Polka Dots has been a familiar part of the Aundh
landscape for years now; with its trademark
cheery signage and welcoming al fresco-ish ambience, this casual dining
restaurant is hard to miss on the bustling DP Road in Aundh. I’ve been
visiting the Aundh restaurant for years now. Back when I lived there it used
to be my favourite go-to place for its succulent chicken tikka kathi rolls and
to-die-for desserts, and since it was one of the early entrants on the eating
out scene back when Aundh first began its metamorphosis from a sleepy,
on-the-outskirts-of- Pune suburb with just one or two restaurants to its name
(there was a definite buzz in the air when Copper Chocs opened its first
outlet!) to the busy, an-eatery-at-every-corner place that it is now, I have
many a memory of several special occasions that we ended up spending at Polka
Dots by default. It struck me as quite strange then that despite having lived
in the vicinity for ages now, I was yet to pay a visit to the Polka Dots at
Kalyani Nagar. Determined to make amends for this oversight (and maybe that
blueberry crème brulee calling out my name had something to do with it), I
headed there over the weekend, husband and child in tow.
After a hand-washing expedition to the tiny but
clean restroom, the child returned armed with enough tissue paper to wrap a
small mountain and proceeded to tear each sheet into slim shreds which she then
waved like flags in front of the floor fan conveniently placed at the corner of
our table. The ensuing fluttering in the wind caused unprecedented amounts of
glee and excitement and childcare thus ably taken care of, the husband and I turned
our attention to the menu which boasts of a selection of Indian, South East
Asian and Continental food along with a couple of the usual American suspects
like fries, wedges and buffalo chicken wings thrown in. After much deliberation
(a standard item on the agenda when dining out with the husband), we finally
settled on crumb fried chicken fillet for starters, a pitcher of ice tea and an
Alla Sorriso pasta (grilled chicken, sundried tomatoes, olives, red pepper,
walnuts) for P(the husband) . I decided to go for one of the dishes from the
‘today’s special’ section that is displayed prominently at the restaurant
entrance and changed regularly; traditional roast chicken served with gravy, bread
sauce, roast potatoes, sausages and steamed veggies. Order placed, P and I
settled down to keep an eye on N (the child) who was now making paper
chains with the tissue paper (bless that tissue paper) and take in the eclectic
crowd that milled around the well spaced tables.
Its fantastic location (reasonably busy, yet not
crazy like some places in the malls) ensures that Polka Dots always has a fair
number of people seated within its café like premises comprising college
students, tourists, families, gooey eyed lovebirds (its open all day) and the
occasional dessert lover there just to indulge the sweet tooth. Both the PD
restaurants at Aundh as well as Kalyani Nagar follow the same model; an open
kitchen and a desert counter (more like a vertical display) flanked by café
style seating all around. The place is shaded & ventilated quite well
during the day and semi open in the evenings. Personally I prefer sticking to
lunch; the all pervasive smell of mosquito repellent they use liberally in the
evenings is a guaranteed appetite killer, at least for me, even though it does
keep the mosquitoes away. The service is quick and efficient and before long
our starters were served to us. The crumb fried chicken was wonderful;
succulent, flavorful and fried just right and accompanied with an awesome
tartar sauce-ish dip and the accompanying ice tea lent it just the right amount
of tang. After wiping the starters off in no time we looked eagerly towards the
kitchen and like an angel bearing manna from heaven, our server emerged with
one of the main course dishes. P’s order arrived first; and he plunged fork and
spoon into it eagerly only to declare with slight disappointment that it was
much too bland for his taste. Dressed in a creamy white sauce the pasta Alla
Sorriso does tend to be somewhat on the bland side; although I quite liked it
myself. My only complaint was that the sauce seemed to have a profusion of
walnuts which didn’t really add to the flavor.
The roast chicken arrived next, and while the
accompaniments were lip smacking the chicken itself, though well done, lacked
flavor. I made up for that by smothering the steamed veggies with lots of gravy
which was quite nice, although the bread sauce was a terrible disappointment.
The accompanying bread basket was a big hit with N though and she gobbled up
the soft fresh rolls in no time. Our server was most gracious in re-filling the
bread basket as soon as it was emptied and acceded to all of N’s requests to
give her 'only the white bread and not the brown', with a ready smile.
Main course done, we found ourselves stuffed to the
gills and much to our chagrin, with not enough room to even sample the
desserts. We picked up some French
Chocolate (absolutely divine- a must try if you're a chocolate lover like me!) from
the delectable Baker’s Basket next door which is managed by the same group that
runs Polka Dots and headed home, but not without throwing many a longing glance
at the Polka Dots dessert rack which beckoned invitingly as we left. It’s been a couple of
days since that trip to PD but that dessert rack continues to shimmer alluringly
in the mind’s eye, conjuring up visions of the seductively sinful Belgian
Chocolate Mousse and the ravishingly rich Blueberry Cheese Cake at the most
inappropriate of moments. Not to mention the lingering thought of an unfinished
agenda that lurks on in the mind…something that I think only a return ‘coffee
and desert only’ trip to Polka Dots will put to rest!
If you’re in the mood for a relaxed, casual dining
experience or have a terrible temptation to indulge that sweet tooth; Polka
Dots is definitely worth a dekko. The cherry on the cake, or, the cream frosted
molten chocolate icing if you will, is that all of this gastronomic
gratification comes relatively easy on
the pocket; our meal inclusive of starters, two non alcoholic beverages, and
two main course dishes came to less than a thousand grand (and let’s not forget
the half dozen lovely, crusty, complimentary baskets of bread that N alone
consumed!).
Polka Dots has branches at Aundh and Kalyani Nagar
and is open all day. For more information head to their website: http://www.polkadots-india.com.
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