Kapoor's Cafe HRBR Branch — Restaurant in Bengaluru

Kapoor’s Cafe in Kalyan Nagar – Bangalore is the third outlet of this venture in the city. Having already experienced their food in the WhiteField outlet, I had my expectations high for the Kalyan Nagar Branch. Went in here for a Weekend lunch and Google map will take you to the doorstep if one is not familiar with the area.It is located above Godrej’s Nature Basket and is spread across 2 levels. At one level, there is casual seating with table and chairs while the other is a Roof Top with Khatiya’s (Cots) lined up totally resembling a Dhaba. The ambience here is why one should visit this place and sitting on a Khatiya and having food in the middle of a city is an experience in itself ! There is lift to reach the different levels , works great for children or the elderly. Let me go straight to the food – Well its Punjabi and so the menu is absolutely smashing. Great variety and lot of combo Thali’s available to choose from not to forget the Lassi’s served in a Kulhad ( Earthen Pots). I was with my family and so opted for different combo’s to try out. We started off with some Paneer Pakoda’s which were excellent, fried to perfection with less or no traces of oil meant its finger licking. nothing fancy but plain old Punjabi Dhaba Pakoda’s with a touch of spices, chaat masala and chutney ! Bliss !

Punjab Dal Combo : This combo comprised of Punjabi Dal Tadka, Aloo Jeera, 3 Phulkas, Boondi Raitha, Rice and Papad. Homely Food. Dal ( Lentils) were cooked right and packed with flavour. Aloo Jeera was spicy and went well with the Dal. It was a perfect meal ! Paneer Butter Masala Combo : This one is same as the Dal Combo with just the Dal replaced with Paneer Masala. That buttery glaze on top of Paneer enhanced the flavour so much.

Combo 7 – Maharaja Thali – This one was my favorite. Truly a Maharaja Thali comprising of Dhal Makhani, Paneer Lababdar, Boondi Raitha, Peas Pulao, 2 Ghee Phulkas, 1 Missi Roti, Masala Papad, Lassi and Shahi Tukda. There are alternatives to this like a Buttermilk rather than Lassi or a different sweet or Paneer option to select from but this was what we opted for. Pulao was aromatic and it did eat well. Lassi was top class and Shahi Tukda was a perfect ending to the Thali.

Apart from the Combo’s – tried the Aloo Paratha and Chilli Onion Pulao. Paratha came with this dollop of butter on top. Let the Butter do its thing before you eat the Paratha’s for that pure Punjabi Dhaba effect. Chilli Onion Pulao was spicy to an extent.

And finally, you do get Paan here and different varieties too, opted for the regular sweet one to end the meal on...

We visited this place after reading a write up in Bangalore Mirror. So, they have 2 floors of restaurant, above Godrej Nature's Basket. The 3 rd floor is a normal table chair seating, while the one above is a dhaba type seating with cot, takhia seating. The place is lit with fairy lights and almost looks festive. While they have a lot of seating space but the cot does get a bit uncomfortable beyond a point. Maybe they could look at a small layer of foam / cotton for a bit of cushioning. Service is prompt in the beginning but since the place was over full, getting the waiter's attention was difficult. The dishes that we tried was tasty but not extraordinary, we tried the punjabi style french fries, veg cutlet, cheese burst paratha and the deserts - Rabri, gulab jamun and lassi. The quantity of French fries is a lot!! It was good and was served with crackling spinach ( i think!) And green chutney. The veg cutlet, though very crunchy on the outside, was way way too soft inside almost undercooked and mushy. Again it was served with green chutney. The cheese burst paratha - made with 8 amul cheese blocks and served with a super generous blob of butter...was a hit with my kiddo, yea! But personally for me it was just an overload of cheese and butter, couldn't really taste anything else. The deserts were a generous serving - Rabri, huge pieces of Gulab Jamun and the lassi, according to my son -was very very tasty - with the right amount of sweetness. All in all, we felt we couldn't really get the taste of Punjab in the food, as we came with huge expectations... their ambience and decor shouted punjabi, but not their food. We do plan to visit again and try their other dishes. Felt a bit...

It’s wrongly named to be cafe, it is a dhaba.

Ambience: Great khaat/khati, with comfortable back support cushions. Nice collection of music, it transported me to the north.

Food: Their menu card mentions explicitly that food is oily, i ignored and wanted to experience their original taste. It was a huge mistake, our south taste buds aren’t accustomed to butter-mania. Sarso da saag te makke di roti combo: Neither the saag nor the roti was of original flavour: disappointed. Paneer Butter masala combo: phulka were soft but too oily for us, paneer gravy was flavourful. Fried bhindi: pretty dry and hard, not upto the Mark Lassi: good but we prefer low sugar/less sweet option (customisation was not available).

Price: average, matching the existing market price of similar restaurants, however portion size of gravy in combos were big.

OTHERS DETAILS:

Hand wash is in the same floor as dining area

Toilet is one floor below the dining area

Seating area: khatiya, table chairs, stools.

Roof top: so pleasant breeze and fresh ambience.

Parking: no valet parking, for car park u will have to drive around into the adjacent residential areas to find a parking spot (exercise caution and don’t park in front of gates or reserved parking spots of the residents)

Accompanying Kids: adequate space for kids to walk around and relatively safe. Khatiya was very comfortable for us and the two toddlers accompanying us😊

Conclusion: Gives a good n.Indian dhaba feel, taste wise below Mark,...