Named after the iconic Beatles album, Abbey Road, this is the latest of many restaurants that have come up in the busy office district of Gurgaon. Located on the ground floor of Tower 8, DLF Cyber City, DLF Phase 2, Abbey Road comes in an area already populated with restaurants and cafes such as Nooba (Chinese), Below 8 (Bar and snacks), Subway (Sandwiches), Barista (Coffee, sandwiches, pastas), Punjabi By Nature (North Indian, Punjabi), Costa Coffee (Coffee, snacks) and others. However as is evident from the list of eateries, they are all complementing rather than competing with each other, by catering to different palates. It's here that Abbey Road fills the absence of a Continental eating joint.
The owners were very kind in inviting some of us from our company, and a few others located in the building, to visit their restaurant for lunch today.
The decor is very English and has pictures of the Beatles and other musicians all over the place. The bright colours of the walls liven up the spirit (especially so on a dull, cloudy afternoon like today) and the seating arrangement is also very relaxed with wooden chairs and benches at one side of the restaurant and some wrought-iron tables and chairs scattered over the place. There are the typical multi-coloured doors as are found all over the United Kingdom, with interesting door knockers on them.
They also have a 'Titanic Bar' in the centre of the place. It is not yet functional, but there hangs a notice which says they have applied for a liquor license and should be up and running sometime soon.
The staff are most friendly and courteous though somewhat inexperienced. So the delays in filling the glasses and getting a few dishes that we didn't ask for were well compensated for by the cheerful smiles and the amicable and helpful nature of the staff.
Coming to the main part now - the food. The menu card (it didn't have prices on them as of today) is a well organised seven page affair, with the various items clubbed under the basic categories of - Soups, Salads, Thin Crust Pizzas, Pastas, Sandwiches & Burgers, All Time Favourites like Grilled fish, Salmon, chicken, steaks and finally the Desserts. Since there were about a dozen of us, with varied tastes, we ended up ordering a good variety of their items and the unanimous feedback is it made the cut for all of us. We started with some sea food chowder and a Malakoff soup with smoked Chicken. Both of these turned out to be quite filling, for the stomach and the olfactory senses. The chowder had a lovely sea food smell without being too clammed. Puns intended.
Malakoff Soup with smoked chicken
New England Sea Food Chowder
This was followed by some rounds of thin crust pizzas, and the bunch of us, usually fed on the thick, heavy Dominoes/Pizza Hut devoured 2-3 pizzas in no time. The pizzas were fresh, crispy and very light.
Italian Salami, smoked chicken, mushrooms & paprika Pizza
Pizza Napoli
The main course consisted of a variety of dishes ranging from some Penne pasta in olive oil to mushroom Stroganoff, grilled chicken breasts, salmon fillet and grilled fish with lemon butter sauce. The service was a tad slow, but given it was day minus 3 of their existence, it could be well forgiven. The food was served in large and heavy white porcelain dishes, adding to the elegance. However, some, like my wife, felt the crockery can be a little more colourful given the bright and cheery colours of the walls and furniture. The quantities are generous and the feedback is most employees will feel like taking a quick nap after luncheon indulgences! Here's a sample of the food ordered.
Multi Mushroom Stroganoff
Grilled Fish With Garlic Chili Butter and House Salad
Penne with asparagus, Red Chilli and olives with white wine and Lemon
Grilled Salmon Fillet
Grilled Chicken Breasts
After that heartly lunch, only a few of us were brave enough to venture into desserts, but those who did insisted it was worth it. For the rest of us, just looking at those sweet somethings was quite delicious! The dessert menu is moderately elaborate with 8 items consisting of cakes, ice cream, Tiramisu, p[uddings and the notorious Death by Chocolate. Here are some samples.
Blueberry Cheese Cake
Death By Chocolate
Abbey Road will be functional from 14th July, 2010. Their website is under construction and should be up in the next couple of days. You can get in touch with their very warm and hospitable director, Mr. Saurabh Khetan at abbeyroad.saurabh@gmail.com
On the whole this was a lunch that all of us thoroughly cherished, and not just because it was on the house! The food was delectable and sumptuous, the spread moderately wide, the service with some teething problems but very friendly and the ambience and feel top class. Final rating - 8/10.
P.S: Special thanks to Amit Khemka for extending the lunch invite to the entire team.
P.P.S: All pictures taken using the Nexus One camera.
