"Six O One" is just another one

I was looking for a riveting ambiance, some quiet and of course great food for my dinner with my son yesterday night. I thought The Park (Chennai)'s restaurants will provide me all these as I was guided to its 24 hr restaurant Six O One.

The initial experience was very good as the polite lady at the entrance ushered us in and we chose what we thought was a amiable seat. The spread looked good with local, Indian, Chinese and international selections, a tempting corner full of desserts and a wide selection of salads. Near the buffet counter were lit a few terracotta ovens to cater to the demands for local dishes like Pongal and others. These fire places added character to the setting.

(This photo of The Park Chennai is courtesy of TripAdvisor )

The sea food broth made a good beginning, but starters played truant as we had to wait for an age to be served our seekh kabab and veg tandoori item. The main course provided some relief with choices like Indian and Chinese chicken, aromatic and succulent fish chops, veg curries, stew, dal and made-to-order India roti, naan and kulcha. Noodles, Fried rice, Chicken dum biriyani completed the picture.

Banana Mousse and Ice Cream

The dessert corner was a feast for the eye with a choice of Indian sweetmeats, sugar free peda, gajar halwa, fruit salads, pastries, and a variety of ice creams to gorge on. Son liked Banana mousse the most.

Now the flip side. The interior of the place looked tired to me and not the kind of luxurious elegance I was looking for. Some of the food items were missing when I went for them, like starters, raita and one particular sugar-free dessert I was eyeing at the beginning. Whether they were taking their time to refill or they had simply run out of the stock I didn't have a clue, but it left me high and dry. And all this at 10.30 PM!

About the quiet I was seeking, the atmosphere was noisy with a bunch of foreigner ladies having blast party close by. Not a mistake of the hotel of course! A little further away someone was angrily demanding for the Asset Manager to come on line to explain things. Why blame it on the poor asset manager when the whole economy has derailed?

Overall I had a good evening out but Six O One just didn't stand out: it was just another restaurant in its high-end category.