Bangalore opens its door to Farzi Cafe

Farzi cafe is a popular eating joint in Delhi and Mumbai and recently Bangalore opened its arms for their new outlet.  Farzi Cafe, a place globally known for creating an illusion with its cuisine, is a part of Massive Restaurants Pvt Ltd which also houses two other multi award winning brands under them – Masala Library and Made in Punjab. It follows a concept of Modern Indian Bistro which means it amalgamates traditional global cuisines with Indian classics and adds drama in terms of contemporary presentations and culinary styles. A visit to this place is sure to leave you mesmerised as the cafe incorporates molecular gastronomy and various table theatrics to keep you entertained till the end. It is situated in the 2nd Level of UB City, a prior reservation is highly recommended.

I have visited the cafe a couple of times and below I'm listing down my 10 favorite dishes from my experience (Oh, I'm yet to explore their entire menu so below are my favorites from the dishes I have tried, you can share your favorites too for my next visit)

As I had cold I chose a Farzi OK mocktail which was warm while my friends enjoyed Bubbling LIIT and Kala Jamun. They have variety of cocktails which my friends usually enjoy on their visits.

Let me start with desserts as I have sweet tooth for it. They did not have Bailey's lollipop so I'm excluding it from my list.

Ras Malai Tres Leches - Rasmalai has always been my favorite and this rasmalai has carrot halwa filling which makes it a filling dessert.

Parle G Cheesecake - Cheesecake sanwiched between Parle G biscuit with some gems topping and dipped in rabdi, heavenly.

Elneer Payasam Popsicles - Heard of this before? You should just try it without thinking about it, a dessert turned into a popsicle.

In main course, there are various options but my 2 favorites are listed below.

Butter Chicken Bun - Delicious butter chicken sandwiched between bao or as I like it to be called, idli.

Mutton Kuzhambhu Madurai Podi Appam - Appam which is made with edible charcoal and a south indian mutton curry makes the best meal.

For starters, my favorites are listed below.

Dal Chawal Arancini - A twist to traditional food of dal chawal.

Tempura Fried Prawn - This will always be my favorite with the nimbu mirch air.

Braised Lamb Boti Tacos - Tender lamb pieces in a taco makes it a delectable and tummy filling combination.

Tandoori Dak Banglow Chicken - Tandoori chicken is loved by many and is also my favorite.

Vada Pav - This is a reversed vada pav with the pav in the vada.

I tried Mini Raj Kachori & Tandoori Wild Mushrooms, Truffle and Walnut Dust too but they do not make it to my favorite list.

Some cleansing pops to clear the taste.

And anyone for paan gujiya's to end the meal?

Hope you enjoy a farzi experience soon but don't forget to make a reservation.

Turn Up The Sizzle at Hard Rock Cafe

Hard Rock Cafe never surprises us with their food festivals and this month it's time to sizzle with the sizzlers. HRC, as fondly called, has come with a sizzler's fest, 'Turn Up The Sizzle', for the month of February and you can enjoy it till 31st March.

I tried out this food festival and here I am to share my experience with you. From the general menu, I sipped on Strawberry Basil Lemonade, fresh strawberry and basil muddled together with lemonade while I enjoyed my sizzling dinner.

In veg option, I and my friends tried out Italian Mafia Skillet as my friend is very fond of Italian food. It had crispy spinach and cottage cheese croquette served on a bed of grilled chimchurri veg, served with caprese salad, spaghetti aglio e olio with cherry tomato ragout. I liked the presentation of the sizzler as the sizzler plate was not filled with all ingredients.

I tried the Mexican Chipotle chicken and prawn skillet as I wanted to have something with sea food. My sizzler had smoky chipotle spice grilled chicken and prawn served on a bed of fajita onion pepper which was served with crispy masala fried, tangy salsa and mexcan rice topped with smoked chili cilantro sauce. I enjoyed it and it was very filling too.

Lastly chef suggested us to try Portuguese style chicken skillet which was his speciality and recipe. It had spicy and tangy stewed chicken topped over charmoula grilled onion peppers served with cumin paprika rice and rusty potato wedges. This was the best sizzler of the night.

To wind up my dinner, I relished Oreo cheesecake from the general menu.

There are other options apart from these 3 sizzlers which you can try them at HRC. Enjoy the festival from 1st February to 31st March.

Rocktober fest at Hard Rock Cafe

With Oktoberfest season going on, it isn't a surprise when Hard Rock Cafe has a festival around the same line. But you would in for a surprise that Hard Rock Cafe has a different take on this largest festival. Hard Rock Cafe has brought Rock 'n' Roll during Oktoberfest season, making a fun Rocktober fest for everyone. They have a lot of entertainment coupled with international beers, beer cocktail along with a menu which a rock star would love. The music at HRC just cannot be matched by anyone else with some amazing foot tapping music all the time.

While other sipped on some amazing cocktails, I enjoyed my spicy mocktail while we ate the lip smacking delicacies on offer. Carnival Feista, which had fries along with cajun spice dusted crispy tangy chilli garlic crust fries topped with bbq spice rubbed hand pulled chicken & smoked chicken frank slices, served with tangy salsa & cheddar cheese sauce. The portion is filling so get ready to share this on the table while you sip your drink.

With the kinda food rock stars eat, get ready to taste a variety of subs and sandwiches. I started with Jamaican Hotty Submarine which had Char grilled smoked chicken frank stuffed subroll, topped jemaican spiced stir fried veg & tangy cajun bbq mayo, served with spicy chilli fries. This was spicy and the first sub was impressive.

