Comfort food and a place to unwind, this deli and cafe is akin to the wonderful old trottoria you’d walk into on a cobbled street in Europe. It’s expansive and comfortable with wooden benches outside under towering Gulmohar trees swaying in the rain, a treat for anyone. What’s most comforting is while the usual modus operandi at a five star comes plush with fine dine and high prices, the Bengaluru Baking Company at the JW Marriott is a refreshing respite, perfect to let your guard down and chit chat in a wonderful comforting atmosphere, at an economical price! It is for those busy techies on their lap tops, new romances or even a quick bite with your peeps over some aromatic Chikamaglur coffee .
A bakery, deli and café, its chirpy ambience invites one and all to a new menu that offers comfort classic. Chef Anirudh Amin, chef de cuisine, JW Marriott Hotel Bengaluru explains, “It helps regular folk get a taste of a five star without the forbidding prices involved.” We loved the relaxed air, the under the tress seating, and a general joie de vivre, perfect for city weather!
We started with sips of the most delectable banana and caramel shake... The BBC’s smoothies and shakes are interesting. Then came a profusion of popular salads, which Chef Amin says are the go-to for those stopping by after gym workouts in the morning. We chomped on the Orange Caprese Salad that had hints of tang with mozzarella slices (could be fresher) and lettuce, rocket lettuce with pomegranate. Yum. The next was our favourite, the Caesar Salad that came coated in a delicious anchovy sauce, with pork pancetta, toasty croutons and loads of welcome Romaine (that many others substitute). A classic, we loved it. Must-have.
The Asian Chopped Salad too was a vision of colour, crunch and tang. Kind of like a cousin to the raw papaya salad, it came with a busy-bee exuberance of fresh bean sprouts, grated carrots and cucumber, lettuce drizzled with peanuts with a hint of mint, very chat meet Pan-Asian… in an ample enough portion.
The popular mains had our nod of approval. The steak sandwich was juicy, a bit overdone for us medium rare eaters (we forgot to mention it). The steak bits were juicy with caramelised onion, capsicum and gruyere cheese in a fresh and flouncy Baguette. Delicious.
The Prawn Po Boy had a flourish about it, with prawns, lettuce, tomato and coleslaw and remoulade. It was beautifully abundant with crisp crumb fried Cajun prawns in a packed-for-hunger-pangs crusty French loaf. The dishes are best shared for small eaters, with a basket of crisp French fries and garden fresh salads, perfect for a comfort food meal.
We tasted the Sloppy Joe the freshest of brioche with BBQ pork. Good, though we would have liked the sauce on the side… as it was terribly sloppy (sic)! Chef Amin has also added his own twist to some of the dishes, thanks to his Western cuisine flourish — The chicken and cheese sandwich comes in a Panini with wholesome gruyere, rucola and remoulade. Sounds delicious.
The pastas offer classics and Carbonara is our all-time favourite. Very good. Coated well, al dente and delicious in a creamy sauce… with bacon bits. This surely where one should come for our quick portion of comfort food… in five star environs at economical prices. For dessert, we had the chocolate pastry, a Sacher Torte-ish one with the richest and creamiest of chocolate with crunched rice crispies and gooey heaven inside, it was good. Very sinful. And totally worth the walloping.
BBC also offers an array of speciality coffees and teas. We had jasmine, to wash down the oodles we had eaten. The new menu has bits and bobs of classics, with kathi rolls and burgers with a Chettinad twist and more. “When we curated our new menu we wanted something fun with quality ingredients and a good ambience, accessible to all. Even our portions are value for money,” the chef added.
The fresh fruit tart had fresh cream and a colourful array of fruit, and there enough and more for the sweet tooth to go crazy here. We also had the interactive coffee from Chikamagalur with coffee ice cubes of espresso, sugar syrup and milk that came deconstructed, it reminded us of Vietnamese coffee. Much stronger though. The chef, who was previously with the ITC, has his cuisine down pat, made evident in the plating, taste and delicious bites the succinct menu has to offer. It has regulars, classics and is at heart that neighbourhood café and deli, only in luxurious confines! It also opens at 9 am for breakfast, and shuts at 11 pm. We only wish they offered a nice sumptuous breakfast too. Do get your bread basket full with panini, sour dough, baguette and French loaf, or try their oodles of pastries and quiches.
It’s welcoming, and lets one just BE, serves good comfort food. And you can take your monkey with you! No one will mind.
Lobby Level, JW Marriott Hotel Bengaluru, Vittal Mallya Road
Call 8884494058
Open from 9 am to 11 pm
Try the specially crafted interesting cocktails too…
Meal for two Rs 900
Monsoon mas-tea, a special promotion is on till 20th July offers a tea
experience for Rs 250.
B2
