Malgudi - taste of South

 Last week involved a bit of travel and which ended up in me eating out quite often. I took that as a good opportunity to try out some new places and some old favorites. My friend had been asking me about traditional South Indian cuisine and he is a meat eater to boot. So, we decided to go to Malgudi restaurant. It has got multiple outlets (2 that I know of in Bangalore - Outer Ring Road near Marthahalli and HSR Layout near Silk Board; 2 in Chennai - one in Hotel Savera in heart of city and other on OMR road near Sholinganallur). I do know a lot of folks who have been here and come away unimpressed. My only tip to them is that - you need to know what to order, with what as an accompaniment else the food won't speak volumes.
We landed in this place at around 8 pm and of course it goes without saying that I was starving. So, we quickly started off with Chicken and Nand (crab) rasam (soups..!!). To go with that, we ordered a couple of starters - Vazhapoo (Plantain or Banana Flower) Vada and Mutton Pepper Chops.

First the Rasam - was piping hot, fragrant and spicy; just the way it should be. The meat (crab / chicken) was so soft and well cooked that it was just falling off the bone. A brillaint start to the evening accompanied by two stars of Chettinadu cuisine - the vazhapoo vada and mutton pepper chops. The vada was crisp, fresh and the flavor of the vazhapoo could be absorbed over the fried snack and the spicy coconut chutney provided as an accompaniment. Mutton pepper chops was art form. Lots of folks go wrong in cooking mutton (since it is relatively tougher meat than chicken) but it has bags of flavor that chicken cannot even begin comparing to. This dish had the mutton cooked to a tender perfection and spiced just right with black pepper (it did not over power the natural taste of mutton), garnished with fried curry leaves lending a fragrant touch.
My friend and I are both healthy eaters and hence we decided to go for broke in the main course - Appam, Malabar Paratha with Chettinadu Chicken Stew and to wrap up - the legendary Chettinadu dish, Egg Kothu Paratha.

The appam was fluffy and the flour was neither sour nor salty. It was served with a cup of sweet coconut milk which acted as a perfect foil to the chicken stew. The stew was typical Chettinad style- spicy fragrant and filled with an abundance of tender meat. Picking up a piece of the appam, I folded it into a cone and scooped in liberal amount of chicken stew. As I popped it into my mouth and the spices kicked in, I would then spoon down a measure of sweetened coconut milk as an after taste. The malabar paratha was crisp, buttery and perfectly layered and went great with the chicken stew again. If you thuoght this would be heavy, think again.. the lightness of preparation in these dishes make us actually look forward to the last but not least dish of the day - the egg kothu paratha. I had this dish all over India at different places and I do respect the variations that crop up as individual innovations.. but there is nothing that would compare to the original. The dish was so finely chopped up, well cooked and mildly spiced that it was extremely light to tuck into. The masala, chopped onions and green chillies, curry leaves all add to the mystique. Definitely a dish to die for..
This kinda concluded our dinner since we were too full to try the dessert section. Food was excellent, the preparation perfect and the wallet factor - extremely affordable. The menu described above costs us around 900 Rs for two of us.

Location: In Bangalore and Chennai
Cost: Very affordable

Boys Day out..!!!

A weekend back, my wife happened to go out of town on work leaving me scratching my head as to what can be done to spend the weekend effectively. A set of quick calls to my gang followed ensuring an entertaining Saturday evening. Most of us are localites and have been to every watering hole possible in this beautiful city of Mallya's. Our plan was simple - meet up in a pub for the first few hours.. catch up on all happenings (with of course drinks and snacks) and then head away later to a proper dinner (filling , high on quantity and quality but cheap on the wallet) - coz who would appreciate fine dining and small portions once you are floating on cloud 9.
Quick discussions and decision making found us on the way to Noon Wines (also known as Scottish Pub) one of Bangalore's favorites and old haunts. It is rightfully a heritage location now for the city and can be found on St. Marks Road, opposite SBI campus.
For folks who do not know about Noons, there are one of the old establishments where the food and drinks menu rarely changes, place has not expanded (like in forever), quality still tops and of course the mystical legendary sweet home made wine (whose mystery ingredients could put Coca Cola's 7X to shame).
We reached by around 6 30 pm and immediately ordered the standard - 2 rounds of large wine and fries, onion rings, chilly chicken.

