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Apr 16, 2008
Terro(i)rized
We eat out a lot. An awful lot actually. And the NCR in general offers great variety. You get practically every kind of cuisine that would fit almost every kind of budget. To top it all, there’s a new place coming up almost every day, which means that our list to “To Try” keeps getting longer.
A new place usually means impeccable service. It was with great anticipation that we landed up at Terroir, the modern European lounge restaurant cum bar at the Galaxy Hotel and Spa about two days before our visit. We were waiting for a table at the Monk (Galaxy’s healthy Chinese open restaurant) and decided to have a drink at Terroir to kill time. We entered the swanky restaurant. The lighting, the décor and the furniture were literally breath taking. The floor to ceiling, double storeyed wine cellar is perfect for wine connoisseurs. Since we were a couple of hours away from my husband’s 30th birthday, it seemed like the perfect venue.
There were five staff and the two of us. We were the only guests at that time. I really expected to be waited on hand and foot. Quite the contrary, we had to do stand up and yell if we wanted some attention. I told the usher that it was my husband’s birthday at midnight and it would be nice if they could do something special. She said she’d see what she could do. I didn’t see her again the rest of the evening. We were seated and handed the menu. The manager told us it was a Modern European restaurant but the starters were all Indian or Indo-Chinese. We settled for a plate of tikka and a plate of veg seekh kabab. I ordered a cocktail and my husband asked for a single malt. I wondered what was so European about the food. Of course, the main course did have stuff like chops and pasta.
I reminded the manager that I’d like something special at midnight for my husband and he asked me to speak to the DJ. I asked the DJ if he could play “Happy Birthday” at 12 and he promptly said, “No Ma’m, we only play house.” Our drinks came and so did the food. The tikkas were good, but not great. Saleem’s would make better tikkas. The seekh kababs were unable to hold together and we dropped most of the pieces. The taste wasn’t bad, but given their texture, we hardly got to eat any.
The clock struck 12 and I’d told every member of the staff that it was my husband’s birthday. I didn’t expect a discount on my bill or a free cake (I’d told them quite clearly that I was willing to pay for a cake if they could get one). All I wanted was for them to make my husband feel a little special. For them to play a song or at the very least, wish him. As it turned out, I had expected too much. I, for one, will never be going back.
The bill for two drinks and two starters came out to be a whopping Rs. 1950. As we paid the bill and walked out, no one bothered to even thank us for our visit. I realized that was because I hadn’t tipped them. Now, one doesn’t remember these things when one is completely terro(i)rized, does one?