Category: Restaurant Reviews

  • Heera Panna

    And after quite a few weeks of Continental stuff, we decided to break the rhythm, and reserved ourselves a table at Heera Panna, on Church Street. This is on the same building as the Nokia Experience store, UCB etc, soon as you enter Church Street from Brigade Road. No, I cannot advise you on parking on Church Street/Brigade Road. Each time is an adventure, which you have to experience for yourselves. But I think Heera Panna has some parking facilities. Maybe you could ask them when you call for the reservations.

    Heera Panna serves a Mughal , Awadhi experience. Yes, its not just the food. Right from the staff at the door, who are all decked up in Mughal style, complete with turbans, to the very well done interiors, and the lighting, its not just about the food, its about the experience. The hostess said we could choose from the seating on either of the floors, but suggested the top floor. The cushions did turn out to be comfortable, and the seating spaces have glass bead curtains. The music that they were playing was Hindustani and ghazals. That, along with the way they dim/brighten the lights with red, white and green tinges really have a way of transporting you to a different realm. And if you really want to go one step more, they give you Mughal turbans and a sort of waistcoat. Some very interesting photos these make. 😀

    The staff is extremely helpful and courteous. As soon as you’re seated, they ask you whether you’re comfortable. I haven’t heard that in recent times. The menu card says that the restaurant theme is a tribute to Salim and his love for Anarkali. The guy who served our table practically insisted that we tell him what we liked (chicken/mutton/seafood) and how many dishes we’d like to have, and he’d take care of the rest. So, as per his suggestions, we ordered a Tawa Bhuna Ghosht as a starter, that’s ‘pan fried lamb cooked with potli masala sauteed till brown’. We’d told him that we didn’t prefer mutton much, but he said that we’d still like this. And he was right, though very strangely, it reminded me of our Kerala version of beef roast. 🙂

    For the main course, we ordered the day’s special, Murgh Awadhi, and to go with it a Lachha Paratha, and a hari mirch ka paratha – ‘crispy bread made from wheat flour and mixed with green chillies and ajwan.’ The Murgh Awadhi is a thich brown gravy, and we’d asked for it to be made spicy. (you can tell them to adjust the spiciness based on your preference) We ended up ordering one more Hari Mirch ka Paratha, which meant I consumed one and a half Hari Mirch ka Parathas, and both the spicy dishes (starter and main course) My stomach, of course, didn’t take kindly to it, and I can still feel the burn, but I enjoyed the food so much it really doesn’t matter 🙂

    The quantities were just sufficient, but we ended up not having sufficient space for dessert. Meanwhile, they also serve liquor, and some nice sounding mocktails.  A 330 ml KF costs you Rs.100, hope that helps. The desserts are in range of Rs.95-135, gulab jamun, rasgulla, jalebi, ras malai, moong daal ka halwa and so on.

    Once again the ambience is simply awesome, the food is excellent, and the service is splendid. I have only a couple of suggestions – the cutlery (fork, knife etc)  doesn’t quite fit the ambience, and the space between the table and the sofa is a bit too much. And inspite of the green inkstains from the quill they gave with the feedback form, (yes, a quill, that you dip in ink, and write your feedback with) the experience left us delighted, and we’ll certainly be back. The bill came to just over Rs.850, and we paid it gladly. You should drop in there too, for an absolutely unique experience.

    Heera Panna, The Pavillion, Church Street, Bangalore -01. Ph.9886461108, 9845175777, 41152727, 41143737

    PS. I don’t know if its a mistake, but I just realised they haven’t billed me for the mineral water 😐

  • Via Milano

    ..and as part of our Italian/Continental weekend dinner festival, we thought we’d knock off Via Milano from the places in Koramangala we haven’t been to.

    Via Milano is just off the Sony World Junction, when coming from the Indiranagar side, take a left at the junction (after Lifestyle), and then take a U -turn, since this is on the same side as Sony. There’s valet parking, and i guess enough parking for 2 wheelers. Or you can be like us – park in Lifestyle, window shop a bit and then walk to Via Milano. 🙂

    Via Milano is on the 3rd floor, and would give a spectacular view of the Ring Road. I am guessing, because in spite of several pleas, they refused to give me window side seating, even the corner one occupied by Mrs and Mr.Invisible Man throughout our meal, since I believe they reserved it. The cynic in me (and the wife, no she’s not a cynic) claim its the tee+cargoes+unshaven look that puts me at the receiving end of such treatment. I don’t see why, if there’s no dress code, and I can pay.

