A resto-bar brings drama, flavour, and a dash of nostalgia to Chennai

At the newly opened resto-bar, Jekyll and Hyde, you're not just walking into another artsy space, you're stepping into a concept rooted in owner Malcolm's childhood memory. He wants you to arrive as Jekyll and leave as Hyde, wild, full, and maybe a little tipsy.

We began tame, with the cream cheese avocado toast. It looked pretty, all topped with tuile and microgreens, but didn’t exactly wake up our Hyde. The shawarma-spiced fries were a peculiar fusion with cinnamon, clove, peri-peri, and paprika in the mix. Cute concept, but we prefer sticking to good old regular fries or a solid shawarma. Some at our table liked it though, so it's a gamble you’ll have to take yourself.

Then came the Ravioli rumble, a game changer. Creamy mascarpone, sweet corn, and spinach in perfect bite-sized parcels—comfort food at its finest. The BBQ pork bites, slow-cooked and seasoned with herbs, were a hit and vanished fast. We wanted seconds.

The coin parotta with chicken curry had a tomato-forward gravy but lacked depth. The chicken ghee roast on appam leaned more Tamil than Mangalorean with a light coconut finish. But the star of the show? The BBQ pork ribs, perfectly balanced with mash and salad.

We ended with a saffron tres leches, fluffy and lightly scented, topped with almonds and blueberries, a sweet goodbye.

Meal for two: ₹2,200++. Open from 11 am to 11 pm at Jekyll & Hyde, Keppel Street, Porur.

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