Leisurely Dining At The Mellow Garden...

The Mellow Garden is one of the fairly new entrants on the F&B scene in Rajouri Garden. As the name suggests, the outlet has been modeled in the form of a garden.

Spread across two spacious floors with aesthetic interiors based on the garden thematic, I was here recently for lunch and had a pleasant time. Though the ambiance and interiors had a great part to play in forming my impression, the dishes as it is, though retaining the typical presentation, aced the flavors for the most part of it.

The outlet is well-lit and the premises have been designed in accordance with the brand name i.e. garden. The atmosphere, on the whole, is also calming and leisurely just like a stroll in the garden.

With a rhythmic stream flowing at the entrance, cobblestones pave the way to the seating area and a play area for kids, both of which have been tastefully designed.

Here's what I would recommend trying at The Mellow Garden...

Soups

The Talumein or Manchow Soups come across as warm broths to try if you relish a wide bowl serving of veggies and noodles.

Appetizers

Punjabi Machhi Tikka had soft fish fillets complemented with mint dip.

Peshawari Mushroom Kebab had cheese stuffed between soft skewered button mushrooms.

Indian Street Food is a particular section on the Menu mentioned as 'Chatori Chaat' and it had some well-prepared street fare.

Puchka Chaat is served with an assortment of five dips comprising of Jaljeera, Hing, Kala Khatta, Santra, and Pudina.

Fried Dimsum Chaat was an Indo-Oriental preparation, with Chinese dimsums being done the Indian way.

Ragda Masala Chana Tikki had crispy cakes topped with tamarind and paired with mashed peas.

Palak Patta Chaat had crisp spinach leaves topped with pomegranate, tamarind dip, and yogurt.

Main Course 

Veg Dum Biryani came with nicely cooked rice and veggies, accompanied by Raita and salad.

Paneer Tikka Pizza was a crisp thin-crust preparation topped with cottage cheese chunks and veggies.

Desserts 

The desserts at The Mellow Garden earn a special mention as they have some unique flavors to offer.

Jalebi Kulfi and Rose Kulfi with chunks of the round sweet and rose petals respectively had apt flavors.

Paan Ice Cream was yet another refreshing dessert with the appropriate Gulkand flavor.

Kesar Badam Phirni was a sweet delight served in an earthen bowl, topped with nuts and silver work.

On the whole, I had a nice meal at The Mellow Garden complemented by attentive service and would suggest a visit to spend quality time with friends and family alike. :)

Stumping The Lounge At Sixth Empirica...

Sixth Empirica is one of the popular party places situated on Punjabi Bagh Club Road. Spread across two floors with a dedicated elevator, it is a moderately / dimly lit place and the in-house DJ is the most popular entity at Sixth Empirica, more than even the dishes on the menu, I suppose.

The seating is comfy and the couches and overall decor give a premium lounge-like feel to the outlet. The overall service was good. There were Bollywood Chartbusters being played throughout our meal, so much so, that the music would stop in between for the crowd to complete the song. That's when the modulation in amplitude could be felt.

Coming to the food and beverages, the Menu has a good amount of variety across Indian, Italian, and Continental cuisines and you can conveniently ask the steward at hand if a dish of your liking is available or otherwise.

Here's what I tried at Sixth Empirica. The meal was a mix of hits and misses on the whole, yet the overall vibe of the place is good enough.

Among beverages, you can try the Iced Tea, Appletini, Tangerine Mojito, or Cold Coffee as per your liking. While Appletini was a mix of apple and pineapple juices with a green apple topping on the side, the mojito had a hint of citrus in its taste.

While Fish Amritsari had soft fish fillets done with a hint of Indian spices, Fish Orly had a crunchy crust to go well with the tartar sauce.

There is another fish dish with Sabudana crisps, so just to try the crispy Sabudana, I went ahead. But there was a disappointment that those were not authentic Sago crisps but the South Indian style poppadoms on which the large fish chunks had been placed. On its own, the preparation of the fish was all good.

There is also a Bit Bites platter on the Menu that supposedly had bite-sized snacks but I feel that its presentation can be improved and the repetitive elements on the dish can be removed, as one of the elements on the menu, i.e. Golgappas were missing.

