Roost is an entrant in the hipster haven-turned-frat house HKV. Serenely located in a cozy, rustic nook in one of the most popular and lively alleys of the village, it is truly a discovery in the middle of all the action. By Jigyasu Joshi
Remember those cozy narrow streets of Hauz Khas Village with the crowd that energised the spirit of the placeIJ The thumping music from the restobars and people chilling out. Sadly enough, all that has just become a memory. Partying in HKV would now not be a good option was what we thought before reaching to Roost- Urban Bistro. Making our way through the lanes, we reached the restaurant, which is a new entrant in the hipster haven-turned-frat house. Serenely located in a cozy, rustic nook in one of the most popular and lively alleys of the village, Roost is truly a discovery in the middle of all the action. The place had a dark and rustic look with wooden furniture and a well-planned layout, which further offers outdoor seating right next to the bar area. Though this place has huge competition with some of the older restaurants in the vicinity, the overall experience here seemed promising.
The food menu takes cue from its surroundings, picking up distinct food trails from the representative cities which include Istanbul, Milan, Paris, New York, Hong Kong, Mumbai and london. Not a multi-cuisine restaurant in a strict sense, Roost has a decent offering in food and drinks. For the starters we ordered their Homemade Tortilla Chips and Salsa Dips and a non vegetarian platter. For drinks we ordered the l.I.I.T and Classic Sangria. The tortilla chips were fine crispy and the homemade dips enhanced the taste. They twisted one of the salsa dips by adding fruits to it. It may sound a weird combination though but tasted just as great. The non vegetarian platter had fish tikka, malai chicken tikka and old school masala chicken tikka. The platter was average and had nothing exclusive about it. The Classic Sangria was a good downer though the l.I.I.T could have been better. Next from the menu were Arancini Rice Balls. The best rice balls we had in a long time. Crisp coating of the bread crumbs outside and filled in the core with cheese, the rice balls were nicely presented and tasted even better.
For the main course we ordered a Bombay Masala Pizza, Chilli Tofu with rice and Stuffed Chicken Pretzels. The pizza was different in taste, in a good sense, from the regular versions. The crust was crispy and tad cheesy, just the way we like, to avoid all that mess. The toppings were very desi. Vegetables and cheese with sev. Bombay style after all. Though we are not a fan of tofu, the Chilli Tofu with Rice was spicy and had delicious flavours. The rice balanced the spicy edges perfectly.
We were having the the Stuffed Chicken Pretzels for the first time and they sure impressed us.
The desserts were something we were looking forward to the most. But as it happened, our wait was not worth it. We tried one of their desserts, la churreria. It was too sweet and did not go well with us. However, if you have a sweet tooth, you might as well find it acceptable.