Category: Restaurant Reviews

  • Mannheim Craft Brewery Ecoworld

    Turns out, if one uses a specific time window, ORR is not too bad to negotiate on a Saturday evening. That’s how I was tempted to Mannheim Craft Brewery at The Bay Food Court in RMZ Ecoworld. Craft beer obviously sweetened the deal. You’ll have to walk right till the end, but the good news is that it is closer to the loo!

    Mannheim is quite elegant with multiple kinds of seating for different-sized groups. If you’re in early enough, you obviously get to pick seats. We choose high stools (with back support, yay!) that gave us a nice vantage point to observe modern humanity in one of their preferred ecosystems – food courts.

    P.S. I think that mural belongs to Irish House but whatever.

    Mannheim Craft Brewery Ecoworld

    Not all the beers were available, something I observed during a second visit as well, so do beyond the menu and ask what else they have. We tried the Mead, the Ambrosia and the Amber Ale (samplers are priced quite high) and finally went with the Helles Lager and the Hefeweizen. Both Bavarian, but the former is a light, crisp lager that is not too bitter, and the latter is fresh and fruity.

    Mannheim Craft Brewery Ecoworld

    We tried the Kozhi Vepudu – fried chicken in buttermilk sauce , which did offer some spice. But the Murgh Malai Kandhari (sic) Chicken despite the promise of bird’s eye chilli was rather bland. Or rather, inconsistently spicy, depending on whether your piece had a chilli in it or not.

    Mannheim Craft Brewery Ecoworld

    When there is Korean cream cheese bun, one must have it. Unfortunately, our high bar on this is the one at Roxie. This one isn’t close. Mains was Spaghetti Mamma Rosa. Closer to browna than rosa, but not bad in terms of taste.

    Mannheim Craft Brewery Ecoworld

    The thing about the menu at Mannheim is that though it seemingly provides options, it is pretty limited especially when it comes to mains. Probably because the beer-only crowd prefers only starters.

    The service is quite pleasant and prompt, and we felt lighter by around Rs.3000. The beer isn’t bad, but you don’t have to travel for it. Only drop in if you’re in the vicinity.

    Mannheim Craft Brewery, The Bay, Ecoworld Bellandur Ph: 096633 95482

  • Paragon

    OMG, the hype! We’ve not been to the original, but we’ve been to the one in Kochi’s very own Mecca – Lulu Mall. On a Sunday afternoon, we thought it would be worth it. The crowd was such that they might as well start calling it Sobha Maul. There’s really no reservation, so you just go in there, and like good old bureaucratic systems, they note your name down, give you an (inaccurate) estimated waiting time, and then… you wait.

    Paragon Restaurant, Bangalore

    While you do that, you could congratulate yourself for deciding to come to a very ‘happening’ place, and maybe look at the day’s specials to build your appetite.

    Paragon Restaurant, Bangalore

    After finally managing to get a table, we started with a Beef Chilly that passed muster. The Pandan Chicken was surprisingly not bad though I have had better. The Kanthari fish, which by definition (bird’s eye chilli) should have been super spicy, was toned down, probably to appeal to a broader set of taste buds, I suppose. The Payyoli Kozhi Porichathu was special only because of those crumbs that brought back a childhood memory – ghee residue. 😍

    Paragon Restaurant, Bangalore

    Kerala Porotta, Mutton and Chicken Biryani, Kozhi Chuvannamulagu Curry, and Pathiris for the main course. We liked the mutton biryani more than the chicken version, and the porottas were perfect. The biggest con game was that chicken curry – which despite the fancy name turned out to be a reasonably bad version of a Butter Chicken!

    Paragon Restaurant, Bangalore

    That name hooked me – Chatta Mary pudding, but the pudding itself was meh. And while the Elaneer Pudding wasn’t bad, KCK‘s version is leagues above. And yes, I forgot to take a snap till we started drinking, and by the time I got it back, it was in this state. This is my pick of what to drink here – Pacha Manga juice, though I suspect that sharp tang is an acquired taste.

    On the whole, this version is most definitely not worth the hype, especially if you’re Malayali. It’s a curiosity for those who cannot access the original. That’s about it. The service is prompt, and friendly, despite the crowds, that’s a plus.

