Fat is fabulous

Everyone says that 'fat' is a bad word. Here are four food joints with the word 'fat' in their outlet names and boy—do they make fat look good! We took our tasters to four of these fantastic 'fat' food joints, out of which two are based in Bandra, one that is based in Andheri (W) and one that operates out of a home in Bandra. Westcoast readers, sit back and enjoy!

Located on the back roads of Lilavati Hospital and situated close to the old Candies at Bandra Reclamation, Fat Man's Café invites you into an ambience of pastel-coloured wooden seating coupled with an irresistible aroma of food. When we saw the menu, we immediately wanted to order everything on the menu, especially from the breakfast menu (and we were there for dinner). The staff was gracious enough to serve us the Eggs Benedict with ham at 7:30 p.m. The staff recommended that we try the Jalapeno and Cheese Poppers and the Bacon-wrapped Prawns.
Aanchal Shetty, our taster for the day, loved the ambience and most importantly, loved the writing on the wall that urged her to get fat. "I particularly liked the Bacon-wrapped Prawns and recommend the Jalapeno and Cheese Poppers. However, I am not entirely in love with the Rosemary Lamb Sliders. They could have been done much better." Barkha, who joined us later, ordered the Watermelon and Feta Cheese salad. "The menu was limited, yet interesting enough to make our food choices. The food and presentation was simple but satisfying. It's nice to see restaurants such as Fat Man's Café trying to offer quality items without the fancy set-up. It's a place where you can chill with friends while indulging in gourmet delights at affordable rates. The only drawback is the cramped space but I guess that's Bandra for you!"
Fat Mans Café serves food in generous proportions, making you feel fuller and your wallet a few grams lighter. "I felt that the place wasn't exactly value for money," says Aanchal.
Ambience: 4/5
Food: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Value for Money: 3/5

We were intrigued by why this popular restaurant on Bandra's Waterfield Road was called Five Fat Monks. The waiters had no idea and neither did the manager. The owner Abhir Khanna, however, replied to our question to him on Instagram saying, "Our USP—'Make it Your Way' has five steps, 'Fat' stands for a fully satisfied belly and 'Monks' to bring about the Asian connection and the secret recipes."
We ordered Chicken Momos, The Holy Trinity noodles (which had lamb, chicken and prawns), Crackling Spring Rolls, The Zen Hen and the Chicken Sui Mai. Our youngest taster, Aiden, all of two, loved the food dished out at Five Fat Monks. The food has no MSG (ajinomoto) and therefore, is perfectly safe for toddlers as well. Stella, our taster at Five Fat Monks, love the taste and presentation of the momos and the sui mai. "I loved the Zen Hen and would recommend it the most," she remarks.
The ambience was pleasing and the restaurant staff was cordial. The service was prompt and extended with a smile. The food is easy on the pocket as well as the tummy, unlike most Indo-Chinese food.
Ambience: 3.5 / 5
Food: 4/5
Service: 4.5/5
Value for Money: 4/5

Fat is Flavour at Pali Hill, Bandra, is the brainchild of Le Cordon de Bleu Chef Pratik Kuckreja, who calls himself a fashionable foodie. We met Chef Kuckreja of Fat is Flavour at the Bandra Food Festival held at Bandra Gymkhana a couple of weeks ago, where his chocolate soil floored us completely.
"Fat is Flavour was born out of the concept of providing a refreshing palate with quality desserts," Chef Kuckreja explains, "Fat stands for the food group as opposed to the deadly adjective that it is." Fat is Flavour conducts a 'cake interview' to understand the person's likes, dislikes, favourite cuisine, fondness for any particular spice or fruit, so that they can come up with a new flavour custom-made for every customer.
Fat is Flavour functions out of Chef Kuckreja's home in Turner Road, Bandra, and works on a home delivery model. Easy on the pocket, Fat is Flavour's Edible Soil is an ideal wedding giveaway or a great way to surprise someone…with soil.
Ambience: NA
Food: 4/5
Service: 4/5
Value for Money: 3.5/5

This delivery and takeaway located near Bhavan's College in Andheri (W) is the brainchild of Divyesh Nadkar. All of 22, Nadkar started this venture this July, along with his brother. The USP of Fatboy's Kitchen is that it caters to clients, who are ravenously hungry at night. Nadkar says, "My friends call me fat because I'm the one who's fat in our group. So, we came up with the name Fatboy's Kitchen for the restaurant." He further explained that burgers, which form a large part of the menu, are called Fatboys in street parlance.
Fatboy's Kitchen has odd working hours as it primarily serves clientele during night-time. The kitchen works from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m. It is also one of the few takeaways that serve beef and pork.
Our tasters asked Nadkar for the best food from their menu. Jason, our taster for Fatboy's Kitchen, was particularly impressed with the beef patty in the Black Jack Burger. We also recommend the Juicy Lucy—two chicken patties enveloped by cheese and the BBQ wings as sides. The burgers come in a generous size with fries. We also ordered their Mac and Cheese Balls, which was highly recommended by Nadkar—unfortunately, the chef forgot to add in salt! Anyway, this is definitely a place to watch out for. We only wish they'd increase their delivery radius.
Ambience: NA
Food: 3.5/5
Service: 3.5/5
Value for Money: 4/5