Category: Restaurant Reviews

  • Saffron

    No, this is not one of those Hinduism-politics posts, Saffron happens to be the name of a Mughlai restaurant in Koramangala. Amazingly, there is next to no information available about it online. Thankfully it was located in an old haunt of ours – Jakkasandra (Koramangala 1st Block), so we found it rather easily, based on a landmark given in the TOI article, where we read about it.  To get there, when coming from the MG Road direction, continue on Hosur Road after Forum and take the left towards St John’s hospital (that’s the only way you can go. heh). Continue on the road, cross the next junction (with the Intermediate Ring Road) and go towards the Outer Ring Road, until you reach the junction with the road coming from 1st Block (signal – you’ll see Pinjara restaurant on the left), keep going straight until the next junction (you’ll have an HDFC bank on the right and Nous Software on the left), take a left here, and you’ll find Saffron on your right. Parking should not be a major deal, especially if you have a two wheeler, there’s a nice security guy who will help you out.

    Saffron is on the first floor, and on the landing is the first theme indicator – a Mughal turban. The interior is simple, but with comfortable seating. Though the restaurant was fairly well occupied, I don’t think you’d need reservations, since there are enough seating options available. We got ourselves a nice corner seat. The menu explains the origin of saffron, from Kashmir, and its name in different places – kasubha in Philippines, kong in Kashmir, kesar in North India, and how the name is derived from the arabic ‘Zafaran’, meaning yellow. Apparently, the restaurant’s name was chosen for the splendour it exuberates. Oh, okay, we’ll get to the food.

    The menu starts with soup options – cream, clear in veg and chicken (Rs. 40-65). There are starters, both in veg – french fries and various versions of paneer tikkas (Rs. 30-95) and non veg – fish tikkas, kali mirch , amritsari (Rs. 130-140); chicken tikkas – tangri, seekh, reshmi, hariyali, malai, pudina, tawa, kalimirch (Rs.95- 240); mutton – bara, peshawari, malai chaap, boti kabab (Rs. 150-165). The main course  has over twenty options in vegetarian – dal, rajma, paneer, mushroom, chana (Rs.70-100), a couple of options in fish (Rs.145), around a dozen options in chicken, including mughlai, handi, achari, some of which are available in three different quantity options – portion, half and full (Rs. 110-140 for portions, Rs.190-230 for half and Rs. 350 -385 for full), and about ten options in mutton – keema egg, brain dahi, kashmeri, qorma (Rs.120-135). To go along with that, you can either have rotis (about 20 options available) or biriyani. There are also raitas and salads. There is also the concept of ‘Shahenshah meals’, basically combo meals, with over a dozen different choices. There are a few basic veg options (Rs. 70-85), a couple of non veg roll options (Rs. 90-95), the larger veg options are priced at rs. 125-130 and the mughlai chicken and mutton are priced at Rs. 150 and 160 respectively. Interestingly, there are also quick snack options in the menu – sandwiches, cutlets, samosas, pakoras etc and a couple of pages devoted to Chinese options (soups, starters, main course with decent options in soups, startes and main course).

    We started off with a Cream of Chicken soup. Though it wasn’t as thick as we expected it to be, it was tasty enough. We then had a starter – fish kalimirch, which was quite tasty, but at some points left us confused, on whether it was fish or mutton. Erm, yes, strange. By the time we thought of checking it up, the proof was safely lodged in our stomach. For the main course, we wanted the brain curry, that wasn’t available. We ordered a Mughlai chicken curry (half) and asked for a boti kabab to be brought as part of the main course. To go along with this, we ordered a butter kulcha and an afghani roti. The Mughlai chicken was good, though it was a brown gravy (we’d expected the creamy white). We ordered a keema kulcha  also later. The boti kabab was quite good, inspite of the bones. Must say, that the presentation of the kababs was quite unique and good. The portions are decent sized, and enough to make you feel full, but not bloated.

    There are about a dozen dessert options, mostly North Indian, but had custard and ice cream too. It had a couple of items which I havent seen earlier – gud roti and mal pura (malpua, i had thought). We asked for the latter, but it wasn’t available. So we settled for the regular gajar ka halwa, which was reasonably good.

    All of the above lefts us lighter by just less than Rs. 750. Though the food was decent, the service could’ve been better. The food doesn’t take much time, but the post meal stuff – finger bowls, billing could’ve been much faster.

