I walked into this place with my co-culinary-enthusiast on a breezy summer Hyderabad night. This climatic circumstance is necessary for a visit to Coco’s because it is styled as a Goan beach shack and the seating is mostly outdoors.
Make sure the weather is agreeable before you set out to eat here. Coco’s, a bar grill and restaurant, is perched on top of the Shikaar restaurant favorably located in the upscale neighborhood of Jubilee Hills. The general vibe of the place is nice - relaxed, casual, the kind I like. Reclining couches are arranged around tables covered by bamboo shack roofs. Though the benches along the perimeter of the balcony area are acutely uncomfortable so try and get another place to sit.
The good things first.
The place is generally not too crowded and the food is very good. My friends and I after succesive visits have generally come to the conclusion that the best way to eat here is to get drinks and lots of starters rather than do main course. They only have Kingfisher beer and only in the 600ml size so if you have strong preferences for beer give this place a pass. Starters are clearly the unique selling point at Coco’s. We have developed a particular taste for their Stuffed Mushroom, Zafarani Tangdi and the Prawns with lemon butter sauce. Cold beer and the juicy finger food make for a nice chillin experience.
An odd thing now.
In general, the case with the city of Hyderabad is that the customer service does not commensurate with the standards one would expect from a joint in the poshest place in town. A (male) friend and myself (also male) went to this place for the first time and requested a particular seating spot. At this the matre’d told us that that place was "couples only." At this I informed him, that we were indeed a couple. He blinked twice at me blankly and then as the situation dawned upon him he went saucer eyed, aghast at the suggestion. He made a beeline for the manager as if trying to create as much of a distance from this queer situation as he could. Not for a moment did he doubt the authenticity of my claim. The manager however had more reason in him to let us have the spot we wanted. Though I cant tell why the guy would be so shocked to hear that two males would call themselves a couple because the area he had indicated as being "couples only" contained in it, two girls noisily chomping away at their food. So, presumably they are aware of the possibility of same-sex alliances.
That minor oddity apart the place is good albeit the prices may be on the steeper side (expect to pay around 400 bucks a person for a hearty meal). The perfect situation to choose this place would be a group of already well acquainted people just looking for a quiet dinner. The place is dark and you cant see faces very well at night so avoid going here with new people you dont know. Some might say that the place is also good for a romantic evening but I disagree. This is because I’ve often seen couples in this place making openly public displays of affection - oddly thats something I dont want to see when I myself am on a date. I dont like to declare to the world my love for the woman with whom I’m dining, but this is just a personal preference.