When Food Bloggers Association of India (FBAI) and JW Marriott, Sahar, invited me to an exclusive preview table of eight food bloggers to experience and write about the First Sunday Brunch at JW Marriott, Sahar, I was thrilled. It was similar to the thrill of watching a first day, first show, when a Bollywood movie is released. Being one of the firsts to taste the elaborate brunch spread at the spanking new JW Café was a giant experience, I must say.

The spread is HUGE indeed! There is so much to try in the uber-spacious JW Café that like an inquisitive child, we hopped from one food station to the other, but each one of us took a crazy moment or two to decide which ones to try and which ones to leave. We were totally spoilt for choice!

There is ample sitting space for everyone in this stylish and cozy JW Café. JW Café immerses its guests in a friendly ambience that elegantly combines large tables and a lot of natural light. There are several live counters here, each serving delicious food made by specialised chefs. For example, if you head on to the Thai section or the Sri Lankan section, there will be chefs from those countries, who will welcome you with the food they are most comfortable with: their own cuisine from their motherland!

While they officially launch on 09 April 2015, two of JW Marriott’s restaurants are open already! The multi-cuisine JW Café and the Italian Romano. From 1^st April 2015, the prices are going to be revised to around Rs. 2,300 ++. The cost of alcohol would be Rs. 1,500 extra. If we compare the price with the quality and the variety of food that they offer, this brunch experience is a steal! Have a look at what we ate at a lazy Sunday Brunch at JW Café. I bet, these pictures can make anyone weak at their knees! Imagine what it would be like when you get to taste these wonders!!

Upon entering the café, you will easily locate the droolworthy and clickworthy, huge mountains of seafood. This section is called “The Study of Seafood”. Big-sized Alaskan crabs, lobsters, and jumbo prawns are here. What’s more, they have cured Atlantic salmon and New Zealand mussels too! I was the happiest person on Earth eating such good-quality seafood. This section was outstanding!

The grill counter looked very interesting. Those who prefer to eat well-cooked seafood with spices, must try the grilled seafood dishes.

The starters include ample Indian delicacies, cooked really well. These include Ajwaini Paneer Tikka, Malai Broccoli, Dalcha Kabab, Lasooni Murgh Tikka, Gosht Shammi Kebab and Sarson wali Machli.

The Antipasti section was a huge crowd-puller, with Slow-roasted artichokes being the highlight. This section included other healthy options, like the plum tomatoes, baby carrot and asparagus. You will also find Parma melon, Tomato Bocconcini or Marinated Feta here. And oh! Don’t forget to try their cheese board with a good selection of cheeses all over the world, accompanied with delicious, international-quality condiments.

Want to try the Mezze counter? This was great too, with that perfectly textured hummus, cleverly balanced Babaganoush and Labneh. Feta and Pita bread complete the picture.

There are many Indian dishes to try out. If you like South-Indian food, you will be happy to go to the the Dosa cart. The lavish display of Indian Mains: Palak Kofta Curry, Baingan Mirch ka Salan, Dal Makhni, Subz Dum Biryani, Dalcha Gosht, Murgh Makhni, Andhra Fish Curry and Gosht Dum Biryani. I skipped all these dishes, though. I was rather interested to try the sumptuous-looking sushis at the busy Sushi bar. There were six kinds of basic sushi on offer. The quality of seafood was good, so these sushis rocked! They have the Hamachi Nigiri, Tuna Nigiri, Octopus Nigiri, Takwan Roll, Tempura Roll and Cucumber cream cheese roll. As this section had a good number of orders all the time, service was a little slow. But, at the end of the day, I loved the sushis, though sushis could have been much more innovative. The good news is that as informed by the Executive Chef Vivek Bhatt, Japanese counter will very soon have a Japanese Chef too, which means, the sushis will get a facelift in times to come!

The Thai Noodle soup station served interesting noodle soups with ingredients like white fungus, mushrooms, etc. I liked the Cinnamon soup with glass noodles there, but the flavours could have been better. The Satay bar had some wonderful chicken satays and Shrimp skewers, among others.

The Western Roast section looked stunning with Australian leg of lamb with Mint jus and Traditional roast of chicken with Pan jus. I had to skip three sections totally, which include this section, the Sri Lankan section as well as the Pizza and Pasta counter, to keep some room for desserts.

The Waffle counter and an array of Indian and international desserts left us speechless. We surrendered to the pleasure, called dessert. The glamour and gossip was worth it. I especially loved the Profiteroles, Madeleines, cheesecakes and their signature Chikki Kulfi.

I couldn’t recommend the café more – if they remain consistent on this quality and variety, no doubt we will be back and back and back!!