Restaurant Review : Moshes Cafe, Crossword, Kemps Corner

Today, towards the fag end of my Urban Trek (aimless meander through historic/ interesting/ pretty/hidden corners of the city with camera in tow) I was low on energy, and my legs were protesting having to carry my lump of weight around. So it was with thankfulness that reached my planned pitstop at the Crossword Bookstore at Kemps Corner. And for the first time ever, the bookshelves went unheeded, as, straight like an arrow I walked into the cafe on the first floor - Moshes.

The cafe was mercifully only half-full so getting a table did not present any waits or delays. Settling down at one of the small wooden table-for-twos was bliss for my aching feet! The cafe is small (eupphemistically you can call it 'cosy') and packed with small wooden tables. A leather-padded bench runs the length of one wall forming one seat of the 5 two-seater tables crammed along it.



The menu at Moshes is not too long or varied - around 5-6 entries in every category - and the categories range from salads, sandwiches, dessert, hot drinks, cold drinks to 'Lite Eats' like toasties and 'By-the-side' stuff like muffins, croissants, cupcakes etc. There is even a separate category for eggless desserts and the desserts on offer here sound so yummy - as do the rest of the vegetarian dishes - that there is no chance of vegetarians being short-changed. The price of all dishes - from all categories - hovers around the INR 150 mark, ranging from 110 to 190. There ARE a few dishes which diverge from this mean price, like the smoked salmon with cream cheese on bagel which costs INR 270 - But thats fair, given it IS smoked salmon. The prices are surprisingly reasonable for an outlet of a swish chain of cafes - but the menu is more snacks-oriented than proper sit-down meals, so I guess that covers it.

I ordered the Barbeque Chicken Sandwich with Harissa, Fresh Herbs & Brown Onions - with the Kookai - a concoction of grape, guava and kokam juice - on the side. The sandwich came in an oblong deep-dish with a knife and a fork, with a token amount of salad on the side.

But whatever little greenery was there was yum - crisp, fresh and drenched with a balsamic-olive oil dressing. As for the sandwich - it was delicious! Crunchy crispy toasted slices of bread generously packed with succulent chunks of chicken doused in a finger-licking sauce - the thought of that sauce is enough to get me drooling! Just-so spiced with red chilli, sweet with the caramelised onions and fragrant with a heady mix of cinnamon and cumin - every bite was a pleasure.


The Kookai came in an ominous shade of dark dark reddish-purple.

But it was an awesome accompaniment to the sandwich! Speckled with some purple powder on the top (what was it?!), it was sweet and cold and full of the flavour of kokam and guava (the poor grapes went unnoticed)

By the time my sandwich was served, the cafe was full and people were waiting in queue, so I didnt linger over the sandwich. Also, did I mention - the tables are really close to each other? So even if all you want to do is tuck into amazing food and and the book you have just bought downstairs - you are forced to do some people-watching and people-hearing. (Which brings me to - what IS it with kids today? Everyone - and I mean EVERY ONE - was toting a Blackberry. Even the 10-year old at the table next to mine had her own BB - as did the newly-teen girls with her!)

Anyhow, Blackberry Boys aside, Moshes is a great place for a quick lunch that manages to balance taste, health, and uniqueness in its food. Do stop by for a bite if you're near any of their outlets. And dont forget that chicken sandwich. Droool.........


P.S.: Please forgive the really sad photos - they were taken on a VGA (!) cellphone camera - having had to deposit my bag (with my precious camera!) at the security downstairs. :(