Category: Restaurant Reviews

Pangeo

We had many gastronomic reasons to go to Forum Rex Walk, but we finally decided on Pangeo because we found the dishes interesting. The journey of a thousand calories begins with a Metro trip. These days, we time our exit from our hamlet of Whitefield to the city in such a way that we get a reasonably peaceful metro ride. The fun part was that thanks to the maze that Forum Rex Walk is, we first sat down at Ouro, which is on the same floor. D and I both looked around and felt it looked different from the images we had seen, and then realised… 🙈

Pangeo has a bit of everything in terms of seating spaces – the standard big screen, a bit of open sky, and cozy corners. We arrived early but the place was already quite crowded, so it’d be a good idea to reserve a spot.

D chose the Strangest Things. No, that’s the name of the drink. A gin-based cocktail, which she liked. And I started seeing a strange thing that I have since then observed in many other places – calling the drink Old Fashion! I tried it despite the name-mangling, but I have had better.

Since we have charcoal now in everything from toothbrush to water, we decided to try the Charcoal Chicken Dumpling. I am not sure the charcoal made any difference, but the chilli infusion made it a decent dish.

When there is Bheja Fry, attack! This one was served on phyllo pastry, and was quite spicy. We really liked it.

The Loaded Polo Wonton had minced chicken and cheese in a wonton cup. Great texture mix, excellent cheese, and helped us cool our tongue after the spice bomb.

We were a bit wary of the Naga Chilli Pepperoni but it turned out to be quite tame in term of spice.

D is a recent convert to Baileys, so when we found a Baileys Tiramisu, we had to get it. The Tiramisu was excellent in itself but the Baileys at the bottom meant that there is a nice kick to it as well. Well worth a shot.

The bill came to a little over Rs.4500, which given the location, is believable. There’s no dearth of variety in the menu, the ambience was good, and the service was decent, if not great. If you’re in the vicinity, maybe drop in.

December 8, 2024
Hokkaido Japanese & Korean Restaurant

Just as the restaurant itself is hidden in Indiranagar, Korean too is hidden in the menu. Actually, it doesn’t exist. There’s only Japanese. Now that I got that off my chest, we got there on a Sunday afternoon and had the place all to ourselves. It’s functional in terms of seating but made quite lively with the use of lighting and the art.

D, I have realised will have Miso if there is Miso, so we ended up with a delicious Miso Shiru that set the appetite well for the Stir Fried Beef, which had great texture and just the right amount of spice for us.

We first met Tamagoyaki at the Tsukiji Outer Market in Tokyo and I have been a fan since. This one didn’t really reach that level, but was definitely not bad.

We debated mains a lot and finally agreed on Gyu Niku Udon – udon topped with beef (again). On hindsight, we should have chosen something else because it was a bit similar to the soup. But we enjoyed it nevertheless.

We were a bit disappointed since we wanted Korean, but Japanese is a good second. The service is prompt and very helpful. We were left lighter by about Rs.1800. Overall, not a bad outing if you’re craving Japanese.

Hokkaido Japanese & Korean Restaurant, 10/1-1, 1st Floor, 7th Main, 1st Cross, Appareddypalya, Indiranagar

October 13, 2024
The Bah

My friend A has fantastic taste in design, and from the few samples I’ve had, cooks well to. So when she decided to start The Bah, in our little village of Whitefield, I was absolutely thrilled. We visited right when it opened, and then made a repeat visit recently.

The Bah is reasonably well-hidden, like every treasure should be. But if you’re willing to step into that corporate monstrosity of a building, and step on to that seemingly lonesome escalator, you will find a lovely space – in terms of ambiance, food, and drinks. The fun tone manages to blend seamlessly with the seriousness in aesthetics and dining.

We loved the al fresco seating because… Bangalore weather. We also liked that children are only allowed during specific times. That thankfully keeps away the kind of crowd that leave their children to ‘graze’ on other people’s spaces while they themselves enjoy. A gave us a little guided tour when we visited first, and I loved the thoughtfulness in the different kind of seating spaces.

Anyone who makes me a good Old Fashioned is my BFF. The Bah’s Old Fashioned is just the way I like it, none of that syrupy sweetness that most places degrade it to. On the first visit, D had a berry concoction that was fantastic. A had recommended but I can’t find it in the menu. But then, my attention span is low beyond whisky and rum. 😐 She ordered The Lonely G & Not T the next time, and got lucky again.

During my most recent visit, I also got a taste of one of the soon-to-be-introduced flavours – Salted Caramel Rum! Absolutely fantastic, and very well suited to my tastes.

