The Oberoi is one of the oldest five-stars in Bangalore, landmark to MG Road, gigantic and overlooking Trinity Circle. It used to be a family favourite when everyone was in the same city for those special birthday dinners while I was growing up. I hadn't visited it in a very long time, but I have memories of the time as we would drive in, and almost be transported to a different place and time. Large property, beautiful landscaping with all the rocks and the little ponds around, lots and lots of visually pleasing greenery (exactly what Bangalore was known for before) and warm, lovely lighting around the place. The place screams luxury and I was secretly devising plans to propose the place as an option for an anniversary or birthday dinner. And then, Restaurant Week India (RWI) came along.
None of the Oberoi's restaurants had participated in the previous two editions of RWI so when I saw it on the final list this time round bringing in Szechwan Court, their Chinese restaurant, I knew it would be quite a hit and booked out quickly. It seemed completely worth it, staying up till midnight to book. So, the place was reserved for a mid-week dinner @ 8 pm. Confirmation calls came in that morning and I was keenly looking forward to the visit.
We made it in time, were guided to the restaurant by the staff as soon as we entered, who also took the trouble to explain to us what the other restaurants were as we walked past them. Le Jardin for multi-cuisine, Polo Club - the bar, Rim Naam for some Thai cuisine and then Szechwan Court. The place was fairly empty,save three tables maybe and they allowed us to pick a table of our choice. We picked a corner one beside the large window with the fountains outside. Some jasmine tea was poured and this kept coming throughout the meal. I didn't completely enjoy it, too subtle for my tastes, so I hung on to my first serving quite safely. We picked a lemonade and a Cola & Ginger mocktail for drinks. The food menu was semi-set I'd say, since you did get to choose from a couple of options. Kimchi, some fried noodles were brought in with the drinks for us to munch on. The cutlery did catch my attention, especially the silver plated (almost real looking) spoons and forks.
I, the vegetarian picked the Vegetable Spring Rolls as an appetizer. There was also a choice of two soups. There were two vegetarian mains available and I picked both. For dessert I chose the Chocolate Brownie with vanilla icecream.
My meat-loving husband picked the Sesame chicken to start with, two saucy chicken mains and a lychee icecream to end. We both picked the Vegetarian soft noodles instead of the steamed rice as an accompaniment.
The three Spring rolls were every so perfectly rolled and cooked. No semblance of greasy crisps as you may encounter in many other places. They were stuffed with vegetables and glass noodles and very a fabulous start with the Hot garlic sauce.
For mains, I had the Braised Tofu in a black bean sauce and the Stir-fried Chinese Greens in garlic. Both the sauces were fabulous, but what definitely stood out was the Tofu. It was melt-in-mouth texture and I have honestly never eaten softer Tofu in my entire life. I don't even much enjoy the taste of it, because most places I've had it, it turned out crumbly, but here I cleaned up the entire portion. The Chinese greens had some asparagus, brocolli, chinese cabbage in a soft brown sauce with generous yet not overbearing shavings of garlic. Both the mains went perfectly well with the soft noodles. The noodles by themselves were perfectly cooked, separate from each other, yet not over-soft or mushy. They had some bell peppers strewn around and seemed like they were tossed in a mild soya sauce.
My dessert was a highlight of the meal. The presentation of the dish however, kept me looking at it for a minute before giving in and decimating it.To taste, the brownie was so very soft from the inside and the generous serving of chocolate sauce was another hit for the choco lover in me. I love the way so much attention was paid to the dessert. It really signs off the meal on a very sweet note.
The bill worked out to about 2,700 including all taxes, but excluding service charge. The mocktails were around 300 each. I had no qualms for tipping well for service, because that's what completes the lovely dining experience. Waiters who are considerate to what you ask for, ever so helpful, yet not continuously intrusive. The chef, Chef Amit did make a trip to each table and chatted us all up. He was very open to feedback about our RWI experience here, portion sizes, spice levels, variety, etc.
All in all, it is definitely a place you should consider visiting during the Restaurant Week if you already haven't visited or booked it. The RWI menu and portions served here are both sized just right to perfectly fill up one person at a very reasonable price for a five-star restaurant. Else, it is also a place to consider for that very special date, for some real Chinese fine-dining, or for those special occasion meals, you will definitely walk out contented!
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