Mysore is the cultural capital of Namma Karnataka, so a visit to this place will make so much more sense when your stay here has all the elements of its rich heritage that revolves around art, music and rich traditions. Grand Mercure Mysuru is one such premium retreat situated in the middle of the city that celebrates royalty along with the guests. The picturesque property houses 146 premium rooms across various categories along with 14 suites. It has all the facilities one can imagine to get that perfect stay, be it business or leisure.

Grand Mercure is a part of Accor Hotels, a hospitality company that has over 4000 hotel addresses spread across 95 countries. Grand Mercure as a brand shares space with other exquisitely luxury hotels like Fairmont, Raffles, IBIS, Novotel and many others. After Bangalore, Mysore is the only city to receive the premium hospitality services offered by Grand Mercure.

I was here for a staycation with my blogger friends to experience royalty first hand, courtesy Grand Mercure. This post here is going to take you on a quick spin to get an idea about what you can expect from Grand Mercure Mysuru in terms of facilities offered, hospitality and in house dining options.

We were welcomed in a traditional manner with a garland made from Channapatna, the land of wooden toys and artifacts. The refreshing watermelon drink did manage to rejuvenate us after the tiring 4 hour travel. The place houses three premium restaurants – By the Blue, La Uppu and Silk lounge to take care of all your dining needs.

We were taken on a property tour by Mr Sachin Malhotra, GM Accor Hotels who explained in detail about how Grand Mercure Mysuru is determined to help the local talent grow along with the brand image. There is a dedicated travel desk where the guests can get information about tourist spots in and around Mysore; they also have a work station if you want to do your own research.

As we moved around, instantly sensed that the entire decor inside and outside is inspired by various culturally infused art found in abundance all over Mysore, the walls are full of art work which depicts local art and this helps Grand Mercure establish a connect with the city.

There is a section on 6^th floor – Galleria, a section of the hotel which overlooks the famous Dusshera procession road. It is a perfect spot to enjoy the procession as it gives you a Bird’s eye view. This is something which every guest would want to witness and as you can see this place is not sufficient to seat all of them, but the folks here make sure they build a temporary station with 3 tier seating so that no one misses out on the wonderful show during the festival season.

The primary focus about this place revolves around the concept of spending happy time when you are here with family; the hotel has stocked some board games and bed time story books which can be taken to the room so that you spend quality time with your kids and all of this translates to memories which will be cherished lifelong.

Now, coming to the highlight of our stay – Rooms! We were put up in 1 Db Bed Deluxe room which has 1 double bed, a full-fledged bathroom with hand shower, a flexible workstation, 40 inch LED TV with satellite channels, tea and coffee making facility, an electronic safe and mini bar with loads of munchies. The room has a great city view and faces the open side which lets in direct sunlight, that perfect way to wake up in the morning.

Now coming to the most interesting part – Dining options in Grand Mercure Mysuru, we had dinner at By the Blue; this was followed by breakfast and brunch at La Uppu. A big shout out to Executive Chef Mukul Jha for curating an exceptionally brilliant dinner spread which was thoughtfully paired with different cocktails.

• By the Blue is a pool side restaurant serving traditional dishes inspired by North Indian cuisine, and thanks to the roof top set up the place also doubles up as destination for that romantic dinner.

• La Uppu is an all-day dining restaurant serving top quality multi cuisine food, their buffet spread is easily one of the best you can find in Mysore. It has outdoor seating option as well which connects to the kids playing area.

• Silk Bar is a cosy place to enjoy a drink after that hectic day, the dark blue and brown ambience along with mood lighting helps you relax in the best possible way.

• Deli is a premium bakery kind of set up in the lobby down stairs which takes care of treating guests with high quality bread, cakes and various other confectioneries.

BY THE BLUE

After a hectic day, good food was what we were craving for and our dinner experience at By the Blue went way beyond our expectations. We started with Surkh Laal Shorba, ideally spiced tomato broth flavored with smoked caraway seed and garnished with coriander leaves.

We were served with Sarsowali Broccoli, Kalonji Wala Mahi Tikka, Galouti Kebab and Mugewala Kukkad for starters. My personal favourite was Galouti Kebab which was melt in mouth double mince lamb kebabs served on top of warqi parathas. Galouti Kebab was paired with a beer and rum based cocktail called Dark Fanatic. Kalonji Mahi Tikka was paired with Nitrotini, a cocktail that came in an actual coconut; it was a potent mix of Gin, Triple Sec and lime juice in coconut water base.

