Fishka – Restaurant Review

Fishka is somewhat my best kind of review – a restaurant I wasn’t really planning to write about, but somehow it waylaid me. Hence, the lack of photos. Well, I’ve posted a couple but these are from previous visits.

People will always compare its previous location to where it has settled these days, and there’s no getting around that.

Its earlier location opposite the Alila Diwa fed it some uber cool crowd and it felt somehow shinier and full of that elusive thing called “buzz.”

Its current location isn’t bad. Well, it has more room, there’s a long balcony area, picture frames all over the walls and plenty of tables.

I’ve eaten at least thrice at Fishka with my friend, who helps me rage across the menu with a few cold glasses of mango margarita. This time, we were placed at a table across from the bar. But there are cosier tables, if you’re on a snug date.

We began with the starters section, particularly the chicken banjara kebabs and the veg pakodas. The kebabs were sleek, semi-soggy chunks that we polished off in a jiffy. Delicious!!!

I’m more of a meat and potatoes person. I’m fine with an occasional vegetarian meal, but not a huge fan of vegetarian pakodas. I can only give you my friend’s account on this, as I wasn’t inclined to take even a peck. According to him, the pakodas were air-light and melt-in-the-mouth, the perfect food to go with a glass of martini. Pakodas and martinis in the same sentence? Well, there’s a first :).

Meanwhile, twice we were interrupted by a confused looking steward who made to hand us a parcel of some sort. Apparently, the delivery orders seemed to have gotten mixed up. At this point, I wondered if the ever-smiling congenial owner was around. I wanted to suggest that he take a trip around the kitchen and initiate a judicial proceeding into its goings-on.

For main, we choose the Chicken Kolhapuri with rotis. A fearsome dark brown plate of gravy with chicken pieces, it looked “hot” and tasted “hotter”- all in a good way.

We almost passed on dessert, but the bebinca sizzler with vanilla ice-cream leaped out at us as delectable. When it came in, it was a stunner. We grabbed spoons and fully committed to walloping it all without looking up for a breath.

I can’t wind this up without a good word for the ‘frozen margaritas.’ I’ve slurped both the strawberry and the mango margaritas and they were evening-transforming. One is delicious, two is a wonderful idea, while after three, there’s a risk that you may end up abducting the bartender. So, stop while you’re not ahead.

If you haven’t been here yet, but want to check it out, Fishka is a useful place to keep up your sleeve for after-work drinks and some good food, without worrying too much about the price or the need to “dress up.”

As for me, I’m definitely planning to darken its doors again. Be warned, the next time you visit, it may be one bartender short!