In a nutshell – Loved the overall dining experience at Amaranta including the splendid food – contemporary take on traditional food from 9 coastal states of India. Address & other details: Amaranta Meal for 2: Rs. 5000 onwards Cuisine type : Vegetarian & nonvegetarian Short Description – In case u r in a Hurry: Amaranta is an Indian Coastal food specialty restaurant that serves food … Continue reading Amaranta (The Oberoi, 443, Phase 5, Udyog Vihar, Gurgaon)
In a nutshell: A tiny beautifully done restaurant that serves good (but short of wow) Kashmiri curries & some pretty average reheated snacks / starters. For non foodies / those not much exposed to Kasmiri cuisine / non Indian Guests, the curries might b very enjoyable as it is. Address & other details: Kashmiri Kitchen Meal for 2: Rs. 500 onwards Cuisine type: vegetarian & … Continue reading Kashmiri Kitchen (Beside Metro Pillar No. 109, Near Ghitorni Metro Station, MG Road, Ghitorni, New Delhi)
This insightful & visually delighting post has been written by Guest Blogger Subhayan Das who is a Chef by training. This young talented Chef currently works for the famous Olive Group of Restaurants in Delhi. & this is his first blog post . I attended the recently conducted Asia pastry forum at Academy of Pastry arts, kuala lumpur, malaysia. It featured some of the tops … Continue reading Amazing Food Art
In a nutshell: Surely serves better curries than the legendary Karims, almost as good Kababs as Karims & some ordinary food that might not leave a mark. Situated in a small two storeyed setup where nothing seems to have changed in decades. Address & other details: Enter the road perpendicular to Jama Masjid Gate no. 1, first shop is Al Jawahar, next is the lane … Continue reading Old Jawahar (Opposite Jama Masjid, Gate no. 1, beside Karim’s, Old Delhi)
Some Super YUMM, someYUMM & some not so YUMM Vegetarian Punjabi Dhaba food in Gurgaon at unbelievable prices, with the owner & his family at the shop floor at all times to attend to customers.
Long shot of Mame da Dhaba – the front side is the dining room & the hind side is the kitchen.
Address & other details:As u enter the one way road of DLF Phase 3 from beside Gateway tower (Jahajwali building), u come across a building on the left that has RBS. Take the road on the left as soon as the RBS building ends. Mame da Dhaba is just less than 50 meters into that road.
Superb Paneer Tikkas freshly tandoored & served
Meal for 2: Rs. 150 onwards
Cuisine type:vegetarian
Short Description – in case u r in a hurry:
This tiny eatery looks pretty unimpressive from outside. However, it is pretty neat & clean within. There is seating for 10 persons at any point of time – One has to share tables with strangers. Might sound odd but believe me, once the YUMM food arrives, people just stop talking & eat till they r full.
Aloo methi
Outside, near the road there is a juice counter. The tandoor is also right beside the entrance.
Service is pretty fast. The owner is on the shop floor at all times & so is his family (most of the time). The owner supervises , takes home delivery orders on phone, manages the cash box, at times lends a hand to serving & at times to clearing plates as well. Staff members r quite good & r experts in fast service.
The owner supervising the open Kitchen – standing in the Dining Hall
The 3 page menu card has a real long list of items. I wonder how they manage it. Stock-outs however happen ‘ aaj ye item khatam ho gaya ji’.
Menu card with home delivery numbers as well
Some of the food items we had were extraordinarily good. Others were just good. One of the six dishes was suboptimal.
Detailed description – In case u have the time to njoy reading:
This post is about Christmas brunch 2012 at Olive Beach…………………….
In a nutshell:
Today’s Christmas brunch got me back to Olive Beach after many years & filled me with some good foodie moments that I wud remember for some time to come.
Meal for 2: Rs. 2000 onwards (usually). Special pricing for Christmas Brunch.
Grilled fish & Grilled Jumbo Prawns
Cuisine type: vegetarian & nonvegetarian
Short Description – in case u r in a hurry:
The advantage of having a huge spread is that people can choose what they like. This is what exactly the situation was like, at today’s Christmas brunch at Olive beach. However what is important is not just the width of the spread but also some winners & some ‘item numbers’/ show stoppers that people take home memories of. The good thing is Olive Beach had more than expected number of winners & of course they had ‘item numbers’ – Roasted suckling pig & Roasted Turkey.
Starters & cold cuts
The Restaurant specializes in Mediterranean cuisine & hence its interiors r done according to the theme. The guys serving us were quite efficient till the peak hours, after which they needed reminding on few occasions. The Chefs at the live counters were very interactive & I enjoyed little chats with few of them.
Roasted suckling pig
Music was obviously Christmas themed.
Detailed description – In case u have the time to njoy reading:
Excellent Bihari food served in a nice setting by pretty warm people – I developed a small temporary potbelly as I walked out of this place after eating loads of irresistible food.
Good place to catch up with friends, a lunch date or just a nice place to hang around.
Like in all other restaurants , I visited this place in anonymity. The climb to the 4th floor thru narrow bright colored (bordering garish) was the only disgusting part. Once up there, it was really enjoyable. I was appreciating the way in which a simple property has been converted to a nice restaurant seemingly without too much expenditure.
Dining Hall at The potbelly
The floor extends to both sides of the staircase. On the Dining Hall to the right, there is a non alcoholic bar:) area – actually a serving counter.
Dining Hall with the bar area in the corner
On the left side there is a small dining area that also leads to a open air area in 3rd floor. The walls r all glass & that makes it good due to plenty of light & also good view outside. The decor of the open air area is good with a great view as well.
Looks of the open air area
The furniture is mix & match – no two chairs around a table r the same. On the wall hang loads of empty frames sans pictures.
