Gone are the sixteen year olds in too-short dresses, the flaming shots, the pulsing music; in fact, you would barely recognize the space that once was Oba, Colaba’s after-party night club and as one friend described it, “hangover central”. Like we’d reported earlier, the space is now 5 All Day, a serene, sunlit cafe livened up by citrus-spiked interiors and an interesting menu.

Seconds, Please

From the same guys who run 5 – The Restaurant in Santacruz, 5 All Day shares part of its menu with its predecessor, including delish pumpkin and fenugreek soup (one of us Secret Scouters ranks this amongst her favourite Mumbai foods), Penne Mamaroza  and a superlative banana torte. Get all, regardless of the location you are visiting and wash them down with cocktails, including a surprisingly awesome whiskey and tomato juice concoction and watermelon sangria, bobbing with balls of fruit and served in a glass goblet.

There are plenty of new dishes here too, many of which are smoked – a technique chef Mrinmoy describes as this restaurant’s “signature”. We tried and enjoyed smoked Bloody Mary soup, thick and peppery and just a little bit sour, as well as hickory smoked chicken burgers, dowsed in dressing and starring perfectly marinated meat. These come with crisp curly fries and gingery home-made ketchup that we now crave with every meal. Vegetarians, try a corn and bean burger instead of the feta cheese option, comprising of nothing more than a couple of slices of zucchini and a stingy smattering of feta cheese.  This combination works much better in cold zucchini rolls, tart, light and perfect for the second summer that is October.

Fishy Business

From the mains we sampled, we most enjoyed a Bekti dish, glistening with butter and served on a cloud of mashed potatoes. The fish gets flown in from Kolkata daily we were informed, which explained its freshness and made us wonder about the large carbon footprint – Rawas would have worked just as well, pointed out a green friend. Less successful was a passable but ultimately lacklustre order of fish and chips, and overwhelmingly fat cauliflower and leek crepes, gluey and lasagne-like.

Dessert comprised of the above mentioned banana torte and black-and-white parfait, thick, silky chocolate pudding studded with cherries. Nice!

Sip Code

5 All Day employs essentially the same concept as Indigo Deli down the street, albeit less successfully. It is however, substantially cheaper than the Deli, making it a good option for when you and your bank account are in need of some TLC, a warm bowl of good soup and a window full of sunshine.

Getting there: 5 All Day, The Apollo Hotel, Lansdowne Road, behind Regal Cinema, Colaba, call 22873312.