FOR THE TABLE LAHORE – REVIEW BY SHAKEEL HAMEED

RATING: 7.8 stars out of 10

COST: 7000-10,000 for 3 people

REVIEW

For the Table, a nouveau restaurant in Lahore DHA Y block offering continental cuisine.  The Chef/Owner Rabia Shakeel is offering creations for patrons who are looking to try new and innovative ideas to fulfill their appetite.  The restaurant is where old Rina’s Café used to be.  

 

DÉCOR

For the Table is stylishly designed with 2 floors of seating. There is 10-12 table seating arrangement which is comfortable and unassuming.  There is some nice art work and has a nice comfortable vibe to the place.

 

TABLE AND STAFF

The staff is very polite and attentive and will accommodate to all your needs promptly.  The owner came to the table and was eager to tell us about the dishes, which is always highly appreciated.  She was knowledgeable about her food and was nice enough to go into the details. It says a lot about a place when chef is eager to please and excited about the food they create. The table setting is nice with fabric napkins along with clean polished glasses and silverware. 

FOOD

 

Sangira

A Spanish drink usually typically made with fresh fruit, orange juice, sugar and Wine.  Their concoction had Sparking water, Apples, Beetroot and pomegranate Juice. It’s a fantastic summer drink which can be enjoyed with or before the meal.  The drink also had apple slices.  There was more apple apparent in the drink then beetroot or pomegranate.  It wasn’t too sweet and is a refreshing drink to have with the meal.

 

Strawberry Basil Smash

It has Crushed Strawberries, Basil, Soda.  It’s not too sweet and offers nice chunks of crushed strawberries with slight hints of basil. I like the fact they got the consistency of the drink right.  A nice starting drink to get your tastes going.

 

Sunset at 6

This drink had Mixed berries and peach with soda.  The drink is all syrup and doesn’t have fresh fruit in it.  It’s too sweet, the combination of syrup and soda makes it even sweeter. It has strong peach flavor and somewhat flat.

 

Lemon Herbed Whipped Ricotta

This dish is beautifully presented with colorful display of fried beetroots and tortilla chips.  The red, orange and yellowish colors of the chips looked really pretty.  It came with Whipped ricotta and what tasted like olive oil in the center. The whipped ricotta had the right consistency of flavors.  It was somewhat fluffy and very creamy, when eaten with beetroot chips, it exploded with a sweet, creamy, salty goodness.  It was a fantastic dish to be shared, highly recommended. 

 

Blackened Chicken Tacos

Offered with soft tacos, it has Smokey chicken, Chimichurri sauce and Sweet corn Salsa.  The tacos had a bit strong smokey chicken flavor so it remains apparent throughout your meal.  Chimichurri sauce typically made with jalapeño, garlic, parsley with olive oil was apparent and mixed with corn salsa provided an enjoyable combination.  

 

Mushroom Toast

Sautéed Mushrooms on Brioche bread with cheddar cheese and side of garlic herb dressing.  The mushrooms and brioche combination along with cheddar cheese was fantastic. The earthy flavor of mushrooms mixed really well with brioche sweetness and cheddar cheese.  The garlic herbed spread had a taste of yogurt & herb lays chips flavor so when eaten with the spread it took over the taste.  I preferred the dish without the garlic dip as the flavors of brioche and mushroom by itself made a delicious dish, well done.

 

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich

It was not traditionally a Philly cheese steak but it is how they make it.  It had nice moist slices of undercut meat.  The meat was tender and juicy, it had no after taste or smell.  It came with cheddar cheese and same garlic herbed mayo.  The bread was made on premises which is always a good sign.   It was crispy from outside and mist and fresh from inside.  It has the same garlic herb dip which has a bit of a stronger flavor so when eaten with the dip, the taste of the dip became very apparent.  It was a decent sandwich which needs improvement because it needs to be eaten hot and dripping with cheese and it came kinda cold which made it an average sandwich.  If they can bring it hot and fresh, it is a good sandwich to eat.

 

Tiramisu

A staple dessert of most eateries. In this case, the layering was perfectly fine and had a sweet spongy taste and the right amount of sugar.  The only issue with this dish was that it wasn’t cold enough so the cream was lose and didn’t hold the dessert well.  If served with the right temperature, it is a good dessert to be enjoyed.

 

Ice Cream Profiteroles with Melted Chocolate

It is one of my favorite dessert.  In this case the ice cream was fantastic but the puff pastry had hardened.  In profiteroles, the combination of puff shell has to be slightly hard and soft to enjoy the creamy combination of ice cream and chocolate.  If they can only offer fresher puff shells, it will be a fantastic dessert.

VERDICT

It is a very calm and comfortable bistro sort of place with a large variety of dishes for every palate.  What is nice about For the Table is that it has its own personal creations and often not available at many eateries.  Overall, it is a nice dining experience and the food is enjoyable.  I would recommend it.  It is a casual dining spot with easy comfort food.

KNOW WHAT YOU EAT, THAT’S HOW YOU EAT WELL