SCARLET

Type: Patisserie
Where: Aauris Hotel, 4 Robinson Street
Covers: 65 
From: 7am to 11pm 
Pocket pinch: A salad + iced tea + one dessert = around Rs 600 

Tucked away in the quiet lane called Robinson Street, connecting Loudon Street with Rawdon Street, is Aauris Hotel, which opened its doors in winter. The most popular chill zone at this hotel is the Black Sky Bar, where the best-seller Teen Paan Hookah brings in teens in tattered jeans and tattooed arms.

Now the hotel has a new outlet. Don’t expect it to be as full as its rooms — the management pegs it at 80 per cent occupancy — because few people know about the patisserie-cum-bistro called Scarlet in the lobby. It also has an outdoor zone that serves hookah. “The menu is light. Great for bites between meals for walk-ins and those waiting in the lobby,” said executive chef Sujit Mondal, who has spent a large part of his career managing menus for passenger ships that took him from “the tip of Alaska to Antarctica”. 

The global influence is evident on the Scarlet menu, where #trending foods like quinoa, avocado and watermelon and feta cheese pop up in the large Salad section. A Tortilla with Greek-style Tzatziki shares space with a southern-style Red Velvet. Wraps and sandwiches keep company with hot and iced tea and coffee. And then there are inviting smoothies followed by desserts, where cheesecakes clearly dominate. “Breakfast is in the works and so is a bar,” is the word from the owner, Dimple Sahni. 

Till then, there’s this and more:

Karo Christine Kumar
Pictures: Rashbehari Das