Arcot Bar — Restaurant in St. Thomas Mount Cantonment

This is our second visit in six months. At the front door, Sivakumar welcomes us with a smile, & customer-service oriented manager, Hari Prasad, goes above and beyond to make sure we are comfortable. Granite counter tops, marble floors spell luxury. Wood floors in the guest rooms prevent the often musty smell that often accompany carpets. LOCATION: Directly next door, the Vijaya Shopping Mall hosts an inexpensive food court with Indian Food choices and a KFC, Burger King, & McDonald's. We found high end shopping & in the basement, an Indian version of a Super Wal Mart. The SIMS world class hospital is a five minute walk away. Offering red carpet treatment, check out their packages for full physicals at a fraction of the U.S.A. cost. Local money changers with fair rates of exchange are within walking distance. ACCOMMODATIONS: Beautiful marble floors and granite countertops spell luxury. The rooms are spacious and comfortable. On Expedia, the bed is called a "double", however, in USA terms it might be a queen or maybe even a king. The bed is on the firm side; but even though I prefer a softer bed, I slept extremely well. There is a tiny bit of street noise, but it is not annoying. Bed sheets, comforter, and towels are clean and of good quality. The complimentary wifi, during high use, can be a bit sluggish; but rather than pay for higher speed, it is good enough. CNN connected us to news from the U.S.& around the world. Listening to familiar newscasters made us feel at home. The cable t.v. has too many channels to count; but I found MTV, Disney Jr., Disney, & Cartoon Network. In the snack bar, Aquafina bottled water, one bag of Lays Chips, a bottle of Coke, a bottle of Sprite, two packages of Toblerone cookies, along with tea & coffee are COMPLEMENTARY in the room each day. The electric hot water pitcher made it easy to brew our favorite teas in the morning and evening. The bathroom was clean and upon our request, instead of tepid water, showers were hot.

The wonderful staff at the complimentary breakfast buffet greets us each morning with a smile. Fresh squeezed juices, fresh fruit, pastries, breads, delicious idlies, dosas, sambar, and a wide variety of other Indian specialties are all available too. An onsite restaurant is another wonderful option. The beautiful lobby area accommodates many; but the intimate seating arrangements are good for small group meetings. The fitness room is a nice size and offers a good assortment of machines. An attendant sees to it that bottled water is available. I have yet to use the spa area, but it looks clean and pleasant. A sparkling pool looks inviting; but we haven't been in to swim. The business center looks quite nice as well; however, we have had no need to go there. One last mention is the easy listening live music from the '70's, & '80's in the lobby area Wed.-Sat. that makes for a great ambiance in the evenings. This is a great value for the money; and we plan to return...

Classy hotel in a great location. First for the positives, Great entrance with a beautiful and spacious lobby. The hotel corridors were neatly done and quiet, away from all the noise outside. Hotel room was well maintained, with a nice and comfortable bed. Limited but necessary essentials in the bathroom. Complimentary snacks was a nice touch. Breakfast buffet was a sumptuous spread, ranging from continental to good old yummy south indian varieties. Great and fresh too. Service there was also excellent. Things that need improvement: Check-in staff seemed a bit in-experienced, requesting for address proof of the location I was travelling from, although the booking confirmation suggested me to bring a photo id proof only. Although there were 4 - 5 counters at the reception, there was only 1 person, who was already attending to another person. This was on a friday evening, when generally, I believe, guests are to be expected. I ended up sleeping with the TV switched on (cable off), as I was unable to figure out a way to switch the screen off, as there was no TV remote (samsung remote) and plug switch also did not get pressed down. And was too tired to call up the helpdesk late in the night. A short instruction manual would be handy here. Last but not the least. The green mould around the commode flush button was a let down in an otherwise neat and bright washroom. Will definitely visit again though for the location...

My friend invited me for dinner. Accepted his invite as I know him for his fine tastes. His recommendation proved right. He could not stay for midnight biryani which this restaurant is famous for years. Food and service good. Better go with a guide to order their popular dishes to get maximum return for your money. The best thing other than anything is their Mitha pan. It has been such a long time to taste such a delicious pan. I could not write review write from there as there is no open Wi-Fi which is becoming a standard these days in public places. Good if they could provide by...