All posts filed under: Restaurant Reviews

Souza Lobo (Calangute Beach, North Goa)

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Like every self respecting yuppie Indian, who was exposed to the wonderland that is Goa at a young age, I come to consider it my second home. A Goan may frown upon this notion or ignore it altogether, but for me the feeling of belonging in Goa is so complete that, I in turn frown upon the ‘other’ tourists. So leaving this merry-go-around of who the state belongs to, let me get down to business to talk about one of my favorite places to eat while I’m there. I generally avoid the Calangute side of the beach like the plague because it is so packed with tourists at any time of the year. Hordes and hordes of buses will dump their beach hungry populace there and to cater to their needs the area has become a densely populated commercial hub. But I must trudge my way through the fat man in a baniyan and the lady with the wailing kid and the beggars who plead with interesting British accents and the Romeo’s basking in their …

DELIZIOSO – Italian Food Festival @ Bene, Sheraton Bangalore

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I was invited by the Sheraton for a preview of their Italian Food Festival – ‘Delizioso’ last Friday. Their signature Italian restaurant Bene, was playing host to celebrity Chef Enrico Fiorentini from 9th -18th Nov. (That’s the duration of the festival by the way!). Last year Bene did a Truffles festival, but this year because of the weather in Italy (No good rains), availability of good quality truffles was a dicey affair. Hence they decided to showcase ‘Lombardy’ cuisine. Now when we say Italian food, the two things that immediately spring to mind are Pasta and Pizza. But that’s not all Italian food, is about. (Same as Indian cuisine is not equal to Garlic Naan and Chicken Tikka Masala!). Milan is the major city of the Lombard region and is bordered by Switzerland to the north. Lombardy cuisine primarily consists of hearty fare with rice being a foundation. (South Indians rejoice!). Apart from being famous for its fashion, gastronomically the region is associated with Risotto. Now does Risotto ‘Milan’ese, ring a bell?  Dairy products also …

Raspberry Mascarpone Pie

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Raspberry Mascarpone Pie @ A Spoonful of Sugar, Indiranagar, Bangalore I drove furiously; a few motorists were roughly pushed to the pavement. Six kilometers was nothing to satisfy a craving. And this time it was bad. I couldn’t think straight, I needed the fix…now. I had the rest of them on speed dial, but this one was different. If I wanted it, I had to go there myself. The anticipation builds up as you come closer. Maybe that was part of their plan? Parallel parking was not my scene, but I did it anyway. I didn’t want the moment to be interrupted by the cops. I walked into the space. There were others like me, reverently consuming their poison. He looked at me from behind the counter. The clear glass displayed everything that I wanted and more. Which one would I choose today? Something dark and dangerous or something sweet and exotic? There was one in Red calling out to me. I looked with scare concealed desire. He smirked and handed it over to me. …

Mangrove – Restaurant.Cafe.Wine Tavern (Kalyan Nagar, Bangalore)

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I live at a point where going to Indiranagar or Koramangala or MG Road is the same distance. I know, lucky me! With so many food options scattered at my doorstep, I hardly travel beyond these areas for a quick bite. But after a point it becomes same old same old and this weekend we decided to travel to the beyond. Ok, that’s Kalyan Nagar near H.R.B.R. layout for you. We took the Bypanahalli route because the GPS on the co-resident’s phone said it was the shortest and fastest route, but we din’t know it would lead us to a defunct railway crossing! After a few more adventures, we reached Mangrove. It’s a new American cuisine restaurant that’s opened its doors, to entice the sudden population burst towards Manyata Tech Park and ORR. There is a big sign painted on the entrance wall so that you don’t miss the restaurant on the quite road. J We expected to find the restaurant under a Mango tree, but realized that the young couple who run the place …

The Bork

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Bork @ Monkey Bar, Wood Street, Bangalore I walked in to a familiar setting. Friends, food and getting wasted on drinks in the afternoon. It was the same this time. Like a warm blanket, familiarity can be comforting. There was a blackboard menu. Some new items of interest had made their way up there. A Beef and Jalapeno Potsticker, even a Salmon Khan! Should I shake things up a bit? The guy in the red t-shirt said yes. But of course he would… he worked there. So I tried it. Nice, but it wasn’t my warm blanket. I stirred my Mandarin Caprioska and told him I was shaken. I need to settle into my grove again. I ordered the Bork.  The pork was double cooked till he turned black. From that point on, he was called Bork. I gently removed the spring onion frills that he had chosen to be dressed with. Sesame seeds stuck to him like thick friends. No matter, the more the merrier. I cut into the Bork, gently lifted a piece into …

Chinese Food Festival at Feast, Sheraton Bangalore

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Monday was an eventful day. I finally drove all the way to the other side of town to experience authentic Chinese delicacies. Now this would have never been done, if not for a blogger friend of mine who invited me to come along with him to Sheraton. He was invited as part of the Chef’s table and I was going to be his happy sidekick. Feast, which is the all-day dining restaurant at the Sheraton Hotel, Bangalore was playing host to visiting Chinese Master Chef Thi Gang. Chef Thi Gang is from their award winning restaurant Li Bai at the Sheraton Saigon, Vietnam and was here to showcase the rich and diverse culinary heritage of China. Like India, China is vast country with unique regional cuisines and showcasing all of it can be a gargantuan task. So the Chef had handpicked some interesting dishes to help us savour a taste of China, if you will. The chef is a tiny man with a big smile and speaks very little English but his mastery was evident …

French Macarons and Amande Patisserie

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There has been a flurry of activity around the Macaron in Bangalore. Suddenly home bakers have taken to trying their hand at churning these pretty treats out, Taj Vivanta has a Macaron festival, patisseries are selling them hot off the mint and  there has even been serious discussions on a popular food group around their spelling! Adding to this is Masterchef Australia – I don’t think there’s been one season where the contestants have not tried their hand at impressing the judges with a fancy macaron. I guess we’ve reached critical mass for the Macaron in Bangalore and Amande Patisserie has come in at the right moment! Before you read any further, I have a few things to profess. When I first came across Amande, I was just a happy customer. Being a click crazy person, of course I had to take pretty pictures of the Macarons and cry out to all and sundry on Facebook on how much I loved them. Owing to this evangelist behavior Amande’s customer list included people from my friend …

Veggie Chic Menu at Caperberry, Bangalore

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I like my chicken and my bacon and my pork and mutton and prawns and …you get the drift. So when I excitedly signed up for the Veggie Chic menu created by Chef Abhijit Saha of Caperberry, many eyebrows were raised. Is she turning vegetarian? Is she just coming there to mock us with terms like Ghas Phoos? And finally has she not read the menu? My answer to all the dear veggies – I just thought the Veggie menu looked exciting and why should I pass up an opportunity to be entertained by a culinary genius just because the menu didn’t have anything that walks, swims or clucks! Now that we have resolved the mystery of my presence at the dinner, let’s move on to important bits – the restaurant and the food! Caperberry means provocation of desire in Hebrew. It’s also really a berry as well – green and tart… but the earlier definition is more in tune with what the restaurant wants to achieve. Caperberry is located at the Tanishq building on …