your website
100 ft. road in Indiranagar has long been the Mecca of Independent restaurants on the Bangalore circuit and it worked for a lot of reasons.
They were always closer to homes : so families did not have to snarl all the way into central bangalore and back thro the traffic Jams,the costs vs space ratio was better, they didnt have to compete much (which helped keep their USP intact)and Richmond/Frazer town were still expensive independent houses that didnt 'convert' to alfresco restaurants!
Italia is almost adjacent to Bflat :All white with a green sign (Green for Vegetarian) I presume.A Vegetarian Italian restaurant. If my face was any indication of an acronym it was :WTF? not even LMAO or OMG.Let me get this straight:They picked Italian coz it was the "in thing" and then they Desi'ed it by saying " Soory Saar: Only vegetarian!!"? Anyways. I was determined NOT to let my bias get in the way of their food and so ,first one not withstanding, made two trips to the place :just in case I missed the point.Also, since most of the Menu (eg:Insalata Calabrese ) automatically reminds me of their non veg counterparts, It took me a while to clear up and focus on the ingredients listed in fine print : while I would have picked stuff off the menu just by their names.
Vegitalian:
1) The websites' pretty discriptive.But a little misleading.Will get to that later. I was glad that the entire range was available to us when we went there.
And to think they had the entire thing Vegetarian!! Zuppe, Insalatas,Pizzas,their courses, Dolci,Gelatos : and a great range too. Someone who is not so well versed with this food in particular might find it too exhaustive. But I loved it!! THEN I REALIZED THAT THIS IS NOT THEIR WEBSITE: IT IS FOR LITTLE ITALY. The signs and the fonts were so misleading...
2) They have Alfresco and for those hot and dry bangalore noons, they have 'Conditioned seating' as well. Your people confirmed the reservation and did write it down. When I got there : I did check if they had an entry. Thankfully they did. Which means they are serious about it. Also I arrived for a late lunch. The kitchen prompty shuts at 3 (while they are willing to accomodate on Desserts and Coffee). I like places that do that and keep a strict timeline.Dinner starts @ around 7 PM.'No unnecessary accomodation'.
3) Had a Contadina type Salad as a Starter.This one does have Lettuce in it. And in most places: they dont wait for the olive oil or the salad dressing to 'penetrate' a little before they serve. Consequence? The Lettuce is too crunchy and the other vegetables take on the drip. This one was good. Although why they served it with bread beats me. I presumed they do that for gravy based pastas and the like. Perfect way to start a good lunch.
4) Being spoilt for choice on an all veg main course: I picked the heaviest of them all : A Mezze Penne (W) Pesto. Pesto is great coz it does not need too many accompaniments. Plus the texture of the food/vegetables/meat added remains: the flavour takes on Pesto's herbal essence. Although Pesto is great: some people dont appreciate it as it can be too 'rich' without being spicy (which a lot of people prefer).It arrived in 15 minutes and I asked for some extra olive oil. Another good way to test a restaurant's authenticity when it comes to their clientile is to ask for olive oil. If the tables do not have it per- se ,(which should be a given atleast in a place that serves Italian) or if a lot of people have asked for it before: Management is sure to have done something about it (which was in this case: as the waiter came bearing a little mug: the kinda ones you see @ Catholic weddings with sacramental wine that looks like a little beer mug.). The olive oil helps unclog the heated Penne that tends to get 'fused' to each other because of the Pesto.A lot of places will get you the bottle of Leonardo extra virgin or some places will even use a sauce bowl for the same :) 'You know who' are their preffered clientiele.
I took a good 40 mins to get it done.
5) Wanted a lemon gelato for dessert : and they had only vanilla/choclate @ that time. Preferred to skip that and ordered up an espresso instead. WAS NOT DISAPPOINTED.The cinnamon espresso (a variation with a sprinkle of cinnamon) was very nice. Also noticed that they have laced sugar : (i am presuming) with molasses. So it is not free flowing brown/white only. You have to scoop it much like you would a chutney from the dispenser. I ordered another one street watching from the mezzanine.
Needless to say : they were Cloth Napkins @ the table, the water was chilled and the table cloths were spotless.
Didnt like:
1) The website I have to say again. While you did list your actual Menu on your website: What is this funny bit about "Know the Italians" which says other than Italians we are the only people who.. bla bla bla. Is that really necessary? Why not reveal why you choose to go with the vegetarian option only or something in terms of why 'selective' cocepts like yours (being veg Italian) work? I feel it is very pretentious: as you explore one part of it only anyways.
Plus you have a wine menu listed there. I was surprised when these guys did not offer a wine option at all? I did not see a Bar Menu either and I asked the steward. He said you dont!! Is it just this franchise? or do your franchises have options depending on what they will serve if they dont have the liqour licence? Not acceptable.
2) Your Paper Mats have some quotes about why being vegetarian is a better choice. Considering people who have had Italian for a while : I dont see a lot of vegetarians on the list. Perhaps some informative stuff on Italy would do better, I dont know.
3)Some changes between the first time and second visits: Why did you change the Menu cards?? They had some good pics of Venice, the Trevi Fountain, Al Pacino! on them. The new (and vastly inferior card) is very drab. Some prev. reviewers do mention that they find it tough to pick from the list as they are novices to it. This will make them FLEE!! coupled with the fact that your waiters cannot help someone with a preference choice anyways (Dont take the last bit personally: it is the same case everywhere I go). Why do you have your guys and the cloth napkins in Florascent Yellow!! I think you got some color blind guy there who assumed that the green ones were to be revamped with bright yellow ones. Terrible choice!!!
4) I asked them for some Parmesan : as I thought it came with the pasta. Nope. So they would charge extra for it. OK. What I got was grated cheddar. Cheddar is not as fine and is more Yellow. If you dont have: it might be acceptable to inform: not substitute at will. I am not going to take the lack of Lemon Gelato as a screw up. It happens. Besides : I would never have had your cinnamon espresso if that didnt happen! But your deserts are not all Italian. You are not stikcing to the USP.Chocolate bomb (was it?)/Walnut Bronie is certainly not Italian. Why cater to this if you are USP specific? Why not filter coffee then? Would you serve it because I ask for it?
One more thing: Mexican (is obviously not Italian). Just because I can whip up a Bean Curd and a Chappati : does not make it a Fajita. For one: your beans work : the sauce does not . And two: the flour with which the bread (or in this case roti) is made: is a lot more lighter than what is served). Again : Why do Indian restaurants say they cater to one kind (and almost always cater to everything ). You guys reminded me of Creme Center in Chennai.
Ridiculous.
3: wallet factor and Great options,vegetarian, to come back to.
Downside : Ambience and "Product appeal" dont seem sold well. To top it, you are very misleading. It is almost that you are unwilling to change the fonting and the setup fearing that the people might actually go to little italy further down the road. While it looks like a great marketing gimmick: I would rather you put this time and effort into taking care of the food and oyur attention to detail.
KEWLHERC2JZ
