Hey
guys, presenting a different feature, unlike any of my earlier articles. Coffee
for once will take a backseat in favour of “Tea”. A friendly precaution: this
blog features a visit to a Tea café, that’s right; TheWickedSoul visited “Tea
Villa Café”.
guys, presenting a different feature, unlike any of my earlier articles. Coffee
for once will take a backseat in favour of “Tea”. A friendly precaution: this
blog features a visit to a Tea café, that’s right; TheWickedSoul visited “Tea
Villa Café”.
Tea
or desi “chai” is the country’s most popular hot beverage and can be sipped on
anytime, anywhere. With a tea stall around every nukkad in the city, what makes
Tea Villa Café any different? To begin with, their menu brags of 40+ varieties
of teas (13 of them green teas), coffees, ice teas, mojitos, waffles, pancakes,
pastas, besides Master Chef Dessert King Shahzad Variava‘s famed desserts,
phew… I could go on and on.
or desi “chai” is the country’s most popular hot beverage and can be sipped on
anytime, anywhere. With a tea stall around every nukkad in the city, what makes
Tea Villa Café any different? To begin with, their menu brags of 40+ varieties
of teas (13 of them green teas), coffees, ice teas, mojitos, waffles, pancakes,
pastas, besides Master Chef Dessert King Shahzad Variava‘s famed desserts,
phew… I could go on and on.
Tea Villa has been receiving glowing reviews
especially for its overloaded chocolate waffles; one of the selected few to
feature on my “To eat” list.I dropped by a few weekends ago & by the look
of it I was glad I had made an early move. The weekend had not even started and
the place was packed and buzzing with customers, from college kids to
corporates and families – a cosmopolitan of sorts.With the lower level almost completely
occupied, I opted for a roof top table at one of the rare open air cafes in the
city.
especially for its overloaded chocolate waffles; one of the selected few to
feature on my “To eat” list.I dropped by a few weekends ago & by the look
of it I was glad I had made an early move. The weekend had not even started and
the place was packed and buzzing with customers, from college kids to
corporates and families – a cosmopolitan of sorts.With the lower level almost completely
occupied, I opted for a roof top table at one of the rare open air cafes in the
city.
The
thought of a warm cup of beverage in my hands amid the chilly wind seemed just
about right. The staircase leading to the roof was adorned with plants setting
up a forest like environment in our concrete jungle. The roof is enclosed on
three sides by potted plants adding to the green environment. This is the kind
of feel that cafes should have where you just want to spend endless number of
hours, with friends, loved ones or all by yourself.
thought of a warm cup of beverage in my hands amid the chilly wind seemed just
about right. The staircase leading to the roof was adorned with plants setting
up a forest like environment in our concrete jungle. The roof is enclosed on
three sides by potted plants adding to the green environment. This is the kind
of feel that cafes should have where you just want to spend endless number of
hours, with friends, loved ones or all by yourself.
I
called for my favourite brew – Café Mocha & my new found love – Nutella
Chocolate waffles.While waiting patiently for my order to arrive, I could not
resist capturing these serene surroundings with my lens.Those few moments I
spent alone, waiting for my friends to show up gave me that extra time to soak
in the positive vibes floating around.
called for my favourite brew – Café Mocha & my new found love – Nutella
Chocolate waffles.While waiting patiently for my order to arrive, I could not
resist capturing these serene surroundings with my lens.Those few moments I
spent alone, waiting for my friends to show up gave me that extra time to soak
in the positive vibes floating around.
A
perfect blend of cocoa and coffee, Café Mocha floated over thin air and onto
the table. I prefer to have my coffee with less or no sugar & trust me,
this cup did not require even a tiny cube of sugar. The Cocoa & Chocolate
syrup on top perfectly complimented each other leaving that sweet-bitter taste
of a strong dose of caffeine fix.The Waffles arrived soon, spreading warm &
fresh aromas in the air. Soft and crispy waffles drenched in unforgiving
Nutella and sensuous Chocolate sauce.
perfect blend of cocoa and coffee, Café Mocha floated over thin air and onto
the table. I prefer to have my coffee with less or no sugar & trust me,
this cup did not require even a tiny cube of sugar. The Cocoa & Chocolate
syrup on top perfectly complimented each other leaving that sweet-bitter taste
of a strong dose of caffeine fix.The Waffles arrived soon, spreading warm &
fresh aromas in the air. Soft and crispy waffles drenched in unforgiving
Nutella and sensuous Chocolate sauce.
The waffles were baked to such perfection, the knife cut through it just as a hot knife through a slab of butter. And yeah, they were completely egg-less. Heads up vegetarians??
A beautiful mess, I couldn’t stop myself from gulping it down on my own after snapping every possible angle of this sinful beauty.
Tea
Villa is the fresh beginning of two humble beings, Roopanshi Bhatt & Micky
Panjwani, former event planners. Leaving behind the corporate outlook, these
two entrepreneurial beings decided to do something more soul-appeasing. They
decided to place the country’s favourite beverage on a mantle, a platform it
deserved. It was not difficult to see coffee trying to overthrow the tea
drinking habit, especially with a café popping up ever so often. A crystal
clear vision and an opportunity to towards something challenging was the
motivation behind Tea Villa.
Moments
later my friends arrived & we were allowed a sniff of the different
varieties of tea samples placed neatly in test tubes arranged on a podium.
Based on sniffing, liking/ selecting we sampled the exotic range of teas by
kicking it off with Tiramisu Tea.
later my friends arrived & we were allowed a sniff of the different
varieties of tea samples placed neatly in test tubes arranged on a podium.
Based on sniffing, liking/ selecting we sampled the exotic range of teas by
kicking it off with Tiramisu Tea.
