Tag Archives: Sunny’s

A pioneer of fine dining in Bangalore (Bengaluru)

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I FIRST VISITED Bangalore (Bengaluru) in 1994. At that time, as far as I am aware, there were few restaurants that offered high quality Western European food in the city. One of the few, or maybe the only one, was Sunnys, which at that time was located in a tall, slender building in a lane that runs between Lavelle Road and Kasturba Road.

 

Sunny’s was established in about 1993 by Arjun Sajnani and Vivek Ubhayakar. It was named after their golden retriever, Sunny. I remember  that the kitchen (or part of it) was located on the ground floor, and the dining areas were on floors above it. When I first visited the restaurant, Sunny’s also sold imported food specialities like cheeses that were not available anywhere else in Bangalore.

 

The original location of Sunnys

Sunnys moved from the tall,  slender edifice to larger premises next to a petrol station on Vittal Mallya Road, and close to the UB City shopping mall. Later, it moved to its present address in a converted mansion on Lavelle Road.

 

Although slightly pricey, Sunny’s served exquisitely presented, superbly prepare, delicious food. The service and ambience at the various locations of Sunny’s was faultless. The Christmas lunches, which we attended a couple of times, we’re lavish. The establishment imported  Butter Ball turkeys from the USA. I do not know what they did to those creatures, but the results on our plates were superb: the tastiest roast turkey I have ever eaten.

 

The original premises of the restaurant is still standing,  but locked up. Sadly, there are rumours that Arjun Sajnani is closing his restaurant, but his inspired cooking will continue in the form of a ‘cloud kitchen’.

  Apart from being a superb cook and restauranteur, Arjun is an acommplished actor, play director, and film director. Just as every performance on stage must be flawless,  it was clear to me that Arjun and his team felt the same about every dish placed in front of a diner in the restaurant

A long way from Paris

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BANGALORE IS ABOUT 4800 miles from Paris (France). The French capital is noted for its gourmet delights, but on the whole the same cannot be said for Bangalore. One exception to this statement is Sunny’s restaurant currently located on Lavelle Road.

Arjun Sajnani created Sunny’s at least 25 years ago. Then, it was in a tall narrow house on a lane leading off Lavelle Road. The kitchen was on the ground floor and there were dining areas in the two floors above it. Often, Arjuna could be standing, working in the kitchen. Back in those early days, Sunny’s was one of Bangalore’s few suppliers of imported Western European cheeses, such as genuine parmesan.

Later, Sunny’s shifted to larger premises on the corner of Lavelle and Vittal Mallya Roads, next to a petrol filling station. The dining area was elegant.

For a brief period, Arjun ran a restaurant serving delicious Sindhi dishes in his original premises. Sadly, he decided to discontinue this interesting eatery.

Even later, Arjun shifted his restaurant to its present location – a two storey villa constructed about 20 years ago. The balconies on the upper floor are supported by stout carved timber pillars which remind one of pillars that you can see in much older traditional South Indian edifices. Diners can sit at tables within the building, or in the garden surrounding it, or on the first floor balconies. At lunchtime on Christmas Day 2022, every table was occupied.

At each of Sunny’s different locations, the food has been magnificent. As our daughter correctly said, eating at Sunny’s is as good as eating in a good Parisian restaurant. Also, Sunny’s Italian food (mainly pasta and pizzas) is above average in quality.

Arjun is an actor and director of theater and films, in addition to being a restaurateur. Dramatic productions require many skills. The same is the case for running a restaurant. Some of the required skills are the same for restaurants and for stage/screen. A restaurateur has to perform well both in the kitchen and the dining room to satisfy his or her clientele. Arjun achieves this successfully. If you have never been to Sunny’s, give it a try!