Loading ...Have you ever had your expectations about a restaurant built up so much that you can’t wait to get there? And then have you had the rug pulled so quickly from under your feet that you feel no pain only shock when those expectations land on its ass? Well that was my Chili’s experience.
You probably think I’m being extremely harsh on the place, and frankly I am. When a restaurant or bar charges as much as they do you have a right to have extremely high expectations.
The Experience:
Chilli’s is a very famous chain of restaurants in the U.S promoted by the Brinker group and they’ve made their first stop in India at Bangalore. From what I’ve heard a significant amount of money was sunk into the property to make it look the way it does. ( Which would explain the pricing )
Walking into the pub which is located on the first floor of the building you get a sense that it is very American, and before you ask they do have valet parking so don’t worry about finding a spot.
They have enough seating space, but from what I saw they filled up pretty quick, and I would recommend grabbing a booth as they are extremely comfortable, though getting in and out is a pain.
Fair warning : the drinks and food here are ridiculously expensive, and that they’ve “Indianized” the menu to cater to local tastes.
To Drink:
As you’ve come to expect from most pubs their range of alcoholic beverages is very impressive, what was actually available was not.
This is a Mexican themed restaurant so it’s only natural that they should push their margaritas however when i landed there I was told they had only 2 on the list and couldn’t serve the others for a while.
What I really was looking forward to was the Presidente Margarita ( It sounds really impressive ). The other options here include a range of Premium and Caribbean Margarita’s.
A big shock when the classic margarita came was that it was served in a beer mug, I was scandalized to say the least. Though I must say the drink was rather nice but still light years away from those that I enjoy at TGI Friday’s and the Hard Rock Cafe.
And please avoid the iced tea if you can, it wasn’t very good.
I think what really hurt was how much it cost, with the average cocktails costing around Rs300 the really nice ones around close to Rs600!! ( which include most of the margarita’s )
To Eat:
Their range of food is just as impressive as their alcohol list, and unfortunately just as expensive.
Starters include the bottomless tostada chips ( with salsa ) , the triple play ( chicken wings, spring rolls and crispers ) , the always classic nachos, crispy fried mushrooms, and yes a lot more.
The three that we did try were the paneer bites, which weren’t very good. What’s interesting to note however is that a large number of their dishes are vegetarian.
The texas cheese fries were really very good, specially the sauce! and I would definitely recommend ordering it if you gather up the courage ( and the money ) to go here.
Last, but not the least, were the truly horrendous chicken wings. Their sauce was so pungent that i actually started coughing even before bitting into the meat!
There is a decent selection of salads and soups, but lets face it, would you really want to order them given the range of other dishes you can choose from?
If you like burgers or sandwiches there is enough and more to choose from:
- Cajun chicken
- Chicken ranch
- Grilled chicken
- Cajun club
- Chicken tandoori ( told you they went Indian )
- Chicken Caesar pita
- Jalapeno burger
- Ground peppercorn burger
- Mushroom and Cheese burger
- BBQ ranch burger
- Oldtimer
- Bombay burger ( maybe they should change it to “Mumbai”)
The range of meats and veggies from the grill are equally as long ( and heavy ).
Finishing Up:
We didn’t get the chance to order desert, but if the menu is anything to go by it does look rather tasty. You can choose from the following options:
- Cheesecake
- Choclate chip paradise pie
- Frosty chocolate shake ( is this technically a desert? )
- Molten chocolate cake
- Caramel apple tart
- Chocolate brownie sundae.
The Fine Print:
Type : Restaurant and Bar
Cuisine: Mexican and Continental
Meal Details: Lunch and Dinner
Alcohol? : Yes
Meal for 2: A “meal” for 2 would set you back around Rs 2500
Cards? : Yes
Gripes:
Extremely overpriced, they better introduce a Happy Hours time quickly if they want people to come in hoards.
Ratings:
Price: 2/5
Food: 2/5
Ambience: 3/5
Service: 4/5
Contact Info:
4097 1165
Getting there:
Plot no. 35, Phoenix Idom, Murugesh Paliya,Airport Road ( right next to the Total Mall )
The chillis in Bangalore is a huge disappointed!
It comes nowhere close to the chain in the U.S.
If they hope to give TGIF, HRC, Geoffreys etc a run for their money… They better buck up!