Category: Restaurant Reviews

  • Boca Grande

    ..which means ‘The Big Mouth’ in Spanish. It belongs to the same group that owns Java City, and describes itself as the reality version of something like Facebook. In terms of ambience and attitude, it definitely works (although the demographics would mean that we were the oldies crowd 🙂 )

    Boca Grande is located on 80 ft Road, Koramangala, the road that goes from National Games Village to Forum. When coming from MG Road side, take a left after Forum, and you’ll have it on the left, after Mocha, opposite the Indian Heritage Academy. Deez, my chocoblog pal, had mentioned it first quite sometime back, and we managed a few dessert visits before this one. We got in by around 7.45, and the first floor was almost full, which meant that we didn’t get any of those window seats we were hoping for, but the crowd thinned by around 9, when we left. The place serves continental, but what makes it special is the humongous choice of desserts, and ice cream concoctions.

    We started with a broccoli, corn and chicken soup, which was made even more tasty by the nippy Bangalore weather. I’d have liked it a bit thicker though. Before I forget, needs to be mentioned that there is enough choice for ‘herbivores’ too. Yes, I would be classified as Omnivore too, according to the menu card 🙂

    Next, we ordered a Chicken Cordon Bleu with in-house BG sauce – that’s “chicken breast stuffed with chicken sausage and italian mozzarella cheese, grilled, accompanied with herbed mashed potato”. That description sets some high expectations, and boy, does it deliver!!  The sauce deserves a special mention since that’s what takes this perfectly grilled dish to a much higher plane. We then had a Grande’s pizza, which has “smoked chicken, chicken ham, chicken tikka, chicken salami, lamb pepperoni, lots of herbs n lots of cheese.” It did have all of that, but it didn’t quite reach the stellar status that the previous dish had. I felt that it wasn’t really value for money, but with the ingredients, the price is perhaps justified. I’d suggest that you skip the pizzas.

    And now for the main course – desserts 😀 My respiratory system troubles meant that I couldn’t afford anything cold, so I ordered a crepes – Choco Banana Cocoa Extravaganza – “a tempting mix that literally melts in your mouth”, and that was exactly what it did – those large crepes with chocolate flowing all around. There’s a Belgian chocolate dish that takes half an hour to make, that’s what I’ll go for next time. D ordered a chocolate ice cream sandwich, turned out that it wasn’t available, so she settled for a Chok Late – “choco roco, chocolate chips and vanilla ice cream blended with black forest pastry, chocolate crispies, hot and cold chocolate and nuts”. Well, settled for would be a wrong term, because she really settled into it, and wanted to be carried home after she was through with it. 🙂

    All of the above, including a service charge cost us just over Rs.750. The service, though a bit tardy to start with, got better. It must’ve been the crowd or the general mood of the place – hang out and chill.

    Boca Grande, 8th Block, 80ft road, Koramangala. Ph:41105183/41110889

    Menu and Photos at Zomato

  • Samarkand

    For those into history, Samarkand, in Uzbekistan, is the birthplace of Babur, the founder of the Mughal dynasty in India. For those into immediate concerns, like ‘where do we go for dinner tonight’, its also a restaurant on Infantry Road, part of the BJN Group. Infantry Road is a one-way, so don’t try to get in from the Safina Plaza direction.

    We called on Friday to reserve a table (the day you get a table without reservation, you might as well make life changing decisions too, you’re in luck) We were told that both the two seaters were already reserved, so we asked for a 4 seater, and then our 2 friends who were supposed to join us, failed to turn up. 😀

    Samarkand specialises in the cuisine of the place its named after. The menu card is a nice curio, and is in the form of a newspaper, and gives a small peek into the culture and cooking habits of the area.

    We’d decided to try out a kabab this time, so from the choices available, we selected a Murgh Gilafee Seekh, which is ‘made from chicken mince flavored with cardamom, and wrapped with finely chopped pepper’. Not a bad choice, and tasted good, especially with some of the sauces they provide. A bit of ‘anti snobbery’ desreves mention, as we were asked to eat the dish without the aid of cutlery. 🙂

    That, and the bread sticks, made us go for a single gravy for the main course. So, we ordered the Murgh Peshawari, which is ‘chicken in a rich and invigorating blend of spices, brown gravy, roasted garlic and fresh red chillies’. To go with it, an onion kulcha and a paneer kulcha. Boneless chicken, and a very tasty gravy, goes well with the kulchas too. The red chillies weren’t spicy though. The quantity is sufficient for two people.

    We were stuffed, so we skipped desserts, but there are a few good options, for about Rs.150. The service was very good, though unlike the last time we were here, there was no advice given on the menu.

    All of the above, including a bottle of mineral water (Rs.70 again)!! :O, and a service charge of 10%, came upto just over Rs.1000. In terms of wallet friendliness, its less affectionate than say, a Sahib Sind. So, a good place to go, if you plan to splurge.

