From China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore to Vietnam and Japan, Upstairs fulfils all you Asian cravings, says Gita Hari.
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Perched on the 5th level behind Everest Building in Tardeo is the newly launched Upstairs-Asian Bistro & Bar right next to the popular sheesha lounge Bareasti. If it’s Asian, can Buddha be far away? We get to see quite a few Buddha busts and idols right from the entrance to the extended deck area with piped Buddha Bar music.
Singaporean Noodles |
You are first ushered into the bar-cum-dance area with blaring music and as this is not our idea of a dinner date, we were guided further to the split-level rooftop. After a quick visual scrutiny that revealed different seating – one on the slightly higher level, another corner had cosy bean bags to lounge; we decided to take the table with black sofas sporting pink and gold cushions. The deck has an alfresco feel to it and is an ideal chill-out place. Cuisine, obviously, is from Asian countries ranging from China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore to Vietnam and Japan.
The menu was presented and we called for Cottage Cheese Chilli Pepper and Malaysian Sambal Honey Potato – both scored well, the former with fresh, soft paneer and the other with its perfect ratio of chilly and honey on grilled jacket potatoes. But Crunchy Lotus Root in soy & spice was a let-down with the crunch, tang, togarashi all missing from my favourite starter.
The Indonesian soup Laksa Assam of tamarind, ginger, coconut milk turned out to be a tad watery considering coconut milk is supposed to lend a creamy texture. Tom Yum soup delighted with lemon grass, galangal and basil. Since dimsums are the most looked-forward-to in Asian eateries, we ordered Jade dimsum, Veg Shomai and Momo Buddha Delight. The fillings with greens, water chestnut, corn and veggies were tasty but the shells turned out to be rather sticky. Rice Pepper Roll of uncooked, fresh veggies was okay. Most of the dishes were low on salt.
Among the non-veg options, Chicken Coriander Momos were flavoursome. Honey Chilli Lamb gets marks for its presentation. Recommended to try the Upstairs to Infinity experience where you drink a couple of shots standing on a raised dais and the bartender spins it till you feel light-headed. Quite an amusing sight for onlookers.
Drunken Supirittsu |
Another USP of Upstairs is, in addition to their unique signature cocktails and shots, every drink you order from their 1-2-3 – Free offer section, the price of the drink keeps falling till the third drink and then the fourth drink is on the house. A smart way to tempt you to down more drinks. Some of the drinks like Lantern have an elaborate lit up display on your table giving the cocktail a smoky cinnamon flavour. Charcoal Sour exuded a peppery pungency with orange tang. If you like vodka in your watermelon juice, go for Spiced Copi. Their Long Island Tea is quite the ‘in’ thing while we relished the mocktail Peachina of peach and cranberry juices.
For the main course, Broccoli, water chestnut ginger Hong Kong style with Singaporean Noodles and Burnt Garlic Rice seemed good yet the rice could have been non-sticky. We went with Honey Fried Noodles and Date Walnut Pancake for desserts. Both lived up to their famed oriental dessert crunch and sweetness.
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Pocket-friendly – Yes! Service was slow in spite of only a few tables being occupied. With umpteen Pan-Asian restaurants in the city serving excellent oriental dishes, this place needs to overhaul its kitchen staff and attend to its teething issues. Worth a one-time visit for its ambiance, music and drinks.
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Ratings
Decor: 4
Food: 3
Service: 3.5
Pricing: 4
Overall: 3.5
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