Tabula Rasa

With open air lounges servicing good food, beverages & playing good music making to the top of the most visited places, Tabula Rasa presents a similar ambiance but with a difference. A cool place in the by-lanes of Jubilee Hills, away from the hustling traffic & pollution, Tabula Rasa is a good hangout to enjoy live music with yum food & drinks. The rustic ambiance with dim lighting in the midst of flora is a good place to unwind thyself.

I visited Tabula Rasa on an invite for review. Pleasant music from the live band was soothing to the ears. With the prime focus of Tabula Rasa being on the bar section, they had a good variety of cocktails to offer. Usually chocolate flavored ice creams or pastries are usually served at the end of the meal; but tasting hot chocolate along with beans infused in vodka is altogether a great start for a wonderful evening. The perfect blend of beans & chocolate with Vodka was ecstatic; and the drink was named The Wake up Bomb. Thereafter, more cocktails followed that included Berry Blossom, Smooth Criminal, Kentucky Redhead and Spiked Kerouac. While Berry Blossom had berries infused in vodka, cranberry juice & ginger ale; Smooth Criminal was a single malt whiskey blended with bitters and grenadine. Each of the drink had a unique taste and a big bow to the bartender for such a wonderful combination of drinks. For lovers of Bourbon, the whiskey was combined with ginger, orange, bitters & Cinnamon; it is a finely blended cocktail that can be relished for a perfect evening.

Tastefully done finger food like Paneer Satay, Mushroom Broccoli bites and Chicken Cigars were a good accompaniment for the drinks. The paneer satay was nicely marinated & grilled well; Chicken Cigars were small chunks of chicken rolled in bread and mildly fried; Mushroom Broccoli bites is new dish I tasted so far – I have not see mushroom and broccoli being served together but the bites here are a must try. Floret of cheese broccoli stuffed in mushroom and rolled on corn floor and deep fried is awesome.

Among the other starters – Fiery masala grilled broccoli, Indonesian Sambal Grilled chicken, Dynamite Shrimps are must try. As the name suggests, Fiery masala grilled broccoli had pieces of broccoli marinated with masala and grilled. The flavor of spices was awesome and it tasted good. Shrimps was marinated in cream and was very mild on spices; the meat was very soft and the overdose of cream on the shrimps added to the pleasant flavor. Chilli basil fish was marinated well but there is a mild smell of fish that could be felt while chewing the fish. The feedback was passed on to the chef for improvisation.

Among the burgers & sandwiches, I liked Mushroom Fried Chicken Burger and Curried Chicken Sandwich. Small chunks of mushroom pieces combined with loads of chicken sandwiched in the bread was a cood accompaniment to the cocktails. The curried chicken sandwich was okayish; but had it been loaded with more cream or mayo it would be been awesome.

Moving on to the mains, Thai Veg curry with Thai Rice, Grilled chicken with mushroom sauce and bleckened fish with cherry tomato butter sauce are my best pics. Thai Veg curry was oozing the flavor of coconut milk well mixed with the green vegetables. Grilled chicken was very soft & tender and the blend with mushroom sauce was very tasty. Meaty fresh fish suateed with cherry tomato butter sauce had the mild tangy flavor and it went well with combination of rice.

Ending the meal on a sweet note, we were offered Vanilla icecream on a hot brownie, Red Velvet cake, Apple tart and Tres Leches. Upon mild heating, the brownie was very soft and tasting it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream is bliss. Red Velvet cake and Apple tart were fine; and Tres Leches was a star. Tres Leches is a sponge cake soaked in milk and cream; the softness of the cake along with the sweetened milk is a perfect dessert to end the dinner.