Category: Restaurant Reviews

Magnolia

One of the biggest contributors to Koramangala’s food-and-mouth epidemic is the 80 ft Road, which has more than a dozen (underdone estimate) outlets that cater to all sorts of tastes and wallet sizes. This week, we decided to drop in at Magnolia, whose earlier version existed in a quaint house very near to its current location. When coming from Sony World junction towards Sarjapur Road, cross Wipro Park, and you’ll find Reliance Fresh on your right. Magnolia is on the top floor of the same building. Here’s a map. Parking shouldn’t be a problem at all. We reached by about 7.30 and in half an hour the place was almost full.

Magnolia has indoor as well as terrace/semi outdoor seating options. The latter is rather dim, but with the kind of weather Bangalore’s been having, its an awesome place to be. The only snag was that the photos turned out to be quite like those ‘paranormal activity’ photos. See. (that’s the soup!!) 🙁 We could’ve maybe got it right with some tinkering, but since the focus was on eating and the required material was right in front of us, being photo-foppish wasn’t a priority. Magnolia serves Thai and Chinese cuisine, (menu 1, 2 – this is the last printed one, the prices are higher by about Rs.10-20 now) These days, we devoutly devour the former cuisine, thanks to Aroy for the Thai-in.

We started with the ‘Thai Chicken & Lemon Grass Coconut soup’. Even considering the Mallu bias towards anything remotely coconut, this is a great soup. Its almost the Tom Kha soup, but slightly thinner and without the Galangal. The lemon grass flavour was just right, and not overpowering, and except for the rare chilli, not very spicy either. Definitely recommended.

Next, we resisted the dim sum call and moved on to “Leg Mai Kai”. Even Google didn’t help me figure the name out completely. The closest is Loh Mai Kai. I thought it must be the iron-rich version of our dish but it turned out to be rice based. The ‘leg mai kai’ is roasted chicken with red and green pepper and turned out to be a reasonably good choice. The red and green pepper actually complemented the tending-towards-bland chicken instead of performing their regular role as space fillers. Maybe you could try the Crispy Chicken Chilly Honey, it does sound good. 🙂

For the main course, Chicken Pad Thai with cashew nuts and as per their suggestion, Thai Chicken and Bamboo Shoot Red curry. The Pad Thai was quite good, though the cashews were conspicuous by their absence and the tamarind flavour was really subdued. The Red curry was awesome, mostly because the coconut overruled every other flavour that might have been there, except for the spiciness. The quantity of lemon grass was slightly overwhelming though. While it goes best with rice, this is a reasonably good combination too.

The dessert options aren’t much. The service is great, and very prompt. All of the above cost us just over Rs.700. Definitely worth a visit when you need to go beyond the regular Chinese options around Koramangala.

Magnolia, #37, above Reliance Fresh, near Wipro Park, 80 ft Road, 3rd Block Koramangala. Ph: 41102222

This review happens to be the 50th one in Koramangala. It is also the 100th restaurant review on the blog. There is a reason why we chose Magnolia. More than 7 years back, when a newly married couple made Koramangala their home, and relied on Mars Chicken Delight, Lazeez and some others like Szechuan Garden, which don’t exist anymore, for their gastro-adventures, they saw Magnolia, the big cars parked outside, and wondered how many of their dine outs would have to be sacrificed to afford a visit.

They picked up enough courage one day in June, and though were quite intimidated by the place, and the chopsticks presented to them, managed to have a good meal for about Rs.350, which they still considered costly. A lot of things have changed since then – they now have a blog that has a hundred restaurant reviews, for starters. They have changed too, as has the locality they once lived in. But its heartening to note that some things haven’t – despite many halfhearted attempts, chopsticks remain a strict no-no. 😀 The post is for that couple, and for the life and times then. Thanks for reading. 🙂

PS. A new design. Much thanks to Arun and especially Mayank for the help against cruel Microsoft 😉

August 15, 2010
13 Spices

I really would find it difficult to name that many, but hey, its the name of a new restaurant in Koramangala that serves Indian, Chinese and a bit of Continental. Its located right next to erm, Chandni Chowk – yup, that’s in Koramangala too, before Sony World, when coming from the NGV/Forum side. 😀 (map) Parking is not much of a problem, mostly because of Chandni Chowk’s ample resources.