The vegetarian platter is one of the good appetizers with Chef's selection passing the litmus test. The platter that I tried had five appetizers - Soya Chaap, Kalmi Vada, Paneer Tikka, Dahi Kebab, and Seekh Kebab - all were nice taste wise.

If you are a cheese fanatic, you can try the Paneer Tikka Parmigiana that had parmesan cheese stuffed in cottage cheese chunks.

Among Salads and Soups, you can opt for Multiple Mushroom on the Indian side, Manchow on the Oriental side, or Trois In Un, that is a corn chowder.

We went for the Red Melon Feta and Mint Salad, that had a scooped Watermelon shell containing balls of melon, with a handful of feta cheese. The proportion of melon to cheese can be improved as there was a lot of melon as opposed to feta as garnish.

From the Oriental section, we also tried the Crystal Chicken Dimsums, though the flavor was nice, I feel that the nomenclature and preparation did not match as the outer shell of the dumplings was not transparent, as is the case with the term 'crystal'.

For the Main Course, we opted for the Fungi Risotto which was the nicest dish of the meal, both aesthetics, and flavor considered.

Among Desserts, we went ahead with Brownie & Ice Cream that was missing the chocolate balloon presentation (mismatch), though the walnut brownie was soft.

I also tried the Pineapple Halwa that had an appealing aesthetic with the almonds and caramel net, and it was not too overboard with the sweetness, which I liked.

On the whole, I had a good meal at Sixth Empirica, though I believe that if they improve on the minute shortcomings, they have a long inning in the F&B space ahead of them. :)

Clocking Deliciousness At The Clock Tower...

The Clock Tower is one of the prominent and popular names in the F&B space, located on the Golf Course Road. An ode to the boarding schools of India, The Clock Tower draws inspiration from Victorian Era with its grandfather clock being reminiscent of olden times.

Drawing from the grace and style of European spaces, and as an ode to their Alma Mater, Sherwood, Nainital, The Clock Tower is a brainchild of two alumnae who focused on bringing a colonial microbrewery to the heart of Gurgaon, rendered completely in teak wood and stone.

The Clock Tower is adorned with memorabilia and trinkets to remind patrons of the life and times of a student who has spent time as a learner in boarding schools across the country. Complete with Tintin, Asterix, and Malgudi Days corners, followed by an Alumnus Corner at the entrance, which has been host to various Reunions for a couple of prominent resident schools, The Clock Tower is a nostalgic overboard.

Spread across a sprawling three floors, and a beautiful rooftop with a patio that enables you to witness the clock up high in action, The Clock Tower is a Brew Pub and Kitchen of the style that is seldom witnessed in the capital city.

Here's what would be the must-try dishes when at The Clock Tower...

Beverages: 

Mandarin Sour

Mango Mania

Smooch

Virgin Mojito

Watermelon Cardamom Refresher was Keshav's concoction with a hint of lime.

Appetizers:

Dahi Ke Kebab is one of the classics and well-selling dishes at TCT and was presented in a wheel-cart accompanied by salad and mint dip. It was simply melt-in-mouth.

Achari Paneer Tikka had a subtle layer of tang all over the cottage cheese chunks topped with a bell pepper slice. Not overboard at all and highly recommended.

Tandoori Mushrooms were presented on a shovel, accompanied by salad. Again, subtle flavors of mustard on the palate, and they were well-prepared.

Homemade Corn and Jalapeno Poppers are an in-house special and I could taste why. This one rides away to glory in a make-shift bicycle.

Soup: 

TCT's Soup of the Day was Manchow served along with crispy noodles and is undoubtedly one of the best soups I've had since long.

Main Course:

The Clock Tower Pizza was a Chef's Special with an assortment of veggies as toppings.

Veg Stroganoff was prepared nicely, served with herbed rice.

Sikanderpur Lahsuni Saag had an assorted bread basket to complement its preparation.

Desserts: 

TCT's Dessert Jar of the Day was Tiramisu in a jar, presented with a 'cocoa fork'.

TCT's Dessert by Slice was Chocolate Cake complemented by ice-cream with a drizzle of syrup.

On the whole, The Clock Tower is not just any other themed restaurant, but one of those rare ones that have a reason backing the theme as well. Also, TCT is perfect for any and every kind of meals with friends, family, or colleagues alike. :)