Bengaluru welcomes Made In Punjab

After Farzi Cafe, Massive Restaurants bought Made in Punjab to Bengaluru, a smart-casual dining brand having a menu covering the rich agricultural regions surrounding the rivers Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej. I really enjoy relishing North Indian food once a while, may be because my roots are from north. I haven't had good North Indian food in Bangalore much apart from countable restaurants which serve them. After a grand launch of Made In Punjab, located at Level 2 of UB City, next to Farzi Cafe, I had to visit the place to try their menu.

I was very well aware that the full will be rich and filling so I made sure that full portions were not served and I get to taste as many dishes as possible. With some conversations poured in the mocktails and cocktails for the lunch. I tried Khatta Meetha which was little more meetha, may be because of my sweetness ;) and Minty Apple which is a refreshing mocktail and my friend enjoyed his cocktails, Cucumber based Vodka drink Cu Cu Fizz.

Then came the starters, Tokri Chaat was delectable with mini potato baskets with green peas, crispy colocassia and chutneys. Legacy Tandoori Champ was my favorite which had lamb ribs which were spice, meaty and juicy.

Next, Gabbar prawns was served where the prawns were marinated with chili yogurt and roasted in tandoor was lightly flavored. Dahee Pataka was spiced yogurt croquettes served with mint chutney which really stood out. And LOL Tikki was my most favorite, leg of lamb patty infused with bone marrow which is slow cooked for 6 hours served with mint and tomato chutney was delish, it was melt in the mouth dish.

Then came Karara Bhatti Paneer Tikka, soft paneer marinated with bhatti spice with roasted papad coating and it is tandoor roasted. I do not enjoy eating Broccoli much but Broccoli Badam which had broccoli marinated with chili garlic almond, tandoor roasted and fried broccoli becomes a very filling yet delicious dish.

Make sure you do not fill your stomach with starters else you will never enjoy their main course which shouldn't be missed otherwise. Luxury B.C. (I mean Butter Chicken) is a must try as they present to you their version of sinful butter chicken using the best goan cashews, firangi tomatoes, fresh white butter and Punjab dairy cream. The dish is coated with silver varq adding to the luxury of the dish.

Agar tussi veg ho then try the Lahsooni Palak Chenna which has shredded spinach, chenna along with onion tomato masala, another rich gravy from the lavish menu.

Don't miss Mummy da pyaar anymore as you relish Maa ki Daal which is a classic dal makhani, every morsel is worth it.

All these mains, you could enjoy with roti, naan's or paratha. I can't wait to head here again to try Nalli Hard kaur which is much appreciated by their other guest. Their menu has equal importance give to veg and non veg items so no one is going hungry from here :)

If you still have some space for dessert, which you should save some like I tried the Ras 'Dates' Malai which is a classic rasmalai with dates rabri. And next was Gaushalla Di Kulfi, condensed milk ice cream dipped in berry cream and khus falooda.

I wanted get a taste of their lassi so I requested for tasting portion only of their Kesar lassi. Only wish I had another stomach to relish more of their dishes but I guess I have to save some for my following visits.

The happiness on my face clearly tells the good meal I had with the staff being very courteous. I have visited MIP twice till now and my visit has given me a happy tummy and a tongue longing for more food :) As the pricing of the dishes is reasonable, do not wait for any occasion and head to this award winning restaurant soon.

Curry & Kebabs menu launch at Saffron, Park Plaza

Saffron, North West Frontier cuisine, fine dine restaurant at Park Plaza Bengaluru launches the new Curry & Kebabs menu today and I was invited to enjoy their delectable selection of curry and kebab. Executive chef Ishtiyak took us through the menu along with Director of Culinary, Park Plaza, Narender Singh who spoke in length about the different menu available and the ancient recipe picked for the same. The cuisine is inspired from the delicacies of an ancient route which ran between Old Delhi and Lahore. Roasted in tandoor or on sighri, shallow-fried in a tava, deep-fried in a kadhai, even steamed on pots, the menu looks like a memorable gastronomical experience.

They have 3 different types of menu - Maharaja, Sultan and Nawab's priced at Rs. 2200+, Rs.1700+ and Rs. 1400+ respectively. I chose to enjoy the non veg Sultan menu. Started the meal with Kharoday - Paya ras which had lamb trotters simmered in aromatic broth. I am not a paya fan, in fact I avoid it the most but the aroma of the soup made sure that I slurpped.

