Celebration Mercure Lavasa offers a grand breakfast buffet and also serves lunch and dinner. I recently had an opportunity to sample the food at this Lavasa restaurant. It was the highlight of my stay. (Read about my stay)

The yummy food at Celebration, Mercure Lavasa ensured I enjoyed my monsoon getaway to the fullest. You can read all about my experience at the hotel here.

I am going to talk about lunch and breakfast in this post. We also had a fine Oriental themed dinner which I will write about in another post.

Lunch started with Orange Fizz, a welcome drink with some spicy tones and a strong hit of citrus. It was a great choice for an orange lover like me.

An array of appetizers was brought out. The menu was eclectic and slightly different from the run of the mill stuff. Executive Chef Susanta Mitra has excelled at providing a unique experience to guests at the hotel.

The Jodhpuri Palak Patta Chaat literally made my mouth water. Balanced flavors of hot green chutney and tangy tamarind chutney mingled with crunchy veggies. The crispy spinach leaves were lightly battered and provided a tasty base for this chaat.

Duets of Crispy Corn and Peppers brought me another favorite – corn! Lightly flavored with soy and Asian spices, this dish explodes with texture. This is a great item to share in a group because it has a good portion size and you can keep nibbling on it over drinks.

Paneer Kolivada was another surprise. Paneer coated in Malvani spices, breaded with semolina, served with a tangy sauce! Although simple to make, it is rare to find a vegetarian version of the Kolivada.

Vermicelli coated Subz Ki Tikki had strong flavors of fenugreek.

My favorite appetizer was the Sigri Ke Khumbh mushrooms stuffed with spinach and cheese, coated in Tandoori spices and slow roasted in the oven. These mushrooms packed a punch for sure.

The Daal Dhaniya Shorba was smooth and warming, perfect for a rainy day. The coriander flavor was spot on.

Chef Mitra presented a melange of vegetable curries. It’s hard to choose a favorite. The Paneer Kofta with Methi Malai sauce was a pleasant surprise. Mildly spiced, it wasn’t cloyingly sweet. The koftas melted in the mouth and were not floury at all. As I know from experience, this kind of kofta is not easy to execute.

The Bhindi Masala with Lababdar gravy was delicious! Crispy okra blended with a medium spiced sauce in this dish. Paneer Khurchan was simple but yummy.

Vegetable Biryani, served in a clay pot was done in the Dum style.

Paneer was fresh and soft, one of the concerns vegetarians have at remote locations.

The chef presented a special dessert platter. A feathery light mango cake and a brownie satisfied my sweet tooth.

The breakfast buffet at Celebration was a meal in itself. With plenty of live stations and made to order stuff, it has something for every one.

American and Continental options were offered in the form of cereal, juice, fruits and baked goods like croissants and cakes. Porridge and Sago Kheer was served on the buffet.

Poha offered a taste of the region and Poori Bhaji enticed Indian food lovers. Dosas and Uttapams were made to order. There was also a waffle and pancake station, and an omelet station where eggs were made to order along with sausages etc.

Fried potato wedges took care of the spud lovers, young and old.

Missing Chinese food? They had fried rice and Oriental Vegetables on the breakfast buffet. Steamed vegetables took care of the health conscious.

A well stocked salad bar also wooed those who wanted to give a healthy start to the day. I didn’t see any salad dressings though.

If you have this kind of breakfast a bit later around 10, you don’t really need to eat lunch :). That’s a great factor to consider, whether you want to spend the day walking around town or head back home on a long drive. we skipped lunch and didn’t eat until we got home later in the evening.

The restaurant had a great monsoon special menu offering different kinds of pakoras. This is served during the evening at tea time. I was so full from lunch that there was no way I could sample this. But it’s a great option when you nosh on something in the evenings. As the menu says, when there’s a light drizzle outside, and a monsoon mist covers the hills, you just have to gobble those pakoras.

The high quality food at Celebrations at Mercure Lavasa made my stay more enjoyable.

Food is one of the factors I consider when I choose a hotel. And Mercure Lavasa gets full points from me in this aspect.

As I mentioned in my earlier post about the hotel, the friendly and warm service is the icing on the cake.

If you visit Lavasa this monsoon, don’t forget to visit this place for a meal. They have plenty of options for both vegetarians and meat eaters, and the food is good!