Author: manuscrypts

  • Naushad Big Chef

    The review first appeared in Bangalore Mirror.

    Until a few months back, the domain after Barista on 1st A Cross could very well have been called Keramangala, thanks to the proliferation of Kerala food joints. But when Paramount shut shop, after finding that it really could not be true to its name as long as Empire was around, and the spot immediately after Barista turned into Coconut Grave, courtesy the deep pit that appeared in place of the similar-sounding restaurant, Kerala was beginning to lose its gastronomic hold over Koramangala. But a new hope soon arrived in the form of NBC – not the television network- but Naushad, the Big Chef. For those in the habit of watching Malayalam channels, Naushad would be a familiar figure, rattling off easy-to-make recipes from across the world into the airwaves, for about seven years now. He has a Bangalore connection too – he did a hotel management course here. From a catering origin, NBC now has branches across many cities in India and plans to expand in the Mallu homeland across the waters too – the Gulf. I have been to one of the restaurants in Cochin. Though the menu does vary a bit across the outlets, keeping in mind local tastes, the biryani, which has found great favour in Kerala, is a common factor.

    The restaurant is just before Empire, (map) on the right. Parking is on the street, but the parking lot next to Empire is a short walk away too.

    The starters section is predominantly North Indian and Chinese and the one item that caught our attention – the Chilli Fish NBC style was still in its natural habitat, and therefore unavailable. We took this opportunity to test out the North Indian representatives in the menu and asked for a Chakori Kabab and a Nilgiri Kabab. The former was a chicken kabab with a mutton mince filling but was a bit too sour for our liking. The Nilgiri Kabab –chicken again, was much better – tangy and mildly spicy. The Prawns Pepper Fry was the best of the starters, with juicy, succulent prawns and a very spicy masala.

    Just like the starter section, this one too has quite a lot of North Indian and Chinese items, but we were quite focused. The fish continued to give us the slip even when it came to the biryani. The Chicken Biryani, NBC’s signature dish arrived first and was very good – flavourful, non sticky rice, just the right amount of masala, and well cooked chicken. It seemed more Travancore style than Malabar, in terms of taste as well as the conspicuous absence of the boiled egg. The other dish that gave it good competition for the top spot was the Chicken Ulathiyathu, a dry dish with some excellent spicy masala. Try it with the soft and fluffy appams. The (Mutton) Brain Roast is quite unlike the versions you’d find elsewhere, both in texture and taste. But it lost its impact thanks to the oily aftertaste. We finally got the fish in the curries – Alleppey and Malabar – both coconut based, and if you like a sharp tang, you should try the former. Watch out for the fish with a swollen head though – mostly bone.

    The Meen Pollichathu though, was quite a disappointment with an uncharacteristic bordering-on-bland masala and a pomfret that seemed to have extra bones in its body. The Dosas and Kerala Porottas performed their role reasonably well. The latter was quite crisp but lacked that hint of butter that has now become a characteristic of the Dosa based combination.

    In addition to the various items listed on the menu – mostly standard fare, they also have a juice and ice cream counter. We thought it was very unfortunate that they had chosen not to have any Kerala representation in this section. But we decided to try out the Date Pancake, which unfortunately, not only had an overdose of sesame, but was deep fried enough to be called a Date Poori! The Rasgullas turned out to be overly rubbery and rather insipid in terms of flavour. The Gulab Jamoon were probably the only item that we were not totally disappointed with, though it would be wise to check its temperature before swallowing it whole, since one of us was ready to spew smoke after this stunt.

    For Rs.550, you could share a non-veg starter, a biryani, a couple of Kerala Porotas and a non veg dish for the main course, and a gulab jamun for dessert.

    Many dishes were unavailable and the service swung from helpful to chaotic, the excuse being that there was some party in another section of the restaurant. In essence, the signature dish was the only redeeming factor in what turned out to be an otherwise botched experience. Unless there is a significant improvement in the quality of the dishes, especially the Kerala cuisine, and the overall levels of service, the Empire need not bother striking back.

    Naushad Big Chef, #125/A, KHB Colony, 5th Block, Koramangala,  Ph: 080-41465252

  • Once upon a place…

    Travel used to be something I looked forward to – I can still remember train journeys  – from Cochin to Bombay, Chennai to Kolkata and shorter ones, from packed home-cooked food and getting Amar Chitra Katha bought for me at Railway bookstores to bringing books I couldn’t find in railway stores and getting down at stations and sampling local specialty food, the first rides in the Rajdhani and Shatabdi in ’93, from traveling in a group to traveling alone, and from listening to a walkman to listening on a mobile phone, the stories are endless.

    Travel then became an escape from the mundane existence with known favourite destinations that would guarantee rejuvenation if only for a few days. Then travel became something I completely avoided, until slowly I began to unravel that mystery in my head, and here.

    These days I look forward to my vacations, planning months ahead and carefully choosing destinations. Meticulous planning and research that even D has now gained a knack for. 🙂 The idea of a mass of humanity that vastly differs from me in many ways, and yet connected to me by that sometimes intangible human chord. The sense of possibilities, the immense perspectives that one gathers just by observing a different way of life, and the comforting knowledge that I am not alone in matters of the human condition.

    until next time, we’re busy getting Balistic next week 🙂

  • Lunatic in My Head

    Anjum Hasan

    Though this is the author’s debut, I happened to read it after I read the second work – Neti Neti, which can arguably be seen as a sequel of sorts to this book, not just because its protagonist happens to be Sophie Das, a character introduced in this book, but also because both the books seem to have a common theme of a search for belonging.