First things first... the wine is a modern wonder.. sweet (but not cloyingly sweet), goes down smoothly and then the magic starts.. it is by far one of the most potent drinks that I have consumed but the taste does not let you feel that.. it is the pleasant buzz that you get half way through your first glass (yes.. first glass itself) that has made stories about this place and the drink - stuff of legends (and of course many a brawl..) :-)
The starters ("snakes" as we call them) are equally good - the fries are thick and well seasoned (not the crispy emaciated variety you get in the branded fast food joints), the onion rings are essentially onion bhajjis.. crispy batter coating and thin rings of onions spiced perfectly just explode in your mouth. My experience here is that their chicken is one of their specialties - chilly chicken or chicken manchurian or chicken 65.. perfectly cooked,, tender.. well greased and spiced to an Andhra-ites acceptable levels. Accompanying the snacks is a green looking sauce which is a better companion than the trusted old ketchup... this is made out of fresh mint and coriander and mustard - brilliant flavors that just explode onto your palate.Try the French fries with this sauce rather than the tomato ketchup and you will be shocked. A large glass of wine is around 130 Rs and the snacks average around 60-100 Rs making it an affordable place, with awesome food and a mystical home brew to boot. The place is filled with regulars that give it a nostalgic feeling - so quickly disappearing from rest of Bangalore with the advent of malls, multiplexes and lounge bars.
Once our watering hole session concluded we walked across to Brigade Road (another old haunt) and stopped at Queens on Church Street. For the uninitiated, this place is one of the best North Indian cuisine restaurant in the city. It does look more like a Dhaba but do not let looks fool you..
We were starving and hence the orders flew off our tongue rapidly -  Jal Jeera (a local favorite) to quench, a roti basket (butter nans, lasooni kulchas and tandoori rotis), Bhindi (Okra) Masala Fry, Mushroom masala and of course the eternal favorite - Butter Chicken.

The Jal Jeera is a perfect blend of the right spices, iced and refreshing to drink with the crisp Bhoondi floating on the top. All the side dishes were brilliant with the butter chicken being exceptional and the bhindi being crisp and fried to perfection. If at all, I could crib - it would be about the lack of salt in the mushroom masala. The rotis, naans and kulchas were all so soft, warm and could easily be torn with just your thumb and forefinger of one hand. All in All - a massive hog fest with amazing appetizing food and extremely affordable rates. The bill for the above order came to around 800 Rs only and thus ended a good day's hard honest work.

Noon Wines ( Scottish Pub)
Location: 17/12, Vasavi Complex; St Marks Road
Phone: 080-22215002
Wallet Factor: Extremely affordable

