Pastel Poetry — Restaurant in Tamil Nadu

A solid 5 on 5 on all aspects! Went in with a group of 5 and after noting down some details at the reception on the first floor, was offered a nice table across the pigeon painted wall.

The ambiance was warm and refreshing. Our waiter for the day was smiling Radhakrishnan. He was very polite and courteous. He brought in the drinks menu first, took the order and within a few minutes, it was delivered. Ordered a pomegranate and mint mocktail, a pineapple and ginger one and a chocolate bubble tea. I must say, the strawberry boba used in the pomegranate mocktail was a surprise and Radhakrishna was able to break it down to me when I was puzzled to what is that ingredient.

The use of exotic ingredients and thoughtful presentation was evident in everything we ordered. It may put some fancy fine dine eateries in big metros to shame!

The ordered food came in lightning fast to the point we had to wonder how could they possibly do that. The green apple walnut salad had a great texture and flavour profile with the molasses syrup. The fancy twist to the humble drumstick soup was excellent- the creamy immiscible dollops are still a mystery. The mutton soup was nice and rich.

The fusion and the innovated food in the menu were also great choices. Paneer Kataifi was a great succulent paneer roulade with the desert like topping and even for a moment it didn’t feel out of sync.

The standards were also greatly done- the chicken lasagne was rich and cheesy. The Mangalore ghee roasted chicken was authentic- tender chicken in the rich and tasty ghee roast masala.

Ras el hanout with saffron rice was presented great and the meat and sauce along with the saffron rice was great. The paneer bao, if I have to complain, was the worst of the lot, though it maybe relative to the rest of what we ate there. The bao felt unimpressive with a lot of mayo and a fried patty between the bao served in a Chinese engraved bamboo basket- not a lot of sophistication when taken outside the basket. The innovation quotient there fell a bit.

We opted for a single dessert as we were already filled- Alice in wonderland- it was a pleasant combination of chocolates in various shapes, textures and styles- maybe if a story came with it, it’d have been perfect. We were tempted for a second dessert and ordered the pina colada delight and it was a great dessert rendering of the classic cocktail- well presented and well tasting.

The presentation of all the food were nothing short of excellent. The food themselves were either mind blowing, or plain great, great being the lowest we could rate. The service from Radhakrishnan was outstanding- he deserves a praise! Where many service folks blurts out their name aloud and ask for a mention in the review, this time I had to run behind him to make a note of his name to give him a silent written mention! He is well aware of the dishes, the mannerism and even the billing aspects and helped me with my questions in these diverse areas with absolute grace- he probably needs a promotion and exemplify great service!

If one wants to have a fine dining experience in Vellore, I believe this outlet offers an...

Editing This reviee after a year.02-Aug-25

They have regained their magical touch somehow in some brilliant dishes visually stunning piece of cusine ..so tempting .. you feel like ordering all the starters. And they are nailing it everytime. Over the last couple of months. Well done. Team. As they say "Form is temporary. Class is permanent." I have started liking Suresh Menon rather than the old Vineeth :-) (Check for reference old review)

Pastel Poetry keep it up.

This is a newly renovated restaurant on the first floor of Hotel Rangalaya Royal. It was a great family restaurant with a great team, great people- friendly chef. They knew the customers well and the food was always great, almost fine dining but great value for money. It was a hidden gem in Vellore food scene.

If you have seen the superhit Tamil movie Puthiyamugam from the early 90s. You got the review right in every sense. A dashing young vibrant 5 foot Vineet after plastic surgery suddenly becomes 6 foot Suresh menon.

Right... "poetry and pastel" is a renovated restaurant. Menu is multi cuisine and a bold, spirited attempt with new items with lot of Thai options. Food was okay in its own way. Lot of conventional typical Indian items are missing.

The only flaw "we" * found is the execution of food items and service was great in the old restaurant and there were some classic dishes. The management team can bring back some dishes from its old menu which was a hit amongst college students and families. Vellore is a small town and customers do remember the old place and the great moments. We have lot of great memories of this place. It was nostalgic.

Renovation should not come at the cost of your USP... customers delight. There were definitely some things that we missed from the old restaurant and the friendly staff.

"We" because an old Vellorean couple clearly expressed to us fellow customers what they felt and how they missed the old restaurants vibe.

On its own this is a good restaurant with great potential..but long way to go to become that great restaurant. Vineet was definitely better than...

We used to love the restaurant before renovation. Mainly for the taste and food choices. Even the simplest dish tasted yumm with them. We place swiggy orders too from them a lot just for their taste. But recently visited them after renovation. And was disappointed with their menu options, tate and quantity. Every dish lost that special taste which they used to have. May be the chef changed but they soon need to find some miracle chef to get it alright. Presentation, cutlery and service was awesome. Lovely ambience. Pleasant for eyes especially in Vellore. Staff welcomed well. Prior booking on Fridays and weekends would be better. Parking is available outside or valet or inside near the hall. Wish they had kept hand wash option inside itself post renovation. It's a walk all d way outside. To wash ur hands or use the restroom. Staff can be trained better to bring the food in order checking if starters are over before serving main course.. We ordered the Mediterranean BBQ chicken and the chicken for sure tasted old. We always used to love their chicken cause never it had once tasted stale or old. But this time it did. Yet we would give them another chance after few weeks. Hoping to see them improve and get their charm and magic with the food back again.. Would...