Then came the kebab's. 5 kebab's were on offer. Jhinga kali mirch ka sarson, which had tiger prawns marinated with yogurt, crushed peppercorn and homemade Indian spices cooked in clay oven. Shami kebab, pan-fried shoulder meat of kid lamb, simmered with lentils and whole spices, stuffed with pomegranate and hung curd. 3 different types of chicken kebab's were there - Sufiyana murgh tikka, char grilled succulent chicken pieces marinated with fresh fennel leaves, cooked in clay pot. Murgh angar bedgi, boneless chicken legs marinated with fresh ground masala and broiled in tandoor. Murgh moongfali ka tikka, Chicken pieces marinated with cream, cheese, peanut and ground spices which is cooked in clay pot and topped with cracked mustard seed and curry leaves.

The kebab's were cooked extremely well. Murgh moongfali ka tikka was my favorite from chicken apart from jhinga kali mirch ka sarson. The kebab's were served with Missi roti, but I would have preferred rumali roti or nothing with kebab's. Nevertheless, I hardly ate 1 roti as I was busy relishing the kebab's.

Next course was Tariyan Te Sukhe Vyanjan. 4 curries, 1 dal and 1 Biryani was served along with Kulcha/roti or naan. I had my tummy partially full with kebab's so it was time to fill my appetite with the curries. Bhatti chowk da nalli ghost, lamb shanks cooked in onion and yogurt gravy flavored with saffron and mint. lamb shanks have always been my favorite and this was delish which was stright from the streets of Lahore. Anarkali bazaar de bater which are quails cooked in punjabi style. I did not enjoy this much. Safed Makhan ka chooza makhani, chicken cooked in homemade white butter with satin smooth tomato gravy, this was delectable with naan and kulcha.

Sarson da saag has always been my winter favorite, signature dish from the state of Punjab, mustard leaves and spices topped with generous amount of white butter. Maah ki dal or Dal Makhani as some name it, it is a delicacy of whole urad dal, tomato puree and garlic simmered overnight on tandoor, enriched with cream and served with dollop of butter. Dal Makhani has been my favorite and having the dal alone is what I always prefer. Lastly, Saffron Murgh Biryani was served which had long grain basmati rice cooked in dum with marinated chicken and flavored with saffron.

The variety for curries was good with lamb, chicken, Quail, Veg, Dal and Biryani. Biryani has a strong flavor of saffron which is evident in every morsel. I mixed with lam curry and chicken curry with biryani for an added taste.

I also enjoyed 2 mocktails which is not part of the menu during my meal.

After a filling main course, it was time for the dessert platter which had Kulfi Falooda, Kesar rasmalai and Gajar ka halwa with ice-cream. The gajar ka halwa was very tasty, similar to what my Mom makes but ice-cream was missing with it, but I did not mind as the halwa was good. Rasmalai has been my favorite dessert, these were small rasmalai dumplings but it lacked enough saffron. Kulfi falooda, pistachio-almond flavor was a highlight. To end the night, I tried the paan shot which was made from water and sweet paan.

Overall, the dinner was fabulous and rich. As the hotel is placed on the outer ring road, which has many offices and apartments around, one can savor the menu over family lunches or dinner or even team outings. The Maharaja menu has little more variety on the menu while the Nawab menu has a little less. The seating is neatly arranged using the entire space and giving privacy to every table. The yellow lighting in the restaurant is nice but not good at all for picture so bear the poor quality pics on the blog. This was my first visit to Saffron and I had a good meal which will bring me here again for the kebab's and curries

Many visits to SodaBottleOpenerwala Bengaluru - Review

Firstly let me apologise for the delay in this blog post. I should have uploaded the post much before as I really love the place now but have been little busy with travel and ill health so the delay. Hope you enjoy reading the post and look forward for the future one's.

I always missed Parsi and Irani food in my life. Never had a parsi friend at whose place I could always go to relish some Dhansak or salli boti. Well, I wasn't even aware of many parsi restaurant in Bengaluru. Then one day I get to know about 'SodaBottleOpenerwala' coming to Bengaluru. With all the hype around, I couldn't resist myself from visiting them. Located centrally at Lavelle road, one just cant miss this place. Truly a tribute to the dying legacy of the Bombay Irani Cafes.