    Saffron, #5, 1st Floor, 1st B Main, 1st Block, Jakkasandra extension, Koramangala. Ph: 41317579/41468178

    Menu on Zomato

  • Cornucopia

    Cornucopia is part of a ‘cricket homestay’ called ‘The Bat and Ball Inn’, supposedly owned by Sreesanth, Uthappa, Charu Sharma and one other partner. No, you won’t find appams here, the place serves Continental and Italian fare. 😀

    Here’s a map that will show you how to get there. While you can access it from Hosur Road, its easier to get there via Richmond Road. On Richmond Road, take a left turn immediately after TNT (opposite Citibank) and then take the first right. You’ll see the place on the right. It also hosts a cafe called ‘Silly Point’, and a boutique (which I think is) called ‘Dressing Room’. (It was about to rain, so my focus was on getting inside, especially since we had lost much time in trying to figure out the location, and had a movie to catch) From what we saw there, you don’t really need to reserve.

    There are two seatng options, one a regular restaurant closed setting, and the other behind this, which is a bit more open. On the way to the latter, you have a passageway lined with framed caricatures of cricketers. I half expected to see staff in cricket gear, but they haven’t gone that far with the theme. 🙂

    The menu has a lot of options, both veg and non veg – Continental and some Italian too. You can take a look at the entire menu here. There are soups, starters and salads, in addition to the main course options and desserts. We started with a ‘Spiced chicken and corn soup with lemon grass’  (cream of chicken and corn kernels with spring onion, coriander, chilly and lime). The soup was extremely good, probably the best we’ve had in a long time. It was moderately spicy and on a chilly Bangalore night, was a perfect start. If you’re planning a long leisurely meal, you might want to check out the starters too.

    For the main course, we ordered a Stuffed Chicken Breast Nanterre (chicken breast stuffed with minced pate and mushroom grilled and served with a red wine, green chilly and cheese sauce) and a Poached Chicken Breast Clemenceau (chicken cooked in wine and mushroom, finished with cream, herbs and crushed peppercorn). You have to order mashed potato separately, though they didn’t bill us for the bread and flavoured butter. Both the dishes were extremely good, with distinct flavours that I could detect even with my taste buds being retired hurt (thanks to a bad cold). The chicken was done well, and not undercooked (like in many places that serve Continental stuff) and the sauces were simply superb. Both dishes highly recommended.

    We were too stuffed for dessert, so that’s been left for the next time we drop in. Thankfully, the end of the meal also brought a mini shot of chocolate and coffee, in a semi liquid state, with chocolate just managing to edge out the coffee flavor. Coffee takes revenge by not allowing the mix to get too sweet. I refuse to intercede because I’m busy convincing myself  that its dessert. 🙂

    All of the above cost us just below Rs.800. With desserts and starters, it would be around Rs.1000. The service deserves special mention because it was extremely prompt. You should drop in for a relaxed ambience, extremely good food and if I have to judge from that mini-shot, awesome desserts. 🙂

    Cornucopia, 3, Laurel lane, Richmond Town Ph: 41149495

  • Popsies

    Popsies had been figuring a lot in conversations these days, so when we got in the mood for some Chinese food for lunch, we decided to ditch our incumbent favourite – China Pearl, and try out Popsies, which it seems, has been around in Koramangala, since forever. (hangs head down in shame, loss of face at not discovering joint in own backyard). Here’s a map that will tell you exactly how to get there. Its just off the one way leading from the Intermediate Ring Road towards Empire, JNC, William Penn etc. On that road, take a left after Empire (opp Chung Wah), and you’ll find Popsies on your right. Parking on that road is iffy, so you can use the parking lot right next to Empire.

    An inconspicuous door leads you into the lively place that, I think, would always be teeming with the college crowd. It was, when we went in, but thankfully, we just about managed to get a table. The seating is quite comfortable, though, on a neatness scale, the place would only be just above average. There’s a whole lot of bamboo in the decor, and the arrangements are such that each table is quite unobtrusive.

    The menu has quite a lot of options – appetizers (only chicken and fish though), soups (veg and chicken mostly), rolls and wanton, momos; veg, chicken and seafood (fish, crab, prawn) options for the main course and a flood of chopsuey, rice and noodles.