Queens
Location: 7, Shringar Shopping Center, Church Street, off Brigade Road

Phone: 080-25596361

Wallet Facotr: Affordable, Medium expensive 

Stuffing Myself for Lunch at Thulp

It has been a while since my last post and various reasons including travel contributed to the same. But that still did not stop me from going out and discovering more new places to hog. Last Sunday we set off to a new place in Koramangala, Bangalore called Thulp. I was reassured by my wife that food there was good and extremely filling.. yay.. good for me, I thought. Though I did give her a word of caution, I was starving and if I don't get my fill, I get very grumpy.
As we approached the place (quick pointers - its close to the Maharaja signal in Koramangala 1st block, if you are coming from Sony World Junction, take a left at the signal before Maharaja's), I noticed that it was a typical cafe on Bangalore streets. A single room, adjoining kitchen decorated with alternate and post modern knick-knacks. Quaint, tucked away in a corner - just the way I like it. What shocked me was the crowd- it was a positively bustling place with folks pouring through the doors. That, too me always says a lot about the place. One of the waiters informed us of a 15 minute wait which we used judiciously in scanning their menu and deciding what to try. You could see all sorts of people there - from the typical teenager, to the middle aged professionals with their families and of course the old-timers / regulars. The menu was simple but had a lot of options - burgers, steaks, sandwiches, pasta etc. For starters, we quickly ordered traditional favorites - garlic cheesy fries and buffalo wings.Two yogurt smoothies to accompany them - strawberry shortcake and banana with peanut butter, peanut brittle.

First the fries - they were good, crispy and thick. There was a balance to the seasoning and salt but the clincher was the over-dosage of molten cheese that swept across the plate completely covering the fries... yummy. The garlic were solid slivers and burnt to provide that exquisite taste which did not overpower the fries but complemented it perfectly. The buffalo wings were perfection - finger lickin' good if I may say so. Having stayed for a few years myself in upstate NY especially in and around Buffalo, NY I can safely say I have tasted enough of the original authentic Buffalo sauce meant for the chicken wings. It has to be tangy, fiery and sweet - all rolled into a dish where the wings should be positively dripping with the sauce giving you no option but to lick your fingers.All that and more - check. The cream provided along with this dish serves as a natural balance to the explosiveness of the dish and it was fresh. The smoothies were fresh and delightful - fresh with the saltiness and tanginess of yogurt and the fruit flavoring which did not overpower the entire drink.
With the starters being a major hit, we moved on to the main course - a tender grilled chicken fillet burger with bacon and cheese called the 'Impostor' and a grilled 2-egg omelette sandwich with cheese, grilled onions, tomatoes and pickled chillies called the Gonzo's Anda Pav.

The burger of course comes with fries and it was massive. Folks, the picture does not tell the true story. It was a huge burger and it rocked. The chicken fillet was done to perfection and I had asked for crispy bacon - which they delivered but the slices were a tad thick (probably the only flaw I could find apart from the flimsy bun material). Most people discount the bun when they talk about the burger - if it does not hold up it becomes messy to eat with half the bread breaking away and becomes a big distraction. The bun here was thankfully not that bad but definitely on the flimsy side.Everything else about the burger was A-Grade. I was stuffed by the time I finished half of that monster. The Anda Pav on the other hand compared to the burger was a dainty little creature but in all fairness a meal by itself. The bread was fresh and baked well. the eggs were perfect and an overdose of grilled onions, tomatoes and pickled chillies made it a perfect meal for folks who want an alternate to THULP :-) Well balanced and seasoned not in excess, it was light yet filling. I must say, in all this, we used up the entire bottle of mustard and mayo sauces kept at our table which only added to the brilliant flavor (point - mayo not close to Indianas but close enough).
This concluded our meal since we had no place in our stomachs for dessert. I did take a quick look but the choice and varieties were not many... so, no harm no foul done.
All in All the final verdict - a resounding YES... bags of flavor, fantastic concoctions, massive portions and moderate on the wallet. What's not to like ? If you like fast food and continental food, DO VISIT Cafe Thulp...

Location: 998, 1st main, 1st block, Koramangala, Bangalore
Phone: 40933344, 40933355
Cost factor: Moderate (the above meal cost around 800 Rs. only)

