Fine dining love takes over Bengaluru

In my earlier post, GourmetItUp experience at Shiro, I had mentioned about GourmetItUp, it creates and curates customized food experiences. They help in creating unique and exclusive dining experiences for its members, from off-menu meals to tasting experiences.

Fine dine restaurant reservations portal GourmetItUp officially launched its services at restaurant partner Shiro, UB City Bengaluru on 19th March 2015. GourmetItUp partnered with Chandon and Shiro to showcase their plans for Bengaluru, at the launch event, kick starting a new and exciting phase for the gourmet food industry in the city.

"GourmetItUp is a resource that enables the locals to gain access to new culinary experiences around the city at affordable prices. Masterclasses are one of our most popular and enjoyed properties. They are very engaging and help give the diner an actual feel and taste of restaurant quality experiences hand's on" said Deepa Jain, co-founder GourmetItUp.

Shiro has partnered with Vietnamese culinary star, Chef Vu Dinh Hung to create an exclusive Vietnamese menu as part of its Viet Pop Up Experience. GourmetItUp guests were treated to an engaging masterclass by Chef Hung where signature dishes from the menu were showcased.

The evening saw an interesting exchange of ideas, mingling over flutes of Chandon and a fabulous gastronomic journey. The much awaited sit down GourmetItUp experience showcased carefully handpicked detailed dishes from Shiro's limited edition Vietnamese menu, while they enjoyed flutes of Chandon’s sparkling wine that flowed throughout the evening. The patrons were left very impressed and delighted with the advent of a revolutionary movement in the fine dining space in Bengaluru.

Bengaluru welcomes GourmetItUp :)

FBAB Meet at Rasta One

Food Bloggers Association Bangalore (FBAB) had a meet with few bloggers and food reviewers at Rasta One Place SO2EO1 in Kalyan Nagar. I have been to Rasta earlier during their launch so I was excited to pay them a visit to check what is new on the menu.

Conversations before the food arrives

Zucchini Fritters topped with Tomato Salsa was served first. We were told to have the fritter along with the salsa to get a spicy taste. I liked it though I found a slight taste of egg in it, I was told that there was no egg.

Vegetable Rissoles was served next. It was creamy and cheesy so I would prefer a spicy salsa/sauce to compliment this dish instead of tomato ketchup.

Chicken & Cheese Balls with Chilli Aioli was served, the presence of lemon zest gave a bitter experience but with mayonnaise it did not taste bitter, rather it tasted very good.

Prawn Vol-au-Vent came next on the table. It was a different way of serving prawns. The first look gave me a feel of a puff. It did surprise me with the taste. I am sure I can eat this again, during my next visit.

I enjoyed some refreshing mocktails as it was a sunny day while others enjoyed their drink :)

For main course, I opted for grilled fish steak with lemon butter sauce. I could have chosen Baked Chicken Parmigiano but my love for sea food was not allowing me to. Fish fillets do not usually fill my tummy but I still prefer having it. The lemon butter sauce was slightly more but that was the taste I was looking at. I tasted the chicken and I was happy with my choice ;)

Grilled fish steak with lemon butter sauce

Baked Chicken Parmigiano

To end the meal and the conversations at the meet, Caramel Fruit Basket was served. I have not really had this earlier so I was surely surprised. I liked the fruits served in a edible bowl made of caramel.

Belgian Chocolate Brownie with Ice Cream was also served which was a heavier dessert compared to the fruit basket.

A good meal with loads of conversations ended on a happy note.

Happy faces after a happy meal :)

I love the meet for reasons that I met new food reviewers and learned different point of views and had loads of healthy and amazing conversations.

Foodie talks

We meet again!

Girl Power at the meet :)

With Vikram, Manager of Rasta One Place

Foodies with Chef of Rasta

Be part of FBAB on facebook now :)

Lakme for Life

Lakme salon presents Lakme for Life - a tribute to the beautiful women of India.

On the occasion of Women’s Day, Lakme Salon launched ‘Lakme for Life’ to thank and reward their customers. Every year on 8th March, Lakme Salons reward their 8 lucky customers with expert salon services for the next 8 years, completely free. These 8 lucky ladies win free salon services equivalent to their previous years spends at Lakme Salons, each year, for 8 years.

Aindrita Ray, well renowned personality and actress graced the occasion to felicitate the Lakme for Life winner Ashwini KT, with a personalized ‘Lakme for Life’ card, autographed by the Lakme brand ambassador, Shraddha Kapoor. At the ceremony held to felicitate the Lakme for Life winner, Aindrita Ray added, “It gives me immense pleasure to announce the winner of “Lakme for Life”. Being a woman, I completely understand the need of a lifelong partner in the journey of beauty. Only Lakme can play that role. I have been a regular visitor at the Lakme Salon at Indira Nagar for years and enjoyed many of its trendy skin and hair rituals like the Moroccan Liquid Gold Ritual.”

Ashwini KT, the winner of ‘Lakme for Life’ from Bengaluru said, “This Women’s Day is an unforgettable experience for me. I am very excited to be among the 8 winners. I have been a regular visitor at Lakme Salon over the years, waited for their attractive offers and promotions. Now I do not have to think about it the for the next 8 years! I cannot wait for the pampering to begin at Lakme Salon. I thank Lakme Salon for this honor!”

Speaking about ‘Lakme for Life’, Pushkaraj Shenai, CEO Lakme Lever Pvt. Ltd. commented, “For the last 35 years Lakme Salon has been the most trusted beauty partner for Indian women. “Lakme for Life” takes this relationship to the next level as the winners will enjoy hair and skin services by our backstage experts free for 8 years. We have 45 salons in Bengaluru and with the overwhelming demand for franchisees we are expanding rapidly. Hence every year the number of beautiful ladies who have a chance to win Lakme for Life will only grow.”

