Anisha Maker is on a mission, to introduce Mumbai to good butter chicken. “The version you get here is too sweet,” she says. “I want to show you what good butter chicken tastes like”. The dish, thus, is one of the highlights of the menu at Garage Inc. Public House, SoBo’s newest restaurant. The family-run establishment has one thing going for it that not many Mumbai restaurants can boast of: space. The 4,000-square-foot space occupies the ground floor of bungalow, in a leafy and quiet lane off Colaba Causeway. The few sounds that waft in from the shopping streets are completely cut off when we enter. The tiny windows inside, the only source of natural light, are double glazed ensuring sound neither enters nor leaves the space. This is ideal for when Garage Inc. realises its mission of being a lounge-like space with live music, brunches and karaoke nights. “Colaba is a great place to open a new restaurant even though the party scene has virtually died down here. It’s good to hear that it’s coming back into fashion,” says Maker.
The first Garage Inc opened in Delhi’s Hauz Khas village and its interiors live up to the name. Here, the elements are subtle. “We want to showcase all the great ideas that started in the garage,” says Maker, pointing to blueprints of motorbikes and cars hanging on the pillars. Otherwise, the space is all dim yellow lighting, and framed posters on the wall. The restaurant is situated in what was once Palkhi, the Parmeshwar Godrej-designed, celeb favourite, serving ‘nouvelle Indian cuisine’. The new tenants have kept many of the ‘working’ remnants of the old place — the vaulted exposed brick ceiling, heavy oak doors, and a peeling fresco on the ceiling.
The kitchen is upstairs, a 1,000-square-foot. space ideal for making the multi-cuisine dishes listed out on the menu. There are momos, pasta, pizzas, salads, tacos, soups, baos and paos. The focus though, as Maker reminds us, is on North Indian food. In this regard, their kebabs (especially the Pesto Cheese Chicken Tikka, ₹375) score high. Many of the other dishes, like the Ghee Roast Chicken with Upma Dumplings (₹345) and Caramelised Chilli Lotus Stem (₹275), will appeal to those who like their bar snack fiery. The Butter Chicken (₹490), as promised, is unlike any other we’ve tasted in the city. The Garlic Naan (₹70) we order alongside is also layered with butter, making for one calorie-heavy meal. The cocktails are quite adventurous in their aims of being savoury drinks — think a Deconstructed Pesto Bloody Mary (₹485) — but they lack thought and flavour. If you are seeking a quiet space, away from city noises, and serving reasonably priced food, Garage Inc is the place to be.
Garage Inc, Colaba, Behind Bata Showroom, Colaba Causeway