We reached there by around 7.45, and in about half an hour, the place was full. The ambiance is quite interesting, because its as though they had lounge/fine dining in mind – colours, furniture, decor, and then realised that it’d be a more regular restaurant. So its now brightly lit, with a red/white/black decor and decent use of the available small space, though the wall to wall cushioned seating means that the space between tables is minimal.

Though the menu has three cuisine options, its not really exhaustive on any front, but having said that, it does offer a lot of options in the Indian and Chinese portions. The former has half a dozen veg starters, more than double that in the non veg section (chicken, mutton, fish and prawns), plenty of gravy options in veg and non-veg and biriyani/roti/naan/kulcha to go with it. The Chinese section has soups, starters and about half a dozen options each in veg and non veg dishes, and rice/noodles. The Continental part consists of a few salad and pasta options. Its closer to ‘also there’ than a specialty, at least in terms of number options. We decided to go with the Indian part, the soup being the only exception – to keep the Chinese happy.

The Lemon Coriander soup was delicious, but I think they should have one of those ‘red-colour-chilli warnings’ for unsuspecting folk. Actually for the suspecting folk too – I, for example, have this very silly habit of adding pepper before I have even tasted it. You’ll like this one if you like your soups really spicy. The coriander part was slightly subdued though, and a chilli flavour somehow dominated, I thought. But I’d still recommend it, just don’t take the name seriously.

Next, we tried the Malai Machili tikka. This one gets very high marks for presentation. The fish is Hamoor (Arabian Fish – Hamour says the web) and it did seem marginally different from my other fishy acquaintances. The cream marinade was really good, and the only suggestion I’d make is to have a stronger mint chutney to go with it, so that it can complement the dish better.

We started the main course with a Murg Khandari, an onion and chilli kulcha, and a masala kulcha. We chose the chicken dish because its description claimed a unique mix- pomegranate juice, curd, brown onion paste, and tomato puree. It proved to be unique in taste too – tangy with a sweet kick in the end, thanks to the pomegranate seed, I think. The masala kulcha was decent, but the other one barely had any chillies, so wasn’t much fun.

Though the portion sizes were quite decent, we were still hungry, and decided to try the second chicken dish we had noted earlier – Murg Badam Pasanda, with a cheese kulcha. Calories be damned. The Badam pasand was creamy and finger-licking good in that slightly sweet way that white gravies have (though this one is more yellow). The kulcha was only just about okay though. In between we also had a regular lassi because though there was a mango lassi listed, we were told that it was (canned) juice based, not fresh. The lassi was topped with badam and had what we thought was a vanilla essence flavour. Slightly thin for our liking, but reasonable enough. We skipped desserts since the options were the usual ice cream based suspects.

The service is very prompt, and though we thought our second chicken dish would take time (since we placed the order much later), they actually got it soon enough for the meal to be seamless – surprising because the crowd had picked up by then. The place is quite small – enough for you to see what people at most of the other tables are eating, but despite that constraint, they have done a decent job. All of the above cost us less than Rs.700. So its definitely worth a visit, for good food and excellent service.

13 Spices, #898, 80ft Main Road, 6th Block, Koramangala. Ph: 40953881

Menu and Photos at Zomato

August 8, 2010
The Grill House

Okay, so we’ve been fans of Tangerine and have thus managed to avoid The Grill House in Indiranagar, despite its reputation. But now that The Grill House had opened a new outlet in Ulsoor, we thought we could get away with a lesser sense of betrayal. 🙂

The new place is on Bhaskaran/Gurudwara Road, right after the Ulsoor Road- Bazaar Street junction after The Park Hotel, when coming from MG Road/Old Madras Road. This map should help you. Parking is quite easy for 2 wheelers, the more well wheeled kind might find it a tad more difficult.

