First published in Bangalore Mirror
Straight off the bat, I have not yet been able to figure out exactly why this new lounge in Koramangala is called Twist, unless I factor in the occasional ‘twists’ in the dishes. I’ll admit though that it does have its little quirks in décor – the cutlery themed door handles, the retro electric switchboard, the fake grass flooring and the copper balti washbasin, which, I hear, is fast becoming a norm in new restaurants. Being a rooftop lounge, it is able to takes full advantage of the lovely Bangalore weather, though I wonder what would happen when it rained. The place was reasonably packed when we visited on a Saturday night. For a lounge, I thought the tables could have been a bit more spread out. It also didn’t help that the rattan seating got a bit uncomfortable after a while, enough for a couple of my friends to twist and turn and make me wonder about the name. The other thing that made me reflect on the name was the spelling of ingredients in the menu – a whole bunch of them have been twisted around! Meanwhile, the service deserves a special mention for their friendly demeanour and promptness.
Given that the starters get a disproportionate share of the overall menu because it is a lounge, our focus too was on this section. Rather uncharacteristically, we decided to begin with a salad. My natural aversion to this gastronomic species was reinforced when the Thai Chilly Beef salad failed to deliver the spicy punch it had promised in the description. It probably had something to do with the Naga Chilli not turning up for the show at all! The Pesto Cheese Skewers had every ingredient in attendance but the pesto wasn’t really in a participatory mood, leaving the dish quite bland. More ‘greenery’ arrived in aquatic form – the Charmula fish. The basa was cooked just right and the marinade had enough flavour to turn the tide. The Pandi Papdi lived up to its interesting name – pork served on a crispy version of lavash. The well-cooked, mildly spicy pork and the texture of the lavash made sure it was a reasonable success. The Mozzarella Chicken Sish (sic) was another combination that aroused curiosity. The mince was marinated with Awadhi masala, and tempered with cheese stuffing. Not a bad attempt at all. Our favourite dish was the Chicken Chettinad Puff – fluffy-not-flaky pastry stuffed with tasty chicken morsels – unanimously voted the dish of the day.
All that food obviously needed some help going down. But after we tried four of the six house special cocktails, we needed help keeping that down! The only one that reasonably worked was the Chocolate and Chilli Martini though the chilli was more a visual presence than an ingredient. The Mango Chili was a mocktail we tried and in this case, thankfully, the chili flakes were able to add some flavour. The Sangria we tried was more apple juice than anything else.
After that deluge of food and drinks, I had to twist my friends’ arms to sample the main course. We began with the Spicy Chicken Pizza. The thin crust pizza with spicy chicken chunks proved to be reasonably harmless and was well liked. The Saffron Seafood Risotto apparently chose smell over taste – bland, with the seafood odour so evident that it scared the saffron away. Though not very aptly named, the Joggers Favourite was the vegetarian candidate. It turned out surprisingly good – cottage cheese steak flavoured with almonds, paprika, a superb corn mash and pepper sauce. The Baked Fish Pillow Pastry was an interesting dish as well – Basa again, with a green peas mash that gave it a unique look, and a very subtle lemon butter sauce that gave it a neat tang.
A brownie was the only dessert viable option around. It would need a twisted mind to make a shoddy brownie, thankfully that wasn’t the case. Not the best brownie I’ve had, and not the worst either. Therefore, don’t bother.
A meal for two would cost around Rs.2100 (Inclusive of service charges and taxes) – a couple of cocktails, two non veg starters, a main course dish and a dessert. There was nothing really wrong with the food, but then again, nothing that really wowed us. The rooftop ambiance is indeed pleasant, and the service adds to the overall experience, but let’s get it straight – in Koramangala, where the number of restaurants will soon exceed the human population, Twist needs a better spin.
P.S. We took the stairs on our way back, and dropped in at the 3rd floor. The space (Mavens) was done up quite well and the DJ console was something!
Twist Terrace & Lounge, #8, 80 feet Road, 7th Block, Koramangala (Above Woodland) Ph: 080 40911177 (map. Yes, there’s valet parking)