Coffee
plays a pivotal part in Tiramisu, but a tiramisu with green tea, seriously?
This was something else. God bless the soul who invented this Tiramisu
flavoured Tea. A healthy option to wash down the calories sans the bitter after
taste left by regular green tea.
Cranberry Tea: Mildly infused cranberry
flavored tea was refreshing and energizing, not that I needed any energizing
post the waffles diet. An hour glass presented along with the tea, served as a
reminder not to over infuse our tea.
plays a pivotal part in Tiramisu, but a tiramisu with green tea, seriously?
This was something else. God bless the soul who invented this Tiramisu
flavoured Tea. A healthy option to wash down the calories sans the bitter after
taste left by regular green tea.
Cranberry Tea: Mildly infused cranberry
flavored tea was refreshing and energizing, not that I needed any energizing
post the waffles diet. An hour glass presented along with the tea, served as a
reminder not to over infuse our tea.
Our
host was kind enough to let us sample one of their most exotic teas, Flowering
tea, a handmade lychee bud, which when dipped in water, blooms into a flower.
It emitted an aroma of amaranth & jasmine giving that divine, soul soothing
feel.
host was kind enough to let us sample one of their most exotic teas, Flowering
tea, a handmade lychee bud, which when dipped in water, blooms into a flower.
It emitted an aroma of amaranth & jasmine giving that divine, soul soothing
feel.
After
the revolutionary tea tasting session we decided to call for some grubs and
since it was a Friday, why not call for Fries (dunno why I said that). Tea
Villa’s recommended Peri Peri Fries & Herbed Fries was quickly scribbled
down. Literally dusted with spices and served with dips, the fries were over
spiced but the ever so reliable dips saved the day.
the revolutionary tea tasting session we decided to call for some grubs and
since it was a Friday, why not call for Fries (dunno why I said that). Tea
Villa’s recommended Peri Peri Fries & Herbed Fries was quickly scribbled
down. Literally dusted with spices and served with dips, the fries were over
spiced but the ever so reliable dips saved the day.
Ceasar Salad: Fresh crunchy vegetables served in Mayo, this salad will never get old.
Hummus
Platter: Pita & Lavash bread served with three types of hummus, pickled
veggies and olives. Each of the three hummus had their own distinct easily
identifiable flavour; olive, plain & chilli garlic. This is a healthy
option that can be split over a conversation with friends.
Platter: Pita & Lavash bread served with three types of hummus, pickled
veggies and olives. Each of the three hummus had their own distinct easily
identifiable flavour; olive, plain & chilli garlic. This is a healthy
option that can be split over a conversation with friends.
Chilly
Garlic Soupy Dimsum: The menu boasts of 4 different varieties of dimsums;
veggie, veggie cheese, schezwan, cheese & corn dimsum. Personally, I am not
a fan of dimsums, but this unusual twist of serving dimsums in a chilly garlic
soup got my attention. The dimsums were soft and flavourful and the soup helped
retain their moisture as against regular dry based dimsums. These had me like,
“Khaa ke peeo ya pee ke khao”. I am certainly going back for this one.
Garlic Soupy Dimsum: The menu boasts of 4 different varieties of dimsums;
veggie, veggie cheese, schezwan, cheese & corn dimsum. Personally, I am not
a fan of dimsums, but this unusual twist of serving dimsums in a chilly garlic
soup got my attention. The dimsums were soft and flavourful and the soup helped
retain their moisture as against regular dry based dimsums. These had me like,
“Khaa ke peeo ya pee ke khao”. I am certainly going back for this one.
Cheese
Fondue: Fresh carrots, broccoli, baby corn and crispy bread crumbs served with
a bowl of melting cheese over a conventional flame. I could not refrain from a
dish prepared with so much cheese. However, the cheese was too thin and not
smothering the veggies. It certainly had the cheese flavour but the consistency
needs to be looked at again.
Fondue: Fresh carrots, broccoli, baby corn and crispy bread crumbs served with
a bowl of melting cheese over a conventional flame. I could not refrain from a
dish prepared with so much cheese. However, the cheese was too thin and not
smothering the veggies. It certainly had the cheese flavour but the consistency
needs to be looked at again.
Aglio e Olio Pasta: Served with garlic bread
sides, this is one that can be given a pass. It was just about decent and
nothing much to write about.
As
our meal drew a closure, it was time for a sweet ending – enter “Mr.
Consistency” – Waffles.Yep, seconds for me as I had already indulged in a sweet
share early on but it would be a shame to say no. This time we tried 2
different variants; Nutty Buddy & KitKat Waffles. Again, the waffles, as
fresh and crispy as ever, smothered in white & dark chocolate and nuts. A
choconutty ending to a wonderful evening at a tea café I did not know what to
expect.
our meal drew a closure, it was time for a sweet ending – enter “Mr.
Consistency” – Waffles.Yep, seconds for me as I had already indulged in a sweet
share early on but it would be a shame to say no. This time we tried 2
different variants; Nutty Buddy & KitKat Waffles. Again, the waffles, as
fresh and crispy as ever, smothered in white & dark chocolate and nuts. A
choconutty ending to a wonderful evening at a tea café I did not know what to
expect.
All
in all it was a pleasant evening spent at Tea Villa & I eagerly look
forward to their soon to-be-opened outlet in Bandra.Until then, Vile Parle will
remain my regular Café for meetings & of course for some peaceful time. Mai
aur Meri Coffee 🙂
in all it was a pleasant evening spent at Tea Villa & I eagerly look
forward to their soon to-be-opened outlet in Bandra.Until then, Vile Parle will
remain my regular Café for meetings & of course for some peaceful time. Mai
aur Meri Coffee 🙂
#LipSmackingMeter
4/5
4/5
Until
next time,
next time,
TheWickedSoul!