The restaurant is on the busy main road, but manages very well to keep the noise out. That helped when the live gig was happening. Though the lighting is dim, the ambiance is still pleasant, with comfortable seating options and a Tex Mex decor, including a few cacti, and cowboy hats. (though ahem, they did seem the kind that is sold at traffic junctions) Before the live music started, there was some decent music playing too. We got in by around 7.30 and by 8, the place seemed to have filled up, but they have two floors, though we were informed that the ground floor had to be full before they opened up the top floor. Hmm. But hey, food, that’s what matters. You can take a look at the menu here – 1, 2 ,3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. Watch out for the very interesting quotes.

We decided to give the ‘cream’ a break and started with a Jamaican Chicken soup, that was supposed to “remind you of your grand mother’s cooking”. Strangely in spite of the name and the description, the soup reminded me of Chinese gravies. But its still a good thin soup, especially if you like it spicy and peppery.

Next up was the BBQ Chicken Wings, “crispy fried chicken wings served with BBQ sauce”. This was strictly okay, and I had much higher hopes for the sauce. There are plenty of choices, so you might want to try something else.

For the main course, since there were many more red meat options than I usually encounter, I decided on a ‘Steak Mardigras’, “Grilled steak topped with black and white mushrooms, sauteed onion, bell pepper and mashed potatoes” and D asked for a Mexican Hot Chicken, “Chicken Breast grilled and served with hot mexican sauce and tex-mex rice”. We both asked for sizzler versions.

All steaks are served with rice and mashed potatoes and you can trade one for an extra portion of the other, in case you have a preference. And that, on the left is the ‘mardigras’, and it was thankfully ‘well done’, just as I had asked. The sauce was very unique – tangy, with loads of mushrooms, and complemented the taste of the meat very well. The bell pepper presentation seemed to be a tribute to the FIFA champions, but never mind. 🙂

D’s dish, as usual, turned out to be more photogenic, and you can see me going green in the background. The sauce in this one too proved to be very tasty – spicy and tangy, with the gherkin giving it a nice ‘kick’, though D did borrow my extra helping of mushroom sauce.

The portions sizes are quite deceptive, they don’t look like they’ll give you a full tummy, but you end up with exactly that. They bring around the dessert options on a plate, and though the mousse looked very good, and the ‘Better than sex’ chocolate seemed rich enough and out to prove a point, we had to pass.

All of the above cost us Rs.950. The service is decent, though there was an inordinate delay for the billing – apparently the credit card line wasn’t working. In essence, its definitely worth a visit when you’re in the mood for a good steak, and especially if you’re a red meat fan. Its an even battle with Tangerine, one that in my mind, it only narrowly loses, simply because of the more exciting choices at Tangerine. 🙂

Menu at Zomato

August 1, 2010
Alibaba

The name conjures up the vision of a medieval Arabic story, and its indeed a restaurant that (also) serves Arabic cuisine. And just like the treasure, it makes itself very hard to find. Since we knew the rough location, we asked around until we reached there. Here’s a map for you. When coming from Coles road on Mosque road, take a left at the junction where Mosque Road meets MM Road (immediately after Empire Hotel). Then, Alibaba is at the corner of the first road to the left, on the first floor. The Charminar Kabab Centre opposite it is easier to notice. Parking is not much of a problem.

