Last night Cheval was hosting an event wherein as a homage to MJ, they mainly played his songs. MJ – Michael Jackson – the ultimate entertainer – was still getting many a people swaying on their feet.
Picture this – A large bar-room, dimly lit, playing MJ and the 1980’s – 1990’s music. The Manager who knows his drinks, waiters who are extremely attentive, exceptional cocktails, sumptuous food and conversation in high decibels with a friend. It was an absolute heady mix.
Enjoying the night
I ordered an Expresso Martini – its vodka with coffee liqueur, spiked with an expresso shot. Coffee lovers rejoice. Hail to the Expresso Martini. Its an utter fusion of coffee and alcohol at its best. Take a sip – the vodka hits you and nano seconds after, you have the coffee flavour lingering in your mouth. Rs. 546
Expresso Martini
The Long Island Ice Tea, easily the best I’ve ever tasted. Rs. 437
M with his Long Island Ice Tea
A good Mojito.
A with Mojito
Ordered Skewered Chicken as our first starter. Very good. Served with a mayonnaise dip. Portion size average. Rs. 325
Skewered Chicken
The bread basket was totally divine. The bread, crusty on top and absolutely soft on the inside. Served with paprika-butter. The BUTTER – divine! I went to heaven !
Bread basket
Finally ordered their Gruyere Souffle – Its a cheese souffle served with a cheesy dip and herb-ed salad. Excellent. Rs. 375
Gruyere Souffle
The bill / cheque arrived. I was really happy to see that Cheval, apart from the mandated Service Tax, levied no Service Charge.
When I visit a restaurant, I would like to leave a tip proportional to the experience I had. In Mumbai, almost all restaurants now add a service charge of 10% irrespective of the food and service provided. We tipped well and left the bar with a happy feeling.
Tumbled into bed, completely gratified.
On the whole experience, I’ve given Cheval a 5 on 5.
reenamansukhani 
The food and drinks look just fabulous! It’s interesting that restaurants in Mumbai are adding a 10% service charge, “irrespective of the food and service provided.”
This reminds me of a recent report I heard that In the U.S., many restaurants are considering copying that’s done at some restaurants in Europe, where the price of a meal is raised so that no tip from the customer is required. This is so the entire meal remains a pleasant experience throughout, as opposed to being pleasant up until the bill arrives, and then the customer is in the uncomfortable situation of calculating the tip.
I would love to have an experience where I am not expected to pay a tip. I am told that the restaurants pay lesser wages to the servers / waiters as they charge the customer for the service (read ‘tip’), which they say goes to waiters.I feel its the restaurant’s job to pay its servers / waiters and not the customer.
I agree. I think the ‘no tip’ thing may be starting to catch on. This is from a recent marketplace.org article i read about a restaurant that doesn’t accept tips:
“The restaurant argues that staff at the Japanese restaurant in Manhattan are paid a fair wage and don’t need tips to compensate for low pay; similar to the way it works in Japan. ”