In a serene corner of Nungambakkam, right next to the Taj Coromandel, Jack’s Resto Cafe has created a space for all our moods. With a live dessert counter at the heart of the restaurant, a garden area and a movie lounge complete with a projector, the month-old cafe is almost therapeutic. And the owner is someone who clearly knows the pressures of life — a 21-year-old medical student.
“The cafe is not located on the main road and I see that as an advantage… I want the place to be isolated from the hustle,” says Jaykiran PA. We take our seats near the live counter — equipped with hot waffle irons and cold ice cream plates — and quickly catch the scent of carmelising sugar.
Their waffles are some of the best we’ve tasted. From the cold plates come the Thai ice cream rolls. Finger-sized rolls of ice cream are drizzled with a pink sauce and packed in a small plate. We taste a spoonful. And we’re scrambling to figure out the flavours. It’s spicy, icy and fruity. We finally find out, it’s chilli guava.
“Though some outlets serve Thai ice cream rolls in Chennai, they don’t have the flavours we have. We even have rolls of Milo (the chocolate-flavoured beverage that was famous in the 1990s). Soon, we will launch new flavours, for example, black ice cream rolls using activated charcoal,” says Jaykiran, whose father S Palaniswamy is the head of a popular city-based South Indian restaurant chain.
The cafe also specialises in thin-crust pizzas. Their paneer tikka pizza is saucy, light and their crust is crispy and delicious on its own. As we sink into their comfortable couches, another item arrives from the dessert bar. Smothered with Nutella and topped with cream, their red velvet crepe is a parcel from heaven.
We look around and notice the lounge area. “About 15 people can use it for two hours. They can dance, watch movies and even catch live tennis matches,” Jaykiran adds — think a party with giant chicken burgers and Netflix.
The third-year medical student of Sri Ramachandra University also reveals he has plans to start a late-night dessert bar at the cafe. And how do his parents react to his food dreams? With the same amount of gusto, we hear. “My dad lets me do whatever I want to,” responds Jaykiran, adding, “The cafe is financed by him as well.”
As for how he juggles his time between college and the cafe, it turns out that this student has found a way to be at two places at once. “Every hour, I get alerts on my phone. So I can access the CCTV cameras while I am in class if I want to. I also have a study room at the cafe.”
Cost for two: Rs 1000. Price of set menu in the lounge: Rs 550 + taxes per head.Details: 9790949999