A trip to Turkey – Istanbul, Cappadocia (Kapadocia) & Konya. Like all our international travels, this trip was also arranged by the unbelievably amazing team at Veena World. Special shout out to Roshni & Jahnavi. We felt like someone was there every waking moment to help, (almost like family) from the tiniest of things to major ones. Part 1 of 4 – In this post I will cover the trip details of Istanbul Part 2 of 4 – In this post I … Continue reading An Indian in Istanbul: Stories, Sights, and Surprises in Turkey (travelogue part 1 of 4)
………………… an Indian Foodie’s experience of eating Chinese food in China (including vegetarian dishes) YUMMRAJ was in Beijing last week. Here’s a peek into what transpired on the plate. Njoy the super YUMM pics & read the small description. In most of the descriptions, everything in the menu card was written in Chinese & hence I left the ordering to my able friends. Hence I … Continue reading YUMMRAJ eating out in Beijing, China
An Indian foodie’s experience of Iranian food in USA vs.& comparison with similar dishes available in India. In a nutshell: Excellent flavors & taste of a wide selection of Food from Iran in a beautiful Restaurant whose Dining hall reminded of Palaces described in the Arabian Nights. Address & other details: Persian Room Cuisine Type: Vegetarian & Nonvegetarian Meal for 2: US$ 60 onwards Short … Continue reading Persian Room (17040 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, Arizona, USA)
This is one place where grabbing a table always seems to be time consuming – u can mostly see a queue outside the Restaurant. This time we got a chance to get in & try the food without having to wait in a long queue. We chose the basics & not fancy dishes to see how they taste in London vs. say in Delhi India.
Add ons on the table at Huxley’s
The ambience is good inspite of being a bit dark in some corners. There is a bar on one side & one can choose to sit at the bar as well.
Mixed Meat Grill at Huxley’s
The menu card is self explanatory – so one does not need to ask too many questions to the person waiting on. We were lucky to get a very warm & helpful waitress.
Food was good overall & some of it was excellent.
Detailed Description – In case u have the time to enjoy reading:
This post is an Indian Foodie’s perspective on Mexican food in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. He has never been to Mexico though. The comments are purely based on the taste & not on authenticity / proximity to the traditional Mexican taste.
The Restaurant is in a building that has many eateries. I cud not figure out why but this place attracted me & we just walked in.
The ambience was good – predominantly dimlighting with lamps on each table. Njoyable peppy (I guess) Mexican Music was being played in the backdrop.
After reading the menu card twice we figured that we had not figured anything at all. So time to seek help. We asked the lady serving us. She patiently explained the names, the meanings & at times the ingredients as well. She suggested some dishes & drinks as well. Full marks to her patience , product knowledge & role as a hostess.
The food was good & we loved it so much that we revisited the place in just 3-4 days.
Detailed Description – In case u have the time to njoy reading:
As we sat waiting for the food, we were served inhouse made super crispy super thin & very tasty nachos with unimpressive looking but outstanding salsa. The salsa looked a bit watery (not thick) but its taste was too good. Once we started eating this, the hands were just going to the mouth & back to the plate inspite of repeated signals from the brain to stop doin that!!!! We finished a full load of nachos & salsa.
Nachos & Salsa
As suggested by the lady serving us, we went for Mi Amigo’s signature Margarita served ‘frozen’ with a splash of citrus tinged Blue curacao……….I added a bit of sweet & salt. Too good. Refreshing longggggggggggggggggg drink.
Contributed by Guest Blogger Vasudha Mukherjee Bal Cuisine Type: Vegetarian & Nonvegetarian Meal for 2: US$ Address & other details: La Fiesta I was in San Diego for work recently and was craving for some authentic Mexican food. Living in Boston can leave you with a craving for spicy favorites if you are in Southern California for sure! There is this one dish that I … Continue reading La Fiesta (628 5th Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101, USA)
This post has been written by Guest Blogger IshitaUnblogged & was originally published here. All photos in this post courtesy ishitaphotoideas.
the facade
The Shiraz Nostalgia
Amongst all the golden memories of my college days in Kolkata, the one thing that consistently churns up is Shiraz Golden Restaurant in Circus Avenue, Park Circus. All our random parties or any special party for that matter (for example Holi, Diwali or even Durga Puja!) was necessarily powered by Mutton Biriyani, Chicken Chaap and Firni (an Indian Dessert made with milk and powdered Basmati rice with Saffron) from Shiraz. Each one of us would be handed over one packet of Mutton Biriyani each and one piece from the Chicken Chaap to start with… and would end with forever licking the spoons that scooped out the mildly aromatic Firni (a dessert) set in an earthen small pot! The same menu was repeated at every occasion when friends would meet and Mums would refuse to host a mini impromptu parties.
