• Trader Vic’s

    Our visits to Phoenix Market City are biannual, since the End of Season Sale is the only time we can buy most of the stuff that gets sold there! This time, in addition to the wardrobe makeover, we were also looking forward to visiting Trader Vic’s. While the food court at the mall was not bad, and we specially loved the chocolate momos, meals there were getting a bit monotonous. The restaurant is on the same floor as the food court, right next to Rajdhani.

    There are about three seating options – the bar itself, a lounge, and a terrace – though that faces the parking lot. We sat in the lounge, and though we ended up right next to the stage – where a band began to perform later – we didn’t really mind, because the music was good. I quite liked the ambiance as well – a reflection of the restaurant’s overall Polynesian theme – check out the various carvings around.

    Though they had a very appealing Sunday brunch priced at Rs.1500 + taxes, we chose to go à la carte. You can take a look at the drinks menu on Zomato and a more detailed food menu at Burrp. The Mai Tai is said to be invented by the restaurant chain’s owner, something that is heavily contested by one other party as well. Since we didn’t want to take sides, we decided to share a Mango Taj, despite the Mai Tai temptation. Even if it wasn’t fresh mango, we really couldn’t spot the difference in this concoction of orange juice, vodka, gold rum and a dash of spices. Superb drink. They also gave us a complimentary nibble, which turned out to be really good. Polynesian papad, you could call it, with an excellent dip that complemented it superbly. If the Tom Kha is on the menu, it’d be a rare occasion when we didn’t order it. This one turned out to be slightly less thick that we liked, but made up for it with the flavours. Didn’t have the standard lemongrass and galangal though.

      

    For the main course, I resisted the Thai curries and asked for a Wood Fired Trader Vic’s burger, and D chose a Spicy Chilli Fish. The burger patty was superb, and the peppered bacon and caramelised onion played their parts well too. Massive amounts of french fries as well! The Chilli fish was actually quite spicy, but since it was paired with jasmine rice, it ended up quite a good dish. The only snag was that we were too stuffed for desserts!

      

    The service was reasonably prompt, the music was really good, and so we didn’t really mind the Rs.1800+ bill (including taxes and service charges) I really want to try that Sunday brunch at some point, but it requires skipping many meals to ensure the Rs.1500+taxes is well spent! 😀

    Trader Vic’s, 2nd Floor, Phoenix Market City,  Mahadevapura Ph: 67266237/8

  • Often, these days…

    10b

    From a shared computer at office in 2003 and posts written over the weekend, to a shared computer at home and posts written over the weekend and scheduled for days far ahead in 2013,  it’s been one awesome journey. Thank you for reading.  🙂

    until next time, tenacious

  • Chanakya’s Chant

    Ashwin Sanghi

    Ashwin Sanghi’s second book in the history-fiction genre after The Rozabal Line. The book follows two narratives, one 2300 years in the past – following the lives of Chanakya and his protege Chandragupta Maurya, drawing heavily from actual history, and the other, a modern day version of the same tale featuring fictional characters – Chandini Gupta and her mentor Pandit Gangasagar Mishra.

    Despite the similarities in the overall plot, the difference in characters and situations ensured that I didn’t have a constant feeling of deja vu. The author also manages to bring in the machinations and possibilities in modern day politics – the nexus between politicians, businessmen, media, the creation of vote banks, alliances of convenience etc, and weaves in contemporary political events into the story, thus adding to the interest. Though slightly predictable, the storytelling is racy enough to constantly make you wonder what happens next. Unlike The Rozabal Line, this plot might be relatively familiar to Indian readers, but the flip side is that you won’t be easily confused despite the huge list of characters.

    There are a couple of things that put me off in this book. One was the lack of nuance in the use of language in the two narratives. The words and expressions used in the ‘past’ narrative are contemporary in nature, and it was difficult to imagine a Chanakya use (for example) ‘bloody’ quite regularly. The other was the use of clichéd quotes and wordplay. To his credit, the author provides an exhaustive list of credits, but if you’ve heard them before, it is difficult to imagine its usage by the character. Many a time, they also seem very forced, seemingly creating elaborate but unnecessary conversations just so the quotes can be used by the character.

    All things considered, it is a decent read, and like it or hate it, you’re not likely to be bored.

  • All ideas are equal, some more equal than others…

    (via Threadless)

    A conversation in office on an unrelated topic led me to ask this question on Twitter.

    ..and @atulkarmakar gave me his perspectives

     

     

    Just like Atul mentioned, I had first considered whether it was because creative ideas were considered more personal  and a business idea/model an impersonal, corporate entity. But my starting point had been advertising, to which this does not really apply. Compare the reactions of Company A replicating Company B’s business model/idea versus them being ‘inspired’ by their advertising. In the case of advertising, both agencies might get paid and both clients might benefit. But in the case of a business, the second player could benefit from the mistakes (strategy/execution) of the pioneer and build a more successful business. That would be really unfair to the first guy whose business idea might have been a really creative solution to some need. And yet, it’s more likely that the aping of ads would spark a larger debate and the business cloning would be ignored. Am I missing something? Any perspectives you want to share?

    until next time, game of clones

  • Bangalore Bistro

    We’ve been fans of the Bangalore Bistro on Brigade Road since the first time we had a meal there. Back then, we’d heard that it used to be originally on Cunningham Road. And that’s where we found it this time – in a building opp Fortis/Fun Cinemas, on the top floor. You can find the menu and map on Zomato. There are parking spaces on and off Cunningham Road, so it shouldn’t be very difficult to find a spot.

    The restaurant has indoor and alfresco options, and we chose the latter. A table that gave us a good view of Cunningham Road, so we didn’t miss the earlier Bistro. 🙂 There is a sense of old world charm that the place used to exude and that has been kept intact. We decided on a ‘Chicken Vol en Vents’ for starters, and then learned that there were soups available, though they weren’t on the menu. We also asked for a Kit Kat Shake, which arrived first. This one was a little disappointing – lots of milk, and only some Kit Kat. Compared to the versions at The Chocolate Room or even Boca Grande, this was a really poor country cousin.

    Thankfully, the Cream of Chicken soup made up for the disappointment – not very thick or creamy, but tasty nevertheless. The chicken starter – with smoked and creamy chicken on a crusty pastry – was also quite decent, though a tad bland.

    For the main course, we asked for a Smokin’ Guns and a Honey Chilli Roast Chicken sizzler. The former was a baked dish and had chicken sausages and (pieces of ) a breast of chicken and a faint egg-like flavour. Quite liked it. The sizzler was hot, and it wasn’t just the temperature! The chilli was strong in this one, and though the honey put up a brave fight, it was no match, and even the flavoured rice with its mild tang could only do so much! Highly recommended if you can handle spice.

      

    We really would’ve liked to try out the desserts, but were completely stuffed. The service was friendly and jovial, and quite prompt as well, despite a T20 match in progress. We gained a few pounds and felt lighter by just over Rs.1650, including a service charge. The new version managed to keep Bistro in our favourites list and was worth the journey across town. 🙂