Rainforest

This, I found very recently and is now a quick destination that can be done within a few minutes and not so much traffic from my house.Rainforest in Adyar boasts of a great decor, though not entirely unseen (it tends to resemble the Gufa in Bangalore, co-incidence may be) and that is one of the first things that you notice about the place. Complete with it's cave-like interiors, mock animal and thunder sounds, dim lighting, waterfalls and animal dummies. The next thing you notice is, if you are here on a private, cozy date, that you couldn't have made a worse choice. Because the place is aptly named, and is exactly how a forest should be, crowded. The tables are pretty close to each other, it gets considerably noisy when the hall's full. The staff aren't the most friendly ones, they definitely could do better. But the food, kind of redeems this place to some extent. It may not be out of the world, but is pretty decent.They offer a good variety, the kebabs are succulent and yummy, try the noorjehan Kebab especially, a garlic chiken kebab. The biryani is quite good. The quantity is ample. You order a plate of biryani with starters and side dishes, you may very well share it with a person (or two, depending upon your apetite!). The chinese options aren't so bad either and you have a good balance of Veg and Non Veg dishes and so it gaurantees a little something for everyone in the group!This place makes a perfect destination for a family outing with the kids or a casual, chatty dinner with friends.

Ambience: ****
Food: ***1/2
Service: **
Value for money: ****
Cost of Meal for 2: Rs 500 approx.
Location and Address: It's at the Adyar signal opposite the road to Thiruvanmiyur.
Rain Forest Restaurant
#41 & 421st Main Road,
Gandhi NagarAdyarChennai-600020
Landmark: Near Parryware Showroom
Phone: 044-42187222

The Interlude

The enormous amount of fear or respect or call what you wish for the Chennai traffic caused us to land in Sathyam cinemas a good 20 minutes to spare before the movie started. Now the crowded lobby is the last place you want to wait with good natured Chennai-ites nudging you, pushing you as they rushed to the gateman with the tickets only to be shoo-ed with the wait-for-x-minutes and joining the ever growing waiting brigade. And hanging out on the sidewalks on the way to the hall from the parking lot would heighten your chance of being run over by a random, apparently blind motorist. So we decided to take a detour into a curious little place with glass doors thick enough to conceal what was in store on the otherside. The board read Ecstasy. And I was curious.
Nandoo simply said ‘I’ve heard rave reviews about this place.
‘what is this shop? ‘
‘Hang on…’ he said pushing the door open.
And I realized immediately that it wasn’t an over priced boutique that I expected it to be. I saw a fairly large hall with tables well separated from each other.
Not much sound except for the mellow music and no crowd at all (which is if you don’t consider the number 4 as a crowd!....okay at least compared to the mayhem outside?) And yeah, before I forget, this place I guessed from first look as soon as I stepped in, was a pastry shop. Or ice cream parlour. Or a coffee shop? Or a fancy waiting room for Sathyam furnished with state of the art furniture? And it played world music. And had an interesting chandelier made mostly of notes from people pinned up. And it served delicious French desserts! Hmmm…it is all of that so I really don’t know which category to pin it down to. But as long as me is happy, me is not complaining J
With so little time to spare, we immediately rushed to the counter and ordered for 2 Tiramisu. I have to admit, I felt like gobbling up every other piece on display and I did not even take a look at their menu. But I have a great weakness for this dessert so there you go!
And it was quite different from the various versions of Tiramisus I have had over the past few years. The mouse was creamy and left a nice creamy taste (and smell too according to Nandoo!) in your mouth, the biscuit/cookie/pastry beneath completely soaked in rich coffee. Hmmmmmm…that felt good
The five minutes I tasted it seemed to last forever and it took sometime really to realize that we were there for a movie. (and so as usual we went in halfway through the initial credits!) Amidst the most chaotic place, I have finally found THE HANGOUT for a nice quiet evening! And guess what, it’s reasonably priced. For the insane amount you pay at moven pick to get tucked into a corner with irritating teens chirping endlessly around you, this is a mile ahead!
What a pity the shop is almost invisible in the complex…a little promotion wont do it much harm. But guess I’d rather have it staying that way, without the crowd outside barging out. And oh, in case I forgot; you can get take aways and those guys at sathyam would let you take it in. Better than the usual Baskin 31 Robbins, hard-to-chew popcorn, half a litre of coke (forcing you to run out of a movie midway to the loo) fare? You bet!

Ambience: *****
Food: *****
Service: **** (I’ll take a star out of that as we didn’t interact much over our brief stay there, but they sure were friendly for the time that we were!)
Value for money: *****
Website: http://www.sathyamcinemas.com/ecstasy/

Minus: It’s your lucky day if you spot the shop!