Exotic Sunday Brunch at Intercontinental Chennai ECR!

I am not much used to the idea of brunch. But most of today's younger generation prefers to party hard on Saturday night, wake up late on Sunday, skip breakfast and each breakfast + lunch together at noon, triggering the concept of "Brunch". Having recognized this trend, many hotels and restaurants now offer exclusive Brunch menus during the weekend. InterContinental Chennai Mahabalipuram seems to be at the forefront of this, with their lavish spread of options at The Melting Pot restaurant.

I got an invite to try their Sunday Brunch and I readily accepted. Last Sunday had good time visiting the IC Chennai property and trying out their brunch menu. Besides food, another reason I like to visit resort is because they are usually well landscaped and photogenic- a good opportunity to experiment with your lens and try unique frames and compositions. This post shares photos of the resort, food and details related to resort and brunch.

InterContinental Chennai is a hotel chain part of Holiday Inn group. Their Chennai property is 2 years young, located on ECR (East Coast Road) few kms after Crocodile Bank. As I arrived, the tall walls on both sides of the passageway gave a feeling that I'm entering a space constrained chamber. But once inside, the path leads to an elevated bridge across the resort, creating a highly spacious feel. We were told that resort is purposefully designed that way. Resort is inspired by the Pallava style architecture. Exterior stones, walkway were left uncoloured (or gray colour) creating an old fort feel

Sometimes after I arrived, met Arohi from the ICC team, who gave me additional details about the property. We got a brief walkthrough of the Intercontinental Chennai resort property. Before we go to food part of the experience, quick brief about the resort.

Intercontinental Chennai has a unique design with a square shape outer building that houses the rooms and restaurants, with a two level walkway in between. On one side the self cleaning pool with a performance area (self cleaning because of fishes inside) and on the otherside, a 25 meter swimming pool and a few coconut trees. Walking on the open walkway gives majestic views of the resort.

Above: Swimming pool on one side
Below: Large pond and performance area on the other



I asked why the sunflowers are not coloured. I was told it is to create a laidback feeling.

IC Chennai has about 4 types of rooms. We got walkthrough of two of them.
The King's suite with Bay view

Above: Balcony of King's Suite
Below: Interiors of Kings 

Suites are the luxurious options with spacious living room, balcony with sea view and large bathroom. Below is the entry passage to Kings suite...Open to the sky and very unassuming of the luxury inside.

Classic Rooms: This category of rooms don't an open area or window but are designed as colourful and cozy rooms with lots of design elements to uplift one's mood.

I asked them what level of customization is possible- I was told welcome letter and room phone is customized (not on TV or Pillow like in some hotels)

There’s also a Presidential suite, but we couldn’t visit it- I guess it was probably occupied. In addition to being more spacious and loaded, Presidential suite gets a private pool (5 meters). Presidential suite is not explicitly listed on booking.com or IC Chennai’s website.

Rooms in InterContinental Chennai Mahabalipuram cost between Rs 7000 to 17000 a night depending on type of room, weekday/weekend, occupancy levels, cancellation terms any running offers/discounts etc. You can check availability and rates using Booking.com widget below
Booking.com Once done with rooms, we were shown the spa. The spa is operated by a 3rd party agency and has separate sections for men, women and couples. Couple's spa room has an open shower and Jacuzzi. Spa reception area is also tastefully done.

Above: Couple room
Below: Open shower facility

Next we stopped by at Tao Of Peng restaurant which serves Japanese food

Then we returned to our mail agenda- brunch at The Melting Pot restaurant.

Chef Negi gave us a walkthrough of the elaborate menu on offer for Sunday Brunch.

TMP has 3 live kitchens offering South Asian, European and Indian cuisines

A musician kept us company with his soothing numbers. On the left most section, there were starters. The way of presenting them- in open jars in a tilted position was unique. Salads and juices were lined up next. Any custom preparation could be readily made to order.

Next was the chat counter- Vada Pav, Pav Bhaji and several other chat items made fresh and served at your table.



Bread section alone had 20+ varieties

Machli Bazar or Fish Counter was next. Being Vegetarian I don’t have much to say about these.
Then there’re Indian and sushi items. 3 types of ice teas were served on the table

Desserts were on the opposite side. I enjoyed clicking them, as much as I enjoyed eating them. So many varieties of sweets, saviors and ice creams. To name a few, Red Velvet Sundae, Home made chocolate items,  Chocolate Mousse,  Cheese Cake (Blueberry) and so on.

Guests can opt for outdoor seating also, right next to the self-cleaning pond and performance area.

Provided sun is not very harsh, sitting outdoor will be lot more fun. There’s a kids corner too.

Our brunch and conversations went all the way till 3.30 PM and beyond. After which it was time to depart. Other guests were continuing to enjoy their brunch at leisure. Me and Karthik took a quick walk to the beach- saw this private dining setup being prepared by the staff. Beach area behind IC Chennai is relatively isolated and private. Large tennis court is also available for use by resort guests.

Then I returned home. Will be visiting Intercontinental Chennai again soon for dinner at Tao of Peng Restaurant. We won it as part of Mannequin challenge. The resort will be looking lot more beautiful with candles and other lighting, so I will look forward to clicking more photographs.

Thanks to Team PassingPorts and IC Chennai for the opportunity. Was great catching up with Narayanan and Preetika

Additional Details

• For reservations and inquiries: Call  044 71720101
• Price for brunch: Rs 1999+ taxes (guessing 20%) per person, same rate for veg/non-veg
• Restaurant Timing: 6.30 AM till 11.30 PM (Brunch 12 noon onwards)
• Address: InterContinental Chennai, 212, Nemelli village, Mahabalipuram
• Landmark: 6kms from Kovalam Junction, to the left after Jade Resort

Intercontinental Chennai also has a large banquet hall named Samaya, an exclusive club room for premium guests and also targets wedding market.

Follow me on Instagram for even more photos.