Nehru Place Metro Station, the new foodie address

Nehru Place Metro Station, the new foodie address 

Restaurant review: The Chatterhouse

Leveraging on the Nehru Place Metro Station's new found identity one of a 'food mall', this new watering hole touted to be Delhi's first gastro-pub holds promise to take the local pub culture a notch higher. The Chatterhouse tucked away in the far end of the lower ground floor of Epicuria(the food mall) drowns out the clamour of the food court making way for some peaceful unwinding and conversations.

Decor: For a resto-pub in a metro station-cum-food mall, you'll find Chatterhouse quite spacious and tastefully upholstered. Reminiscent of a typical English pub, the interiors are dark wood and leather accentuated with graphics on its brick walls and a pool table in one corner. At its heart is a rustically done up bar facing a giant screen for telecasting football matches surrounded by high stools. Its 110 covers extend to the outdoors too amid a finely manicured garden with a burning wood fire on one end for tossing out delicious thin crust pizzas. And unlike a typical pub which is mostly crammed, the seating here is divided into booths and open tables with bar stools to ensure you some quiet time without having to overhear others.

Food: The drink menu here has been crafted to go with that of the food, and not the other way round. Comprising a veritable mix of Italian, Lebanese, Continental, Indian and traditional pub classics, you have the option of customising the offering with your choice of beers and burgers to go with French fries. The wood fire pizzas too move very quickly here, and would be even better to find a seat in the garden next to the oven on a cold day. The place exudes the warmth you crave for on a glum winter day by gratifying you with its comfort food, and drink. From linguine aglio olio to penne with vodka, the choices in pasta are decadent, but not abundant.

At any point, the gaze of the restaurant doesn't narrow only on the young crowd, which it ensures by serving up rock classics from the 70s and 80s, and by keeping hookah out of the menu altogether. True to its philosophy of offering a comfortable space to everyone with a taste for good life and food, you, at the end of the day, wouldn't really mind bringing your folks along. But in the same breath, the pub doesn't lean heavily on ambience alone, for the gastronomic offering here is every bit lip-smacking providing a bang for your buck.

Starters and main course: Begin with the in-house favourite, the 'Chatterhouse Platter' served in both vegetarian and non-vegetarian categories. The non-veg one we went for comprised shish taouk skewers with hummus and pita bread, honey mustard glazed chicken wings with a blue cheese dip, beer batter fish strips with tartar sauce, and chicken kebabs with mint chutney, presented beautifully on a wooden tray. The meats and the fish were succulent and perfectly cooked whetting our appetite for the courses that lay ahead. Another must-try here is the wood fire pizza for its earthy fragrance aside from the sliders. Surprisingly, the tenderloin beef slider with caramelised onions, cheddar, bacon, lettuce and tomato is a lot more popular than familiar flavours like chicken breast or spiced lamb. The falafel burger too with grilled haloumi, tahini sauce and red onions is beautifully put together. If hard drinks are not on your mind to go with the food, order one of their refreshing and innovatively named mocktails like the Amrood Chaat (guava juice, Tabasco and chaat masala topped with lemonade) or Mango Julius (fresh mango juice, milk, vanilla extract and sugar).

Drinks: Once their liquor licence is in place, Chatterhouse plans to offer an experience called the bubble gum invasion in its vodkas and martinis apart from serving blow pop martini jelly shots, bubblegum vodka ice-cream float, and fruit and tequila popsicles, ostensibly to attract more women drinkers. Of course, there would be the usual premium Scotch Whiskies and Rum.

Desserts: Until then you can round it off with a portion of carrot cake with cream cheese icing served with vanilla ice-cream, or a gooey chocolate cake with coffee ice-cream. While the carrot cake could have done away with some sweetness, the choco cake was warm and squidgy complementing the bitter touch in the ice-cream.

Service: The staff is attentive, and try to accommodate guest requests even if they are not on the menu depending on the available ingredients.

Soberly priced for its eclectic menu and snug ambience, you are definitely coming back to this one!

Rating: 8.5/10

Venue: The Chatterhouse, Epicuria, Lower Ground Floor, Nehru Place Metro Station, Nehru Place, New Delhi
Timings: 12 noon to 12 midnight
Meal for two: INR 750 /- plus taxes (without alcohol
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