Even today when we go to Kolkata, the same menu from the same Shiraz is waiting either for us at some of our friends’ houses or at our Kolkata home for others who visit us!
Most of the Bengalis that I have met, associate Biriyani, specially the Mughlai cooking with the Lucknowy or the Awadhi style of cooking. Hence, as much as we love the various kinds of Biriyani – the Hyderabadi, the Sindhi, the Pakistani Biriyanis, our taste-buds still search for Shiraz’s Biriyani. Though there is no dearth of Indian restaurants in Dubai, there was definitely a dearth of Indian restaurants which could satiate the Mughlai food nostalgia for those who grew up in Kolkata.
Well, till Shiraz Golden Restaurant came to the shores of Dubai, all the way from Kolkata. Till then some dishes occurred only in my dreams. For example – the Kolkata Kathi Rolls! Or the Mughlai Parathas!
Exceeded my expectations as usually Coffee Shops in Hotels r not the best places to have a memorable meal. Liked it.
Excelsior Hotel, Causeway Bay, Hongkong
Meal for 2: HK$ 300 onwards
Cuisine Type: Vegetarian & Non Vegetarian
Description:
Have been staying in this Hotel for the past two days & have had different kinds of food so far. Here is how it was.
Room service
We asked for Fried seafood noodle – It turned out to be what we know as American Chopsuey in India. Deep fried thin noodles, Hard & crispy in texture, looks like a nest, placed at the base of the plate. Gravy poured on top of that. The gravy soaked noodles tasted better than just the dry crispy ones coz those were different from normal noodles but attained a very interesting texture.
Pok choy was the only green vegetable in the noodle & among the seafood were large prawns, calamari (squid) & some excellent scallops. The scallops were very soft in texture & had a very robust taste. Prawns were soft, mildly juicy & not at all chewy. The calamari was a bit short of optimum in terms of the texture. Overall, a very enjoyable meal.
Fried noodles with seafood
Fried Oyster cake with leek & egg omlette – A deep fried food, this conceptually cud have been a baked dish as well. A bit more oily – the texture initially reminded me of Fish Batter fry that we used to eat around at Benfish Kolkata. However, quite quickly I figured out that it was closer to fish Kabiraji.
oyster omlettes
The inside was deshelled oysters (as it is) bound together by egg & sprinkling of leeks. I found the same dish being served at the traditional Roadside eatery at Temple street night market. Tasty, Enjoyable & interesting dish but a bit too oily for some people. Maybe this one wud have felt much better if it was cooked by any method other than deep frying………… but who am I to comment on traditional dish of this place??………….. just a humble foodie.
fresh fruit platter to end the meal
Breakfast & Lunch spread:
Its got a huge breakfast & lunch spread wth Oriental & Continental sections.
There was a tiny Indian section too. Live stations constantly had queues. Needless to say that the Indian food was just ok. Nothing great.
Special mention to the salmon sashimi at the Japanese counter, Peking duck at the Chinese Counter, a very large dessert & fruit section. The sashimi was outstanding & the wasabi was good at hitting the sinuses. The Peking Duck at China Garden, Hyatt, New Delhi is much better. The choice of everything was so high that at times I was feeling like a kid in a candy shop.
peking duck, sashimi & honey pork
The coffee shop
Went for Thai Fish cake & salad with Nuoc Cham dressing. The texture reminded me of crab cakes. The fish cake had a slightly thick outer layer & very soft & juicy inside. Tasty & cool – though some people might find it a bit oily since it is deep fried. I liked it & likely to order again.
thai fish cakes
For main course, had ‘fish balls with flat rice noodle soup’ – Though the menu card mentioned fish balls, the dish had fish ‘cuboids’ as well. Loved it so much that had it again next morning at the live food station. So here is how it was made:
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