Stepping into Hyatt Centric Ballygunge in the “City of Joy” is an all-encompassing experience of culinary bliss to remember. The lifestyle, five-star set-up is the first-of-its-kind in the Eastern region of India nestling in the residential area of the city. The ambience is so refreshing with heart-warming hospitality that beckons the visitor innumerable times. I had an opportunity to visit the property during Baisakhi, this year.
Spread over 61, 643 sq. ft area, the hospitality property had a magnificent launch sometime on April 30, last year. The luxury property boasts of 93 keys including seven suites that flaunt traditional art and contemporary décor of Bengal. There are murals and artworks adorning the walls of the lobby. Each room and the corridors are artistically done up showcasing the heritage attractions and traditions of Bengal like Howrah Bridge, man-driven rickshaw and dhunchi naach. There’s much to soak in and see in the hotel comprising the décor. Right from heading to the hotel and winding up, the property offers personalized experience to its guests. The suites are laid out with a huge basket of goodies for guests.
The property is home to multiple restaurants including Yayavar, the Indian regional concept restaurant on the second floor that has been derived from the Bengali word “Jajabar” implying traveller. Yayavar commanding an area of over 5,224 sq. ft presents a vast culinary landscape of India. There’s buffet breakfast and dinner served at the outlet. The five-star set-up has a Euro-Asian bistro famed as Tess. Add to this, there is 116-seater open-air, roof-top bar and brewery called Cal-On on the 7th floor of the hotel.
After arriving in the hotel, I settled down in one of those Standard King Room and headed to Yayavar for Sunday brunch that had geared up for Bengali New Year celebration. With guests pouring in, the food outlet was quite vibrant and crowded. At the same time, the 126-seater food outlet was into hosting one-of-a-kind, Bihari food fest from April 11 to 14 for lunch and dinner.
The Sunday brunch buffet is quite elaborate with four live counters including local delicacies, Pasta and two Bengali food counters churning out Poori, Peas Kachori and fish or chicken carving. I had a chance to sample Golgappas and Palak Patta Chaat that was quite spicy. I switched on to the main course with Chilly Garlic Noodles and Bengali delicacies comprising Poori, Aloo Dum, Aloo Bhaja, Enchorer Dalna (Jackfruit curry) and Papad. The brunch buffet has a number of sections like cheese and cold cut, soups and starters, salad, Asian and Western, Bengali and North Indian and the mouth-watering desserts. Every meal ends with a comforting dessert. It was time to indulge in delish Continental desserts like Blue Berry Entremets, Chocolate Cake and Muhallebi – Middle East cream pudding that is not-to-be-missed for it captures one’s hearts and delights the taste buds.
As dusk descends, one can take a look at Tess, the 43-cover atrium overlooking the lobby is tastefully done up with artificial plants. The word Tess implies harvester and connotes the heralding of autumn season. The food court serves yummy sips and bites including Thai and European delights crafted by culinary hands making use of fresh and sustainable local ingredients. I was offered Virgin Mojito, prepared from lemon juice, cotton soda, mint leaves and Sprite. The food outlet lays a strong emphasis on Indian estate coffee and the beverage menu exhibits zero-alcohol mixology accompanied by a host of wines and beers. The zero-alcohol mixology comprises the Healer prepared from orange, fresh turmeric roots and ginger, Frozen Coconut Lemonade done up with beet foam and Soother made of fresh guava, mint, lime and a dash of chilly. The set-up offers Cold Pressed Juicery making use of fresh fruits and vegetables without using sugar and applying the technology of cold hydraulic press.
The fine- dining outlet hosts rare promotional events every month. The Thai Street Food Festival took place from April 18 to 28, this year. According to Adnan Alam, Assistant Restaurant Manager, “The dishes like Avocado Toast and Chilly Chicken Flat Bread move fast at our outlet. Weekend lunch and dinners are quite popular. Diners visit our outlet for weekday lunch.” Tess is opened from 11 AM to 11 PM every day. The dining charges are Rs 1,999 exclusive of taxes.
There is a rooftop Infinity swimming pool where one can laze in the evening hours. Gourmet lovers and the hip crowd need to visit Cal-On famed for offering classic cocktails and the city’s hottest new beers. There are live Pizza and Sushi counters and the a la carte menu includes Lebanese, Japanese and Tandoor delights. The interiors are highly adorned with artificial indoor plants adding a touch of greenery to the outlet. For those who do not prefer to have alcoholic drinks, the outlet is an ideal choice to munch on snack items like Wok Toss Silken Tofu with a glass of non-alcoholic cocktails from Botan brand prepared from peach and litchi. With background music and live DJs, there’s never a dull moment at this spot.
Dinner buffet at Yayavar has a number of sections like soups and starters, salad, Western, North Indian and Bengali, live Pasta counter, Thai and Asian and the desserts. I could get a taste of Dragon Roll in the starter counter that was something unique. There were unusual Bihari flavours including Bhuari Subzi and Chana Masala. One is spoilt for choice at the dessert counter. The buffet dinner is tagged at Rs 1,599 plus taxes.
Buffet breakfast at Yayavar has a wide array of menu options. There are four live counters- Dosa, eggs, waffle and homemade food. One can try any variety of Idli or Dosa in the Simply South section. There are options to dine on a hearty breakfast of Parathas or tangy Chhole Bhatura. One can round off the breakfast by gorging on a wide array of chocolate cakes, muffins and Continental desserts.
According to Glen Dsouza, General Manager, Hyatt Centric Ballygunge, “We came up last year. Hyatt centric as a brand is snuggled in the heart of tourist attractions like Kalighat shrine and Birla temple. It is the location of our property that serves as a great advantage. The entire lobby and corridor is replete with paintings and murals depicting the glorious art form of the city. We have visitors arriving from all over the country. There are food fests held at Yayavar, a three-meal food outlet every month. We started with Goa in January, this year. Tess is a casual dining outlet while Cal-On is quite vibrant and denotes the tremendous energy of the city. Cal-On has both indoor and outdoor seating arrangements. There’s something to look forward to at Cal-On every day. We have eight types of cocktails with different stories to it. It is the food and beverage, ambience and the warmth of people that set us apart from other five-star players in the city.” Glen Dsouza is armed with two-decade of expertise in hospitality industry and this is his premier opportunity in Hyatt group of hotels.
“We have smaller studios and a banquet hall that can accommodate 200 guests and caters to the well-heeled lot with niche weddings. Our hospitality group matches with the contemporary generation that is tech-savvy. The hospitality set-up has more number of domestic travellers than global tourists and mostly runs on full occupancy,” said Glen Dsouza.
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