    Paragon, Sobha Mall, Church St, Shanthala Nagar, Ashok Nagar Ph: 9063251111

  • Dam’s Kitchen

    I hope to see Kammanahalli (Kalyan Nagar) given an honorary status as a Korean suburb in my lifetime, for its contribution to popularising the cuisine in Bangalore. But then again, that would make the place a candidate for multiple citizenships! We were in the mood for Korean and this one came up when we did some Seoul searching. #oksorry

    Dam’s Kitchen is off the main road, on two floors, is non pretentious, and manages to use the typical partitioning in Korean restaurants to create small cosy spaces, complete with your very own gas cylinder for the barbecues!

    Dam's Kitchen

    We ordered the Yukgaejang (right) and Dwaeji Meori Gukbab (middle) first. The first is described as the spiciest soup available, and is made with beef strips and vegetables stir fried and boiled in brothy soup. It wasn’t too spicy, and the rice anyway tempered it. We loved it, but on a relative note the Gukbab was the winner. It has pork, soy sauce, miso, rice wine, sesame oil, bone broth and all this made for a fantastic hearty soup. Really chicken soup for the soul (see, I resisted the urge). While the stomach was full, we wanted something to nibble on and ordered Chilli Chicken (without the rice and condiments) Deep fried, chilli sauce and chopped chillis. Great taste, and texture, just the way it should be. We ate half and packed the remaining for dinner. 😌

    Dam's Kitchen

    We felt lighter by just a little below Rs.2500, which included some kombucha. They only had Soju, not Makgeolli. The service is quite friendly and prompt, and the overall ambience is quite peaceful. Lovely place for a lazy Sunday lunch.

    Dam’s Kitchen, 301, 5th D Main Road, HRBR Layout 2nd Block Kalyan Nagar Ph: 9148553661

  • BLR Brewing Co

    Back in the day, I had reviewed Biergarten for Bangalore Mirror, when it opened its first outlet, in Whitefield. It has lasted 8 years, and that’s no mean feat. We had been frequent visitors until the crowds became intolerable. Ok, them losing their brain, dish that is, also played a role. Zoom to now, they have a neighbour- BLR Brewing Co, and the crowd during the first week was a scene to behold. Even those who had reserved a table had to wait. I think we got lucky in that respect.

    BLR Brewing Co Whitefield

    The place is quite huge with two levels of seating. I suspect upstairs overlooking the courtyard would be a nice place, but we were led to a table near this slightly weird pool, which also had some seating in the middle (last photo with those mini palms) The day we visited, there was also a fire show.

    BLR Brewing Co Whitefield

    They didn’t have all the beers, but we tried a Hefeweizen, Belgian Wit, Dunkelweizen, and Six Decades (APA). The Wit was easily the winner, the Dunkel was not too bad. Everything else was reasonably bad!

    BLR Brewing Co Whitefield

    The Shrimp Hor Gao had shrimp, that’s the kindest I can say. The Black Sesame Chicken Tikka just about passed muster though it was highly recommended by our service staff. I’ll get to that guy in a bit. The Feta Salad was dead on arrival. I am naturally biased against salads, but even those unlike me agreed.

    We asked for the Old Mutton Seekh because despite the elaborate menu, there were really not many interesting choices. The saving grace in the entire meal was the Bheja Fry. They did this a little differently – fried so it got a mildly crunchy texture, with an excellent masala. I am not sure why they called it the Rainbow Chicken Dim Sum, it was all dim!

    BLR Brewing Co Whitefield

    The Roasted chicken-Cheese sauce pizza throughly depended on us for flavour, and we depended on the sauce we got for the dim sum. Now that was good!

    That service guy was something. He was at our table ALL the time providing commentary before, during, and after the order, or removing things, incessantly interrupting our conversations. I repeatedly tried to signal my annoyance, to the extent that D got annoyed at my annoyance! The bill came to a little under Rs.5300 for four of us. I am unlikely to repeat. At best, I will order in that brain fry!

    BLR Brewing Co, Plot No:2, Doddanekundi Industrial Area, Bangalore Ph: 08071174545

  • Deck of Brews

    For a change, D had already visited once, but she hadn’t tasted the jamun beer that had been recommended to me. And that was how, we ventured to ORR for an evening out, deviating from my policy of avoiding anything from Brookefield onwards!

    Deck Of Brews is a little away from the main road (ORR) and resides in a large industrial-meets-Total Environment building. There are multiple seating options – al fresco, and at least two floors of indoor seating. One reason I was lured was the terrace, but that apparently is open only during weekdays, which is when their main crowd (from the IT parks nearby) frequents the place. The next best spot for a pleasant Bangalore evening was the al fresco area.

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