We got there late, well after 8, and were worried that we wouldn’t find a place. But the place started filling up only around 9. Its dimly lit, but the decor has a certain charm that deserves a special mention. There are red curtains, lots of dark wood – right from the main door, sheeshas, and Moroccan lamps. I read somewhere that the seating capacity is exactly 40, and that some of the furniture pieces are actually renovated bits and pieces from Navayathi furniture, including window frames, wooden chests and sewing machines! The seating is quite comfortable, but try not to take the stools without a backrest. Or maybe I was just wondering what exactly I was sitting on 😉

Alibaba serves Bhatkali, Arabian and Persian cuisines. The link to the menu is right here. But that really doesn’t do justice to the extremely unique menu ‘card’. Its a bit like holding history in your hands, literally. Click on it, and read it, before you start reading the actual menu. It will tell you about Bhatkal, the Navayaths, their culture, their dialect and the evolution of their cuisine. Its not as though as i require a special reason to like food, but I’ve always liked the idea of giving a historical and cultural context to the food quite fascinating.

What it also does, is add to the desire of trying out as many samples as is possible from the different cuisines that makes up the fusion. With limited numbers – two to be precise, that is quite a difficult task. But try we did.

We chose the Joo soup, “Chicken cubes, carrot, oats, garnished with parsley”, from the Persian cuisine. Little did we know that it was an old acquaintance. I not-so-fondly remembered the ‘sambar’ from Sufi – Soup-e-Jo! We also missed the chicken cubes. Not really a great start, but we’d traveled quite a bit to get here and refused to be easily let down.

Next up was the Alibaba Special kebab “Chef’s special grilled chunks of boneless chicken and lamb”. That took quite a while and after a lot of fidgeting, we were told that it would be delayed. We were worried whether this was turning into a Arabian-Persian tragedy, but thankfully we got the chicken skewer in a couple of minutes. Very succulent stuff, but we were left to wonder whether the lamb had met with some alternate unfortunate fate. But just as we were about to enquire, the lamb skewer arrived. The vegetables in this were a bit burnt, but really, who cared, because the lamb was fine. Actually very good. Usually, this is served together, but apparently the lamb takes a while longer than the chicken to be convinced, so be prepared to wait a bit if you’re ordering this. The dish is a bit on the bland side, but tasty enough to give a try. If you’re a larger group, it might be a good idea to order other kababs too while you’re waiting for it, ones that will require less time. The service is very helpful and will help you with the choices.

We decided to start the main course with Bhatkali cuisine – the Sharwa Maas, “Chicken/Mutton pieces cooked with authentic green chilli masala”. We chose the chicken version after a longish debate on whether to go for the Sharwa Maas or the Laun Miriya Maas (the red chilli version). Glad that we did. If you like spicy food, this dish is a must have. Its really tasty and while the green chilli masala does make a solid presence, it actually goes well beyond that and makes an excellent combination with the Gawa Poli, “Traditional Bhatkally Roti prepared with Wheat”. Actually the khubus too, which we’d ordered just to check it out.

Up next was the Dajaj Machboos, “Middle Eastern Spiced Chicken served with Basmati Rice”. We asked for a half plate, but the guy who took our order told us that it would be too much and suggested two small portions. It turned out strange because the two ‘portions’ cost us more than the half plate (?!) But that doesn’t take away from the awesome rice. The masala was good too, and not really greasy, just like the rice, but it preferred the rice’ company over the chicken. Well, so long as we’re having it all together. D quite liked the tomato chutney provided with the dish, but i still hadn’t gotten over the earlier chicken dish. I think it’ll go with anything, it was that good!!!!

I was quite stuffed, but the desserts section did a mind-over-matter trick and I ordered a Shaufa Pana Pudding, “An exotic Bhatkali Pudding flavoured with Dil leaf Syrup”. The greenish color did scare me a little, but that vanished as soon as i tasted it. Excellent pudding with a very unique flavour, almost like a subtle mouth freshener. Must try.

Meanwhile D ordered a Saudi Champagne, which is a mocktail made mostly of apple soda, but with a twist of lime. It also has tiny apple bits floating on top. from the little I was allowed to have, great stuff.

