Casa used to be my favorite restaurant in Chennai, a place that I used to frequent so often, that the chef and the then manager were good buddies and I used to get a few freebies!!! That manager left and noticeably the quality dwindled, my favorite foods were no more on the menu, the rooftop became a hookah spot for teeny hoppers and I stopped going there! Last weekend, our group had an itch for Casa, if not for anything, just to see how it is, since it has been ages since we visited them and we have some very fond memories!!! And we came back with some too........
I was late to join the group and by the time I was there, we had the Fish n Chips, the Chilly Beef and another steak on the table! The fish n chips was nice and super made, the chilly beef was what it used to be, but the steak was just decent. The portions at Casa are good and with the prices remaining at around Rs 250 for a steak dish, they are well worth the money. The specialty dishes have disappeared from the menu, but I feel that they have retained their best dishes and stopped the ones that probably brought the bad name, so maybe it is good! The desserts were super super! The chocolate marble cake that is served with ice cream was super, while the profiterole, a French dessert was again what it used to be.
Slowly, Casa seems to reviving its taste and though the place is very popular among the teens and the hookah crowd, I think they have done enough work on the kitchen to woo back the old crowd. One thing that has certainly dwindled and not come back is their service - used to be kick ass and brilliant, but is now slow, non attentive and kind of pathetic. One friend did not like the place at all, but the remaining seven of us did!
I would not mind going there again now and testing the rest of the dishes to see if they have that old charm and who knows, I might be regular there again!?!
Food 7/10
Service 5/10
Ambiance 7/10
Price 8/10
Casa Picola is on KNK road, next to the Esprit building!
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