The name should have been a hint, I should have checked the ratings of the Indiranagar version, and I should have guessed that the closer one moves towards Marathahalli, the lower the bar goes! But all of this is hindsight, and we were swept away by the grit of someone choosing to open shop at what has to be the lowest rated mall in all of Bangalore – Brookefield Mall. That, and the outside possibility of discovering a good addition to our favourites in Whitefield. Ah well.
BFlat is on the top floor of the mall, and divides its overall space into indoor and alfresco sections. We didn’t experience the sound quality since there was no live performance when we visited, but the ambiance was not bad at all. We were encouraged just by the sight of the place, but alas, this was the first and last piece of positive news. A breezy Bangalore night persuaded us to sit outside, and choose a Galangal Sour and a white wine Sangria. Only degrees of disaster separated them. My whiskey based drink was first served like a martini. When I pointed that out, they brought it back as a Margarita, at which point I gave up and humbly drank an obnoxious mix of blended whisky, galangal, lime juice, egg white and orange juice, which had sounded so exciting on paper. D said it is difficult to make a bad Sangria, but they had managed to do it.
Not to be put off so easily, we perused the menu, and after much debate, decided on a thick version of Leek & Onion Chicken soup, and a Crispy Pork with Basil & Chili Plum Sauce. ‘Thick” turned out to be only “non clear” and required the addition of reasonable portions of salt and pepper to be made palatable. The sauce in the second dish was quite good, but they had crisped the pork to a crunchy level. Sigh. We then asked for a Spicy Beef Chili Bao – the first of the unavailable items. Kheema Packets was soon added to the list. Sliced Beef Chili was available and I now need a couple of Mallu Beef Fry plates to regain my affection for the meat!
Pizzas weren’t available, nor was Maggi. Resistance was futile, so we asked for a Thai red Curry – Chicken, served with rice, crunchy vegetables and salad. Maybe our expectations by this time were really low, but we found this reasonably tasty. We didn’t dare ask for dessert!
The playlist wasn’t bad, but the service made up for that slight lapse in a shabby experience! Intangibly, the heart was heavier, and tangibly the wallet was lighter by around Rs.1850. We have now extended the Marathahalli blacklist to Brookefield, and shall stick to Whitefield or go to Indiranagar/Koramangala/Kalyan Nagar!
BFlat Bar, 4th Floor, Brookefield Mall, AECS Layout, Brookefield Ph: 49653316