We enter Faaso’s, Besant Nagar, with our eyes on the clock. We have booked tickets for a movie at 9.30 p.m. in Velachery and have less than 45 minutes to finish dinner. The restaurant promises ‘wraps on the run’ and we hope it keeps its word.
Interiors are sparse and bright, with lights designed to look like streetlamps. Faaso’s is not the place to go to if you’re looking for an elaborate, fine-dining experience. ‘Freshly-made desi wraps delivered in super quick time’ is what it is all about.
Apt for a quick grab and run meal — the menu features a range of vegetarian and non-vegetarian fillings, which you can choose to be served as a wrap or as a rice dish. They include chatpate chhole, masala aloo paneer, fiery paneer tikka, chicken seekh, reshmi kebab and masala chicken tikka.
According to the website, they were “born in Pune circa 2003 out of a late night conversation.” Faaso's claims to be the first “to start taking orders on Twitter.
So all you have to do is ‘tweet to order’.”
We order cheesy chicken meatballs for starters, chicken sheekh with rice and a masala tikka wrap in a wheat multigrain base — the standard base used is a maida paratha, but for an extra Rs.10, you can choose the multigrain option. Our order arrives in about ten minutes in non-fussy, use-and-throw plastic bowls.
The meatballs are excellent — soft and flavoured with mild spices, with an overdose of cheese.
The rice dish impresses with its simple flavours. In essence, it consists of fragrant, turmeric-tinged rice topped with a tangy sauce and chicken. But it’s the wrap that wins us over.
It’s jam-packed with flavours, spices, and chunks of meat. The crunch of onions; the sweet, smooth mayonnaise that twists and turns its way around the chicken bits; the thin wheat base… Faaso’s USP is clearly its wraps and we just cannot stop with one. A chicken sheekh wrap is priced at a nominal Rs.60, and it is quite filling as well.
For dessert, we dive into the rich chocolate fantasy cake and wash it down with Swig, their jeera masala drink. Faaso’s is satisfactory and most importantly, quick. We reach the cinema much ahead of time.
A meal for two costs approximately Rs.400. The restaurant is located at 18/13, Thiruvalluvar Nagar, 5th Avenue, Besant Nagar. A Fasso’s Android, iPhone, and Windows app is available for download on their website >www.faasos.com . For details, call 78120 23939.