    Anyway, the ambience is quite nice, and I liked the erotic female anatomy illustrations that they’ve hung on the walls. The staff is quite courteous. So they said no to my window seat request with a smiling face. Oh, okay, I shall try not to be mean. They did give us the welcome wet napkin and a bread basket. Thank You.

    They serve alcohol, and have an elaborate menu just for that. Though there seems to be a lot of starter options, there are only 2 soups. Since we preferred a thick one, we asked for a Crema di lenticchie, stracci di pasta integrale, olio d’ oliva all’ aroma di porcini. Haha, don’t worry they have an English explanation too, for us genteel desis. That’s green lentil soup (dont let me catch you muttering daal!!) with home made whole wheat pasta, olive oil, porcini, mushrooms. They also give you olive oil, chilli oil and one more ( i think balsam oil?) in ‘Borosil’ test tubes. Though i was reminded of my science lab experiences, i tried the chilly oil and it did add to the soup’s flavour.

    For the main course, there’s pasta, antipasta and pizza. Both of us decided to go for pasta. So I ordered a Tortelloni di pollo, funghi, crema, erba cipollina (chicken filled tortelloni, mushrooms, fresh cream and chives) and the wife ordered a Penne con sear fish, pomodoro, capperi, olive, melanzane, semi di finocchio alla siciliana (penne sicilian style with sear fish, tomato sauce, capers, black olives, eggplant and fennel seeds) The food was good, no qualms in admitting that. The slight sour cream and mushrooms in the chicken dish complement each other very well, the tortelloni is so soft it almost melts in your mouth. And it shattered the bland expectations I had, in a very nice way. The fish was also made well, and had a dominant tomato flavour, though it was not spicy.

    There were quite a few dessert and coffee options, but the window affair irritated me enough to skip it. In fact that was the single thing that spoiled the entire experience, and made us feel ‘cold’ towards the place. But you should drop in at least once, because the food is diferent, and tasty, it does ‘excite your senses’ (their tagline) and in spite of the ‘falling over each other service reserved for foreigners’ that i detest, the service is pleasant.

    All of the above cost us just less than Rs.1000, inclusive of tax. No mineral water included, since you can pick that up from Spar (Lifestyle). 🙂 A lil cheap, but I’ve had enough of being fleeced over a Rs.13 bottle of mineral water, all over Bangalore’s eating joints!!

    via Milano, No.607, Asha Plaza, 3rd floor, 80 ft Peripheral road, Koramangala, Bangalore – 560034 Ph. 41309997/4

    Menu and Photos at Zomato

  • Vicky’s la terrazza

    Remember Vicky’s Tawa Lounge? Well, this is on the top floor of the same building. For directions, take a look at the Tawa Lounge post. This one’s been on the radar ever since we visited the Tawa Lounge. We’d reserved in advance, but the crowd was only just right by 8, so you could just walk in too.

    The ambience is pleasant, with a very cosy, homely feel to it. Its partially open, so you have a nice breeze blowing in, unless, of course, it rains. The seating is very comfortable, and the entire place has a way of relaxing you.

    la terrazza serves continental. The menu, though, is a bit limited, but does offer decent choices for both veg and non vegetarians. We started with a Zucchini and asparagus soup – we also asked for some chicken to be added to it. The soup was thick and delicious, and the garlic bread that was given with it, complemented the flavours beautifully. For the main course, we ordered a Fish with sundried tomato, served with basil rice, and a mixed grill, that’s chicken, beef steak, lamb, sausage, bacon, pineapple, and a fried egg. The fish was quite creamy, and seemed to have a hint of coconut. The mixed grill was made well, though it did border on blandness. You can choose to have french fries or mashed potato to go with it, I chose the latter. Turned out to be a good choice, because the peppery flavour of the mashed potato helped the dish.

    All of the above cost us just above Rs.700. The mineral water contributed Rs.30 this time 🙂

    There are also some pizza options available, which looked good, at least from a distance. ( two tables away, to be precise 😉 ) There are desserts too, with at least two good chocolate options, but perhaps some other time.

    Vicky’s la terrazza, #99, 2nd floor, 5th cross, 6th Block, Koramangala Ph: 41751635/36

    @Zomato

  • The Only Place

    This is only our second visit, and that’s all thanks to a rare mistake I made about 4 years back. No, I’m not claiming to be otherwise flawless, its just that on our previous visit, I forgot to mention that I wanted the steak well done, and they gave me a rare one!! The immense strength my jawbone displays now, is thanks to that incident.  And the memory made sure I kept away from the place.

