Live Grill Experience @ Absolute Barbecue’s

When AB’s first opened its doors in Bangalore with its concept of a wish grill with different exotic meats I could only think of Khublai Khans Mongolian Barbecue restaurant I visited in Glasgow. They have the same concept of serving exotic meat such as Crocodile, Wild boar, Zebra, Kangaroo and such. I was quite surprised that a place like AB’s was allowed to flourish and that it did with huge crowds flocking in day in and out especially the young crowd from the surrounding offices.

My first visit a few years ago left me quite disappointed as the restaurant was over crowded and the emphasis seemed more of quantity rather than quality. Hence I was quite hesitant to visit it for the next few months but recently decided to give them another chance this time with my family.

It was a weekday lunch and they do not seem to have the option of booking a table via the telephone as they mentioned they were full for lunch. However we decided to take a chance and drop into the restaurant and surprisingly got a table within 5 mins.

As it seems to be the trend in such buffet restaurants, the restaurant is one large area occupied by numerous tables luckily enough with enough spacing to give each table some privacy. The decor is minimalistic keeping the focus entirely on the food.

To begin with there is the option of the veg or the non veg package and quite obviously we all chose the Non veg package. Every table is provided with an attendant who is always present and guides us through our meal.

CHAAT COUNTER:  

They have special counters where one can go and choose the item such as their Chaat counter which serves pani puri, pre-prepared papdi chaat and other chaat items.

LIVE GRILL COUNTER:

One such unique live grill counter was their non veg meat and sea food counter where we can choose from different meats such as chicken, rabbit, emu and even seafood such as prawns, squid, shark etc. Once you decide the meat or seafood or both then we need to choose a sauce from the choices provided and a token will be provided to you which your attendant will then use to bring the grill dish to your table.

Our choices were mixed seafood, rabbit and emu. I particularly enjoyed the seafood combination.

STARTERS AND BARBECUE:  

Every table has a grill set up in the centre of the table and different meats as well as vegetables in skewers are placed on the grill. Along with the grills, other starters such as cajun potatoes, paneer, grilled pineapple, tandoori chicken, mutton kebab, fish etc are also served. The grilled pineapple and the grilled prawns were probably my best starters. I felt some of the skewered items did not have much marination hence the taste was a bit bland.

SALAD COUNTER:

MAIN COURSE:  

It is almost impossible to thoroughly enjoy the main course in restaurants like these as there are so many items to taste and enjoy within the starters however I did ensure to taste most of the gravies and even have a few spoonfuls of the biryani .

DESSERTS:

Another highlight of such meals are their desserts and there were a lot to choose from their gulab jamuns, cakes, watermelon sticks and of course the paan ice cream. I did fill up my plate with many of the desserts but I loved the paan ice cream!

A very lively and bustling restaurant with lot of crowd packed to capacity. Inspite of this, the service is excellent and friendly. A good experience with the unique meat and seafood grills and their regular grills but definitely a place to visit for only non vegetarians as their veg options seem limited and uninteresting.

If you have a large party to throw and are in the vicinity then do head over to AB’s to gorge and hang out with friends.

Ambiance – 3.5/5 

Service/Hospitality – 4/5

Food Taste – 3.5/5

Beverages – 3.5/5 

Quantity/Quality – 3.5/5

Value for Money – 4/5