Imagine being served Indian street food in a bar that looks like a two-storey townhouse! While you are at it, think about mellow yellow lights, a spinning cardboard wheel that might decide the course of the evening, wooden furniture and technicolour drums hanging from the walls. The wonderland we are talking about is called Proxy Bar And Cafe, located a little further away from Shilparamam.
Managing director Aman Chainani ushers us in, as we cross the alfresco area and make our way inside, telling us that the idea was to create an outlet with comfort food, a perfect setting for live bands and drinks that wash away the weariness of the day. It is no surprise though that it is located in Whitefields that houses some of the biggest corporate offices in the city.
“The bi-level space in a two-storey townhouse takes you for a trip down the memory lane. But we wanted to keep the dishes and crockery all very modern,” says Aman. The way the food is presented certainly has a hint of drama. There are Onion Rings that come in a potted metal plant. It’s almost as if you have to pluck them and dip it in Gongura Sour cream served with it. What makes this dish stand out is that tangy cream, one of the finest we have tasted in recent times. We were almost tempted to pair it with all the appetisers that came up next. The Magic Chicken Kebab went well with the Malabar Zap — an aromatic concoction of single malt, ginger juice, saffron syrup and dry mango candy.
The Podi Chicken, simmered in ghee, is a modified Indian snack that — in this scenario — became the perfect bar snack because of the deep-fried texture and the heightened flavour of podi. On the other hand, Tawa Mushroom with a fluffy outer layer and minced mushroom filling washed down perfectly with their Cliff Sight — a whisky cocktail with freshly prepared kahwa tea, apple reduction, cinnamon-mace extract and egg white. The drink is served in a glass shaped like a mushroom to add to the theatrics.
However, what we were quite excited about was Bhel Puri, which was prepared on the table. Infused with liquid nitrogen to make it crispier, it is topped with amaranth seeds, freshly chopped onions, tomatoes and crunchy to the core — a spin on street food we loved. Straight from the street to the gourmet kind — Carrot and Raisin Cake served with a scoop of champagne ice cream was quite easily the highlight of this meal. The delicately sweet ice-cream and freshly made carrot cake was a combination we couldn’t get enough of.
Price for two: Rs 1,400.