    Samarkand, #66, Gem Plaza, Infantry Road, Bangalore. Ph: 41113366

    Menu and Photos at Zomato

  • Moti Mahal Delux

    After being told by a lovely voice to contact Airtel customer care, since the numbers i dialled could not be found, we still reserved after having got through to the mobile number. Moti Mahal is in Lido Mall, on Old Madras Road, and serves Indian and Mughlai cusine. We realised after we got there, that a reservation really wasn’t necessary, since there were exactly 3 groups during the time we spent there. It perhaps has to do with the fact that they weren’t accepting any credit cards, except for Amex (only for the day). Before I really get stuck in a Sholay kind of scene (Jai and Mausi for Viru’s rishta with Basanti), let me proceed.

    So, after checking our wallets’ cash component, and ensuring that we wouldn’t be washing vessels later, we started with a Moti Mahal Almond and Mushroom soup. It was quite spicy, thanls to the contribution from the open green chilly. Its served in glasses, not exactly the style I prefer. There were tiny slivers of almond, and we hoped that the mushroom was somehow built in. I think you should try some kababs, since there are lots of options, though all the non veg options are priced over Rs.295

    For the main course, we ordered a ‘Murg Korma from Old Delhi’, a ‘Brain Masala’ and to go with it, an onion kulcha and a lal mirchi ka paratha.  The chicken curry was just about okay, though the quantity was more than sufficient. D says the tomato flavour that it had was a bit overboard (I wonder why i never have these gustatory perceptions 😐 ) The brain masala was quite good, and perhaps the redeeming factor, though at Rs.295, it happens to be the costliest brain I’ve had. (comic references to MY brain will not be tolerated..hmmph) They also give a small paratha as part of the brain dish. The Kulcha was big enough not to warrant a second one, and was quite good. The lal mirch paratha didn’t go overboard in spiciness.The dessert options are the regular North indian cuisine suspects, except for Mawa Chocolate, but we were too stuffed to try.

    The ambience is not great, quite bare. I also thought that the two seater tables could be a bit bigger, especially since their roti containers are quite large. The service was quite pleasant, except for the part where we were asked whether we were ready for the main course, when we’d just started with the soup. All of the above and a mineral water cost us a rupee and fifty paise short of Rs.1000, that’s inclusive of a service charge of 10%.

    Moti Mahal Delux, Lido Mall, 1/4 Swami Vivekanand Road, Near Trinity Circle, Ulsoor, Bangalore Ph: 080 42127112/3, 9741886985

    Menu at Zomato

  • Kolkata

    No, this is not the one with the Oh, on St.Marks Road (that’s Calcutta anyway), this is closer to home – Koramangala. Very near to the place where i first stayed in Bangalore, in ST Bed. Okay, so when you’re coming from the Indiranagar side, take a left at the Sony World junction (from the National Games Village side keep coming straight). At the next signal (after Identiti, and opp Silsila, the junction which used to have the Maharaja restaurant) take a left, and then, another left. You’ll see Kolkata on the right. Yes, finally something right. It’s actually not very difficult to find. Parking shouldn’t be too difficult for 4 wheelers, it certainly isn’t for two wheelers.

    The place is very well done, with a lot of ethnic Bengali stuff on display – handicrafts, art etc. The person who runs the place said she had done it up herself. It’s very good, for the most part, and keeps the ambience in line with the name of the place. The staff are extremely courteous and the place emanates a very homely feeling. Since we planned to reach there early, we didn’t reserve, but the crowd picked up as we were leaving. So you’d do well to reserve if you plan to go after 8.30.

    So, we decided to skip the soup and start with some fried fish. The start was a bit disappointing since the fish was nothing special. Not that it was bad, but it was the kind of stuff we regularly have outside. The Bengali options in starters didn’t appeal to us (mostly because of my personal dislike for some vegetables) and the one we did decide on first was not available.

    So, with some apprehension, we approached the main course. At first we thought that we’d have some chicken and fish with luchis. But the person in charge of our table, really took charge, after we started placing the order. To him, our order must have seemed  a gross insult to the way Bengali food must be  consumed, in terms of combinations. So, to begin with, he brought us luchis (one plate – 4 numbers) with Kosha Murgi ” a dry chicken preparation cooked in select spices’. Though the menu says dry, its actually a thick gravy, which goes extremely well with the luchis. Next up, we had ghee rice with Macher Jhol (which is the regular bengali fish curry). An awesome combination as the items complemented each other perfectly. My problem with Bengali food has always been the mustard oil flavor, but thankfully I didn’t feel it, at least in the dishes we had. Must be said, everything we’d ordered was served piping hot. The quantities are absolute value-for-money and such that you can try out many things. And now comes the best part of the dinner – dessert!! While I’m not an expert on bengali desserts, and haven’t gone more than the regular (usually KC Das and tin cans) rasgullas, mishti doi, and rasmalai, I’d still say that the desserts at this place were sublime. I ordered mishti doi and it was different from the stuff I regularly have, and different in a very nice way. But the Ras Malai that D ordered went beyond that. It’s a must have. As the owner rightly said, the effect it had on D was quite evident from the broad grin on her face.

    All of the above cost us just less than Rs.700. The place is definitely worth your visit, and you really must try the desserts. My only suggestion to the owners would be to knock off the North Indian part of the menu, it didn’t make much sense to me to have that in a restaurant called Kolkata.

    Kolkata, 965, 4th Cross, ST Bed, Koramangala , Bangalore. Ph: 42555999

    Menu and Photos at Zomato

  • 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 😐