Authentic Greek and Turkish Cuisine Find a Home at Plaka in Gurugram

Dining

TL Reviews: Authentic Greek and Turkish Cuisine Find a Home at Plaka in Gurugram

With a Greek-inspired décor and menu, Plaka Cocktail Bar & Bistro serves its customers till the wee hours of the morning. By Simrran Gill

Braving an unusually hot Delhi evening, I made my way past the line-up of food joints in Gurugram’s Cyber Hub. For those who haven’t been here, the struggle to give in to temptations every few metres is real. But I have a clear destination in mind—the newly opened Plaka Cocktail Bar & Bistro.

Ambience

Done tastefully in blue and white, the restaurant almost immediately transports me to Greece. While the first sit-out area resembles a Greek garden, it is the main seating area with vibrant corners that steals the show. Taking one back in time to the eponymous city in Greece, Plaka is a café-styled restaurant by the day, transforms by the hour, and serves guests till the wee hours of the morning—until 2 am.

As I walk further, I notice the plush seating arrangement to my left and a large bar setup to my right.

Food and Drinks

Moving on to its culinary offerings, the restaurant aims to offer an authentic taste of Greek and Turkish cuisines. However, that’s not all—a varied selection of Indian, European, and continental is also available.

We started with a rose malai tikka and mushroom bao both of which set the right tone for the afternoon. However, the star in the small plates section were the kataifi kebabs—with a creamy sauce at the bottom, a blend of green vegetables and galouti spices in the middle, and crunchy vermicelli layering on the outside. The asparagus and cream cheese dumplings also come highly recommended.

The watermelon and kaffir lime mocktail and lemon soda.

For the mains, we opted for a Turkish Margherita pizza which was a pleasant visual surprise. Doing away with the monotonous circle or square, the pizza came shaped like a boat, with a touch of familiar sourness from the cherry tomatoes, cheesy delight from the bocconcini shavings, and freshness from the basil leaves. We washed down the meal with a watermelon and kaffir lime mocktail; however, the restaurant now also serves fresh, regionally inspired artisanal cocktails which come free of synthetic ingredients.

Kunafa is a traditional Middle Eastern dessert.

To end the meal on a sweet note, we went by the chef’s recommendation—kunafa, a traditional Middle eastern dessert layered with cheese and generous amounts of sugar syrup and garnished with pistachios. Ones with an insatiable sugar craving will find themselves in heaven as soon as they take the first bite.