New Delhi: Superb Coffee, Fair Pasta, Excellent Value … Just Off Main Bazaar

Cafe Festa

1832 Laxmi Narain Street (Just Off Main Bazaar)

Chuna Mandi, Paharganj, New Delhi 110055, India

Phone: +91-112-358-8000

Prices: $$$$

I found Café Festa and decided to give them a try after reading numerous “rave” reviews, mostly by Americans. The restaurant is just a few blocks from the Ramakrishna Ashram Marg Metro station (opposite end from the train station) on a street just parallel to Main Bazaar. It was easy to find using Google Maps and because of the good signage in front. It has a clean, open, modern feel with a couple tables out front, a small dining area as you walk in, and a larger area downstairs. The waiters, and I use that archaic term only because there are no female servers in India as far as I can tell, speak passable English and are attentive and efficient. I was seated quickly.

The menu is thick with numerous beverage options, including coffees, teas, shakes and other local concoctions as well as vegetarian breakfasts, appetizers, pastas, pizzas, sandwiches, and Chinese dishes in addition to several savory options from India.

I was in the mood for something Italian, so I went with the spaghetti and vegetables (broccoli and olives) in a creamy garlic sauce. I thought that American restaurants unnecessarily drown their pasta in sauce, but this dish was closer to a soup than an authentic pasta dish. It was a decent size and accompanied by two pieces of what I thought to be Italian bread (by the shape), but had the consistency of Wonder Bread. The flavor was good, with a tad too much garlic, even for my taste, but could have used a lot less sauce, more broccoli, and a little more parmesan cheese. No bad.

Along with the pasta I had a Diet Coke, nearly impossible to find in Delhi along with other diet soft drinks, and a liter of water and the bill came to just under 300 rupees (about $4.80). Cheap by American standards for a decent meal in a sit-down restaurant.

Having become disenchanted with my hotel’s rooftop restaurant, I decided to try their coffee the next morning. I went for the “grande” Café Latte (95 Rupees - $1.55), an excellent value compared to Starbucks and their “regular” (80 Rupees - $1.30). The regular comes in a normal size cup and saucer, but the grande is probably twice the size with two shots of espresso. The presentation was nice with just the right foam to milk ratio and a nice leaf pattern made on top of the foam. The coffee was just hot enough not to scald the tongue and delicious. I can honestly say that I have not had a better latte in a long time, in the U.S. or in Italy for that matter.

If you are looking for a reasonably priced meal or drink in an area not abundant with clean, modern facilities, Café Festa is the place for you.

CombatCritic Gives Café Festa 7 Bombs Out of 10 … MORE BOMBS ARE BETTER!

Seven Bombs Equates To:

Read Reviews By CombatCritic:

Yelp - Elite '14/'15/'16

Tabelog - Official Judge (Silver)

Zomato - #1 Ranked "Verified" Foodie





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Title: New Delhi, India: Superb Coffee, Fair Pasta, Excellent Value … Just Off Main Bazaar

Key Words: Cafe Festa, cafe. festa, CombatCritic, Delhi Coffee, Main Bazaar, menu, new, New Delhi, pasta, product, restaurant, review, service, Tabelog, travel, TravelValue, value, Yelp, Zomato

Translation for Civilians: S&G = "Shits & Grins"

United Airlines: We Don't Care (Sometimes), We Don't Have To (But, Maybe We Want To) ... I'm Confused!

United Airlines, Inc.

77 W Wacker Dr

Chicago, IL 60601

b/t Lower Wacker Dr & Michigan Ave in The Loop

united.com

I do not usually write reviews so many weeks or months after the fact, but being in India for four months where Yelp did not yet exist, I felt compelled to add my two cents.

My first two of three United flights to Delhi were both two hours late and I had to rush through Frankfurt Airport to catch my final flight after already spending close to 20 hours traveling (with 7+ yet to go). I somehow made it!

However, when I recently checked my mileage balance on United.com, my final leg still had not been added to my balance, requiring me to submit a request that still has not been answered.

Airlines in general, and United in particular, just do not care about customer service because they do not have to. They know that most of us will probably purchase the cheapest fare, so it will only be a matter of time before we return even if their service is pitiful, which it usually is ... rude check-in and gate agents, aggressive flight attendants, and poor on-time departure/arrival record ... they should change their motto to: "United Airlines,We Don't Care, We Don't Have To"

As my India trip neared its end, I have to say that United came through with flying colors. 

When one of my wife's return flights in mid-January was rescheduled, leaving her a 30 minute layover to clear immigration/customs, re-check her bag, and get to the next gate (IMPOSSIBLE), we contacted United and were quickly dismissed ... "sorry"! But when we got our travel insurance company involved, they were able to change her flights and get her home in time to attend a meeting at work the following morning.

The saga continued ...

I received a call in early February, three weeks prior to my scheduled departure, informing me that my 84-year old mother had been hospitalized and was not doing well.  I contacted my travel insurance company (Allianz Global Assistance/AGA Service Company /Jefferson Insurance Company) thinking that they would be as professional as my wife's, but after 12+ hours of being ignored (on their 24/7 Hotline), I contacted United reservations in New Delhi.  They were not extremely helpful, but when I was finally transferred to an American employee, she was outstanding.  She quickly found me a flight two days later (i had to get from Southern India to Delhi the next day) and WAIVED THE $300 CHANGE FEE ... without even asking.  I was able to get home to see my mother and spend a couple days of quality time before she passed away on 2/12/2015. At that point I was much happier with United.

and continued ...

Then, just three weeks after my mother passed, my wife received word that her father had suddenly died in Naples, Italy where he and her mom live. I logged-in to my United account to search for "bereavement fares", but even though a link appeared in the search results, there was no such information on their website. It turned out that United discontinued their bereavement fares at some point in the recent past. When I called United Customer Care, a deceiving term, I was connected with their offshore "care" center in Manilla, Phillippines where I was quoted $4000 for a single ticket ... $1600 more than the cheapest fare available on Kayak.com and $2350 more than we eventually paid Delta airlines. Thanks for your compassion United!

I had been prepared to give United 6, 7, even 8, Bombs (3 to 4 stars) because of the recent positive experiences detailed above, but finding out post de facto that 15,000 of the 20,000 miles from the US to India and back I paid dearly for were not eligible for frequent flyer credits (K Class) and the $4000 quote for a last-minute bereavement fare changed my mind. So, I will now have to downgrade my previous ratings ...

CombatCritic Gives United Airlines 3 Out Of 10 Bombs With Room To Grow Or Recede Further ... More Bombs Are Better!

Read More Reviews By CombatCritic, Including United Airlines, On Yelp And TripAdvisor Along With Many Other Reviews And More!

Title: United Airlines: We Don't Care (Sometimes), We Don't Have To (But, Maybe We Want To) ... I'm Confused!

Key Words: United Airlines, United, Airlines, air, plane, airplane, travel, airport, flight, reservation, agent, customer, service, CombatCritic, TravelValue, Yelp, value

Read This Review And Many More On Yelp ... Where I Am An Elite '14/'15 Member