Italian Submarine was next which had tangy arabiatta mayo stuffed char grilled smoked chicken frank, chimi churi spiced onion peppers & topped with tangy pesto mayo, served with spicy chilli fries. This was more on the creamy side when combined with chilli fried, adds the twist.

Windy City Sub Roll was next which had classic american smoked chicken frank, cocktail sauce & tangy mustard relish, served with crisp chilli fries. The mix of cocktail sauce and tangy mustard had a tangy twist.

Last was Saigon Fusion Asian Roll which was an Asian bbq sub, flavour packed with grilled smoked chicken frank, crunchy asian bbq slaw, served with crisp chilli fries. This was the best of the night and I was glad I did not skip this.

While I enjoyed the non veg sub, Mexi Cali burger (veg), Mexican mafia submarine and L.A.Confidential veg burger was enjoyed by the veggies of the group.

Had to end the meal with a yummy dessert. To my surprise there was a new dessert on offer, Red Velvet Brownie Cheesecake served with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. This is a must try at HRC and I really expect them to move this to the main menu.

Overall, the Rocktober fest was a surprise change for my palate and a different menu which Hard Rock Cafe has to offer. You can rock n roll along with some foamy beer, cocktails and lip-smacking subs from 28th September to 8th November 2015.

New Pizza's at California Pizza Kitchen

I visit California Pizza Kitchen again, you can read about my last visit here. This time, CPK, as it is fondly called has introduced 6 new pizza's which are 9 inch pizza which one can enjoy at Rs.249 plus taxes from Monday to Friday. Head to CPK before this limited offer.

Let me write down some of the pizza's which I tried along with their starters and my favorite desserts. I had some of my usual quenchers during my visit.

























I have to mention this, Lettuce wraps with shrimps, is a must try for me. It had wok seared shiitake mushrooms, water chestnuts, carrots and green onions tossed in soy ginger sauce along with shrimps. It is served with spicy ginger sauce and iceberg lettuce cups. A little sweater to taste but taste best with the lettuce.

Spicy chicken supreme was next and was recommended by the chef too. It had panko coated boneless chicken strips fried and tossed in their special tangy wing sauce, served with crispy tortilla salad and herd ranch sauce. It was a hit on my table which the order being repeated. Surely the best selling dish at CPK.

Chipotle grilled chicken was the last starter served. It had a smoky chipotle peppers marinated chicken strips, grilled and served with house salad and herb ranch dressing. It was juicy and liked by all. I preferred the other two starters over this.

Then came the pizza's. I mostly tried the non veg pizza's along with my favorite Kasundi pizza which I had earlier during my earlier visit.

Tijuana chicken pizza was first to be served on the table, it had an albuquerque sauce on a regular crust with mozzarella, grilled onions grilled chicken & sliced jalapenos in the style of tijuana. Garnished with cilantro. Regular crust aren't my favorite but it is filling, jalapenos gave a tangy taste to the otherwise bland pizza.

Apollo pizza was next which had garlic marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, roasted peppers, sliced mushrooms, grilled onions and marinated chicken. Good combination on thin crust pizza caught my attention and tasted good too. I preferred this over the previous one.

Spicy cilantro pizza was served. It had chicken with onion tomatoes and capsicum marinated in fresh coriander pesto and baked atop a thin crispy crust with mozzarella and cheddar cheese. The taste of the pizza's served got better with every pizza coming on the table and this was my favorite of the night. The coriander pesto did the trick. I hope this retains in the menu as I would enjoy this pizza upon my every visit.

I indulged in a little bit of Kasundi paneer pizza which is/was/will always be my favorite. It has makhani sauce, kasundi flavoured paneer, roasted peppers, tomatoes and onions. This pizza is little tweaked to the original pizza served earlier but this variety is also excellent and my favorite veg pizza at CPK. I'm glad that they retained this from the International Pizza and Beer festival menu.

Time for desserts and yes, this time I tried something more than the usual tiramisu.

Red velvet cake, is layer of moist cake with creamy vanilla cream cheese frosting and white chocolate curls. I have had better versions of this cake so this did not stand out for me but was tasty for sure.

Tiramisu, is the layer of rich Italian mascarpone cheese and espresso soaked lady fingers with a touch of kahlua topped with house-made sabayon and sprinkled with freshly grated dark chocolate. I just love this and enjoy it at almost all restaurants so here too I did like it.

White chocolate strawberry cheesecake, is one of the signature desserts, it is a mile high New York style cheesecake with an Oreo crust and swirls of sweet strawberry and white chocolate served with fresh whipped cream. Try this when you crave for something apart from chocolate or coffee. It does not have much of strawberry so do not hesitate.

Sticky toffee pudding, is topped with a rich and buttery caramel sauce, this toffee flavoured British style "pudding" garnished with pecan nuts just made a way to my taste buds instantly. I think my taste buds were waiting for a different taste which was provided from this pudding. I have visited CPK again just to try this dessert.

Chocolate banana cake, is a two flavours that were destined to be together. Rich and moist chocolate cake layered with banana cream and topped with a decadent chocolate ganache. A squiggle of banana creme sauce completes the dish. If you have a taste for banana then try this but do remember that this is a filling dessert. I enjoy banana and chocolate combo but this dessert fills my appetite when I have less pizza's.

From this visit, my favorite's are - Lettuce wraps with shrimps, Spicy chicken supreme, Spicy cilantro pizza, Kasundi paneer pizza and Sticky toffee pudding and Chocolate banana cake. What are your favorites?