Hoppipola Khar, Food Review

October 22, 2015July 19, 2020 The Lifestyle Portal 0 Comments cafe review, Food Review

You know why people go out to eat? It’s a getaway from it all, from the usual mundane chores, activities and obligations of work and home – to be able to give your mind and body some rest. While some head to a weekend resort or a spa, some go out to the movies or to eat at their favourite restaurant or café.

Hoppipola is one such place that makes your trip to their restaurant all worthwhile. Not only it is an ideal hangout for your friends but their good food and friendly staff make it an overall enjoyable dining experience.

Exclusively written for Buzzintown, Mumbai.

And guess what? You also get to scribble a little on your table with a chalk or play some board games while you wait for your order, sounds like fun doesn’t it!

If you’re wondering from where the word ‘Hoppipolla’ came into being, it’s derived from a song sung by the band Sigur Ros which means “jumping into puddles”.

The ambience is youthful, full of life, with friendly staff, great music and of course carefully selected menu that makes it a very obvious choice to make it your favourite adda (hangout). Hoppipola is adamant that you have a good time and reconnect with your inner child/ childhood.

They have a very innovative menu; with a quirky way of introducing their food in the menu card, which ensures you don’t have to get bored while you wait for your food and drinks to arrive.

The layout is very interesting too – it is more like a den, where the décor isn’t shouting for attention. Hoppipola has a smoking and a non-smoking section and well lit with the daylight streaming through the huge glass panes and windows; and guess what, every Monday you’re allowed to bring your pets and have a drink and a meal while interacting with other pet owners (in the smoking section that’s without the AC), what an innovative concept!

Entrees – Vegetarian

So we started our food journey with an OMG (Rs. 170) cheese stuffed button mushroom, that where crumb fried. It is crusty on the out side and molten soft inside just like some very nice people we know, who appear to be all crusty from outside, but are molten soft from within.

Compliment it with a Cumin and Cucumber or the CNC (Rs. 120) or Lychee & Kafir Lime virgin mojito (Rs. 225) to balance the flavours. These are two unique flavours from Hoppipola’s mocktails selection that we recommend – while the cumin and cucumber is refreshing on a hot summers day, the lychee and kafir lime add that sweet spark especially when you’ve had something too spicy.

Then we also tried the Smokin’ Carlos (Rs. 160) – which is a crisp Mexican style jalapeno and corn cigars that are served along with a freshly made salsa dip. The dip is freshly made that goes beautifully well with the spicy rolls.

We had a tough time deciding which one we liked best – the Totops (Rs. 120) these are Nachos served with tomatillo salad and sour cream or the Tomato and Feta Bruschetta (Rs. 160) marinated in tomato, olive and feta served on crisp garlic toasted bread. Though we have a weakness for garlic toasted warm breads. However, we liked how the sour cream and the marinade help balance out the flavours in both these dishes.

Mojos (Rs. 140) this is one dish you’ve really got to have, these are absolutely simple potato wedges but tossed in Hoppipola’s signature rubs and spices. This is what we’d like to call is a conversation starter. You can’t have just one and stop.

Entrees – Non Vegetarian

Wassa Tokyo (Rs. 265) – if you love seafood, you’ve got to try their Wasabi marinated prawns served with a wasabi mayonnaise. The prawns are crisp and crumb friend with a hint of mustard.

The other one that we highly recommend is the Aila Aioli (Rs. 195) – these would be the softest chicken pieces ever served to you that are so beautifully marinated with olive oil, milk and vegetarian mayonnaise. These succulent pieces of chicken are then skewered and served with the aioli (veg mayo). If you haven’t tried this before, we recommend that you do.

The Harissian (Rs. 215), this is grilled basa fish prepared with Tunisian spices and bell peppers. After a mild dish like Aila Aioli, the Harissian comes across a more strong and robust dish that’s packed with flavours. Served won a bed of sour cream that lends a slight tang to the dish, definitely another must have on your dining list at Hoppipola.

Maincourse

While Hoppipola is known for its brilliant main course, we’ve picked the best items on the list to help you settle on what to order –

So for those of you who love freshly made thin crust pizzas, take note –

Lambretta (Rs. 280) this one’s made of mince lamb and feta, or try the Jerkin’ Around Pizza (Rs. 265) that comes topped with jerk sliced chicken. Yummy!

For the vegetarians may we suggest the good old Margarita (Rs. 250) that’s topped with tomatoes and the melt in the mouth cheese.

For those who like pasta, we recommend you try a bowl of Blasta Pasta (Rs. 60) that’s served with garlic and chilli flakes with a drizzle of olive oil. You can add vegetables, chicken (Rs. 60), bacon (Rs. 90) or shrimps (Rs. 120) at an additional cost to pep up the dish. We relished the roasted garlic and the chilli flakes in this pasta.

Dessert

Now who would have thought of walking out of Hoppipola without tasting their Molten Mouth (Rs.180).

Cut into the soft cake and find molten dark chocolate oozing out that is perfectly complimented with vanilla ice cream topped with Bailey’s. Give into the stampede of molten chocolate that will instantly transport you to a dreamland.