‘The Other Nuts’ is a great nibble with drinks. The usually humble masala peanuts elevated with feta. When Bangalore’s lovely weather permits, try the Creamy Chicken soup too, it’s delicious. The big winner in starters is the Shotgun Pork Strips, to the extent that we repeated it in our second visit, a rare thing for us to do. The only disappointment were the beef dishes – we tried the Namauru Beef Fry Taco and the Beef Sukkha and weren’t fans of either. The beef was fine, the masala was out of flavour, and favour.

For a change, I managed to pick a winner. The Sunny-side Ravioli is an absolute delight, with a killer herbed butter sauce. The Guanciale Carbonara is good too, again the rich egg yolk – parmesan sauce making the difference.

It is not a looker, but it’s a keeper. I don’t think I can ever get enough of the Chocolate Peanut Butter ice cream here. The win again is the subtlety of flavours. That is going to be a problem in future, because there are at least three other desserts here that I’d want to try.

The service is great, and the tasteful music adds to the ambiance. Our meal cost us a little over Rs. 4000, which I thought was money well spent, given the experience. I am absolutely biased but I’ve also heard good things from others who visited. So if you’re ever in the rural outpost called Whitefield, drop in.

The Bah, 2nd Floor, Primeco Union City, ITPL Main Road, Whitefield Ph: 9611081642

September 15, 2024
Prime Golf Brewing & Golfing

In the spirit of ‘Who has a bigger schtick?’ Prime Golf, in Whitefield, has apparently overtaken Ironhill as the largest brewpub in Asia. Who cares about the beer and food? For those wondering, I suspect the golf is mini golf.

It’s pretty vast, apparently a seating capacity of 1500. There are multiple seating options – indoor and al fresco and for various group sizes. Unfortunately, they have designed it in such a way that the outdoor view is pretty much dead on arrival. As is characteristic of such places, there is a gigantic TV screen so you can dine out and do the same thing that you do at home anyway. Yay.

One of the beers in the list was unavailable, and what they had instead was a Weizenbock. We tried out the samplers, and chose the least of all the evils – Whack Wit and Weizenbock. The first is a Belgian style wheat beer and the second is essentially a hybrid of the Weiss beer and the German Bock (close to a Dunkelweizen). That was the technical understanding, our friends have made their own interpretations.

The Chicken & Celery dumpling wasn’t too bad, and they got the Andhra Chilli Chicken fairly right, though I do still prefer their neighbour’s (Red Rhino) version.

Mapas Manok sounded interesting (Manok seemed Filipino – turns out it’s chicken, and Mapas reminded me of Kerala) This isn’t like the Kerala dish, but it definitely has coconut milk, so we didn’t mind. The only problem was the late realisation that we were still a little hungry and should have ordered something with it. We asked for what we thought would be simple to do – Wok Tossed Chili Garlic Noodles, but either chef was busy or didn’t anticipate people ordering Chinese. Whatever that might be, it took ages to come to the table. I suspect they plan for seating but don’t think of these people ordering!

Overall, as you might have noticed, I was mightily unimpressed. That could be the excitement of a new brewery in the neighbourhood having turned into a meh ambience and experience. But that crowd that likes Ironhill will like this one too. And that tribe is the dominant one. Sigh. The bill came to a little over Rs.3000 and I think that’s money I could have put to better use.

Prime Golf Brewing & Golfing, 5/206, SBR Central, Whitefield Ph: +917892512790

August 18, 2024
Klaa

This was how D surprised me for my birthday. I hadn’t heard about this, but given my love for Goan cuisine, she somehow dug this out. 🥰 And that’s how we landed up in Indiranagar on a Sunday afternoon.

I had this feeling that I have been to this building before, but housing another eatery. I think it was Cafe Terra, which I had visited in 2016 but I cannot be sure because Cafe Terra’s current version, located slightly away, also looks similar! Anyway, the decor is elegant, pretty and has that amazing set of radios! I really should have asked where they got it from. We chose a table on the balcony upstairs to watch the world go by.

We hadn’t seen this brand of Kombucha before, so we tried two flavours. I obviously loved my cola flavour, but D didn’t mind the salted lime either. We tried the chicken cutlets, and really liked it. Great texture. Mary’s Beef Fry that followed was quite good too, though as all good Keralese people do, we think our version is the gold standard.

The Garlic Poee was excellent but quite heavy! The Pav was not too bad so that is an option as well. I think the only disappointment was the Goan Pork Roast. For all the looks, the flavours were quite insipid.

Thankfully, the caramel custard made up for it to some extent.

In terms of Goan food, I still prefer the thalis at Carnival De Goa, but for some strange reason, it’s only available on weekdays now. Klaa is good in its own way, and definitely worth a visit if you’re around those parts.

The bill came to a little over Rs.2700. The service was prompt and courteous.

Klaa, #846, Ground and First Floor, 4th Main, Paramahamsa Yogananda Road (Double Road), Indiranagar Ph: 9561711497

July 21, 2024