Take 5, Bangalore - Review

Take 5
Phone: 65300645, 25217191
Address:  54, MSK Plaza, 100 Feet Road, Indiranagar , Bangalore
Landmark:  Above Coffee Day

A slight hint of New Orleans in Bangalore? Believe it or not but it's true at Take 5, located on 100ft road in Indira Nagar. It is tucked away behind a few trees on the second floor of MSK shopping plaza which also houses Cafe Coffee Day. If you are driving on 100ft road, make sure you don't blink because you will definitely miss it and that is something you don't want to do.

Take 5 had a few things going on that impressed me right off the bat. When you get off the elevator, you are greeted by a huge mural of a saxophone player. When you first look at that image, a specific type of music comes to mind, Jazz and where there is Jazz, I'm usually not that far behind. When you enter Take 5, the entire Jazz theme kicks  it up a notch with a huge image of my idol Miles Davis. This is the kind of lounge that you will find in New Orleans where you can chill out during Jazz Fest with a few drinks and awesome Cajun and creole cuisine. Unfortunately, Take 5 does not provide that kind of a cuisine but what it does provide is the same calm and soothing Jazz vibe. 

One thing I do want to make quite clear is that this is not a pub. This is not a place where you can chug a fountain of beer and holler away with the music. The ambiance is not like that nor are the people who visited the place when we went there. This is a classy, elegant and upscale lounge where you can relax to a few classic jazz hits along with some alcohol and a nice conversation or two. It's a perfect "first date" place because you can actually hear what the other person is saying. Ladies will also feel much more comfortable here unlike other pubs and supposed lounges.

There are two sections that you can choose from depending on your preference. The bar, where you can chill out with a beer on a bunch of bar stools or the actual lounge area if you are in the mood for some food to go with your choice of alcohol. We chose the latter and were directed towards what I believe to be the world's most comfiest sofas. If they had let us, we would have purchased these things for our home. It was that comfortable. The ambiance was the best I've seen among all places I've visited in Bangalore so far. Softly lit area enhanced by personal candles on each table. If you prefer some privacy, there are a few tables closer to the huge window overlooking 100ft road, which was more dimly lit than the area we were sitting at, closer to the bar. 

The alcohol selection at Take 5 is the best I've seen yet, especially the beer section. They have a vast selection of Belgian beers along with Becks, Corona and various other imported beer. They have your usuals as well but we decided to switch it up a bit and went with Becks. The imported beer is slightly expensive with Becks going for about 300 bucks a pint. The alcohol menu is pretty daunting to choose from with every possible drink your heart desires, from wine, whiskey, vodka and cocktails based on those two but if you are a self proclaimed beer  connoisseur like I am, you will be quite thrilled with their selection of imported beer. For all you non-alcoholics there is also a mocktails section with about 7-8 different mocktails. We chose one called Mango Bloom just to try it out and  it was amazing, to say the least. 

The food was simply divine. I had no idea that a dish called apple chicken existed but it does and if you don't order that as part of your appetizer when you come here, you would be making a terrible mistake. Sweet, tangy and juicy chicken drumsticks, the perfect accompaniment to an ice cold beer. We also ordered bacon wrapped prawns which came with chilli sauce and was out of this world as well. The food selection is pretty good, with your starters, steak, pasta, salad and the like. In a drunken stupor we ordered a Cobb salad thinking that we would be eating something healthy but that wasn't the case. The salad came in a big bowl of chicken, bacon bits, slight hint of veggies and one hard boiled egg cut into slices. It is highly recommended, at least for me. We finished it off with Mississippi Mud Pie, part of a 5 items dessert menu. It was heavenly. We were happy with every single dish we ordered and that usually doesn't happen for a picky eater like me. 

The service was quite good. The person serving us was amazingly pleasant with always a smile on his face. The food was well presented with beautifully carved vegetables to highlight the plate. It took a little longer than normal to arrive but didn't feel like it because of the awesome ambiance. 

Even though it is on the expensive side, you come to Take 5 for the awesome Jazz music and stay for the ambiance and that apple chicken. This is the best place I've visited in Bangalore, so far, and it will be quite difficult to overtake it. A perfect combination of three things I simply love, Jazz, Beer and Food.

Items ordered -

Drinks - Becks (4 pints) & Mango Bloom Mocktail
Starters - Apple Chicken & Bacon Wrapped Prawns
Main Course - Cobb Salad
Dessert - Mississippi Mud Pie

Total Cost - 2300