Fantome Bar Exchange

Conveniently located at South Point Mall, just behind my home base in DLF's Phase 5, I noticed Fantome Bar Exchange a few weeks back while detouring past the mall due to the never-ending metro line construction. Just opened 1 1/2 month back, I finally dropped in a few weeks ago for some drinks with a girlfriend before heading out to an event. Once settled however, we didn't leave. The ambience was inviting and the music selection was good, but not so loud as to be off-putting where we couldn't sit and conversate. (Note to bars in Gurgaon: Knock it off; you don't all have to try to be a dance club. If you are a pub or a family restaurant your music should never be so loud that I have to shout to the person sitting across from me.)

Wanting to catch up with another friend in the vicinity, I suggested we meet at Fantome to see if it would be as charming as the first visit. I also wanted to try some of their handcrafted beers this time around. Verdict = nice ambience, good service, and pretty good pub grub.

Izu Authentic Japanese Restaurant

After a morning of pampering at a coffee spa day morning at Levo spalon, the girls and I headed next door to run a few errands at South Point. While there we decided to grab a bite from somewhere different and headed over to a little Japanese place we'd seen hiding in plain sight on the 2^nd floor. It’s definitely an unassuming hole in the wall, but, like its name claims, it’s authentic from the seating to the food. There’s not much in the way of ambiance, it actually reminded me of quite a few hidden Ethiopian gems from Nairobi with its mounted flat screen showing terrible soap operas.

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