Mondays… Ugh… Don’t you just hate them? Don’t you wish Mondays never existed? Well not Monday per se, but the weekday morning blues that accompanies it? But once in a while you do find that your Monday isn’t so bad – no important mails to reply, no urgent client calls to make, no deadlines to tackle, no team members to chaperon, giving me all the freedom in the world to fritter away my time without guilt. Last Monday was one such day with the piece de resistance being a phone call from my friend and colleague who didn’t bring his lunch that day, asking whether I’m game for lunch outside. Oh yes, Mondays don’t get any better than this…
But it was not without its problems; having an office well within city limits presents a tiny issue – too many choices, that too with unlimited time in our hands (please pardon the humblebrag). We spent nearly 30 minutes discussing where we can possibly have lunch, a particularly foodie problem this; with the nearby localities being Adyar and Besant Nagar, my friend began suggesting places like Crimson Chakra, Azzuri Bay, Sigree, Animal Kingdom, etc. But those were restaurants one visits on occasion or during an occasion, not for an impromptu lunch. So after much deliberation, with no clear resolution whatsoever, we simply decided to drive, drive until we find any place that catches our fancy.
Our aimless driving brought us all the way to Cenotaph Road where I noticed Red e Drop Zone; in the past I do remembered noticing one of their outlets near Chetpet signal, but I never bothered to give them a second glance. All that used to resonate in my mind was, "Hmm... What an oddly named restaurant!!", and that was the same thought that pervaded when I saw this outlet too; but this time I was determined to check it out, especially after reading a glimmering review for the same place right here in Zomato by another fellow reviewer.
The moment you step in, you're greeted by an amazingly chic ambience, the seating capacity is only at a dozen tables, but it is this very cool and compact feel that immediately impresses you! The restaurant has glass on three sides, two facing the road and the other facing the kitchen where you see the chefs hard at work. This decidedly airy, naturally lit atmosphere provides a sense of spaciousness to what is actually a tiny restaurant. Other touches which I simply adored were the clear plastic chairs (much much cooler than they sound), the exposed brick wall with the solitary Ansel Adams' black-and-white landscape photograph of "The Tetons and the Snake River" (an exceptionally haunting work of art), the numerous parallel wooden boards suspended from the ceiling and the ornamental ceiling fans, all lending such a charm to this place; you really have to see it to believe it!
I took the recommendation of the fellow reviewer I mentioned earlier and ordered the Andhra Chicken 65, followed by the Non-Veg Combo meal for my friend and a Chicken Club Sandwich for myself. Now please bear with me while I sing praises about the Andhra Chicken 65. Never in a million years have I ever thought that the Chicken 65 could get any better; a much loved, signature Chennai starter that you never seem to get enough of, the Chicken 65 has become such a staple entree that it's a clear indicator, a tool of measurement of a restaurant's potential. This is where Red e Drop Zone (still a ridiculous name in my humble opinion) excels, miles above any other place I have tried the Chicken 65; they've given a properly zesty, super-spicy, masala-drenched twist to the ever-awesome Chicken 65!! A must have specialty here by all means, never forget to try the Andhra Chicken 65 here, it is just sheer-spicy-awesomeness. And it literally made every crevice in our face water, coupled with this awesome December weather, things simply couldn't get any better.
Still reeling from the effect of the Andhra Chicken 65, we were presented with our main courses. The waiters made a small gaff here and brought my friend the Veg Combo instead of the Non-Veg Combo. But we didn't make a big deal out of it and my friend proceeded to have the Veg Combo without any qualms. Mainly because we got our non-vegetarian fix of the day in the form of the Andhra Chicken 65. The combo consisted of a Manchow soup, Gobi 65, Peas Pulao, Phulka, Dry Aloo Mutter, Vegetable Kurma, Dal Palak, Dal Payasam and the usual accompaniments. For Rs. 200, you might feel that it is slightly overpriced, but the quality and the sumptuousness of the food makes up for it.
I ordered the Chicken Club Sandwich with the view of having a decidedly moderate main course, since I still had my home-packed lunch to finish back in the office, but the Club Sandwich had other ideas. I expected the Club Sandwich to be big, but this was humongous. So humongous in fact that it was one of those sandwiches that wouldn't balance itself without being pierced by a supporting toothpick. But instead of toothpicks they were pierced by a tiny plastic sword-like thingy and that overjoyed the 8-year old in me (I mean it, if I were actually 8-years old, I would've pocketed those plastic swords to use them as new weapons for my GI Joe collection!!). Coming to the Club Sandwich, it was the pretty much the usual, filled with veggies, cheese slices, fried eggs, but instead of a chicken slice, they served it with a minced-chicken & mayo filing. All this also came with a generous side of French fries and that sealed it for me, what an inadvertently heavy lunch!
To sum it up, Red e Drop Zone is a proper gem of restaurant, they offer a variety of cuisines, the pricing is also quite pocket-friendly and we were pleasantly surprised by our bill amount. The service was really courteous, although they did goof-up our order a little, it's still forgivable, they're a new restaurant with relatively new staff, so it might just be a one-off incident. There's really no reason not to visit this place overall, the ambience, the food, the cost, the locality, everything is pleasant and well within reach. And the Andhra Chicken 65... Ooh, the Andhra Chicken 65!!...
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