AKA Mumbai Launches with a Big Bang!

A lot of mystery shrouded the Saturday launch of the new restaurant AKA which has come up at the location where 212 once used to be. However when we appeared at the venue, the curtain opened to a glorious blockbuster!

We attended the media preview of the same last week and were ushered into the very elegantly done interiors of the sprawling new restaurant. The restaurant is done up in beautiful black and white geometrical patterns which are pleasing to the eyes. The chairs around the tables have colorful mosaic patterns which are in tune with the black and white wall and lighting accents. The French bay windows give the place a sense of space and the small al fresco dining area in front of the restaurant gives smokers a chance to indulge in their vice and be a part of  happenings inside at the same time.

The restaurant, a brain child of the Agrawal family, who helm the affairs at the garment export house next door, has been conceptualized to bring food and fashion on the same platform and has succeeded in doing a fair job at it.

Though the tasting started with an overcooked Prawn cocktail, the Chilean Santa Rita that was being poured along with it, kind of compensated. The Watermelon and Goat Cheese terrine that followed was quite refreshing and the wood fired Baked Camembert oozed with delicious goodness that words may not be able to justify.

With the tone of the evening set and an equally crazy group of friends joining us on the table, we went on a food binging spree that saw us ordering a Quattro Formaggi Pizza (Very cheesy on a thin crust light base, delicious) , scallops, baked crabs, chicken wings, roasted chicken and what not.  Each of these dishes reflected what clients could expect from the kitchen. Surprisingly, for a launch, quite a few of the dishes were unavailable, but of what we tried, most of them were (and I am happy to say it) finger licking good.
The menu has been designed very cleverly, keeping the prices reasonably fair and the variety decent enough to cover an entire gamut of continental dishes.  Portion size is decent enough to be shared by two and the service is prompt .

I usually avoid spending a lot of time at launches and usually make a come and go kind of an appearance but here, much to everyone´s surprise, I was not only one of the first ones to arrive, but was also the last one to leave the restaurant. This can clearly be attributed to some fantastic company of friends, some delicious food and some great wine that kept us at our best wits.

AKA has the looks, the menu and the all the elements for it to become a popular hangout. I hope the quality maintains itself over the coming months and it keeps delivering with the same aplomb as its peers. I enjoyed the place quite a bit, but will  Mumbaikars lap it up in the same vein, only time will tell.