    This time too, the original choice was Spiga, but Spiga, I was told, is no longer open??!! So, I thought the time had come for another shot. The Only Place is in the central part of  Bangalore, but the location and the ambience would deceive you. Its on Museum Road – from Church Street, take a left at Empire, just before you reach the next junction, you’ll see it on your left. Parking might be made easier, thanks to the (parking space of the) neighbouring office building.

    We did reserve a table, but didn’t prove necessary at 8pm. It was  a Sunday, I’m sure it would be more crowded on Saturday, and anyway the place was almost full by 8.30. We started with a cream of mushroom soup. While the soup was definitely thick, the cream was not very evident. For the main course, there’s quite a lot of steaks to choose from, with some baked items, spaghetti, burgers etc also thrown in. There’s enough choice for the veggies as well. Though I simply love the Chateaubriand steak (thanks to an official lunch, where the ‘well done’ was amply communicated) I decided to try something different, and ordered a Chicken Cacciatore. The wife ordered an OP’s special fish. The chicken dish is “ tender cubes of chicken, served in a red spicy sauce with celery and mushroom on a bed of noodles (there’s also an option of rice), onions and assorted vegetables” The sauce is simply amazing, its spicy without making you all teary, the noodles is soft and absorbs the flavours fast, and overall, the dish is very tasty. If you’re not into beef and can’t order the Chateaubriand, go for this one. The Op special fish is “fillets of fish topped with herbs and spices charbroiled, served with vegetables and mash potato” Though the fish is somewhat bland, the topping and the sauce ensure that the dish is tasty enough.

    There was a chocolate fudge cake that was eyeing me from the display all through my dinner, and I succumbed finally. Thank God! Awesme, and they pour enough chocolate sauce s that its practically dripping. Pure evil!! And there are other options too, including a trifle pudding. Some other time, maybe 😀

    The quantities are just right. It leaves you full but not bloated. All of the above cost us just over Rs.600, including a mineral water for Rs.25 😉

    The Only Place, No: 13, Museum Road. Ph: 32718989

    Photos at Zomato

  • Bombay Post

    No, its not a post on Bombay. Bombay Post is a restaurant from the BJN group on (the old) Airport Road. Its housed in the same building as TGIF and Indijoe, has valet parking and sufficient parking for two wheelers (behind the building). We reserved a table at 7.45, but called up later to check if they could hold it till 8, since we were delayed. We were told that’d not be possible, and we would have to walk in and depend on our luck. Our luck seemed intact since there were only 4 other tables occupied when we walked in. It started filling up around 8.30 though. They seemed to have changed the wall decor a bit, since the huge posters of the earlier era’s Bollywood icons were conspicuously missing. But the guard with the huge moustache (himself an icon of sorts by now) is still there. 🙂

    We got a decent table, and were given the usual heavy menu card (i always wonder if its anything to do with the prices 😉 ). Anyway, we decided to skip the shorba and starters, and went for the main course. Departing from the regular 2 non-veg custom, we ordered a Khatta Meethe Aloo (“sauteed potato in an earthy jaggery and tamarind gravy”), a Kadai Murgh Patiala (“boneless pieces of chicken sauteed and simmered in its own juices, then tossed in kadai masala. From the royal house of Patiala”) and to go with it, an onion kulcha and a plain roti. We also ordered a mixed raita.

    The aloo dish was made with baby potatoes, tilted towards the sweet side, and had a very thick gravy, but it was good nevertheless. The chicken was very well made, with an excellent gravy and though I’ve always had an egg involved wherever else I’ve had this dish, I would still recommend it highly. No complaints on the bread. The raita, though wasn’t great. It was diluted a bit too much, and hey, I just realised, you didn’t give me boondi!!!

    A few things you should check out. Bombay Post has a huge choice of kababs,  their Dal makhani is one of the best I’ve had, and i’d have liked to check out the lal/hari mirch ki roti. They also have an assortment of north indian desserts, but hey, there’s a Corner House in the same building. 😉

    The service was excellent, and all of the above cost us Rs.838, including the service charge. I suspect the Rs.70 mineral water (for 1 litre!!) made a significant contribution. 😐

    Bombay Post, Carlton Towers, Airport Road, Bangalore, Karnataka 560008, 080 41113939