When I heard about Bonobo at Bandra and its fancy new concept of ‘Mix-O-logy’, I was intrigued. The review in the papers said that the food was good and the cocktails heavenly. The concept of Mix-O-logy’ was completely new and one could supposedly make one’s own cocktail, pick any ingredient, interact with the bar tender, learn a few tricks and generally have a good time while making their drinks. That itself was enough to get us to try the place.

We decided to go there on a warm sultry April evening and were disappointed to find that it was largely an open air place. There was a small section sealed off in the A/c which was packed with people. The outside, done up tastefully, was still quite sultry and without effective ventilation/ fans was not very inviting.

The initial disappointment overcome and settled in for the evening, we were indeed happy to find a wide range of fresh fruit cocktails on the menu. But the sad part was that there was no one at the bar, besides of course some depressed looking bartenders. The ‘Mix-O-logy’ bar just did not look inviting. There was no one at the bar trying anything. The waiters did not offer any information or invite you to try making your drink at the bar. The new concept was quite downer in reality.  

The food was ok. For the starters we had some very nice smoked Salmon. For main course I had some average tasting Bonobo chicken, that is, some char grilled chicken on a bed of mashed potatoes and steamed veggies. Abhi had some pasta, which though tasty was in such a small portion that he was quite put off. The portions of the food were like the one we see on ‘Top Chef’. Tiny miniscule portions, just enough to fill a little tummy space but never the appetite.

The service was nothing to write home about. Actually it was something one can write in one’s review. We were disappointed to find people on the adjacent table smoking away to death. On being asked, the waiter said that they could very well do what they wanted. I tried to point out that smoking in public places is supposedly banned, but the waiter did not care for any general knowledge on my part or for the law. It actually made me wonder if there was any helpline on which such violations could be reported. Does anyone know of one?

All in all, a decent evening… more credit to the company we had than the place. With a bill of Rs 3000 for 3 people, it was a relatively affordable meal, given Bandra standards. Though I don’t think we will return to it in a hurry.