Main course was an extensive display of spices and flavours; this is where I indulged completely in non-veg preparations – Kundan Kaliya was a mouth-watering dish made from diced mutton cooked in spices and ginger garlic paste. A combination of Tandoori Roti and this curry was paired with Aqua Sangria (red wine). Next up was Kashmiri Narangi Macchi Curry paired with Line of Control, an intoxicating mix of white rum, gin, vodka, tequila, triple sec topped with Cola. Murg ka Sweta is a flavoured mix of Chicken and fresh corn cooked with cashew nut paste, it was mildly sweet… Just the way I like it. This is when my friend started raving about Dal Bukhara, I tried it and totally fell in love, it is easily the best version of Dal I have had.

This was followed with Pardha Nasheen Dum Gosht Biryani, a pot of slow cooked lamb pilaf preparation scented with whole spices. The lamb was soft and properly cooked, the aroma of spices made it so much tempting.

Dessert was a platter consisting of 3 items – Kesar Phirnee, Pan ki Kulfi and Maghai Pan Shots. What a perfect way to end our wholesome dinner.

This concluded our journey of first day and we proceeded to our rooms to crash. Wait, this is not it… I noticed a try of assorted chocolates and cookies with a personalized message which said goodnight in a very pleasing manner.

A goodie bag was also placed quietly on the bed which had a lovely set of souvenirs that will definitely remind me about this trip next time I come across them. This is the kind of service one can expect from Grand Mercure Mysuru, there is a very personal touch to everything they do.

Day – 2 began with me doing a quick photo shoot of the room followed by the customary newspaper reading (It came in a very nice looking bag!). We then proceeded to get a glimpse of the breakfast spread at La Uppu; yes just a glimpse (at least in my case) as I wanted to save my appetite for the famous Sunday brunch that was planned for early afternoon.

Nonetheless, I did have eggs with bacon followed by fruit juice. The spread covers the famous South Indian dishes along with a host of continental and English breakfast specialties. There are many items that can be ordered from the live kitchen and this makes sure that every breakfast platter is unique.

Brunch Time at La Uppu:

Executive Chef Mukul Jha took us around the buffet spread which is a mix of North Indian, South Indian and Oriental preparations. There are umpteen number of Salad options to start with, I found the non-veg cold cut options to be most impressive.

Cheese lemon grass sticks and Malai Tikka donned the role of veg starters whereas Fish Amritsari and Kai Yang Chicken (pepper infused Chicken starter) were the available options for non-veg starters.

The main course spread starts with Murg Dum Biryani followed by an assortment of gravies like Mutton Rogan Josh, Nandan Kodi Curry, and the innovative Cabbage Red Steam Fish which is the oriental fish curry where steamed cabbage is wrapped around fish. You can choose to go with either Chowmein or two types of rice items to compliment the curry. You also get the traditional Rasam without which the entire lunch in South India feels incomplete.

 

Beverage options differ day to day and we got to try – Mixed fruit Sangria, Butter Milk and Strawberry Lassi. You can also expect Jaljeera and Kokum here. There is a separate section for quick bites like papad, spiced peanuts and various other munchies for people who prefer to spend a lot of time without stuffing their tummies over a drink. I had the Grover wine (white and red both) while savoring the brunch.

There is a live counter set up outside which serves Appam, Dosas along with Chicken or veg stew, you can also get your hands at grilled meat (prawns, fish, lamb and chicken). Shawarma counter is something which caught my attention and I ended up trying it, it was pretty okay.

Dessert section overlooks the entire restaurant and it is designed in a very traditional way, there are a lot of interesting options as well which can surely satisfy a lot of people. There was a very nice looking pineapple cake placed among other fancy desserts, it had Tom and Jerry image over it and the chef explained that they want guests and their kids to feel nostalgic the moment they see it. Thoughtful indeed!

The entire spread is priced attractively at 999+ taxes for Non Alcoholic package and 1299+ taxes the one which includes alcohol.

It was now time to bid good bye to the wonderful people at Grand Mercure as we had to head back to Bangalore. Grand Mercure experience is definitely something you would want to not miss when you are at Mysore.

You can find them at:

2203/60 Nelson Mandela Circle, New Sayyaji Rao Rd, Mysuru, Karnataka, 570021

Phone: 0821 402 1212

Click here to visit their website.