intriguing option for most people visiting the restaurant. But visible novelty aside, this pie was a major disappointment.

Taking a pizza base, spreading some nutella over it and tossing some toppings on it is easy. There has to be something more than mere optics for this dessert to work. For me, I would have been content if this dessert was sweet. That was my only requirement. The salty pizza base was the party pooper. It is not difficult to create sweetened dough and use that to make dessert pizza bases rather than using regular bases. Had the base been sweet, this dessert would have worked as a sweet dish. But for now it requires work.

I cannot comment on the service since I was part of a pre-opening meet. The servers were polite for the most part but they had their moments when they gave in to the chaos. One of the other invitees took my chair when I was standing up and looking the other way. The staff was completely helpless when I requested them to find me a replacement. Thankfully, I was spared as a few fellas were leaving and chairs became available after ten minutes of standing.

The pricing seems to be a mixed bag. Its apt for their starters, salads and classical pizzas. But on the higher side for their customs and gourmet pizzas. Though understandable since these pizzas use a lot more materials, the quality does need lot of improvement. This pricing is close to what places like Indigo or CPK charge and those places clearly have a superior pizza.

1441 has a nice concept but it clearly has a lot of work cut out for it.

The Captain's Score : 7/10

"
Captain : Time to set sail into what lies beyond this island.


Engineer : You make it sound scary. Not very helpful.

Captain : :D

Tavern Owner : Venturing out to the treacherous sea, are ya? Just remember two bells save the day and three send you away.

Captain : What is that supposed to mean?

Tavern Owner : Who knows? Heard it from some fella who made it out of that sea alive.

"

Map Co-Ordinates
1441 Pizzeria,
Ground Floor,
Hari Chambers, S B Road,
Fort, Mumbai


 -The meal was on the house but my review is objective.-