Hispanic warmth and hospitality is quite legendary and you will often hear the phrase “Mi Casa es Su Casa” as you travel through the Hispanic world. The recently opened restaurant “Su Casa” takes inspiration from this phrase and opens its doors to the public inviting them to treat the place as their casas.
The restaurant is located in one of the unlikeliest buildings in the Reclamation area of Bandra. The building, as Suren Joshi, the owner mentioned, belongs to the Bombay Art Society and looks like something like a building from the world of Flintstones but as you enter the restaurant, you are taken by surprise at the wide-open space, the al fresco dining with walls that are covered with plants and mood lighting gives a very open and beautiful feel to the place.
The menu is essentially European and is neither extensive nor complex which in a certain way also reflects the laid-back vibe of the place. Without wasting much time, we order our round of starters which includes a Mezze platter, Pan tossed Prawns in Charmola, Creamed Goat cheese Crostini and Patatas Bravas. The Hummus and the pickled brinjals in the mezze platter were mind blowing and had me reaching out for seconds. Similarly, the prawn in the pesto starter was well cooked and the pesto sauce had a certain spice kick that made it stand out. I wasn’t too impressed by either the crostini or the Patatas, the Brava sauce in the Patatas was too runny for my taste and the Crostini somehow lacked the oomph that one would expect from the marriage of goat cheese and balsamic vinegar.
Of the mains, the table saw a mix of dishes ranging from Red Snapper to John Dory to Smoked Duck Lasagna to my favourite, tenderloin steak in chimichurri sauce. There were two vegetarian spaghettis too on the table, I tried both and found them to be apt, the pastas could have been a bit more al dente, but were quite enjoyable. The red snapper was served with a quinoa salad which I found a bit dry but the fish was moist and well cooked. The star of the table, to me was the John Dory, which was served on a bed of a veggies in a Mustard base sauce. The sauce had the right balance of Umami flavours, mustard kick and the due creaminess, the John Dory was flaky and moist. The other star on the table for me was the Chimichurri sauce on my tenderloin. The tenderloin, despite being lean, was soft and aptly juicy which is a rarity when it comes to Buffalo meat and the sauce added a fantastic dimension to the dish.
The worst part of such hearty meals is the sleepiness that it induces and the blowing sweet breeze fanned added the proverbial fuel to this fire. The lovely house cocktails like the Jack Daniels based Jack the Ripper and the warm and relaxing House Toddy added further to it. Thankfully enough, the servers were quick to bring in the desserts to counter the slumber attack. The desserts included a Dark Chocolate mousse cake, A classic crème Brulee, A Citrus Pannacotta and a walnut date chocolate tart. The Dark Chocolate mousse with its well-balanced bitterness to sweetness ratio and the very soft and sensuous Pannacotta were the standouts of the lot and despite being stuffed, we just couldn’t stop licking both the plates smack clean; definitely a must try if you are headed there next.
The feel-good vibe of the restaurant transforms itself magically into an eclectic lounge like space and the management plans to introduce weekday nights which range from games nights to karaoke, so do stay tuned for further announcements. Coming from the stables of Pali Bhavan and Pali hills café, Su Casa carries the culinary legacy of the chain and adds its own charm to create a very beautiful space that could be a winner in time to come. With some great creative minds working at the backend, there are some very interesting things in store for this restaurant and I would be looking out for the future announcements!
Ratings (Out of 5)
Food: 3.5 | Ambience: 4 | Service: 3.5 | Overall: 3.5
Meal For Two: Rs. 2,500 | Wheel Chair Friendly: Yes | Credit Card: Yes | Alcohol: Yes
Address: The Bombay Art Society, Ground Floor, Near Lilavati Hospital, Reclamation, Bandra West
Disclaimer: This review was done on an invitation from the restaurant. Due judgment and care has been applied by the author to remain objective and unbiased in the review, but readers need to consider this review keeping this fact in mind