Suggi - a taste of Malnad in South Bangalore

    A couple of weekends back, my wife and I woke up late as usual on a Sunday and decided to have lunch outside. The only difference being, we wanted some homely traditional food instead of foreign cuisines. Having heard about Suggi from a colleague at work I decided to give it a try. Malnad regions broadly refers to the Western Ghat regions - but in essence covering places like Coorg, Chikmagalur. Hence the cuisine is steeped in items that are grown in abundance in these mountainous regions. Even though their specialty items might be meat based, they do have an abundance of veg dishes for the not-so meat minded population. Having made up our mind quickly, we landed up at Suggi at sharp noon. You are welcomed at the doors by staff in traditional attire with pleasant music playing in the background. A very quick noticeable observation was that all the staff had a genuine smile on their face as they moved across the tables. We were informed that a-la-carte exists and so does the buffet which prompted me to do the walk-around. Around 28 dishes adorned the buffet with enough on the veg option too, making me decide on the buffet.
The first course - soup was brought to our table with the simple choice being tomato for veggies and chicken broth for non-veggies. The soup itself was light, fragrant and had bags of flavor - a perfect starter to the meal.

With that out of the way, we decided to attack the main course. I made essentially two trips to the main course table and I shall explain it pictorially :-)

The number of meat dishes blew my socks off - mutton roast, chicken sukka, fish fry (anjal), chicken pepper. I scooped portions of all these dishes onto my plate and  went over to the bread/rotis section - neer dose, akki rotis, kori rotis and maiige idlys. The neer dose and the idlys were out of this world, extremely fluffy and light - perfect for wolfing down half a dozen.The chicken pepper stew and sukka were both good, spicy and flavorsome. The mutton preparation was a little off for me as I felt that the mutton had to be cooked a little bit more - it had a slightly tough taste and texture to it. The fish fry was perfectly done - meat fresh and a spicy red chilly masala paste set off the dish in your mouth. For the traditional, you also had access to raggi mudde (ragi balls) and sambar. Apart from this, you had the standard fare of palak rice, plain steamed rice, rasam and chicken biryani with raita. The biryani was not too shabby but I preferred the palak rice for the variety. The veggies had access to aaloo-gobi roast, mix veg gravy and mushroom pepper dry in the side dishes and veg biryani in the rice section apart from the above mentioned palak rice, steamed rice, rasam and sambar. The aaloo-gobi roast was done well with the crispness of the batter and spices mixing in harmony. Overall, a sense of home cooked meal was what I gto from the place. Desserts were minimal - payasam (kheer) and a sweet kesari made out of ragi. The payasam was ok, not upto the standards expected in southern regions of India but the ragi dessert was novel and intense. It was cold and not too sugary and perfect to down after a spiced up meal.

My final opinion is that - its a fantastic place to get home cooked meals of Malnad cuisine. Meat lovers would rejoice at the sheer range and variety of dishes available to them but veggies need not despair (in our group 4 I was the only non-veggie) and the remaining 3 did not complain :-)

Location: 683/A 3rd Floor, 2nd Phase, JP Nagar, near Dalmiya Circle, Bangalore-76
Phone: 080-42083291
Cost: very affordable (meals cost around 250-300 per person)

Highway Dhaba - between Kolkata and Kharagpur

     A quick small post for the weekend before X-Mas... a week back I was traveling along the eastern corridor of India.. had to make trips to Kolkata and IIT- Kharagpur. I should be hinest in saying that this trip had me worrying quite a bit days before it actually happened... the main reason being food. Having heard so many horror stories I just was not sure what to expect. But everyone that I met, who were familiar with the locality, advised me to stop at a small place called Kolaghat (somewhere between Kolkata and Kharagpur) - a highway dhaba called Sher-E-Punjab. Recommended to have the best highway food in that place. Not requiring more incentive than this, we decided to break here for our lunch.

I was literally starving when we walked in here at 1 pm or so. All I wanted was food... and lots of it.. and quick... The place and ambience is as you would expect of any highway dhaba. Neat, compact and functional usage of space. I let my traveling companion (my boss) who was a native of this area do the ordering. Niceties and proper etiquette went out of the window when we directly ordered the main course - a basket of butter naans, special chicken korma and fish masala. All it took was 5 minutes and the food was on our table.. service and promptness - a big check.

