Must-try: 14 Sauce Non-Veg Platter
Ambience
The dimly-lit circular signage with the words ’14 Sauce Story’ is barely visible in the ‘Eat Street’ of Versova, easily overshadowed by the massive Tea Villa on its left and House on its right (albeit 100 yards down the road). However, on pushing open the door, the 8-month old restaurant gives way to a massive space, with split seating – one part a more formal dining area all done up in wooden furnishings, and the other, a slightly lower level laid-back lounge area with plush sofas and low glass tables – perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon (or hookah, which unfortunately the restaurant doesn’t serve because of its ‘family restaurant’ tag).
From both areas, one can easily catch the action on the super-sized LCD TV, while taking in the soft, mellow music and dim lighting. On one side of the formal dining area there is a little bar, just in front of the kitchen, with the ‘Desserts of the Day’ board just above it.
F&B
We visited the restaurant on a Monday night, when the place was relatively empty, giving us a chance to really soak in the atmosphere and speak to the manager and chef at leisure.
Apparently the restaurant gets its name from its signature dish – the 14 Sauce platter, which is good enough to share between 3-4 people. Intrigued that one dish could lend so much power to a brand, we decided to order it and see for ourselves whether it lived up to the fuss.
While we were waiting for our order and going through the rest of the vast menu, which is mostly Continental (with the usual nachos-tacos combo thrown in), we tried one mocktail called Malta Orange & Basil Muddle, which was off the menu and prepared for us specially by the bartender. Surprisingly non-tangy with just the right balance of orange and basil leaves, blended with lots of crushed ice, this drink was really refreshing and just what we needed on a humid summer evening.
The 14 Sauce Non-Veg Platter soon followed. The large smorgasbord had a tempting mix of all things sinful and unhealthy – and yet delightfully irresistible. Spicy, well-marinated chicken wings, crunchy fish fingers, incredibly tasty chicken meatballs, patti chicken samosas, paprika-dusted potato wedges, crispy onion rings, lightly-salted French fries, multigrain lavash and mozzarella breadsticks made up the centre of this platter. Around which, of course, there were miniature bottles of 14 different sauces arranged in a circle, making the overall presentation truly delightful. Among the memorable sauces – all of which are made in-house, were the dill-yoghurt sauce, a tangy cheese sauce, sriracha mayo, honey mustard, mint mayo, sweet chilli, chipotle and bbq sauce. Rather surprising though was the absence of ketchup amongst the 14 sauces, despite all the deep-fried food (read:fries) around.
Quite stuffed with the deep-fried delights, we decided to try just 1 dish each from the entrees and main course menu.
The Waffle Chicken Burger was an interesting and innovating take on the classic favourite, with two waffle triangles replacing the traditional burger buns. While the waffle was a little tough to tear apart, on the contrary, the chicken breast within was very soft and succulent, with the salad leaves and tomatoes adding to the freshness of it. However, the sauce which was a mixture of in-house sriracha mayo and chimichurri that was expected to bind all the ingredients together, was excessively tangy and not to my liking.
The Grilled Fish with Couscous & Exotic Grilled Veggies in Chive Beurre Blanc sauce that we tried in mains prompted another mixed reaction from us. While the basa fish was grilled to perfection - its buttery soft flesh giving way to the taste of freshly ground pepper and a hint of lime, the sauce was way too salty, no doubt having an excessive amount of butter in it, which made it completely unpalatable.
Hoping for some respite with the desserts (the day we visited, the desserts on the board displayed were just Sizzling Brownie, Churros with Chocolate Sauce and Orange Crème Brulee), we decided to take the adventurous route and ordered the Orange Crème Brulee.
There are few desserts which taste good with orange mixed in them – for example orange-chocolate or at times orange cream. Crème brulee isn’t one of them. So unfortunately while the crème brulee was prepared to perfection with a perfect sphere of caramel on top of it, the orange essence quite ruined the experience for me.
Verdict
14 Sauce is a nice hide-away in Versova if you are looking for some quiet time with family or just lounging about and enjoying a drink with friends, or catching the match on a large TV. Service is a little slow, but servers are quite courteous and go out of the way to make you feel comfortable. Pricing is on the higher side for sure (at least based on portion size and the quality of food we tasted). Personally, I believe the restaurant has a lot of room for improvement to reach its full potential and make this place buzzing with all age groups coming back time and again. A cocktail menu with more options, more dessert options and probably the inclusion of a larger variety of cuisines into the food menu (or actual South American dishes as its Zomato profile claims), would do a great deal to its ratings, and boost its vibe, which is presently mostly thanks to its great ambience, I believe.
F&B: 3/5
Ambience: 4/5
Service: 3/5
Pricing: 2.5/5
VFM: 3.5/5
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