"With SodaBottleOpenerWala, we give you a concept that is unique to India; the dying legacy wonderful chaotic, crowded, bustling, colorful, quirky, cluttered, eccentric and so real world of an Irani café. Our way of reviving the love for the edu and the disappearing race behind the cafes" - - AD and Sabina Singh

Have been to this place many times by now. I cannot get enough of this place too. The first time I visited was to chill over an evening with couple of friends over some tea/coffee and snacks. I was pleasantly surprised when I got a table, probably because it was evening and the crowd for dinner was just entering. It is a vibrant place with some old hindi music playing all the time, the place is always filled with chirping of the people. A small toy train takes circles of the restaurant just above your head. During my first visit, I snacked on some Aloo aunty's veg cutlet, Bombay Rasta sandwich, Vada pav along with Pheteli coffee and Raspberry soda, their version of this famous Parsi drink made from real fruit . Yeah, it was a veggie visit but couldn't help but relish the cutlet and sandwich. The Raspberry soda was a refreshing drink. I preferred leaving the place early as I could see many people waiting for a table. I couldn't take any pics during this visit too :(

Next visit was for a dinner. I was waiting for this visit from the day it was opened. Started the evening with Sekanje bin, Persian inspired drink made from mint and dried plum and MRS SODABOTTLEOPENERWALA’S Cold Coffee, Cold coffee made in house with Mrs. SodaBottleOpenerWala’s secret recipe. During the course, also had Masala Pepsi, all these are from the Irani Chai Bar.

For some starters, we started with Chicken farcha, Parsi style fried chicken. Every bite was tasty and my evening just started awesome with this dish. I am not a mushroom fan but was convinced to try Spicy mushroom on Khari, Khari biscuit topped with mushroom and cheese. This is the only time I have ever loved mushroom the most. 

Next was Eggs Kejriwal, how can one not have have eeda at a Parsi restaurant? Now I can totally understand why its Mr. Devi Prasad Kejriwal’s favourite dish at the Royal Willingdon Sport club in Bombay. Must try! And the last starter was Bohri kheema pav, mildly spiced, but flavourful mutton keema served with pav. This tasted just as my Mom makes, with every bite, I was telling my Mom that its the same taste and one my my favorite mom's recipe. I may not try this again here as I can have the same taste at home.

Heading to main course, I could not stop myself from having Mutton Dhansak, you can opt for boneless or with bone. One can never expect the way Dhansak was served here, it was served in a golden color tiffin carrier with 3 box, one had Caramalised rice with vegetable, one had Classic Parsi dish of mutton with lentils and the last one with kachumbar. Its cooler to call it Kachumbar rather than salad ;) It tasted the best, I could be very bias with dhansak but I just cant not praise it or have it at my every visit. Felt very homely while having this. One more serving for me? Yes, any time but I shall save it for my other visits :)

Paatra ni Macchi was next, it was suggested by some parsi people that I should not miss having this. And for someone like me who loves sea food, I had to ask for this. Pomfret wrapped in green chutney and steamed, healthy and yummy but with bone. The green chutney used in this enhances the taste a lot.

I also tried Sali Mutton, Parsi style mutton curry topped with potato sali. I had to try 'Pateta' at a Parsi restaurant. I like this curry with pav the most.

For desserts from the Irani Bakery, Toblerone mousse came on table, a mousse made from toblerone chocolate. This cup of mousse is very chocolaty and filling. Mawa cake was next, their version of this famous Parsi/Irani cake. Tasted best when warm. 

Some kulfi can be of no harm, so next was Parsi Kulfi. Some Shrewsbury biscuit and Ginger biscuit can also be enjoyed with some warm tea. I usually pack some ginger biscuits from time to time as my Mom enjoys them with her cup of tea.

The entire place was so vibrant and lively, with people chirping. You cannot expect this place to be a quiet one. That night the restaurant witnessed 2-3 birthday celebrations, also people would sing aloud when ever a song starts playing. Now that's the charm of old hindi songs which defines this restaurant too. I really feel the food served here has a homely touch to it which is rarely seen. They have some good cocktails too which you should try. This place makes me visit them for more of eeda, papeta, pav, salli mutton, dhansak, machhi and more.