The naans were soft, buttered to perfection and hot. It took quite a bit of will power for me to hold back and click pictures before digging in. The chicken korma is specialty dish out here and is served with a boiled egg in the center. Had never before seen this variation in any other restaurant. But was brilliant to taste. The tomatoes were fresh and it showed in the tangy base that made up both these side dishes. Not too spicy and not too sweet, it was just perfect - a rich dish. The fish masala was equally good. Fried bhetki soaked in the same tomato based tangy gravy. The fish was fresh, tender and well cooked. Fresh herbs were chopped and sprinkled liberally over both the dishes lending a welcome fragrance to the final product. Needless to say, the plates were cleaned out within 5 minutes (including an extra plate of butter naans that were ordered later).
With the main course out of the way, it was time for dessert and of course being in this part of the world it was a no-brainer. They gave us a choice of gulab jamoon or rasogollas... 2 plates of rasogollas for each of us were ordered immediately.

I was told by my boss that these were made out of buffalo milk and hence would be slightly inferior to the ones made out of cow's milk (hahahah not that I knew the difference). But let me tell you, I will not be eating any more rasogollas any more in Bangalore or for that matter any other part of the country. These were amazing... simply exquisite. Light, fluffy and the minute you pop them into your mouth, they just break down effortlessly. Unbelievable and I was informed that the ones in the city (Kolkata) were infinitely superior. Not too big a fan of Bengali sweets, this one dish made me a convert. We could have easily had another plate or so.
With that, the meal was quickly wrapped up - a mere 25 minutes since we entered the place at peak lunch time. The bill surprised us pleasantly topping off at around 500 Rs. only for both of us. Feeling totally stuffed, we waddled to our car and dropped off into a blissful slumber as the drive continued.
Bottom line.. DO NOT miss this place if you are traveling in the regions of Kolkata or Kharagpur and the non-veg options are really worth the ratings.

An evening of Italian Fun at Caffe Pascucci

      I know it has been quite a while since my last post but I had been tied up with some banal stuff.. like work :-) Hope this one makes up for the break.
    Most of us love Italian cuisine and why not.. fresh bread.. olive oil.. huge amounts of cheese.. fresh herbs and veggies. But finding a restaurant that actually does justice to the cuisine has been a pretty tough task for me so far. When i heard that a new Italian restaurant had opened up in JP Nagar Bangalore, I made up my mind to try it out at the earliest. Last weekend saw 4 of us (my wife and I, her cousin and her husband) head over in the evening for dinner. It can be found at 690/8, 14th Main, JP Nagar, 2nd Phase, Bangalore and the contact numbers are +91 9739969767. The place looks like an independent house with a small lawn space out that has been converted into the restaurant - pleasant and comfy.

They have both outdoor seating and A/C inside.We were very quickly shown to our table. The place was not empty nor was it jam packed. The ambience was neat and well-lit inside with a pastry / dessert window bar at the entrance. I was starving (as always) and quickly rattled off a few starters - mushroom caps and fish fingers. The caps were essentially cheese and herbs stuffed mushrooms while the fish were your typical deep fried fingers.

Both the caps and the fish tasted ok but I felt they were a little bit too deep fired for me. That kind of over powered everything else inside, especially the herbs and spices. The fish though was tender and fresh. The crumb fried outer covering felt a little hard for me with excessive flour in it.

A little disappointed in the starters, but I told myself that these were not typical or traditional Italian dishes as we went ahead and ordered the main course - Fusili Florentina (fusili pasta with spinach in creamy sauce), Spaghetti Dellarocca (spaghetti, fresh veggies in creamy sauce) and Pizza Formaggio (mozzarella, buffalo mozzarella, parmesan, feta cheese with jalapenos and olives). First the fusili- it was definitely one of the top two dishes for me. Very well made and perfectly balanced.

The saltiness of the olives blends well with the cheese and the fusili was cooked to perfection. The spinach was fresh and crackled when you bit into it. I would have liked it a little bit more sauce but that was just an afterthought.

