The Grill House

Okay, so we’ve been fans of Tangerine and have thus managed to avoid The Grill House in Indiranagar, despite its reputation. But now that The Grill House had opened a new outlet in Ulsoor, we thought we could get away with a lesser sense of betrayal. 🙂

The new place is on Bhaskaran/Gurudwara Road, right after the Ulsoor Road- Bazaar Street junction after The Park Hotel, when coming from MG Road/Old Madras Road. This map should help you. Parking is quite easy for 2 wheelers, the more well wheeled kind might find it a tad more difficult.

The restaurant is on the busy main road, but manages very well to keep the noise out. That helped when the live gig was happening. Though the lighting is dim, the ambiance is still pleasant, with comfortable seating options and a  Tex Mex decor, including a few cacti, and cowboy hats. (though ahem, they did seem the kind that is sold at traffic junctions) Before the live music started, there was some decent music playing too. We got in by around 7.30 and by 8, the place seemed to have filled up, but they have two floors, though we were informed that the ground floor had to be full before they opened up the top floor. Hmm. But hey, food, that’s what matters. You can take a look at the menu here – 1, 2 ,3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. Watch out for the very interesting quotes.

We decided to give the ‘cream’ a break and started with a Jamaican Chicken soup, that was supposed to “remind you of your grand mother’s cooking”. Strangely in spite of the name and the description, the soup reminded me of Chinese gravies. But its still a good thin soup, especially if you like it spicy and peppery.

Next up was the BBQ Chicken Wings, “crispy fried chicken wings served with BBQ sauce”. This was strictly okay, and I had much higher hopes for the sauce. There are plenty of choices, so you might want to try something else.

For the main course, since there were many more red meat options than I usually encounter, I decided on a ‘Steak Mardigras’, “Grilled steak topped with black and white mushrooms, sauteed onion, bell pepper and mashed potatoes” and D asked for a Mexican Hot Chicken, “Chicken Breast grilled and served with hot mexican sauce and tex-mex rice”. We both asked for sizzler versions.

All steaks are served with rice and mashed potatoes and you can trade one for an extra portion of the other, in case you have a preference. And that, on the left is the ‘mardigras’, and it was thankfully ‘well done’, just as I had asked. The sauce was very unique – tangy, with loads of mushrooms, and complemented the taste of the meat very well. The bell pepper presentation seemed to be a tribute to the FIFA champions, but never mind. 🙂

D’s dish, as usual, turned out to be more photogenic, and you can see me going green in the background. The sauce in this one too proved to be very tasty – spicy and tangy, with the gherkin giving it a nice ‘kick’, though D did borrow my extra helping of mushroom sauce.

The portions sizes are quite deceptive, they don’t look like they’ll give you a full tummy, but you end up with exactly that. They bring around the dessert options on a plate, and though the mousse looked very good, and the ‘Better than sex’ chocolate seemed rich enough and out to prove a point, we had to pass.

All of the above cost us Rs.950. The service is decent, though there was an inordinate delay for the billing – apparently the credit card line wasn’t working. In essence, its definitely worth a visit when you’re in the mood for a good steak, and especially if you’re a red meat fan. Its an even battle with Tangerine, one that in my mind, it only narrowly loses, simply because of the more exciting choices at Tangerine. 🙂

Menu at Zomato