    A lazy, cool Sunday afternoon, so we had to start with a soup. We asked for a thick soup and the Manchow was suggested. It turned out to be piping hot and extremely good. The place is best known for the momos, so we asked for a  portion of Steamed Szechwan Chicken Momos. Once again, luckily, a good choice, though D liked it more than i did. One portion has 10 large pieces, so might want to finish this before you order the main course. 🙂

    For the main course, we ordered a Chilly fish (with gravy), Chicken butter garlic fried noodles, and influenced by the decor, a Chicken mixed veg mushroom and bamboo shoot gravy. Though the portions were really XL, the quality of food was not that great. The best of the lot was definitely the chilly fish. I wouldn’t recommend the chicken gravy, unless you’re a fan of blandness. The experiment I did with the chillies in vinegar worked moderately well, though. The fried noodles didn’t have that liberal dose of butter that we’re normally used to.

    All of the above cost us just less than Rs.400. In terms of quantity – value for money, its difficult to beat this place. The soup, the momos and the chilly fish were quite good, but the other two dishes didn’t really deliver.

    Popsies, No: 11, Industrial Layout, Koramangala. Ph: 65659336

  • Cafe Pascucci

    As Namma Metro construction turns MG Road into what seems like the aftermath of a Transformers All Spark brawl, and as pedestrians and motorists battle it out for control of the footpath, we decided to wake up and smell the coffee. Okay, there was a significant delay between the two, but Cafe Pascucci (part of an international chain) which opened shop right in the heart of the battlefield, between the HP petrol pump and Prasiddhi silks, (just before Brigade Road when coming from the Trinity Circle direction) was where we landed up on Saturday night. Parking? Don’t you get it? MG Road as you know it, is gone. So, try parking at Bangalore Central/Brigade Road and walk it up.

    So we stepped off the chaos and entered this lively cafe, which was almost full at 7.45. But we managed to get a decent table. The music was loud enough to drown the memories of the world outside, though the tracks were a few years old. The ambience is absolutely great, well lit, with comfortable seating, a great place to hang about, and if you get one of the two seating options facing MG Road, you can have a great time watching the world go by.

    For all you coffee lovers out there, there is a separate menu card only for that!! But before we get there, the food. Italian is the cuisine, and there’s a decent spread, if not elaborate. There are about half a dozen appetisers, ranging from Rs.45-65, both veg and non veg, with add on options of olives, cheese, chicken stuffing etc, for prices ranging from Rs. 15- 30. There are also an equal number of salads, but mostly veg, ranging from Rs 75-150.

    For the main course, you can choose from pasta – penne/fusilli (Rs. 75), and then add your choice of sauce (Rs.25), add a couple of extras from a choice of 8 for Rs.25 (mushroom, broccoli etc)  and chicken/smoked chicken sausage for Rs. 35. If this doesnt work for you, you could try a Gnocchi di spinaci, risotto (with veg/chicken add ons) or spaghetti, all of which range from rs.125 – 150. There are also sandwiches – you can choose your bread (regular or multi grain) at Rs.55/60, spread and fillings which are priced from Rs.20-40. You could also try out Piadine (an Italian bread).

    We chose to start with a Fresh herb crumbed chicken with cheese and paprika dip. The portion had six pieces, so quite good on the quantity front, but was a bit salty. The dip was just about good. For the main course, D ordered Spaghetti Meatballs, and I chose Fusilli with creamy sauce, mushrooms, parmesan and smoked chicken sausages. Both the dishes were very good, though the garlic bread they gave along with the dishes were too crusty. Though we had read in some reviews that the quantity was very less, we felt that, for the price, they were quite decent sized portions. We could be biased because they left enough space for dessert 😉 The only cause for complaint was that, in spite of specifically asking for the main course to be brought only after we finished the starter, all the 3 dishes were brought together. Thankfully, the main course stuff was really hot, so no real heartburn.

