Surviving Brix

The concrete and glass jungle of DLF Cybercity harbours several species of restaurants – Punjabi, Continental, Chinese, Sushi, what not. Most of them dwell on the ground floor and cater primarily to the crowd within the campus. Parking here is in short supply. Without a DLF parking sticker, a close encounter with one these restaurants is virtually out of bounds, unless you decide to trudge it all the way.

Brix, a relatively new entrant in this overcrowded territory is strategically located at the courtyard adjacent to building 10B; its prominent gold emblem begging attention as you saunter by. Inside, the coffee and forest green decor is soothing and sedentary. A large wooden barrel topped with a gramophone welcomes you as you walk in. Wrought iron lamp posts, plush green sofas, high backed mahogany coloured tables and chairs, black and white sails on the ceiling, a double sided clock – the kind you find in railway stations, wooden floor and paneling and  exposed brick rear wall, these lend the place a somber grandeur. Rhythmic thump from a cordoned off Pioneer music system standing next to the bar accentuates the indolent atmosphere.

We sit facing framed photographs of Mahatma Gandhi, Winston Churchill and Michael Jackson. The relationship between the pictures, apart from the aesthetics, is ambiguous aside from the fact that they are all dead. An existentialist twist, perhaps. Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley adore other walls. A few tables are occupied. Waiters in black, white and pinstripes flit about. The service is brisk.

Honey chilly potatoes, Hara Kebab, Chilly Chicken and Mutton Seekh Kebab arrive and depart cradled in stylish tableware – a perpetual cycle till we get ready for main course. We wait in queue for the buffet offering of Dal Makhani, Paneer Lababdar, Rogan Josh, Murg Makhni and Penne Pasta. Vanilla ice cream, Gulab Jamun and Darsaan wraps up our lunch.

Will I visit Brix again? Unlikely. Guess it is a matter of priorities. If I were a love struck Romeo seeking a cozy dark corner to serenade my Juliet sans interference, Brix would be my top choice. Or if I were a clueless foreigner who couldn’t distinguish between Gulab Jamun and a plum, I would relish Brix. I am neither. To me it is always a matter of taste. On that front Brix barely rise above the average.

In the increasingly competitive restaurant space of Gurgaon, the fittest to survive would be the ones that court taste buds more than the ambience. As Dave Thomas, the founder of Wendy’s put it “It all comes back to the basic. Serve customers the best-tasting food at a good value in a clean, comfortable restaurant, and they’ll keep coming back”. Brix, hope you are listening…

Brix
Upper Ground Floor, Building 10-B,Dlf Cyber City, DLF Phase – 2, Gurgaon – 122002
Contact: 0124-4366020

Foodiebay Brix Menu: Click Here

Aromas Of China

As I have indicated before, Gurgaon offers multiplicity of choices for the gastronomically inclined. Most of the restaurants are in the mid to up market range. Those located near office complexes routinely offer buffet lunches at rates hovering near INR 400.00 inclusive of taxes, predominantly to cater to the corporate crowd. Lunching in these restaurants daily is not viable for average income guys like me. But once a month we end up at these watering holes under corporate sponsorship to “foster team SPIRIT”. This time our choice fell on Aromas of China.

The restaurant is located at the farthest end on the third floor food court inside Ambiance Mall. It is spacious and can comfortably sit more that 200 people at a time. There are several circular tables which are ideal for a group of 10. The staff is unobtrusive, courteous and well mannered. We were ushered into a comfortable table as soon as we entered. The table and chair were of the right height and seating was very comfortable.

As usual I sampled only the non-vegetarian section where the buffet menu consisted of Chicken dumplings, Chicken Sumai, Chicken cold meat salad, Spicy chicken Soya coriander thick soup, Soft fried prawns in Hunan sauce, Sliced chicken with pak choy, Sliced lamb in black bean sauce and Yang chow  fried rice among others. That was a lot of choice. I began with chicken dumpling, chicken sumai (another kind of dumpling) and the soup to stoke my appetite. Then I turned to fish fingers and fried prawns before settling on a main course of fried rice with sliced lamb and chicken. The dumplings and soup were superb. Fish fingers were mediocre. The fried rice and sliced chicken were interesting but sliced lamb was disappointing.

Apart from Darsaan (honey noodles) and Date Wonton they had an impressive array of desserts ranging from pineapple soufflé to strawberry pudding and two choices for ice creams along with plenty of cut fruits, marinated apricots and biscuits. As you have guessed by now, it is the desserts that get me going and I sampled them all. I was still gorging on while other patiently waited for me to finish. To be frank, I couldn’t resist a clandestine, pleasurable burp as we left.

The place is worth visiting again but you got to work up sufficient appetite to try it all. It is not strictly gourmet fare, but definitely worth the Rs.400.00 you fork out. On my version of the Michelin star scale, this one scores 8 out of 10. It is definitely en route to culinary nirvana.