Nikki Bedi certainly can’t break away from tradition, and one can’t blame him given that his family has run Sher-e-Punjab since 1937. It comes as no surprise that his latest venture after Great Punjab and Indus, sticks to the strong roots of a hearty Punjabi meal.

“Our restaurants are founded on good food which is good value for money and this is no exception. Our prices at Clove are exactly the same as Great Punjab,” says Bedi. This certainly seemed surprising given that Clove looks more upscale than his other properties.

The trendy yet tiny bar reminded us of a cross between Olive and the erstwhile Rain, with its soothing white walls and soft candles. The small outdoor section has a single table and ample room for smokers while they wait for their tables upstairs. The bar seems tinier than it is due to its two massive white pillars, yet the overall look is chic. Although the couch that lines the wall doesn’t really allow for comfortable consumption of bar snacks, the overall feel isn’t that one would associate with an Indian restaurant. “The bar is contemporary yet has subtle touches that are very Indian,” says 33-year-old Bedi, pointing out to the lotus design on the flooring outside and the marigold decorations.

We had extremely high expectations of the food after we met one of the guests, a Bandra resident, Bharat Bulchandani. “I’ve grown up eating the food at Great Punjab, as well as getting food delivered at home at odd hours,” Bulchandani says. He certainly loved the food, but we thought it was simply on par with other Indian restaurants and not particularly outstanding. The Clove Chicken Kebab, which was a reshmi chicken stuffed with cheese was pretty special, as was the aachari aalu. The plain chicken kebab was just plain and the sheek kebab, frankly, too coarse.

Overall, though, we are pretty certain that Bedi has got his entire concept right since there aren’t really any comparable bars which serve good Indian food. “Since we play lounge music, I expect to get young people for a drink and bite; yet our core customers will be families who may get a drink at the bar before their meal,” says Singh.

Bulchandani, though, loved the idea of a trendy bar with an

Indian restaurant, saying “whatever said, deep down we all love Indian food”.

Jai Ho?