It was a lazy afternoon. That longing for a soup to tide the sniffles away came just as we passed by a bright yellow, blue bordered, many-windowed facade straight out of a cobbled street in Italy, called LazySuzy, on 80 Feet Road in Indiranagar. It was one of those days when the mood was not for surprises, just a hearty delicious meal. We struck gold, or as it were — LazySuzy, named after the Lazy Susan, a turn table rotating stand for cakes, pastries and more.
When it first opened four years ago, it was former senior sous chef at the Oberoi, founder chef and managing partner Udayshankar Shenoy’s ode to baking - A patisserie that served up delectable cakes, breads and sandwiches. Slowly under the shade of expansive rain trees, the patisserie turned into a cafe, and then restaurant. With a robust menu. Suddenly, LazySuzy was not so lazy anymore. It’s perfect for a quiet lunch, dinner or even a late breakfast (for eggs Benedict & pancakes). A tastefully done quaint boutique restaurant (delicatessen and chocolaterie), in refreshing and perky sky blue and yellow, it serves up hearty delicious and wonderful meals for hungry horses. A change of menu two months ago, today, if you were to walk in, the selection is large and epicurean, and so is the heart behind it. As Uday is a stickler for quality, and impeccable taste.
“It was a slow progression, from patisserie to cafe to restaurant. The idea was to curate the best of cuisines with European flair, and the finest of ingredients,” says Chef Uday. It’s an exhaustive menu, and “nothing on the menu is deep fried. Mostly juicy fillets in mains,” adds Uday. They make their own breads, so expect the sandwiches to be fantastic, especially signatures like Lazy Suzy Deli and Croque Suzy. The chef-owner’s wife added her quirk of design ethics with the artworks and logos, which sees a fat cat basking in food coma after a sumptuous meal. “My wife is from National School of Design, and her artworks are all real time canvases,” Uday adds. If you are honest in your leanings, the idea falls gently onto a plate, rendered beautifully. Here it does. From handmade plates to gourmet pickings, everything is specially crafted, a labour of love, clearly.
Udayshankar agrees that his is not a formula for an out and out success, “Our menu is about wholesome food, and today, it is difficult to do well without serving alcohol (which we don’t). I was lucky initially, and now we have been here for four years. I could not give up on the dream, and needed to follow my passion. We are expanding the brand and coming out with an Indian specialty restaurant soon.” A continental breeze with an olden day wooden door with a latch invites you into this veritable bakery and restaurant. Its bright and chirpy surrounds set the mood for the meal, and titter to follow.
We started with the chef’s most fave, artichoke, rucola and avocado salad, with a raspberry vinaigrette made with fresh raspberries from Italy. Crunchy lettuce with buttery avocado and artichoke, in a sweet and tangy dressing, though fresher artichokes, please. The soup yearnings were satiated with a mushroom and thyme, thick, creamy, to which we added more salt. Those sniffles welcomed it piping hot slurps, and less cornflour!
For mains, we had a flaky seared around the edges sea bass with lip smacking basil beurre blanc with mash and buttered veggies. Delicious, perfectly plated, we loved the herbed flakiness of the fillet, and the swirl of stewed pepper puree... and fluffy mash. It hit the spot! An Alfredo pasta, oozing cream and mushrooms, we loved its al dente-ness. With it was perfectly oven-toasted golden hued herbed bread. The taste specs are good, though all dishes had very less salt, easily remedied with sprinklings of our own.
There are so many desserts, so we’ll stick to favourites, the creme Brule sizzles with crunchy caramel and custardy goodness. A chocolate truffle — moist, melt in the mouth. A cheese cake with raspberry compote, yummy. The brownie was too biscuity, we like it gooey so the Belgian Chocolate Feuillant had us salivating! There’re pastas, burgers, artisan sandwiches, wheat bread, pumpkin seed and sour dough bread... and hints of Asian too with European essence, like a char sui chicken or a Thai pizza which we are not convinced about (till we taste it). ‘The endeavour is to give a truly gourmet experience, the dishes are not easily available elsewhere in this format. All sections contributing equally. Testimony to the fact that diners at LazySuzy come for a special dining experience. Whether Indian, Asian, European, American or South American, we have all. We also see food from South America and Latin American countries which will be in the spotlight in coming months,’ says founder and chef. Their hot chocolate is among the best too. There’s a Mediterranean ease about this happy chirpy corner, which oozes a wonderful taste trail. Kudos to the chef-owner who stuck to his philosophy against a tippling junta. This not so lazy, LazySuzy has its heart in the right place. And it had ours as well!
LazySuzy, 36, 80 Feet Road, Indiranagar
Meal for two: Rs 1,400 onwards
Call: 25272737 and 73032246 (11am – 10:30 pm)
Chef Uday’s signatures Hot chocolate, LazySuzy Deli, Croque Suzy, Turkish chicken wrap, grilled vegetables and fresh bocconcini in Focaccia bread, for pizzas Diavolo (bacon, pepperoni, chilly flakes), pizza Thai chilli basil, Pizza Primavole and for main course, the scamorza-filled tandoori spiced chicken breast, chipotle harissa rubbed lamb chops, malai prawns, char siu chicken /Tofu with jasmine rice and stir fried vegetables, for desserts, 3 textured chocolate cake, raspberry Philadelphia cheese cake, chocolate mollet and tiramisu.
(Suruchi Kapur-Gomes takes the road less travelled, in search of the ultimate foodie high in namma city)
