Bungalow 9 is a beautiful Continental fusion restaurant and lounge in a rustic bungalow on St. John Baptist Road in Bandra, Mumbai. It is close to Salt Water Cafe which is one of my favorite restaurants in Mumbai. (I have not written about Salt Water yet because I haven’t brought my camera to the restaurant, but it’s a fantastic restaurant!) Since Bungalow 9 is a bit tucked away from the main road, I have never seen it till I went with my friends for lunch one day. It was a pleasant surprise to walk into the courtyard to see their beautiful set-up.
I had a marvelous lunch with my friends thanks to one of my friends who organized lunch together. She found this lovely deal at Bungalow 9 on Groupon for a limited time (deal ends on December 30, 2015). I had not been aware of Groupon until my friend introduced it to me at this occasion. The Groupon’s special deal for Bungalow 9 offers 4 course meal lunch with a choice of drink for 696 Rs. (About USD12) including tax. This price for value almost never happens if you eat out in Mumbai. If you are interested in the Groupon deal with Bungalow 9, please read the details and rules on the link.
The only tricky part with Groupon for expats like myself is a method of payment. The Groupon website only accepts local credit cards and I don’t have one. My foreign credit card gets rejected at the time of transaction for some reason, thus I have not been able to buy deals like this in India. Fortunately my friend could buy one lunch voucher and I paid her back by cash.
There are many reviews on Bungalow 9 if you type in the name on google search, so instead of writing, I would like to take you on a photo tour which I am better at than with my words. I hope you will enjoy them.
The first time I heard about Bungalow 9 a couple of years ago which was soon after we arrived. However, I have never made an effort to check out the restaurant until the other day. I heard that it was a very nice restaurant, but my friend did not have a very positive experience when she went there with her husband. I’m afraid it got stuck with me. I realize how opinions of our expat friends about shops and restaurants weigh heavily when we are overseas because we are dependent on word of mouth information. At the same time I need to remind myself that experiences are perceived and processed by individual perceptions. One might have a bad luck and experience something unpleasant, but it could be something that was unique to that day or timing.
My overall experience with Bungalow 9 was a very good example of that. We all enjoyed the lovely lunch set so much and said we needed to go back. I recommend Bungalow 9 to anyone especially for lunch for sure. Before the Groupon package expires, I hope many of you will get to try this lovely lunch. In my personal opinion Bungalow 9 should keep this lunch set menu with the same price permanently, but I’m sure it’s the perks of buying lunch with Groupon.
Bangalow 9
9, St. John Baptist Road
Bandra West, Mumbai
Maharashtra 400050
TEL: 022 6117 9999
Directions
If you are driving from Lilavati Hospital on Chapel Road, you pass Starbucks and Salt Water Cafe on your left. Keep going straight after the main road veers to the right. The road name changes from Chapel Road to St. John Baptiste Road. After about 50 meters, Bangalow 9 will be on your left.
That covered courtyard looks so inviting! I do understand what you mean about going off friends’ recommendations. If I hear a negative review of a place it will most likely take two positive ones for me to want to go and try it myself. Crazy, huh. I’m glad you had a wonderful lunch with friends and an opportunity to try this new-to-you place.
Thanks for your comment! Isn’t it? Word of mouth is so powerful and it takes a lot to change people’s presumptions. I am glad I went! It’s always good to try something new!!