Lazy afternoons at work ... Hard Rock Cafe, Mumbai

Hard Rock Cafe is a slice of Americana and a capitalist rock icon for folks across the world.

Mine is a very unique take on this international phenomenon. I am not much of a night clubber anymore. This probably explains what I am about to write.

I think that HRC, Mumbai makes a fantastic office outing lunch option.

Consider the facts. It is in the Bombay Dyeing Mills compound near Kamla Mills. It is surrounded by office complexes in the converted Mill Lands of Mumbai. It's fairly empty in the afternoon. The music is nice, classic rock and not too loud. You can hear each other speak. It is dimly lit and feels quite soothing and langurous in the middle of the concrete desert that is Parel. There is an amazing sense of space when its empty. Hard Rock Cafe is quite large by Mumbai standards. It has high ceilings and two floors.

You can stroll around the restaurant. Check out the rock and pop memorabilia - Alice Cooper's guitar, Madonna's bustier (the red one in the pic below), Spice Girls (skirt, black jacket, pink slip in pic), Elton John, Prince & Kylie Minogue's concert outfits, Ray Orbison's guitar, John Lennon's radio and so on. Or just laze and plonk down on the sofas.

They have a lunch deal which is quite neat. About 300 Rs (6 USD) gets you the 'soup of the day', main course (from a list) and a soft drink.

We went there from work a couple of days back.

The soup of the day was mixed veg. It tasted like a Creole Prawn Bisque without prawns. Came with some nice and soft garlic bread. The soup was lukewarm. I asked them to reheat it. Which they did. The service was quite friendly, prompt and well informed. I had an angry tummy and wanted something bland. My order of blackened penne with cottage cheese lived up to this. I couldn't see any blackened part. It was creamy and milky. Devoid of any salt. Portion was huge though.

The food that the others ordered looked good. And most of them liked it too. What I liked was that there was quite a varied range ... pasta, Indian chicken curry, Malay fish curry, burgers (huge and famous apparently), sandwiches and salads. This helps if you are going in a mixed and varied group.

Plus a la carte, coffee and desserts. That's more expensive. And booze of course.

I didn't like my food. So why am I recommending Hard Rock Cafe then? I said it is a good place for the white collared to hang out in the afternoon. Well heeled and yet not too expensive.

Don't expect any Michelin stars though