Tag: bengali

  • O! Ustaad

    This review was first published in Bangalore Mirror. This is a much modified account.

    Thanks to the Gateway Hotel, you could end your gastronomic journey on Residency Road with ‘Arre huzoor, wah Taj boliye’. But in case you were wondering how to begin, you now have hope, in the form of O! Ustaad, at the other end. This is right after the St.Marks Road/Residency Road junction and placed under a certain Purple Haze, literally. Here’s a map. (the arrow mark is the right location) Parking should not be too difficult, since you have Hayes Road/ Convent Road also nearby.

    O! Ustaad claims to be an ‘asli Indian restaurant’, serving you the best fare from Lucknow to Mumbai and Delhi to Konkan with nazakat and nafasat, but we journeyed from the delight of Wah! Ustaad to the despair of Waah! Ustaad.

    This is one of the places where you shouldn’t go by outside appearances, because though the frontage might seem a tad dingy, the interior is bright and peppy. O! Ustaad definitely serves up an attitude and has a penchant for wordplay, judging from ‘Facebhook’ and ‘LaLoo’. The photographs of street food, and an eclectic mix of music from Junoon to classic rock, all add up to a unique character. So much for the mahaaul, now for the real haul.

    The menu may not be spread over a lot of pages, but it covers much ground in terms of geography. Kebabs from Lucknow, fish dishes from Goa and Bengal, vegetarian fare from Himachal and Punjab, and Old Delhi specialities, together ensure that both vegetarians and meat eaters are kept happy. Add to this the uniqueness of many of the items and the day’s special dishes and you’ll find that there’s no dearth of choice. Take a look. (click for larger image)

    From the 3 starters we tried, the Mutton Kulfi (one of the Day’s specials) was easily the best. The combination of melt-in-the-mouth mutton and a green chilly laden coating made it a unanimous favourite. The two starters we ordered from the regular menu were disappointing. The Pondicherry Bullet Paneer had no proof about the bullet or Pondicherry, and one of my friends had to be pacified as she felt she’d been conned into buying a Paneer Pakoda! The accompanying honey-lime dip didn’t make a good combination either. The ‘famous’ Chicken Salli Kebab was more potato than chicken.

    Himachali Dhingri Dhulma Lucknowi Gosht Korma Prawn Malai curry Bengali style Anda Paratha

    In the main course, the ones that impressed were the Murgh Khatte Pyaaz, with its unique gravy of vinegar soaked onions, pepper and yogurt, and the Himachali Dhingri Dhulma, with mushroom, capsicum and paneer in a slightly spicy gravy. The Lucknowi Gosht Korma, though decent, was lost in the bargain. The Anda Paratha is definitely worth a try too, and though the Gobi Paratha had an extra helping of chillies, it was still reasonably good, as was the Aloo Paratha. The Prawn Malai curry Bengali style had an excellent creamy gravy which was ruined by the overcooked, rubbery prawns. The Chicken Nasi biriyani, which was another Day’s special, was, as one of my friends put it, Tomato rice with chicken. Somewhere in the kitchen, a cooking oil well has been discovered, judging by the liberal usage. Though the menu lists 4 desserts, which we were eager to try, we were told that they weren’t available. The apple and chocolate pies we were offered instead were both quite avoidable.

    The service was quite prompt, and Jitesh, who looks after the Bangalore outlet, did a good job of helping us choose the dishes, especially since the day’s specials didn’t have explanations. O!Ustaad is worth a visit when you’re in that part of town.  A meal for two would cost about Rs.800. Though some of the dishes fell short of expectations, the uniqueness of the menu and a cheerful ambiance should make up for the shortfall. They also have lunch buffets which seemed reasonably priced.

    O! Ustaad, Below Purple Haze, 17/1, Residency Road, Bangalore – 560025 Ph: 080 41518147

  • Bhojohori Manna

    I’ve always felt that the biggest threat to the Mallu plans of world domination would come from the Bongs. Though they have been less organised in their approach, recent activities would indicate that all that is changing. Take, for example, Koramangala. There are no less than half a dozen restaurants on record now that serve Bengali cuisine. Not to mention, ‘Heritage of Bengal’ that has replaced the heritage Mallu joint Ravi’s Kitchen in Koramangala. The threat is on other fronts too. I was not really a big fan of mustard oil, until I realised that our Oriya cook  had slowly corrupted our (D’s and mine) taste buds over the period of two months he’s been with us!!