For those who don’t make it to the lucky 8, there’s still enough to rejoice with all Lakme Salons offering up to 30% off on all services from March 5thto March 23rd, so you can save while you spend & who knows, you may be one among the lucky 8 next Women’s Day.

'Race your way to Sepang' challenge

The Formula 1 Petronas Malaysia Grand Prix™ is scheduled for 27-29 March 2015 at the Sepang Interantional Circuit (SIC). This will be the second stop in the F1 calendar after the Rolex Australian Grand Prix™. With plenty of movement of top drivers across teams and the return of Honda into the championship, the tone is set to be competitive for the title this year.

With India riding high on the racing popularity wave, Tourism Malaysia and the Sepang International Circuit is holding the ‘Race your way to Sepang’ challenge among corporates to promote the Malaysian leg of the F1 craze. At the event, a special Formula 1 Package with travel partner Yatra.com will also be launched.

Malaysia Tourism 'Corporate Go Kart Challenge' Bangalore

 “We have been promoting the Petronas Formula 1 event for a few years now and the response has been quite encouraging. For this year's promotions we have planned 2 corporate events in Mumbai and Bangalore where the participants will compete in Go Karting racing Challenges. The fastest team stands a chance to win an all expense paid trip to Malaysia to watch the race live,” said Mr Manoharan Periasamy, Director, Tourism Malaysia. The winning team will be hosted by Starwood Hotels and the Air tickets will be sponsored by Malaysia Airlines.

Winners of Malaysia Tourism 'Corporate Go Kart Challenge' Bangalore

This year Malaysia celebrates Malaysia Year of Festivals (MyFEST) 2015. Themed "Endless Celebrations", the year-long calender is packed with festivities of every genre; for instance cultural festivals, shopping extravanganzas, international acclaimed events, eco-tourism events, arts, music showcases, food promotion and other themed events. Continuing the momentum and efforts to promote the destination, MyFEST 2015 is set to make Malaysia the top-of-the-mind tourist destination, encouraging tourists to stay longer in order to enjoy the festival offerings nationwide added Mr. Manoharan Periasamy.

The race this year is dubbed as the F1 carnival – the first of its kind at the Sepang International Circuit (SIC), the 2015 Formula 1 PETRONAS Malaysia Grand Prix™ will have something for everyone. From go-karting at the Xtrack or just chilling at the Cool Zone complete with a water-course while waiting for the excitement to begin on track. And of course, what better way to end the exciting day than by enjoying a fantastic performance at the After Race Concert once the dust has settled on the track says Ms. Sharmila Nadarajah.

The Malaysian Grand Prix tickets are sold from as low as INR 1,640 for Hillstand seats. The Grandstand seats are sold from INR 5,720 for F stands and INR 13,470 for K1 stands, where fans will have a perfect view fronting the first turn of the circuit. The main grandstand starts from INR 6,940 to as high as INR 36,100 for the best view.

For those who like to enjoy the race in a more stylish way complete with fine dining, come over to the Club Suite and experience the race from inside Sepang International Circuit (SIC) luxury suites. Choose between a view fronting the pit or catch the entire action from the race on the Southern track. Price per person starts from INR 93,800. For Club Suite reservation, please email to enquiries@sepangcircuit.com

For any further query, please visit:
Website: www.tourism.gov.my
Facebook: www.facebook.com/malaysiajao
Twitter: www.twitter.com/malaysiajao

Sinful blend of Chocolate and Coffee with Magnum

Who doesn't love chocolate and coffee? I do and my excitement was at its peak when I was invited for the Magnum's Choco Cappuccino launch. Last year I was part of the launch of Magnum ice cream with its three flavors and this was the forth one.

I have many memories of chocolate and a sweet tooth for it too. I usually do not share my chocolates and one should be really special to be lucky to share my chocolate. Another memory of chocolate I have is, whenever I am unwell, I need a chocolate and definitely one when I am getting an injection from the doctor else I will never get one done.

With Coffee, I used to like very mild coffee's like a Latte in the initial but later developed a strong taste for coffee and now I cannot live without a cappuccino. Coffee shops have been my favorite place to hang out and my usual drink is a cappuccino. A lot of my conversations happen over a cappuccino.

A blend of coffee and chocolate can be named a sinful blend. A blend of it remind me of Mocha. But I knew this was Magnum and the blend would be more than just Mocha. The launch of Magnum's new flavor was done by renowned Pastry Chef Janice Wong and World Barista Champion Fritz Storm at JW Marriott, Bangalore.

The Pastry Chef Janice Wong spoke about chocolate and prepared different mixes for all the guests. Among all the mixes, I loved the chocolate chilli the most. The taste of chocolate on my tongue with a choky chilli flavor on my throat made me crave for it more. A mix with cinnamon was also made.

World Barista Champion Fritz Storm spoke about coffee and he prepared Expresso Champagne which I tasted. The expresso champagne was refreshing and bitter.

Then Janice and Fritz paired up to make something together and it looked sinful. Those that got the pleasure to had it were very lucky. It was a Choco Martini.

The time was here for which the crowd was present, Magnum's new flavor was presented to all. The entire crowd tasted the the new flavor at once and we were one of the lucky one's to taste it before the country did. The crackling sound of the Belgium chocolate with a crunchy bite of coffee bean along with creamy vanilla ice-cream with coffee syrup was the perfect time of the evening. Everyone present at the venue were busy eating the ice-cream and moaning 'Hmmmm' with every bite. A cool ice-cream on a windy evening was the best treat given by Magnum.

A conversation with Janice and Fritz got me to know more about them and the flavor.

The new flavour is available from March 1st, 2015 throughout the country.