I am quite a fan of patterns. It is difficult to look around and not believe that there is some grand order in the scheme of things. But it becomes even more difficult when one does not have the luxury of faith. And thus it is a pleasure when science points to a possible unifying theory that brings some amount of order to what could be mistaken for randomness. Scale begins with showing how ‘there are scaling relationships that quantitatively describe how almost any measurable characteristic of animals, plants, ecosystems, cities and companies scales with size.‘ We are talking of things as varied as metabolic rate, patents, and companies’ income and assets! The simplicity underlying the complexity is what this book is about.
We’ve been hearing about Roxie for a while now, and everything we had heard had been good. So, in what is now becoming a little tradition, we set out for Sarjapur Road on the Diwali weekend, when we hoped that most of Bangalore would either be at home, or visiting their hometown. That indeed seemed to be the case, as our journeys both ways took us just about half an hour. Yes, that is a very big deal in Bangalore.
I think the biggest thing going for Roxie is how pretty it is! We didn’t get an opportunity to go upstairs, but the interior as well as the al fresco space somehow exudes an old world charm while still providing a contemporary comfort (furniture). High ceilings and those lamp posts outside accentuate all this. It was, as the meme goes, “looking like a wow”. ‘Roxie’ is whom the theme is based on – a traveler who picks up favourite recipes from different journeys. Yes, she is about as real as the tooth fairy. That explains Korean, North Indian, and Italian on the same (digital) page. (the menu we actually found there was slightly different)
Meanwhile, D said she has been here when it was some other restaurant. Any idea?
I was boring and chose my regular Old Fashioned. In many recent experiments, the cocktails have failed. This was one was par for the course, nothing extraordinary. D was more optimistic, and chose ‘The Solution’. I think that was some hint aimed at me. This tequila-based drink apparently has an origin story from Roxie’s hometown – Amalfi, where her friend Max used to run a Speakeasy. With Jalapeno, orange, passion fruit, thyme and lime juice, and a fancy garnish that included chilli flakes, was very good. D couldn’t resist a smirk.
If you’re going to Roxie, this is the one dish I will highly recommend. Korean Garlic Bread. Super soft bun filled with Philadelphia Cream Cheese and garlic butter, this one is really the melt-in-your-mouth kind. To the extent that we were tempted to pack one up for the next day!
This is the Chateaubriand Royale: Rosemary Wine Elegance. This apparently pays homage to a Parisian dish. Grilled Chateaubriand beef in Rosemary Wine jus , accompanied by mashed potatoes and Hollandaise sauce. The beef was very well cooked, and the sauce complemented it very well.
We debated pizza vs pasta, and finally went for the Siciliana. Smoked Turkey was the attraction, and it also had pesto, Jalapeno, Mozzarella, Parmesan Cheese, Confit Tomatoes, and Arugula. This was quite a disappointing dish. First of all, that smoked turkey only made a guest appearance, and secondly, there was some very inconsistent saltiness that made ‘shock’ appearances that really took away from anything the dish might have accomplished. I also felt the amount of pesto could have been reduced quite a bit. It was overwhelming.
If you’re visiting, probably a good idea to reserve, since, even on Diwali eve, the place began filling up after 8. The service is friendly, and my request for keeping the sugar low in the cocktail was carried out reasonably well. The music was retro, and I loved it. The wallet was lighter by about Rs. 3100, but thanks to Dineout and Infinia, we paid a little over Rs.2550. Not bad at all, given the location. Despite the pizza, I have to say the place has pizzazz. I’d definitely recommend a visit, especially if you’re going to Sarjapur Road, whose breweries I am anyway not a fan of. (except maybe Aurum)
Roxie, 26, Haralur Main Rd, near HP Petrol Station, Amblipura, PWD Quarters, Ambalipura, HSR Layout Ph: 074062 75551
I like science fiction, but I absolutely love it when it gets into worldview and philosophy! Walkaway is set in a post-scarcity world, where anyone can design and print basic necessities – food, clothing, and even shelter. And in this world, there are broadly three kinds of folks – the elite oligarchs, who as usual want power and the ability to bend the world to their rules, the ‘default’ who continue to abide by rules and work for a living, and the ‘walkaways’, who walk away from this default reality.
They aren’t walking away from society, but understanding that in the zotta (elite) world, they’re problems to be solved, not citizens. As more and more people decide to turn ‘walkaway’, the elite have a problem with the drastic social changes that follow.