All of the above cost us, including a 5% service charge, just over Rs.900. The service is quite good, and helpful, despite a few communication lapses. This place is a must visit, for a distinctly unique cuisine, decor and value-for-money fare that won’t cost you a treasure. 😉

Alibaba, #69, 1st Floor, MM Road, Frazer Town Ph:40917163

PS. This week, the blog takes a break 🙂

Menu and Photos at Zomato

July 18, 2010
Aroy

No, we aren’t talking about a Bong here. I read somewhere that it means tasty/delicious, in Thai. The direction of thought is roughly right though. East. Aroy is a restaurant in JP Nagar that serves Thai cuisine, along with some Burmese too. Here’s a map to get you there. (a couple of zooms should get you there safely) Its in the same building as Crossword, on the third floor. Parking is not a problem, though you’ll need to go quite a bit – until the next junction – for a U turn when coming from Bannerghatta Road.

We reached there by about 7.30, and already found a few tables occupied. If you’re planning to get there later, it might be a good idea to reserve. Aroy managed to charm us straight away with its wonderful rooftop ambiance. There are indoor seating options too, but with a slight breeze, lightly swaying trees and the distant lights of south Bangalore’s apartment complexes, we decided to sit outside, under a cloudy sky.

Ok, before I go overboard, here’s the menu. They serve liquor and from the descriptions, some amazing cocktails and mocktails too. But we already had way too many choices in the food menu, and were wondering what we’d miss out on. So we asked for a Tom Kha soup, and a Pandan Chicken to start with. While we waited we were served a complimentary Amuse Bouche – a fried rice cake, which turned out to be as good as it looked.

The Tom Kha (chicken) soup arrived soon after. An amazing coconut cream soup flavoured with galangal and loaded with chunks of chicken and mushrooms. Though the coconut cream flavour was strong, there seemed to be a few others too that demanded attention – lemon grass most prominently, with a hint of tanginess. The soup, though slightly thinner than a regular cream soup, uses the coconut cream extremely well and is probably the best soup we’ve had in a long time.

This was followed by the Pandan Chicken, which was quite unique in terms of presentation. Unraveling the screw pine leaf is not as tough as it looks. The grilled chicken, which probably comes off as a bit dry, is complemented well by the sweet soy sauce.

For the main course, we wanted to try out a stir fried dish as well as a clay pot curry, but we were told that the latter would go well with plain rice. So we ditched that thought and asked for a ‘Ong Noh Khaw swte’, from neighbouring Myanmar, something I remembered from ‘Gangtalk‘ and before that, ‘Panda House’, which used to exist in Transit, Forum long back. Its a meal in itself and consists of crisp and soft noodles, a chicken broth and a range of accompaniments. In terms of quantity, though, it actually turned out to be a meal in itself for both of us, and an absolutely delicious one.

The chicken broth is also coconut cream based with generous chunks of chicken. By the time we finished the bowls we were quite stuffed and wondered what we’d do with the rest of the stuff we ordered.

In keeping up with our tradition of Saturday night gluttony, we’d also ordered a Pahd Keemao, which is another excellent choice, especially if you’re into spicy stuff. Rice noodles, flavoured with red chillies and basil. We could manage only about two spoonfuls each and asked for the remaining portion to be packed. The noodles goes very well with the Chicken Cashew Nuts and Bell Pepper. Though its description also includes roasted chilli paste, its actually a hot and sweet dish.

Though I did want to try the chocolate mousse, there was absolutely no way I could manage it. A worthy bait, and thus, a second visit is a given. Meanwhile, the service is worth a mention too. Extremely helpful, attentive and yet in a non intrusive fashion. Mission sanuk easily accomplished. 🙂

All of the above cost us about Rs.1300. I’d recommend that you visit with a larger group so that you can try out many things. With awesome food, excellent service and a wonderful ambiance, including some very good music, Aroy is a must visit, and its worth going to JP Nagar solely for this purpose.

Aroy, 74, 15th Main, 3rd Phase JP Nagar Ph: 40939311

Menu at Zomato

July 4, 2010