Ah, a bachelor's life. Care-free, responsibility free and just having fun with all the money you earn. Of course a wise bachelor saves up for a windy day. But the biggest pro and con of being a bachelor is the opportunity of eating out. You tend to eat out a lot more if you aren't living with your family and can't cook for one after a hard day's work - it is a challenge. I always try and have a couple of friends over if I want to cook. Other times I have my reliable Subway or a small dinner place to pack food from.
Hi-tech city and Madhapur in Hyderabad has been a seeing a steady growth in the number of single people moving in and occupying the area. It is also home to a lot of young corporate couples who probably don't have time to cook every night. That's when you have an opportunity to serve simple food with some fancy add ons for that one night when you want a tasty, unhealthy dinner. Hinglish Cafe is one such cafe which has capitalized on this. Located bang in middle of many hostels and apartments, yet not too far from the main road, this small eatery has some hits and misses but in the end serves some comforting food fresh from the tawa.
Let me introduce you to the star of their menu - Paan Shake! If you love paan and milkshake, then this is your heaven. Cold, thick milk blended with a lovely sweet paan! It was neither too thick nor too sweet. The perfect balance of sweetness with a minty freshness that a paan brings. If not for anything else, go to Hinglish Cafe for this drink!
We started with the dahi puri to get a taste of their chaat and it was good. It had a very home-made taste. The puris, though too crispy, held the filling of potatoes and the curd well with the usual mint and sweet chutney and sprinkled with the right amount of spices to give it a nice kick. The dish was light to taste as well - like at home.
The chole bhature again were homely. Though the bhature looked like it was fried is over-used oil, they were well-fermented - just like how it should be. After a long time have I tasted a bhatura made with a well fermented dough. The chick peas were well boiled and the masala was also light and well spiced. It wasn't too oily or heavy.
This is how a paratha should be served. Well baked paratha with good amount of stuffing, topped with delicious butter and a side of curd. The potato-onion paratha we asked for was just that. The potato-onion stuffing was nice and savoury and the butter added a nice touch. The curd could have been better if was presented well but it's a not a deal-breaker.
Since we wanted to try all their innovative dishes (like paan shake), we ordered their Maggi cheese sandwich. The maggi was too soggy and tasteless due to overcooking. The normal Britannia cheese grated over it was overpowering the taste of the sandwich and the bread used was so-so. You probably could give this a miss.
Hinglish cafe has weekend specials. Their breakfast specials include matar puri and club kachori, and evening special is pav bhaji. The evening special wasn't very special. Below average bhaji which tasted very close to carrots than the bhaji masala. The pav buns were the usual packaged ones you get in a supermarket. Not the best dish on their menu.
Another weekend special served all day is the ghee jalebis. They serve 3 in a plate - we were eager to try the jalebis. I think we got some of the last few pieces left for the day. The jalebis were slightly crisp with a strong ghee and syrup taste - which is good. But they weren't hot and so we didn't enjoy it as much as we wanted to. Going earlier in the day would probably give you a taste of a hot, crispy jalebi.
Go to Hinglish cafe if you want to get a quick, homemade type meal of paratha and chaat. But if that doesn't entice you, please go for the paan shake! It is a must try!
Cost for 2: Rs. 200
Taste: 6/10 - most points are for the shake!
Service: 8/10 - courteous manager uncle and quick service.
Ambience: 5/10
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