The Americans are here! TGI Friday is here! Thank Goodness Its Friday, the world famous restaurant chain that serves typical American style of food and drinks, is a favourite with IT whiz kids and the family crowd.

"Bangalore being the IT hub with a young and vibrant potential crowd, it was the perfect place to open India's third TGI Friday outlet," says Jeremy D'Souza, GM, TGIF Bangalore.

TGI Friday, an American concept, was started for the first time in 1963 in America by Allen Stilman. TGI Friday has 650 restaurants the world over. Only three such chain of restaurants have been opened in India, of which the first one was opened at New Delhi and the Bangalore outlet is the third in the country. This concept has been brought to India by a Delhi-based company called Bistro Hospitality.

"Friday is the week end and the day that everybody is comfortable and ready to chill out in some place. There is no other place like this one in the entire city," says a beaming D'Souza.

TGIF has an import license and offers an amazing variety of cocktails and mocktails like Friday's Freeze, Pina Colada, Rob Roy, Diaquiris, Flings, San Francisco, Gold Medalist and many more! The portions served here are generous by any standard, with an average meal for two people costing Rs 500. The cuisine is international with an Indian touch to the menu. This is a place for casual dining for those who want to relax on a weekend with friends or family.

A large majority of diners comprise the family crowd and the rest are youngsters. TGIF also offers a different menu for children which has food of their choice served in lesser portions. Chicken fingers, Kid Burger, Fish Nuggets, Cup of Dirt, Kid Chicken Pizza are a few to name. A 'daylight menu', which would be a complete meal in itself, is on the anvil. The restaurant can accommodate 235 people both inside and outside.

"All the staff here are fresh out of college and have been specially trained by TGIF's staff from America to ensure that food at TGIF outlets all over the world tastes the same," explains D'Souza.

The décor of the place is strikingly colourful, with even the maitre de hotel dressed up in clothing that reminds one of cowboys! But these cowboys have their own personalities and attitudes. The place has other interesting memorabilia displayed on the walls and sometimes just hanging from the ceiling. They include cowboy hats, a huge canoe, a champagne bottle, a pair of shoes, a guitar, a bicycle among others. The service is very warm and friendly, with the bartenders juggling and tossing around glasses and bottles in typical American style, not just serving but also entertaining the customers.

"Fridays being the IT weekend, a lot of people drop in here by late evening to relax and enjoy themselves. A new scheme called the 'happy hour' is on right now, where we have offered a 50% discount on all the beverages to anyone dropping in between 4-8.30 pm," says D'Souza.



For more details, contact:

Jeremy D'souza, G M,
# 1, Carlton Tower, Airport Road, Domlur,
Bangalore-560 071.
Phone: 2521 0570/1
Fax: 2521 0569
URL: www.tgifindia.com
E-mail: Purchase1528@fridaysindia.com

Photographs and Text by Aditi Kumar   |