Barcelona was where we would end the Spain trip. Since neither of us are football fans, we figured we’d need only 2.5 days. And that proved to be just fine.
Stay
We stayed at Hotel Cuatro Naciones on La Rambla. It was quite ancient, around 300 years (not being sarcastic here), but was good enough for our needs. Breakfast was probably the worst we had in Spain though. While it was near enough for a bunch of things, from an overall ambience perspective, the Eixample locality would have worked quite well. I’d recommend that.
We’ll cross the bridges of Girona when we come to it. While we do, we will take photos. Before Eiffel made a tower, he made a bridge here.
Meet The Lioness of Girona. There is a ritual of kissing the her a$$, but we declined.
Sant Pere de Galligants. ‘Completed’ in multiple stages across time.
One of the myths involve body parts of a saint in different parts of the town, and how it protects the town.
One part of Braavos in Game of Thrones was Girona. 🙂
Girona Cathedral was the Great Sept of Baelor. So Cersei ran back from Dubrovnik, and in a few seconds was in Girona! 😀
A fantastic piece of street art I saw in Girona.
Monells is a lovely village that’s one of the bonuses of the day tour. There are very, very few inhabitants, they keep to themselves and it almost seems like the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse. But in a good way.
Calella de Palafurgell, part of the Costa Brava belt. Beautiful!
We got around 1.5 hours to walk around, and spent a lovely afternoon doing just that.
There are magnificent views at every turn.
But the best was on our way back. Another bonus!
Meanwhile, back in Barcelona, this was the contender for the best experience. La Sagrada Familia. Book well in advance.
Everything about it makes you go ‘O my Gaudi!’
Casa Milà was our second stop. Debatable whether you need to go inside. We did.
A chic house. And a terrace to boot.
Casa Batllo. Not its fault, but by the time I got here, I was exhausted by the design. This one is worth going inside, IMO.
It has some very unique designs.
With some cool effects when you look through the glass
Lunch was at Mercat de la Boqueria. The market scene was the best here.
And that includes the variety of craft beer, vermut, chocolates etc.
And the sheer variety of things being sold.
Do take some time to visit the Gothic Quarter. The lanes are quaint and historically significant.
And very pretty.
The Cathedral of Barcelona. Despite Sagrada, it exists! And gets a crowd too.
Temple d August. Those are original Roman columns. Hidden away in a little bylane.
Columbus Monument, at the very end of La Rambla.
Rambla Del Mar. If you’re looking for a mall, there’s one very near to this. No, we didn’t.
Instead, we sat, and watched Port Vell
And then took a cab to La Barceloneta to see if we could catch a sunset.
We didn’t get a traditional one, but were rewarded with what seemed straight out of ‘Stranger Things’. It was beautiful!
On our last night in Spain, Plaza Real had a little concert going. Seemed to be in support of the Catalan independence movement.
The view of La Rambla from our tiny hotel balcony. Spent a few minutes here on our final night. A sort of goodbye.
Eat
We weren’t impressed by the choices at La Rambla, so we walked further off to La Monroe. No relation. Nothing special, but I got to try the last beer on my list – Inedit. D wasn’t shaken, but tried a Martini anyway. The pasta and the tapas were meh.
When in Girona, try the Xuixo, a delightful pastry filled with Catalan Cream.
On the day tour, lunch was at Can Joan. I liked my veal stew, but D was unimpressed by the Chicken & Shrimp version.
El Chigre is in the Gothic Quarter, and has that fancy dispensing mechanism if you order a bottle. Didn’t like the cider, but that thingie was cool. The paella was decent, and the service was great.
El Quim de la Boqueria was easily the best meal in Barcelona. Located inside Mercat de la Boqueria. But it involves a wait, and some strategic positioning behind whoever you think will get out fast. D got us a seat pretty fast! They have some amazing Vermut, and served me a stiff whisky too. Great food too.
When there is Ben & Jerry’s, one simply must. Located conveniently near the market.
Our last meal in Spain was at Viana. Friendly vibe. Outside of me being silly enough not to ask for the price of the Japanese Whisky (Hatozaki), this was a great experience. The food was quite different from what we had earlier, but we liked it.
Not that we asked for it, but our last ride in Spain was also our first ride in a Tesla. Imagine that!
From Seville, we took the train to Madrid, a journey of 2.5 hours. It was around this point that we decided against buying a public transport card. But if you’re staying here for a few days, the multi card with a shareable 10 trip pass makes sense. The cab drive this time was only a few minutes, and we got to Hostal Oriente without any adventure.
