Restaurant Review: This Bandra eatery gets a makeover

The Pulled Pork slider

The Daily
Food: Good
Service: Quick
Ambiance: Hip

It's not often when a restaurant that has everything going well for it decides to undergo a makeover. Naturally, we were curious to see what the buzz was about the 'all-new' version of The Daily in Bandra.

The Pulled Pork slider

The black and white interiors give it a far more classy vibe than before. The new space also has a wishing well, where one can pen their wishes. What has remained the same, though, is the crowd. Usually, we review anonymously, however, we were keen to gauge why The Daily needed this change. Post our meal, we met with the owner, Dishant Pritamani, who reasoned, "As a restaurateur you need to evolve. There are nearly 14 new bars in Bandra. We need to make an effort to be more trendy. Social is next door."

Molecular cocktail Wrong Turn will make us visit The Daily again

About the new look, he elaborates, "Of late, Mumbai has gone overboard with brick walls and dim lighting. We wanted to avoid this. Ours is an Eastern European monochrome look. No other bar has a black-and-white vibe; we are unique till someone copies us. We want to own a bar that customises for patrons."

The wishing well at The Daily is inspired by the wishing wall in Paris

Earlier, during our review, we had ordered a molecular cocktail called Wrong Turn (Rs 450), which had dark rum, pineapple juice, banana mint and pecan wood smoke. It was delicious and had full potential to become one of those drinks you repeat each time you visit even at the cost of not being able to try anything new. We learnt from Pritamani later that their in-house mixologist was part of a competition around the new Bond film, where mixologists from across the world had to make martinis. He was the lone participant from India, and he finished fifth. From the Exotic Sangrias section, we tried the White Cherry Sangria (Rs 400) A tad disappointing, it was more exotic than the real deal.

The food took time to arrive, but was worth it. From the appetisers, the Champagne Mushroom Fricas (Rs 325), which comprised wild mushrooms sautéed with champagne vinegar and parmesan cheese were crisp and of melt-in-mouth variety. The Pulled Pork Sliders (Rs 400) made from slow-cooked pulled pork was our winner. The Smoked Scarmorza Emmental (Rs 475), which had chicken breast, filled with bacon and cheese (served with mashed potatoes) could have been more generous with the bacon.

Time: 6.30 pm to 1.30 am
At: Ground floor, behind Shoppers Stop, SV Road, Bandra (W).
Call: 33715989

The Daily didn't know we were there. the guide reviews anonymously and pays for its meals.