The Bistro Story, Chennai

“We started our careers together and always wanted to have our own Bistro kind of a place. And since we are now together, working in our Bistro, the place is called The Bistro Story” said Ravi [one of the owners]. That was the clue- The Bistro Story is where we were for dinner last night.

If you know Gopalapuram layout, you will know where National Public School is, there is a lane bang opp the place that is Sadashivam Street. As you drive down the road, you will The Bistro Story on your right nearly at the end of the road. That is where we headed to.  They officially opened their doors a week ago, and it looked like a cozy place. It was around 7pm, and since we were the only ones and so got a tour of the place, including the small bar style seating area outside.

The main hall as you enter has a bright poster of a pop up art on the wall, while the other room on the side has an elaborate Worli painting on the wall [it apparently took the artist 5 whole days to complete it]. After much deliberation, we decided to sit on the stools near the kitchen area. Even though the counter space was tad less, it was still comfortable and we had a good evening.

We were introduced to the Chef, Vijay who spoke about his career and how his forte is French & Italian, but they have included Mediterranean and a few dishes with Indian touch on the menu as well. “He is a hard core veg, but cooks non veg dishes with panache” chimed in Ravi.

To start off the evening, we ordered a drink each- Aam panna [raw mango juice], Rose milk and Jal jeera. All of them were yumm to the dot. While we savoured our drinks, we waited for our Eastern bites platter to arrive- it is similar to the Mezze platter- Falafel, pita bread, Fattayar [mini samosa with spinach and cheese], feta cheese and 3 dips- hummus, tzatsiki and babaganoush. The Falafel was just wow, so was the Fattayar, and so were the others on the platter. They were all hot, fresh and filled with unique flavours. Big thumbs up for this dish!

The little one wanted Fries, but the Chef convinced him to instead try their Nachos and he promptly did. It was a plate of goodness- Nachos with a touch of cheese served with tomato salsa. Yet another good dish.

For the mains, we decided to do with 2 pasta dishes and one paneer. The paneer dish had 2 paneer triangles sitting on a bed of cooked lentils served alongside a cup of rice topped with okra fritters. It was alright, very Indian. The highlight of this dish were the Okra fritters [ I could have eaten a big bowl of just that]

The pastas- one with tomato, basil & burnt garlic sauce, while I went for the Pesto [basil, parmesan cheese, garlic, olive oil and pistachio]. Both were yummy, but I loved mine more [am a sucker for pesto].

While we were busy enjoying our pasta, the little one went ahead and got a bowl of French Fries [he knew what he wanted and wasn’t leaving without it…] Kids~!!

Through the meal, we kept talking to the Chef [hopefully not distracting him much], and got a bit of insight into the kitchen and the things they created in that cozy space. Most of our dishes he cooked on the Induction stove, but there were huge burners which he said kicked into action when the place was packed or large volumes were needed. He also told us about how they relied on locals for their produce and did not import anything. For ex, their Cheese was from Pondicherry.

Phew, we were stuffed but well the lure of the dessert lingered. We chose the Sticky pudding with toffee sauce & vanilla ice cream while the little one chose the triple chocolate mousse [hope I got the name right]. I quite enjoyed my sticky pudding, but felt it was tad sweet and so sprinkled some salt  on the sauce and it made a world of difference, enhancing the taste…

The entire meal costed us Rs2041 [ incl tax and SC]

They are also going to be introducing breakfast shortly!!

Ambiance- V good, pleasing colours and décor

Price- Starters, mains and desserts are priced between Rs 120 to Rs 295 [giving you a rough idea of what the pricing is like]. 

Meal for two will work out to about Rs 800- Rs 1000

Overall experience- v good

Car parking- there is space for 3 cars right in front, and about 4 more along the road. They are looking at other options for parking as well.

Address:

The Bistro Story

24, 7, Sadasivam Street

Gopalapuram, Chennai -86

Phone- 044 4353 2934

Disclaimer:

The reviews posted on this blog are based on my personal experience. Also remember that restaurants and eat outs sometimes change with time, so does their food and service. So, kindly consider these factors while visiting the places. Remember, no two palates are the same. Bon Appétit  :-)

Lloyds Tea House, Gopalapuram, Chennai

If you are hungry and are looking for a good decent yet interesting place to go to, then head to Lloyds Tea House

If you have just walked out after a bleh movie and nothing can get your mood up, but a slice of Tiramisu or maybe a nice filling sandwich, then just go down the road towards DAV school, and voila, you will see this Tea house tucked amidst the row of houses. 

And for those who have been to Bangalore, and visited Infinitea, you will have hunted around Chennai for a similar place. Well, your search ends right here!! 

How was Lloyds born? Well, Vandana, a home baker was the one who took it upon herself to bring the idea of a Tea house to Chennai. And then came Pavan, an  investment advisor followed by Rashmi, a jewellery designer, Sunny who happens to be the in-house tea connoisseur and finally Rajesh, the one who took hold of the reigns and who also owns a car parts store down the road. And thus was born Lloyds tea House. Why the name? Well, the place is located on Lloyds Road, simple!  The interiors and decor is very English, the tables and chairs very casual and comfortable, and a small garden around the place. 

I have been there more times than I remember, and have had quite a few fond moments as well. Work related meetings, meeting friends for a casual chit chat session, and food meets as well. The place is small, but big enough to seat more than 20 people, they have a nice TV screen that is placed in front of a few sofas, a book shelf with an eclectic collection of books, and shelves lined with tea boxes neatly labelled. Oh and how can I forget the wall to wall shelves at the far end of the room with interesting curio pieces, some of which are interesting looking tea pots. 

As you settle into the chair, you will see two menus placed in front of you. One is an extensive tea menu while other is the food menu. If you are lost or confused, just ask one of the staff members to help you decide! Their choice is good and you will end up having a lovely time. 