    And that’s how I thought it was about time that we undertook a third reconnaissance mission. (after Kolkata and The Esplanade). Bhojohori Manna is on the same road as Anupam’s Coast II Coast, Imperial etc. The map is here, Bhojohori Manna is a couple of buildings from Anupam’s. Parking for 2 wheelers is easy, and since there are many side lanes around, larger machines should be able to manage too.

    BM is spread across two floors. Well, spread is perhaps the wrong word, but they have used the space well to create a cosy, pleasant ambiance. The decor would be just like any other fine dining place, but the music, lamp shades and the cushions with Kantha work (oh don’t worry, guys, I am on your side, I had no clue what this was until D pointed it out. Still haven’t deciphered it either) gives the place the character its name demands.

    We didn’t start out really well. We went to the 2nd level for the view to the road outside, but weren’t allowed to sit at any table with that view, because they were all 4-seaters. So we went back down and thankfully got a good seat, which offered  a view, without the erm, high ground. This was at about 7.30 and by 8, there was quite a crowd. Thankfully, the person who took our order turned out to be a pleasant guy who  made things better with all the help he gave us in choosing the dishes. The menu is not as exhaustive as the one provided on their site, but still managed to give us enough options.

    We started with a Pora Bhetki, which is fried fillets of the Bhetki fish (red snapper?). Though it was tasty, with a good masala coating, and a chutney that complemented it well, Rs.180 was quite too much, especially considering the prices of the rest of the menu items. Would advise you to try out something else from the many options available. It didn’t help that they brought all the main course items before we completed it.

    So, for the main course, we started with Luchi and Chicken Dakbangla. (liked the Ramsay Brothers style name of the latter)  The luchis were quite good, and not very greasy. The Chicken Dakbangla was excellent, though the pieces were more bone than flesh. The question remains unanswered too, as there’s an egg in the dish. Recommended, in spite of the bones. Since 2 luchis each weren’t really enough, we also had a Koraishutir (peas) Kochuri. Turned out to be a good choice, and thanks to the staff for pointing out that our original choice Bakarkhani Roti wouldn’t go well with the chicken dish. Bheesh it was next. 😀 So we had Pabda Shorshe with steamed rice. Thanks to our ‘tampered’ taste buds, we enjoyed the mustard based fish curry. Somewhere in between, D also tried out an Ampora Shorbot which was reasonably good.

    The portions are just sufficient for two people, and when you’re not really hungry. The good part is that it allows you to try out various things, and still leave space enough for dessert!! Except for roshogulla and sandesh, the usual suspects including the mishti doi were not available. The guy who helped us out insisted on us trying out an ice cream. Since I wanted to hedge it, we asked for one of those ice creams and a roshogolla. The roshogolla was just okay, but the ice cream was absolutely fantastic. So I ended up ordering one more of that all for myself. Later research established that it was a ‘Natun Gurer ice cream’ (made of date palm jaggery). Gurest, sorry, best dessert I’ve had in a while, though the consistency is more ‘mishti doi towards mousse’ than ice cream.

    All of the above cost us just over Rs.600, which I thought was good bong for the buck. (though I really don’t know enough to comment on authenticity).

    Bhojohori Manna, 668/B, 6th Block, Koramangala Club Road, Ph: 080 25503666

    PS: Erm, meanwhile, any Bong reader here who can forget petty world domination plans and share the ice cream recipe? 😉

    Menu and Photos at Zomato

  • The Esplanade

    Koramangala meets Calcutta at  The Esplanade, a restaurant serving Bengali (traditional and Anglo Indian contributions) and Continental cuisine. This lies between China Pearl and Vicky’s, on the one way connecting Inner Ring Road with the road from Forum to National Games Village. (refer either of the two links for a detailed route) You’ll find it on the right, a few buildings after the Unilet showroom. Parking shouldn’t be too difficult to find. Don’t be misled by the dark, vacant ground floor, the restaurant is on the first floor, and the entrance is through a small door that you might miss at first glance. Check out some great posters of the Calcutta that was, on your way up.

