The Circle is the best way to locate this place.Bang opposite the new KF office (and the entire Area is a Mallya playground with his house being in the vicinity and the 'three musketeers' of bangalore : making up UB City) is Sunny's: this wonderful place that has a Med. feel and zest about it.
It is Rumoured that Sunny's is named after one of the owners Dog ( A G Retriver) and when it died: he was supposed to have 'cremated' it with Sandalwood!
There is a picture of the Dog there. The Sandalwood story I dont know. So much for a Man's best friend.
Youd love this about Sunny's:
1) In a place like Richmond town : where every inch is occupied by the "Hoi-polloi" : Sunnys is a 21 -gun salute for having "survived" there for around a decade and more . It is only obvious that their reputation is preserved by positive-word-of-mouth and is a must visit for anyone who says they prefer fine dining in not-so-formal environs.Even with Top Restaurants and Bars jostling for space in the Near-by UBC,the place is packed to the rafters everytime I've been there without being suffocating and oddly enough, the waiters and the restaurant in general enjoys a very unhurried ambience about the place: and there is never a delay: whether you are an early bird or arrive @ peak hour.Full points for the great communication between table and kitchen/bar.
2) They have seating to match: You can sit outside if you prefer, the ground floor has an all around glass wall so as to let the light filter thro while the temp control is taken care of. The upper deck: has nice white leather couches or you can sit @ the Bar as well. You dont get more choices than that. It goes without saying that the water is chilled and they have cloth napkins,music is not loud enough to disturb a conversation. Minor things that should be 'non issues" in big places: but often (annoyingly are).
3)Without further ado,I'm getting to the Wine Menu first. They have THE MOST ASTUTE set of wines /Indian and Imported that I have seen any individual restaurant carry. A status that they carried forth for years until places like the Liquid Lounge @ Lido and a few restaurants @ UBC came on par.
They are one of few places to carry a Bar Menu that is as big (if not bigger than ) their food Menu. And they went and topped that with a Champagne Menu and a list of Champagne cocktails to kill for! I dont think there is another place in the whole of Bangalore (and by extension down south) you can try better Champagne cocktails to boot. M& C (Moet and Chandon) figures low on their list. They'll get you a Dom Rose if you can go that deep.I am going to start running out of space if I describe their extensive list (and it would be belittling to their carefully selected ones) but if you pride yourself in being an oeinophile then the one place you cannot NOT go : is Sunnys'. We all know that Rum and Vodka being popular : come in various flavours. Do you know of one place that experiments with something like, say, a basic Mojito? or a Caiparoshka? with all different flavours? get it? It sank in very slowly : that the different flavours were always around: and NO ONE provided the regular Rum and Vodka Concoctions in those formats.The women always prefer Rum/Vodka bases. You will not disaapoint them :ever.
I am also not ashamed to say that I fell in love with a MIMOSA here and since then that champagne-OJ combo with a cherry has helped me make people trust me when it comes to certain food/ drink preferences once they have what I'm talking about. It might seem very simple: but add a little too much OJ and you end up making it bitter, a little too much Champagne : and you end up being high at the end of the flute.
If there is one place you can bet on seeing Abhay Kewadkar ( He is the Business Head -Wines and chief wine maker for UB: assuming here that 'Bohemia' is post his careful consideration),without travelling in those circles : it is here. A lot of Wine launches that take place in Bangalore : Start here.Dont be surprised if you considered a 'walk-in' one fine day and find that the place has a private party on (assuming you are not in the invitee list)and you'd have to go elsewhere to mange.
4) The food is by no means intended to be any less talked about than the wine. I had a chicken Salad with sun dried tomatoes and basil as a starter.The pungent and acidic cherry tomato pieces are perfectly balanced by the soothing freshness of the basil, the Chicken adding the crunch. Pretty sufficient portions as well. I was hoping its not a horrendous portion you end up cramming and thereby leaving little space for your main course.
For a change , I preferred a Veg Main course hoping to be dissapointed. Not so. The Baked crepes with spinach and cheese was tres perfecto! Spinach combos are difficult to make : because people prefer different consistencies.Some prefer it very very cheesy/ almost Mayo'ed up. Others prefer less of it : as the crepes itself has to be done with some cheese baking. In this too : the spinach was very rustic. Just held together by a light dressing and the crepes itself is an easy breakaway without comming out in layers.Neat.
5)I knew I was running a hard tab and would regret it : but the Dessert screamed " Justice !!" and I did. Dont carry away a doggy bag for once please!If you thought that the Food and Drinks Menus were extensive ( or as my collegue mildly put it : A Pain in the A** for someone who was confused between a sunny side up or omlette), the Dessert Menu will make your "significant other" justify your fears that she is cranky by birth (and not because she is PMSing)! I have been here on three separate occasions. One being a meetup of old schoolmates from back then (which had 2 women), with the "significant other" taking her out here coz I got cold shouldered for not calling her @ exactly 12 am on her birthday (which her ex, the raving phycho: did like an omega puppy on time) and with some work collegues: All three times (without distinction of height, weight,character,clogs,pumps,stilletoes):ALL OF THEM behaved stark, Raving Mad. They lost it. The last time I gave up calming the ladies down : as they could not settle on what they wanted for dessert. They even started saying stuff like " the waiter should have gotten the dessert menu first". For the guys : make an excuse to go to the loo. ask the waiter for the dessert menu inside. Make up your mind : and QUICKLY throw in the option as soon as the food is done. This is the only way you can preserve your dignity.(You know what happened the last time you took her shopping for some footwear). I had the classic Blueberry Pie .Unlike the Blueberry cheese cake : this one has a topping of Blueberry Preserve to a warm slice of pie that has a brittle crust with stuffings of fig and Cinnamon.(think half a Bakalava) Deadly combo. Great stuff and I was stuffed to the gills.
The Bill ? A good:1500 for me alone.(with the starter,two mimosas,a main course and Dessert).It is definitely expensive : but thats what comes when you expect quality . You cannot compromise on some things.
Youd think Sunny's would have figured this out by now:
The people who come here can definitely afford to. Maybe the "transition" from Indian Wines and 'limited' exposure to international ones might improve and get more discerning if you did offer your high end reds and whites (atleast) :by the glass. I understand that a wine when uncorked should be consumed within a limited timeframe .But I am also sure that if you can keep a Dom Rose on your list : and for 40 grand a piece :it is most definitely NOT the same bottle sitting in the freezer all these years :). Figure it out.
5 stars: All the way . For giving UBC a run for their Money .And may the dog rest in peace.
KEWLHERC2JZ