They started with about 20-35 varieties of tea and have now gone up to nearly 60 kinds. Oh and what is more, they now retail tea as well. Some of their interesting teas have been the Blueberry Cheesecake tea, the monkey banana tea and several others. But my all time favorite is the Franconian Peppermint tea. It is just divine, especially HOT... 

Wait, I have to tell you about the interesting contraption they have that brews your tea. A container is brought to the table with tea leaves sitting at the bottom. And then, the staff pours hot water into it and you see the tea come alive. A timer is then placed on the table, and you are told how long the tea needs before it is ready to be poured. The very 1st time I saw this, I wondered how to pour the tea, but then I came to know it dint need to be poured. But infact, it had to be placed on the mug and voila, like magic tea fills in the mug. :-) 

On the food front, they have quite a range of Sandwiches, pasta, pizza, risotto, finger food such as the Rosti platter, BBQ Chicken, Vol au vents, Roasted vegetable crostini and so much more.  The Vol au vents is quite a nice dish- light fluffly puff pastry with mushroom & cheese on the top.  The Rosti platter on the other hand are discs of hash brown with loads of cheese and a nice bite to it.  Among the main dishes, I love their cottage cheese pesto sandwich, and their range of vegetarian pastas. The Creamy fusilli with mushroom is a personal favorite. They are sweet enough to custom make pasta on order. 

The Margharitta pizza that was served was beautiful. Thin crust base with healthy portions of tomatoes and cheese on top. But if you are not a tomato lover or like something different, just take your pick from their menu. They also have a few burgers, Chicken Cheese burger and a very Cheesy Cheese burger which is simply amazing. 

We also tried their Thai Basil Cottage Cheese with Rice and Penne Arrabiata Pasta. Both of these had unique flavours, filled with vegetables and were quite filling. The pasta was quite spicy, a tad too much for my taste buds but I washed it down with some peppermint tea..

And just when you think you are done for the day,   you notice the dessert counter with the delectable cakes staring at you with inviting glances.  Opt for the almond chocolate sticks or the Tiramisu, you are in for a treat. On that high note is how you end a perfect evening!! 

Lloyds as I have mentioned above, is a perfect place for a quiet evening with friends, or with a book and also an ideal place to have a business meeting in. And if you have been here few times, the staff know you and will bring your order without a word exchanged! 

You can read my earlier review here

Address:

#179, Lloyds Road, 

Gopalapuram, Chennai - 600086

Ph : 044 45524231

Lloyds Tea House

I am a little tea pot

Short and stout

Pick me up

Pour me out…

is a song that comes to my mind when someone mentions Tea.  And I hummed this in my head as I walked into Lloyds tea House in Gopalapuram that Thursday evening.  Located near DAV school, Lloyds is probably the only café other than CCD on that stretch. It also brought back memories of the old Amethyst [used to be on the road perpendicular to Lloyds] And ever since my 1st visit to Infinitea in Bangalore, I kept wishing for a similar place to open in Chennai.   

As you walk in, the decor and the colour on the walls is what hits you first. Very soothing turquoise/cyan colour on the walls, a small section with sofas covered with map upholstery and a book shelf to separate the sections. There are shelves at the far end of the cafe with a few artefacts, some of which are absolutely adorable and chic. There is a small counter in the middle with a display showcasing the wide variety of desserts they offer,a long with a few trays with Scones, biscotti and the pound cake. 

The shelves all around are filled with black containers with labels on them. Only when I went up close did I discover they all held different kinds of tea in it. They have over 60 kinds of Tea. Yes, you read it right! 

We began with an order of Teas, I wanted to try the Himalayan Wine, but they dint have it and so I opted for the Lloyds Blend which was a blend of 3 teas. More than the tea itself, it was the contraption that had us all curious. They bring to the table a pot with tea leaves in it, pour the hot water and then place a mini timer on the table. It has 3 options- light, medium or dark with time for each of them. So, depending on how you like your tea,. you can wait it out. Wait, there is more. The entire pot is then placed on the mug and voila, you get a cup of perfect tea. That is how awesome that contraption- err tea pot was. :-)   

There were a few who opted for the cold iced teas, but personally I preferred the hot ones. We tried the Blended tea, Irish tea, and so many others [my head is buzzing with names and flavours]. Their menu does not end here. They offer quite an array of eats as well, ranging from finger food to main dishes. 

While we waited for the food, a few of us quietly occupied the sofas and thanks to the TV on the wall, were enjoying the cricket match.

For the vegetarians, there are quite a few options and I say this with a big broad smile. There are club sandwiches, pasta, risotto, pizza, and the curious Zucchini fantasy[the dish was a drama on its own, you unfold the zucchini sheets to find a mix of veggies cooked Italian style inside]..  There was also the Rosti platter, mini tartlets if you will call them that and ofcourse the corn on toast as well. The risotto was interesting- it was served alongside Thai red curry. Italy meets Thailand, and they were quite happy together!! 

"Only 2 clicks and we dig in" was the chant in our group. We were hungry, and couldn't hold off any longer.. hehe.. all attack with spoons, forks and hands... 

Ah, now we were all smiling and happy. Just in time for the grand finale, drumroll please. We are now making our way towards the desserts sections, the place has 1,2,3,4, 5..... and many more desserts. There are fudge brownies, pound cake, red velvet cake, chocolate truffle, and then some more. Feast for your eyes and for the growling tummies..

Next time you want to grab a quick bite or go somewhere interesting, make a beeline to Gopalapuram and head to Lloyds.  What more? They have valet parking as well~!

Address:

Add to trip

#179, Lloyds Road, 

Gopalapuram, Chennai - 600086

Ph : 044 45524231