Where memories come alive...

Comfortable Stay

Imagine sitting in the heart of the City on a comfortable bench, with a hot cup of coffee in hand, and only lush green trees around.

A little hard to believe, isn’t it? But Benjamine and Bhushan Oberoi have made this dream possible at Casa Cottage, a bed and breakfast heritage hotel, in Richmond Town.

In 2004, the couple bought an old house which was built in 1915. They wanted to restore it and convert it into a small hotel where people can relive memories of old Bangalore. The hotel has always been a dream for both of them. Benjamine, who came to study in the City 30 years ago from France, remembers how calm and less populated Bangalore used to be.

“Not many people believe in preserving old homes in the City. When we came across this house, the owners wanted to demolish it but we found it perfect for our venture and bought it from them,” recollects Benjamine.

For Bhushan, the hotel is about showing the old-fashioned hospitality. “Nearly 80 per cent of our customers are foreigners. We have people coming here from all parts of the world. So we thought this would be an ideal way to show them a part of our City. We gave the place a more personalised touch,” he adds.

‘Casa Cottage’ has a total of 18 rooms of different shapes and sizes. The speciality of the place is that no two rooms are alike. The place offers breakfast to all its guests. They can either go in for a bread, butter and jam combination along with an omelette or try Indian dishes like vada, idli and sambhar. “Sometime we even rotis and a vegetable so as to give the foreign guests a taste of
India,” adds Benjamine.

“And for those who prefer to cook their own food, we have kitchens in some of the rooms. They can also order from the nearby restaurants,” says Benjamine.

Being travellers themselves, the Oberois say they know exactly what tourists look for when they come to ‘Casa Cottage’.

 “We try to show our guests the old parts of Bangalore like K R Market or the ‘Brahmin’s Coffee Bar’. We even send them for some of the ‘Bangalore Walks’ so that they can get a closer look of the City,” says Bhushan.

Benjamine adds, “We have also tied up with few autorickshaw drivers to take our guests around. Many of the foreigners haven’t seen a rickshaw in their whole life, let alone ride in one.”

‘Casa Cottage’ is located at 2, Clapham Street, Richmond Town and is open on all days of the week. The rates for each room ranges between Rs 3,000 and Rs 4,000. For details, log on to www.casapiccola.com or mail to [e-mail]. You can also call 41145354 / 22990337.