CHENNAI: High above the rush of Royapettah, Lava – Grill @ the Roof at Taj Club House unfolds as an evening escape where the city’s pace seems to slow down. As twilight settles over Chennai, the rooftop gradually comes alive with the gentle clink of glasses and the faint crackle from the grill, weaving together to create an easy, unhurried rhythm.
The setting balances sophistication with ease. Dim lights, contemporary seating, and an open-air layout allow diners to watch the skyline shift from sunset gold to a scatter of city lights. The mood is unhurried, inviting guests to linger over small plates, grills, dimsums, sushi, handcrafted beverages, and conversations that stretch into the night.
While planning to open a new rooftop diner, we aimed to serve comfort food. Initially, we decided to stick to grills alone. But after indepth research and discussion, we tweaked and improvised the menu to balance Asian, Indian, Mediterranean and continental flavours. In simple terms, our rooftop diner offers global comfort,sous chef Harikumar
The restaurant has a beverages zone, where one can relish handcrafted cocktails and mocktails. “Most of our seasonings and sauces are in-house. To maintain the authentic flavours of the international cuisines, we import the ingredients like the manchego cheese from Mexico, Seabass from Australia and Lamb chops from New Zealand,” he adds, sharing that the diner comes up with unique sorbet flavours like raw mango, mosambi and more, daily.
We choose the outdoor seating to immerse ourselves in the evening, filled with dramatic breeze and away from the chaotic atmosphere. As the chef says, starting from the soup to the dessert, the entire menu carries a sense of comfort to it. We begin with the smoked tomato soup and the tom yum chicken soup. Both get a ten-on-ten for tangy and punchy taste. Then comes the Chinese traditional edamame. Though we love the infusion of togarashi with soybeans, it didn’t reach our expectations.
The Levantine fries with lava seasoning, a blend of Middle Eastern and continental flavours, are definitely a great elevation to regular fries. In the sharing platter, TexMex mushroom tacos are definitely filling. Signature prawn tempura with wasabi mayo will definitely blow your mind and should be on the must-try list. The juicy prawns won our hearts.
Among the wide range of sushi options like prawn, salmon, tofu and mixed vegetables, among others, we opt for the cream cheese avocado maki. We feel that the cream cheese overpowers the avocado and other flavours of the dish.
The water chestnut and cream cheese dimsum is undoubtedly unique, with both crunchy and creamy textures in one bite.
The big teriyaki tofu bao is a fluffy bun packed with unmatched flavours and soft tofu. Unlike the usual lal mass which comes in the form of gravy, this diner innovates the dish with a skewer.
The scrumptious meat with rice and lal mass gravy, gives a one-plate finish. The Thai peanut sauce in the tofu satay elevates the entire dish with its sweet and spicy taste.
In the desserts section, hands down to the best lychee sorbet in the city. For all the gulab jamun lovers, don’t miss out on the gulab jamun cheesecake.
The meal at Lava – Grill @ the Roof is approximately Rs 2,500.