Mustard fish with black rice.
Restaurateurs often compare launching an eatery to having a baby. Jennifer Mallick and Ashish Madan, owners of Bandra’s Birdsong The Organic Cafe became second-time parents with The Village Shop, an all-day cafe that opened in the suburb two weeks ago. As is the case with most second-borns, The Village Shop is getting the lion’s share of their attention. It reflects in the service, which Birdsong for some reason has not been able to get right. Even after three years, the staff there is frustratingly laidback and frequently incompetent. Our dinner at The Village Shop was hiccup-free, though the cafe appeared under-manned. The manager, who doubled up as the sole server, remained poised and polite as he navigated the five tables, the kitchen and the till.
Like its older sibling, The Village Shop looks great and is what Bandra cafe regulars hold dear, a Wi-Fi-enabled quiet spot with quaint charm. Unlike at Birdsong, their tables for two are placed outdoors under a canopy of green. Healthy clusters of bamboo plants look striking against the cafe’s white-tiled walls. They’ve provided minimum seating in the minimally designed establishment in which they’ve dedicated a larger area indoors to an open kitchen and a takeaway counter for desserts, cookies and savoury snacks that constitutes the ‘shop’ in The Village Shop.
Birdsong and The Village Shop have practically twin menus, which by their description are organic and health-oriented. It’s unclear whether this is out of convenience or a practical decision to continue serving what they know best. Either way, The Village Shop does a better job with the food. The menu is mercifully brief and still offers sufficient choice by way of all-day breakfast items, salads, sandwiches and mains. It’s the very opposite of the extravagantly meaty menu served by its predecessor Serpis’ Wild Side Cafe.
The raw cacao and sesame milkshake (Rs250) validates their claim of serving healthful fare. We grudgingly drank the grainy and mildly bitter beverage blended with black sesame seeds in the name of health. The pomegranate and coconut water (Rs150) was a treat in comparison. A handful of the ruby seeds were dunked into a glass of malai-enriched coconut water, adding texture and more natural sugar to the cooling drink.
The chicken, cheese and onion toastie (Rs350) was the perfect mix of savoury and sweet (from the onions) and among the cafe’s more indulgent dishes thanks to their generosity with cheese. The walnut pesto sandwich (Rs395), which was oddly pricier than the chicken toastie, was the weaker of the two. The basil pesto rubbed over diced red and yellow peppers and mushrooms was banal and the whole sandwich, dry. They prepare a rustic vegetable lasagna (Rs450) with layers of creamed spinach, cheese and a stellar tangy homestyle tomato sauce that’s placed as the bed of the chunky slab. For something less rich, try the wholesome mustard fish and black rice (Rs550), a soupy entree made up of a tender fillet of kingfish perched on a hill of porridge-like black rice in a pool of mellow mustard.
Desserts and breads are Mallick’s domain; she’s the resident baker at both her restaurants. From the tempting jars of cookies and platters of cakes, we picked the flourless chocolate pastry (Rs225) and the almond cake (Rs175), which are worth revisits. Under dark chocolate ganache, the chocolate cake was dense and optimally sweet. Order the gluten-free almond cake as a tea-time indulgence. There’s a sticky layer of sweet praline over the moist cake, so ask for unsweetened tea to go with it.
Get: Pomegranate and coconut water (Rs150); chicken, cheese and onion toastie (Rs350); mustard fish and black rice (Rs550); almond cake (Rs175).
Skip: Walnut pesto sandwich (Rs395); raw cacao and sesame milk milkshake (Rs250).
It is our policy to wait at least a week after an establishment has opened before we review it.
Prices exclude taxes. This review was conducted anonymously
The Village Shop, Serpis Villa, near St. Andrew’s Church, off Hill Road, Chimbai, Bandra (West). Tel: 022 2642 0651. Open Wednesday to Monday, from 8.30am to 10.30pm; Tuesday, closed. Get directions here.