Try the salads and pizzas at Bandra's Cafe Mirabelle

Not all their items were great, but Caf ufffd Mirabelle in Bandra still gets our vote for its friendly staff, great d ufffdcor and genuinely well-made salads and pizzas

You could well miss the place the first time around. Amidst the honking of cars, and stores and restaurants jostling for space, Café Mirabelle is a quaint restaurant that is shielded by its cousin, Café Temperance.

Luckily we spot the signboard and are guided to the first floor. The al-fresco dining option hasn’t opened to the public yet (it should open in about a week’s time) but the rest of the menu is ready. As are the interiors, with Charlie Chaplin and Bob Marley posters dominating the walls. It’s cosy (just 10 tables) and
inviting.

The menu is compact with a selection of salads, sandwiches, pizzas and desserts. We order a Salmon Dill Salad (Rs 395) and a Vegetarian Caesar Salad (Rs 295). While the salmon comes with fresh cucumber, lettuce and a generous amount of feta cheese that gives it a very fresh flavour, the Caesar salad can do better. The croutons for one are way too crusty and hard to chew.

The mocktail menu is still evolving, but we settle for a Classic Lemon Iced Tea (Rs 85) and Watermelon and Basil juice (Rs 150). Both are a tad disappointing with the latter clearly lacking enough watermelon!

But we are hungry by now, so we ask for Jalapeno Poppers (Rs 325) along with some Sundried Tomato and Olive Crostinis (Rs 225). The poppers are the best we have eaten in a long while — crispy on the outside with the soft mayonnaise delighting the senses. The crostinis, on the other hand,
are average.

The Cappuccino Flan was superb

Ultimately though any café or deli will be judged by how it makes its pizzas. The Mirabelle Pizza (Rs 395), an eight- inch vegetarian pizza with thin crust comes perfectly baked. But the toppings lack the zing, and were perhaps taken out of the oven a little too early.

For desserts we choose a Cappuccino Flan (Rs 195) and a JD (Jack Daniels) mud pie. The cappuccino is perfect with an intense flavour. The mud pie, however, is just about average — with hardly any taste of the whisky.

But these are early days for Cafe Mirabelle. Once the kitchen is fully functional in a few days time, we expect them to get better. But the location, the ambience and the pricing are just right and we assume this place would run to packed houses on most days.

Café Mirabelle
At: Temperance, St Xaverian Court, Near Rizvi College Of Hotel Management, Sherly Rajan Road, Bandra West
Food: Fairly good
Service: Good
Ambiance: Cosy
Call: 9833833270
**u00a0

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