I just couldn't get enough of 64 the first time round and so last weekend we decided to go there for a leisurely lunch. The place was deserted when we got there but gradually started to fill up. Its a nice airy place in the afternoons, with a lovely balcony on the main floor overlooking traffic. There isn't service there but the kids could have a good time running around. Make sure they don't stick their heads through the pillars though.

Now getting straight to the food. We started off with the French Onion Soup which was this yummy brown broth of onion goodness. A rather large bread croton was immersed in the soup and it had thin slivers of onion all rolled together around it. How they managed to do that was beyond me.

Next we went in for two rounds of starters - The cheese and mushroom sticks and the crumb fried fish with tartare sauce. Now the cheese and mushroom sticks had quite an Indian feel to it. Maybe it was the colours of brown, red (tomato) and cubes of white paneer (and not real cheese). The green chutney with it was nice and gave it that necessary zing.

Next was the crumb fried fish in tartare sauce. The finger food version of fish fingers. Hot and absolutely yumm with the tartare sauce. We had a round of KF premium pints with the starters. Yes!! Yes!! I know soup and then beer... not really a classy way of doing things but then what the hey!!!

For the main course Sudhakar had the Jambalaya - which was described in the menu as a New Orleans dish with multiple varieties of meat and vegetables cooked in a thick broth of rice and creole spices. Since we are new to Jamabalaya, what we expected was more of a gravy based dish... but what came was this wonderful rice, bursting with the tangy flavaours of spices. Each mouthful yielded a different meat in a different texture. From what I could garner, there was fried chicken, boiled lamb, delicately cooked shrimp and more. The dish was also piled with olives and slices of jalapenos ensuring that every bite was like a firecracker in your mouth.

I went in for the day's special of lamb chops with mashed potatoes and garlic bread. An absolutely hearty meal. The gravy was thick and the lamb could be sliced through like a hot knife through butter. The portion for one person was on the really generous side. And the crisp garlic bread was just what was needed to make sure that we don't waste one ounce of the delicious gravy. The mashed potatoes were served in two lovely circular mounds. Though I do wish they were creamier than the rather set version I had.

For dessert we went in for the mango salsa cake. And was that a treat or what!!! A lovely moist cake base, with a mango pudding-like filling topped with another layer of cake and layer of what could be described as mango cream, with mango puree. One bite and your stomach would be singing an ode to the pastry chef. Anoushka was sitting on the table when the cake arrived. Sudhakar offered her the first bite. After the first mouthful, she grabbed his spoon and refused to let him have a go at it!!! He had to literally wrestle with her to get a few crumbs. Of course, I never come in between father-daughter fights and discreetly made sure I had my share. :)

The bill for this great lunch came to around Rs 1100. Very reasonable for the place, the portions and the taste. Looks like I will be back for more though, courtesy Bourbon Street.