    ‘Lunatic In My Head’ has four principal characters. Firdaus Ansari, who teaches English literature to an apathetic class, pursues an elusive PhD, finds it diffuclt to connect to the authors she’s dealing with, fights staff room battles, suffers from near OCD and tries desperately to remain in love, as she lives with her grandfather, both of them conscious of a fragile balance that allows them to endure each other.

    Aman Moondy, Civil Services aspirant, obsessed with Pink Floyd with a bunch of friends, each fighting their own battles with parents, siblings, lovers and representing the life of youth stuck in a small town.

    Sophie Das, eight year old daughter of an English professor who refuses to be realistic and his wife who feels her husband has stopped caring for the family.

    And Shillong, for this book is also about the place, its people, its gossip, its idiosyncrasies, and its clearly visible lines of separation between the natives and dkhar (Khasi word for non tribal person)

    Each of them also live in their own fantasy world too- Sophie, who cooks up a story of being adopted, and Aman, who thinks Roger Waters makes songs based on the letters he sent him. The smallness of the town is perhaps emphasised by the degrees of connection between the characters, how their paths cross, and how intertwined their lives are.

    Divided into chapters such as ‘Wonder’, ‘Sadness’, ‘Love’, ‘Courage’, ‘Disgust’, ‘Fear’, ‘Anger’, ‘Joy’ and finally ‘Peace’, the book passes through what can be seen as a cycle, and uses the mundane occurrences in a small town to reflect mindset and the paradoxical static and dynamic nature of the place and the people there. What takes it to a higher level is the moodiness that seems to reflect rainy and misty Shillong itself.

  • Moral Signs

    A little more than a year back, I remember writing a post on identity – what exactly constitutes the individual – work, relationships, consumption, combinations of these…….

    More recently, I read a Scott Adams post which actually asks the same question ‘Who are you?’ He also provides his best answer to it ‘You are what you learn’. It’s an interesting point and I do agree that what you learn is what gives you additional perspective. It changes the way you view older experiences and how you react to new experiences. And so, despite believing in being prisoners of birth to some extent, and knowing that the apple never falls far from the tree, and at the risk of generalisation, I would tend to agree.

    Which brings me to learning. In an earlier era, our ‘channels’ of learning were limited – parents, relatives, friends, teachers, literature, some amounts of media, and so on. Limited when compared to the abundance that a media explosion and the internet have brought into our lives. Sometime back, I read a post in the NYT titled ‘If it feels right‘, which discussed a study on the role of morality (rather, the lack of it) in the lives of America’s youth. The author clarifies that it isn’t as though they are living a life of debauchery, it’s just that they don’t even think of moral dilemmas, the meaning of life and such. The study ‘found an atmosphere of extreme moral individualism’, mostly because they have not been given the resources to develop their thinking on such matters.

    It led me to think about the moral frameworks that were instilled in us by our sources when were young. At the very least, value systems existed, though obviously their ‘quality’ would be a subjective affair. I wonder, if in this era of abundant sources, we are missing out on inculcating the basic moral guidelines that are necessary for a society’s sustenance and  evolution. If people are what they learn, then the least we could do is take a closer look at our own moral framework. The next generation, despite the abundance of sources, could be learning from it. Or perhaps this is the way it has always been, between generations. 🙂

    until next time, moral poultice

    PS: a beauuuutiful related video

  • Punjabi By Nature

    We’re not, but since food transcends all cultural and geographical barriers, we decided to drop in at the restaurant by that name, on Hosur Road. (ok Marigowda Road then) When coming from Koramangala, this is just after Manchester United.  (map) Parking is taken care of. In any case, it’s just a short walk from Forum. Builds appetite.

    We reserved in advance, since the web seemed to suggest that. But the process turned out to be quite funny. When you call the number, and tell them you want to reserve a table, they take your number and inform you that they’ll call back. They did, after 5 minutes, and I wondered if they should have some missed call service instead.

    The thing that struck us as soon as we entered was that they had somehow used up the space to transport people far away from the busy road right outside. Superb ambiance, complete with greenery, mood lighting, comfortable seating, soft music, a view of the microbrewery….. and giant TVs. They also seem to have outdoor seating. In all, a very relaxing atmosphere.

    From the liquor menu, we decided to check out the Gol gappa shots – puris (2) filled with Indian spices, and you can add the vodka shot yourself. From the four flavours available, we asked for pepper. Since the hours were happy, we got another couple of shots. It comes with a glass of beer., and we asked for one wheat and one dark lager. The Gol gappas were pretty awesome, and the wheat beer is perfect for less-than-occasional drinkers like us. The dark lager is more standard. The shots were at Rs.395, but considering that a glass of beer costs Rs.150 standalone, it was a reasonable deal. In addition their regular menu, they also had a  few tawa delicacies.

    We asked for the Tawa Magaz Masala and though we were told initially that it wasn’t available and that we could have the regular version (Amritsari Magaz Masala) instead, it miraculously did appear on our table in the end. The Kandhari Murg was our next choice, and the person who took our order very helpfully suggested that we could manage with a half plate. Ditto with the Chicken Keema Naan, when we asked for two and he said one would be enough. Turned out he was right, the damn naan was more like a medium pizza in terms of size. The brain was quite good and spicy. The Kandhari Murg was a yellow gravy dish (not boneless) with the creamy texture of regular white gravies and quite rich. Both worked really well with the keema naan, a bit spicy and quite filling.

    We were too stuffed to check out the desserts. That was a miss, especially those flambe Gulab Jamuns I had read about somewhere. The service is, as mentioned, very helpful. All of the above cost us just less than Rs.1700, including taxes and a 10% service charge. It’s definitely quite costly, but if you do decide to splurge, you wouldn’t be disappointed with the food and ambiance that Punjabi By Nature provides.

    Punjabi By Nature, No:6, Krishna Nagar Industrial Area, Behind Forum Mall, Hosur Road Ph: 49138800