    And now, a preview of coffee heaven. A dozen different kinds of espresso, a similar number of capuccinos, half that number of hot chocolate versions, and soft drink/juices- including a bottled coffee soda, five kinds of filter coffee, from different parts of the globe, 13 kinds of iced coffee, ten kinds of teas, a dozen different ice cream combinations almost all of them operating in exquisite combinations of chocolate, coffee, whipped cream, chocolate sauce etc. You get the idea!! No, actually you can’t. Not until you see those photos, which I thought was sadistic, because whatever you choose, you will always miss the others that reached the final round!! After excruciating elimination rounds, I settled for an African Nera – made of chocolate ice cream, coffe ice cream, espresso coffee, dark crema confuso coffee cream, chcolate sauce and cremino chocolate. D chose a Yogurt Cappuccino fruit, made of gold espresso, light yogurt mousse, and fruit. My loud slurps towards the end were a testament to my deep appreciation.

    If you’re planning to go for lunch, they have a fixed menu combination – salad, pasta and dessert, at Rs.149 and 179 for veg and non veg respectively.

    Our meal cost us just below Rs.600, absolutely good value for money. The coffee menu and I look forward to meeting each other again, several times. 🙂

    Caffe Pascucci, United Mansions, 39, MG Road, Ph: 40912134

  • Zoe

    Zoe is a restolounge on 7th Main, Indiranagar,a  Bistro Mediterranee, according to the menu. We’d been hearing about it for quite a while now, so since we were around the area, decided that now was as good a time as any to check it out. Zoe, here we go. 🙂

    To get there, turn left on to 7th Main from 100 ft Road Indiranagar (after 12th Main, when coming from the Koramangala side), and you’ll find it on the right. Parking isn’t much of a problem at all. And from what we saw, you don’t need to reserve in advance. Its got both indoor and outdoor seating. Since it was a nice breezy evening (as it usually is in our centrally air conditioned city) we decided to sit outside, though they had some nice sofas inside, where you could lounge about.

    In addition to the main menu, they also had a special menu for the day, and we ended up ordering most of the stuff from that!! The main menu has a whole lot of stuff that you could lounge around with  – espressos and derivatives (no, don’t think finance!!) , cappuccinos, lattes, chocolate drinks, brewed coffees, teas, iced lattes, milk shakes, smoothies, sodas, mocktails, dessert coffees and fresh juices. And then there are soups, veg and non-veg, priced between Rs.95-115, starters at Rs.145-185, sandwiches and wraps at Rs.135-165, burgers at Rs.150 (only non veg options) and salads at Rs.135 -195. The main course has pasta options among other things, but the options are a bit skewed towards non veg, and are priced between Rs.240 -290.

    We started with a Lung Fung soup, “cubes of chicken along with fined (sic) chopped carrot, green chilli, garlic, onion, ginger, egg white, spring onion, corn floor (sic) and seasoning”. The soup was very good, notwithstanding the spelling errors in the description. A bit spicy, moderately thick and hot, all of which made it a delicious start to an evening that was getting chillier. We then decided to try a starter and settled for Barbeque Chicken Wings, ” marinated fried chicken wings toasted  with mild spicy barbecue sauce served with garlic mayo”. This was also quite good, though the chicken was slightly under cooked, the sauce was excellent. The mayonnaise had only a mild garlic flavour and complemented the sauce very well.

    For the main course, we asked for a Chicken Venetian, “stuffed chicken with salami and fresh mozzarella cheese along with grilled shiitake mashed potato served with tangy venetian sauce and grilled vegetables”, and a Chicken a la brace, “sicilian style grilled chicken stuffed with spinach and ricotta cheese served with pesto rosso fries and salad” The latter was the only dish we ordered from the main menu!! The Venetian sauce didn’t impress me much, mostly because it was too tangy for my taste, but the shiitake mashed potatoes more than made up for it. D said the chicken a la brace was good, and if you’re a Popeye-like fan of spinach, you should like it too. 🙂

    All of the above cost us over Rs. 850, which though a bit pricey, was well worth it, in terms of the quantity and quality of food. We skipped dessert, though we did take a parcel for someone else. The ‘Black Out’ we ordered was charged an exorbitant Rs.152, I hope it tasted really good, because the quantity wasn’t much!! Meanwhile, the service was quite prompt, there wasn’t any delay in serving the dishes, and they gave us a complimentary drink too. There are quite a few of those chocolate and coffee stuff that I need to check out, so we’ll definitely be back.

    Zoe, 3790, HAL 2nd Stage, 7th Main, Opp Ambedkar College, Indiranagar. Ph: 42115257

    Menu and Photos at Zomato