Ohh God, I love brunches. I love brunches as much as I love chocolate. And Sundays. And all-you-can-eat buffets. This particular brunch had all of these – a Sunday Easter buffet brunch. Good food, on a laid-back Sunday afternoon, with wonderful company and conversation brings me lots of joy. This post has all of those. Read on.

The occasion was Easter Sunday. The location was JW Cafe at the newly launched JW Sahar. This fine dining cafe cum restaurant is situated in the newly launched JW Sahar, on the international airport road, and I was there to try their Sunday brunch. Sprawling, green manicured lawns greet me, leading me up to the palatial hotel which was buzzing with people even before they had officially launched. 

I had read and heard so much about the magnanimity of the brunch spread at JW Cafe from fellow bloggers and the internet, that I had come all prepared. Skipped breakfast, wore Joey’s ‘thanksgiving pants’, and I had my game face on. But no amount of pre-reading or starving could have prepared me for the variety of food I was about to witness. This one’s the big daddy of all Sunday brunches. Counters of food, fitted into any space available at the restaurant, what I found noteworthy was the presence of different cuisines, along with different chefs specializing in those cuisines, manning the counter.

A friend and I were driving around in Juhu recently, looking for a place to stretch our legs, sip a beer, and eat a leisurely meal. Not wanting to repeat any of the places either of us had dined at before, we had run out of all options. Until we passed Hotel Oakwood Premier situated in a leafy Juhu bylane, and a quick run through the good reviews on their Zomato page ushered us inside. 

The Oakroom is the Hotel Oakwood Premier’s restaurant cum bar that is open all night long. Walk through the hotel’s marble patio into the restaurant that is open to all. The entire space was beautifully done up – the inside section screaming elegant vintage with plush armchairs, opulent lights, elaborate sofas, and an illuminated wine rack.

I love it when an under dog wins. And Brent Owens’s journey on MasterChef Australia was just that. A dark horse if you may, running stealthily and silently towards the finish line without anyone noticing. A dark knight if you may, performing his tasks and challenges quietly and perfectly to the best of his abilities. While everyone cheered for Sarah because of her Indian roots, or Laura because we were all amazed at this young girl’s ability to perform magic with Italian cuisine, or ‘panna cotta’ lady Emilia and her no-nonsense demeanour, a man in the foreground began to steal my heart.

I first noticed Brent Owens for the same reason every woman noticed Brent Owens…he was so darn cute! And every time I saw that half ponytail on his head while he cooked my heart skipped a beat. A bobcat driver, who gave up his job after being forced to audition for the sixth season of the world’s most popular cooking show courtesy his girlfriend of many years; his was the turn-around, success story that was guaranteed to grab eyeballs and warm hearts. On his recent visit to Mumbai, to promote the upcoming seventh season of MasterChef Australia premiering in May, I had the wonderful opportunity to meet him thanks to The Grand Hyatt and Food Bloggers Association of India (FBAI). 

Greeting us wearing folded khakhis, rolled up shirt sleeves, and a mysterious glint in his eyes, Brent is effortlessly good looking. But when you get talking with him do you actually realize what a warm, friendly person is. Easy to talk to, patient enough to answer all of our randomest questions, and generous enough to oblige all the ogling women at the table with a peck on the cheek, I was floored. And then I tasted the meal he had especially curated for us at Celini, and I was floored so bad that I never wanted to get up.