From our current environs – Whitefield – getting to Church Street can be classified under ‘travel’, and that’s probably why I took to the theme of The Lost Caravan immediately! (map) The building it’s housed in reminded me of old hotels – the kind you used to see in the 80s and early 90s. A lift sometimes takes you to the second floor. (Bangalore and power cuts, you know the deal) A reassuring large bar and peppy interiors greet you as soon as you get in. The walls are full of curios – clocks, a neat open-suitcase way of showing travel paraphernalia and a/c ducts covered up with maps of all sorts! Also check out the post card sized travel photos. Fantastic stuff. That Mars-Venus touch on the loo doors – nice. 🙂 We had reserved a table for 8, but got there early and sat in the smoking section, which has the kind of street-facing view I really like.
The menu tries its hand at food for thought in addition to the eclectic dishes it features. From the drinks section D chose a Zombie and I decided to try out one of the house cocktails – Hot Chocolate Stirrers. D’s rum based drink was standard fare and delivered on its promise – user behaviour after drinking was reasonably close the drink’s name. I was honestly confused by my drink though – or rather, the way it was served. Brandy, marshmallows and hot chocolate were all served separately! With no clue on how to handle them together, I enjoyed them separately. Thankfully, the ‘Varttiyathu Curry’ (sic for both) – beef version -provided enough solace though it didn’t deliver on the banana leaf description. The meat was well cooked and the thick masala was made exactly the way I would find it in a good Mallu Christian home! We also tried a Liver Dumpling soup, part of their Volksfest event. Splendid stock (D felt it was a bit saltier than she’d have liked, I didn’t mind though) with chicken and some vegetables thrown in along with the liver dumpling.
My brandy was done, and I decided to get back to known and safer grounds with the Cuba Libre. Well mixed and generous with the rum. Always a pleasure to meet the combo. For mains, I ordered a Spicy Tangy Pork and D chose the Chicken Chimichangas with Sour Cream. Served with rice, the pork was slightly less spicier than my preferred levels, but the pork was cooked well with a lovely tang. The tortillas got the texture right in the other dish, and though the sour cream didn’t really do its part well, the salsa did and altogether it was all quite good.
There were a few dessert options, but nothing that really gave us an immediate craving, so we skipped. All of the above cost us a little less than Rs.2800. The food was good, the service was reasonably fine, (they take a while longer than they should to get the food) and they had some excellent music going, and we had a pretty good time.
The Lost Caravan, 55 Prestige RR Building, Church Street, Ph: 49652896