The menu card is very colorful & quite informative as well – good explanation to the names of the dishes.
colorful menu cards at The Potbelly
Passion for excellence exudes – I felt this throughout during our lunch at Potbelly. Without the passion, all items ordered during a particular meal cannot b simultaneously good.
Maher – A hot dish with curd, rice & spices, garnished with nuts
The staff member who was serving us was very warm & helpful.
Detailed description – In case u have the time to njoy reading:
Indian fine Dining Restaurant with superb food, excellent ambiance but quite mismanaged when it comes to the whole experience.
The logo of the restaurant
Address & other details: Kasturi
Meal for 2: Rs. 1500 onwards
Dining hall of
Cuisine type: vegetarian & nonvegetarian
Short Description – in case u r in a hurry:
If it had happened once, I wud have thought it to b an aberration. Since it happened twice, I smell a consistency in the pattern. The restaurant is on the first floor. First day we climbed up the stairs & reached there to find that a party was going on. There was no staff member either at the ground floor entrance or at the bar at first floor. Second day was again a similar experience – We climbed up to find no one upstairs. Waited for a few minutes & came downstairs. How can a restaurant in India not have a Human being manning it at all ‘open hours’?????
Sunehri Bater
As we sat for the food we realized that there was only one server for the full floor of approx 16 tables. He was welcoming guests (in case he was in the hall when the guest popped up), taking orders, going to the kitchen (I guess down stairs), serving the food, clearing the plates, settling the bill & saying goodbye!!!! Must say that the guy was too good & very well behaved. But the overall service was getting affected coz he was running around. We were at the restaurant from 8pm to 9.45 pm & the status was the same. Is the lone waiter expected to b a superman to still deliver impeccable service or is it sheer negligence on part of the Management?
beauty shot
The interiors of the restaurant is very nice. A ‘golden latticework’ theme is seen throughout. The walls have large paintings of Nawabs & courtesans. I think the Nawabs in these pictures are 3 times slimmer than what they wud have looked like, when they lived.
pictures of slim nawabs in the Dining Hall
I was however wondering why western music was playing in a Nawabi menu Nawabi look restaurant!!!
The menu card was beautifully designed – its cover was inspired by the lattice work mentioned above.
Menu card at Kasturi
Prices of food are on higher side as compared to prices of these dishes in mid range restaurants. So I heard my friends comment ‘too much priced’ etc. However, as compared to other Indian fine dining places like Dum Affairs South Ex Delhi or Kainoosh, Promenade, Vasant Kunj, Delhi, the prices r totally justified.
Latticework design
I wud love to go to Kasturi again & again inspite of all the above coz the food is real good. Authentic to a large extent & impressive taste & flavour.
Bunn Gosth
Detailed description – In case u have the time to njoy reading:
Unlike my usual anonymous ‘walk-in’s to eateries all around where I consciously avoid meeting the chefs & owners (so that my views do not get biased in case I get into a friendly chat), this was a unique experience for me – I walked into an event where there was not one or two or three but six hundred chefs under one roof!!!! I was at the 9th award ceremony of Indian Culinary Forum that happens to be a body of Chefs all over India on invitation by a friend who happens to be a Chef himself.
The chef awards in progress
The first thing that I noticed when I received the invite was that it was chaired by ‘Dr K Chiranjeevi’, Union Minister. The only Chiranjeevi I happened to know was the South Indian actor turned politician. So Google came to my rescue – Wiki confirmed that Chiranjeevi the actor was awarded honorary Doctorate by Andhra Pradesh University & what a coincidence – I was about to see the only Chiranjeevi I know:)
As we reached the venue, we realized that the evening program had just started & someone on the dais was delivering a speech in nice English but in a very monotonous voice. I started looking for the action hero Chiranjeevi on the stage only to realize that this gentleman in suit was a transformed ‘gentleman’ version of the onscreen ‘angry street fighter’ that I knew – Chiranjeevi.
Better than most sizzler places in Delhi NCR but nowhere near to the real taste & flavours of similar food that u get in Europe / USA.
the logo
Address & other details: Kobe Sizzlers
Meal for 2:Rs. 800 onwards
Cuisine type:vegetarian & nonvegetarian
Short Description – in case u r in a hurry:
For the uninitiated, Kobe refers to cuts of beef from a certain species of cattle, raised according to strict tradition in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. The meat is generally considered to be a delicacy, renowned for its flavour, tenderness, and fatty, well-marbled texture.This happens to be one of the most expensive meats in the world.
When Kobe Sizzlers of Mumbai opened shop in Gurgaon for the first time few years back, we were exited. A quick visit to Kobe gave mixed reactions – It was surely better than most other sizzler places around, including Peter Cat of Park Street Kolkata. However, when it came to the sauces, the right flavours, herbs, texture of steamed veggies etc, this one was shades below its Global counterparts. Must mention here that the prices at Kobe r cheaper than the others I am referring to.
The restaurant is well designed – visually. Functionally, it is a bit too crammed, to the extent that u can definitely hear 100% of the discussion on the next table. I guess there is no alternative as space is limited & people throng here all the while – queues r often to b seen.
Dining Hall of the restaurant
The air inside is usually filled with strong burnt smell of sizzlers which is good for carnivores like us but might not b very enjoyable to vegetarians. Sound of sizzlers & the smoke coming out from it make up for the mood of this place.
This is a place good to go, eat & get out. Not really a fine dining place, not a dating place either but a kind of ‘eat good food & spend chatting time elsewhere’ kinda place.
Some members of the staff are Old School true blue restaurant Stewards & that makes the experience quite nostalgic at times. Rest of the guys appeared to b modern day restaurant waiters who r doing this for earning a living & might move on to say a Shopper’s Stop in the next job jump.
Detailed description – In case u have the time to njoy reading:
