Yes, a special occasion deserves a special place to celebrate, so we picked Polo Club this time. It’s been ages since I’ve been to The Oberoi and having spent a Sunday afternoon there, made me realise just how exhilarating it is to have a beautiful and large lung space like this bang in the heart of town. It was after 2:30pm when we made it here, but glad to see there were still a few tables free. We seated ourselves at a table placed in the garden and it was perfect to enjoy the weather along with the view. We had to get the attention of someone before we were given the menu, so maybe it was maybe just an inkling of how packed they were.
We started off with a few cocktails - a Mai Tai and a French Mohito. Their beverage list and food menu isn’t available on Zomato, so you can check it out on their official website instead. We were served 2 bowls of complimentary bar snacks - cheeselings and roasted peanuts. Interesting roasted peanuts actually - different spice taste infact. The drinks took a while in coming though. First the Mai Tai - uh huh, absolutely diluted and no flavour at all! Quite disappointing and not something you’d expect at The Oberoi, would you? We sent it back and told our concern. Service is courteous, no doubt about it, and after apologising for the drink, the replacement was perfect. My French Mohito - well, I was happy with the taste, but I guess 90ml of sparkling wine does not amount to anything in a cocktail. So I’d suggest you to try something else if you’re looking for a sparkling wine cocktail.
For food, we checked out the food available in both the food menus - the bar as well as Le Jardin (which is their all day restaurant), and decided to have the Bacon and Cheese Croquettes. 4 croquettes served with a delightfully spicy green chutney - were they good? They were, but I’ve eaten the best at Smokehouse Deli, and I haven’t found any other croquettes since then that even come close in taste. Croquettes are meant to be a cheesy goodness filled with tender pieces of meat, but the ones here had too much bacon fat, some of which we couldn’t chew through. Again, not something you’d expect of a 5 star restaurant. But, what was definitely a highlight was the chutney. You’d normally expect a mayo of some sort to dip croquettes, so this was amusing. That’s why when we had it with the chutney, we were surprised the two were a perfect match! An interesting Indian twist I must say, and that’s a credit to the chef. :)
We chose to indulge in a walk around the garden and it was simply beautiful. It is peppered with a few fountains and the luscious green is a refreshing sight for the eye. Infact there is a fountain right by one of the tables in the garden, in case you love the sound of water by you. Once back, we ordered a sandwich - a Chicken Club Sandwich with brown bread. Now, this was joyfully relished. Perfectly toasted brown bread, with juicy tender chicken, egg and this time good bacon, served with a chilly mayo, fries and a watermelon and lettuce salad on the side. A great sandwich if you’re a sandwich lover.
I was attracted to a particular cocktail by then and so ordered it - I think it was French 375 (the description said champagne, gin and lime). I asked what champagne they used and apparently it’s Prosecco. Hmmm, a misleading description ‘cuz you know Prosecco is not champagne but just sparkling wine. And I do not like Prosecco, so I opted to cancel it. The sweet steward instead went and found out if they could make it with a different sparkling wine and came back to tell me they’d make it with Mumm, asking me if I was therefore interested in still ordering it. :) Yes, it did make a difference and so I chose to take it. Sadly disappointed when it was served ‘cuz the cocktail wasn’t cold. Sent it back and the next time they got it, it was perfect, and only to see after a few sips that there was some small bit of mold (or something else) floating at the bottom of my glass and I think it came out of the cherry. :( I think it just wasn’t my day for cocktails! They apologised profusely and I know they meant it, but we just wanted to head out by then as we were done with food anyway. We asked them to cancel the cocktail, but they made me another, and insisted that it was on the house instead. :) It would’ve been rude if I had wasted it, so I had it, but yes unfortunately it wasn’t cold enough again.
A cost of 4300, for food and beverages is fair for the place I’d say, plus it’s commending that they do not charge service tax. Hmmm, what can I say about the experience other than wonder if their barman was stressed out that day. :) I know they do have good food, their service courteous and appreciable, but I’d say they need to have an outstanding barman as well.
Verdict: Polo Club is a place with a strikingly luxuriant ambiance and fine food, and I will come back here for exactly that. Hopefully I stand a chance to have great alcohol concoctions next time. :) Nonetheless I highly recommend this place.
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