    We reached at half past seven and easily managed to get a cosy table, that gave a nice road view, but you might want to reserve if you’re planning to go after 8.30.

    “Tomatoes and oregano make it Italian; wine and tarragon make it French; sour cream makes it Russian; lemon and cinnamon make it Greek; soy sauce makes it Chinese; love and divinity make it Bengali.” so said Pandit Ravi Shankar, according to the menu. Also as per the menu, The Esplanade tries to amalgamate the indigenous Bengali cuisine with the European influence that was acquired during the pre independence days. A modest tribute to famous restaurants, like Peliti’s and Firpo’s, that dotted the original Esplanade.

    The place doesn’t serve alcohol but has quite a few mocktail choices, including a Regent Rave, their version of an aampora sharbat. But the chilly Bangalore weather made us skip that. We’d have liked a soup but there seemed to be only a couple of options (veg, non veg soups of the day) so we decided to go for a starter – Paddo Pataye Kasundi Murgi, which is “a perfect mixture of chicken and raw mango mustard steamed in a lotus leaf parcel” Unless you have a huge problem with the mustard flavor, you’ll love this spicy, tangy mix. A plate has six portions, perfect for a group of 2-3. The Chicken Kabiraji, meanwhile, is in my watchlist. There are quite a few veg options and even some salad options. They give you papads while you’re waiting.

    For the main course, you could choose from a range of Continental stuff, with plenty of veg and non veg options – chicken, lamb and sea food. We, however, decided to explore the Bengali dishes. The beginning of that section rivals the Bay of Bengal in terms of the aquatic life represented – at least about 25 sea food dishes!! From this humongous set of options, we chose the Elish Machher Roast , “boneless hilsa roasted in grill topped with spicy tomato gravy and served with steamed rice” From the relatively small selection of chicken and mutton dishes (4 each) we selected the Esplanade chicken curry, “a contribution by the Anglo Indian community to Bengali cuisine”  Thanks men 😉 Ok, before you grass eaters mutter, you have over a dozen choices too.

    To go along with that, you could choose rice (steamed or two veg options or the elish pulao, which I have earmarked for later use) or bread options. We ordered a basket of loochi (poori for our limited consumption purposes 🙂 ) which had 3 of them, so we also ordered a Tinkona Paratha, “whole wheat bread roasted in ghee”. You could also try a hinger kachori or a hathh roti.

    We began with the loochi, the chicken curry was quite good, but the fish stole the show, its combination with the steamed rice is finga lickin good. Yes, I did do that. If you’re calorie conscious, leave your consciousness at home, that fish dish had an entire container of ghee devoted to it. If I hadn’t seen the desserts beforehand, I might have placed a repeat order. They also gave us amshotwer(sweet mango) chutney, which offset the effects of the chillies i had munched.

    And thus we reach the last (but never the least important) page in the menu. In addition to the regular Bengali desserts – rasgulla, rasmalai and mishti doi, there’s also chhanar jilipi, fried natun gruer ice cream, tia maria mousse (though the last two weren’t available) and Mishti Chaanar Paturi, “sweetened and flavoured homemade cheese roasted in grill”, which I ordered. D ordered a Baked Rashogolla, “tiny rasgullas baked with thickened milk and topped with dry fruits”. It actually turned out to be one big rasgulla. Unfortunately, though the desserts weren’t too bad, they didn’t live up to our expectations, especially after our experience in Koramangala’s other bengali restaurant – Kolkata.

    All of the above cost us just over Rs.1000. I’d recommend a trip to the place, preferably after skipping a meal, since you’d be tempted to eat a lot. You could also try the weekday lunch buffet priced at Rs.215, and get a valid excuse for sleeping in office. 🙂

    The Esplanade, #151, KHB Colony, 1st Floor, Koramangala 5th Block. Ph: 40927878/7888

    Menu and Photos 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