Moving onto the spaghetti - very well done and presented again though the sauce lacked the flavors. It seemed an amalgamation of spices without nothing coming clearly out on top. There was a lot of cheese which masked the other flavors probably. But in totality, the dish tasted brilliant and was very enjoyable.

 Finally the pizza - the best dish of the day for me. The specialty and USP of this place is the wood fired ovens which lends a remarkable flavor to their pizzas as they cook. Being a melting point of four different cheese varieties, the richness of the dish really took our breath away. You could clearly taste the different layers of cheese, the pizza was perfectly cooked... even the crust was done right. The jalapenos and olives add to the spice and variety of flavor apart from the cheese. In spite of eating an entire pizza on your own, it felt remarkably light.

 Coming to the only unfortunate part of our entire meal so far. It was just so that my cousin found a small piece of shredded chicken in her vegetarian pasta and that really freaked her out. She did not eat anymore that evening. The restaurant and staff were extremely apologetic and I could only imagine that the offending piece might have dropped onto our plate in the kitchen while preparation. They offered to replace the same but we just moved on. These kind of mistakes should not be happening in the kitchen, as this is a serious matter for quite a few people. So, we moved onto the dessert section - Confuso Caramel and Cappuccino Argemtino. The caramel drink was a mxiture of espresso, amaretti biscuits, confuso coffee cream, chocolate crunch and chocolate syprup. It was absolutely heavenly and a treat indeed.

The bitterness and sharp flavors of espresso blends well with the burnt saltiness of caramel and the syrup and cream balance it with the sweetness. The Cappuccino Argentino was another fantastic concoction - gold espresso, hot foamed milk, Dolce di Latte syrup). The flavors were impeccable and it did remind me of what a perfect coffee should be - hot, intense, bags of flavor and the aroma to go with it. 

That in a nutshell concluded our evening. With the exception of the shredded chicken finding its way into our veggie dishes, I think the place itself is worth more than a few credits of mention. Stick to the traditional Italian dishes and you won't be disappointed. The pizzas and pastas are delectable while their starters can be left out if you want to concentrate on the main course. The range of coffees, cappuccinos and espressos are also fantastic. Now coming to the most important part - the cost. Yes, it is a tad expensive but believe me its well worth every penny. The entire meal described above came to roughly Rs. 1400/- for four of us. I would definitely head back there at the earliest. 

Quick Starters at home - Stuffed Potatoes

Here's a quick recipe to try out at home... very easy and simple to try out in your microwave. Who does not love potatoes.. and stuffed with spices and cheese.. :-) well, you get my point.. right..??!!


Masala Stuffed Potatoes
Take 2 large size potatoes. Pierce them all over with a fork and then wrap them up in kitchen paper towels. Place them in the microwave. Set it on High and heat it for 9 minutes.
The potatoes should be soft to hold and press when they are done. Remove them out of the microwave and let them cool.
Cut them into halves and scoop out the centers.
Put all the scooped out centers into a separate bowl, add a small slab of butter and heat this for 30 seconds on high.
As the butter melts, whip this mashed potatoes mixture thoroughly while adding salt, red chilly powder (lal mirch), asafoetida (hing).
Take finely chopped capsicum, onion and corn kernels and heat them for 2 minutes in a separate bowl in the microwave with a little bit of olive oil thrown in.
Add the heated corn, onion and capsicum to the mashed potatoes mix now.
Take this mixture and put it back into the scooped out potato shells. Make strips out of cheese singlets (slices) and drape them on top of the stuffed potato shells.
Rub some salt, black pepper mixture, a dab of oil on the skins of potatoes to help reduce the wrinkling effect on skins (if you do not like them that way).
Put the filled up potato shells back in the microwave and heat it on High for 2 minutes or till cheese melts.

Take them out and they are ready to be gobbled up.. enjoy..