Honest review of Bandra's newest retro-themed cafe

Nestled in the heart of a neighbourhood thatrsquos desperately holding on to the last vestiges of its cultural past is Nostalgia the latest retrocool kid in Bandrarsquos vibrant cafeacute scene Located on the Bandstandend of Hill Road cheek by jowl beside another Bandra landmark the Yacht Resto Bar the cafeacute is the creation of the makers of the achingly hip Bandstand Pantry which is famed in equal parts for its Instagrammable deacutecor and unpredictable service as well as the droves of unwitting brunchers it draws in on weekendsAudio cassette tapes on the wallsOur curiosity about whether the cafeacute had anything more than its admittedly iconic location and deacutecor in common with its name we decided to step in for breakfast on a rainy Sunday morning The cafeacute is housed in a beautiful heritage property built in 1914 and has the type of pastel pink vintage dinerinspired aesthetic that is closer in appeal to Zoya Akhtarrsquos The Archies movie sets than Bandrarsquos decidedly AngloPortuguese past However the bright sunflowers and large picture windows adorned with all manner of vintage memorabilia mdash including vintage radios Dukersquos brightly coloured glass soda bottles and old magazines mdash had us intriguedEgg mayo sandwich paneer tikka rollRegulars at Bandrarsquos Candies and Cafeacute Andora will immediately recognise the cafeacutersquos layout which is centred around a large glass display case containing the sweet and savoury fare The menu is inspired by quick bites you might expect to find at the aforementioned eateries and also mimics the formersrsquo very affordable for Bandra prices After some discussion we settled on the egg and mayo sandwich Rs 95 a paneer tikka roll Rs 130 and a chocolate croissant Ra 55 with a chocolate brownie Rs 95 and Dutch pastry Rs 115 for dessert To wash it all down we opted for the only coffee option on the menu mdash filter coffee Rs 40 which was served to us piping hot in a paper cup Service is quite prompt which is to be expected considering the food requires no preparation save plating on disposable paper platesDutch pastry and Chocolate croissant PicsAnindita PaulThe sandwich was quite filling the bread was fresh and soft our breakfast companion however found the scent of vanilla too overwhelming for a delicate dish The lsquomasalarsquo in the roll was undercooked and a tad too salty while the chocolate croissant had such a meagre smear of chocolate in it that we had to clarify if it was what we had ordered For this writer the biggest disappointment was the lack of variety in coffee which is an unusual take for a cafeacute that finds itself in the epicentre of Bandrarsquos coffee revolution and has the quintessential coffeetogo windows that have become a staple at all recent Bandra establishments They do make up with additional nostalgic drinks including Milo Horlicks and Sulaimani tea and so we chalked it up to a personal preference The brownie as our companion remarked reminded us of the kind of bakes that our mothers would batchmake for us in sheet pans while the Dutch pastry was decadent but could have used a bit of soaking syrup in the sponge The cafeacute is quite compact mdash one large statement table that is tastefully decorated with vintage cartoons is the focal point with barstyle seating and smaller tablesfortwo tucked away in the corners The servers are friendly and goodnaturedly sport the rather costumey uniforms and will readily offer you tiny samples of their desserts If we were to sum up the top reasons why you should go to Nostalgia they would undoubtedly be the cutesy quirky theme oldfashioned food and earnest prices Itrsquos the type of place thatrsquos perfect for a leisurely brunch or a quick coffee break during a shopping trip And itrsquos the type of place that brings together the best of oldworld and newworld BandraNostalgiaAt 29 Hill Road Bandra WestTime 7 am to 12 amLog on to nostalgiabombay on Instagram