Bombay Post...

This restaurant was highly recommended by some good friends. My first impression after entering the place was that it needs a fresh coat of paint. Dont get me wrong, my expectations of a restaurant run by BJN Group is on the higher side.

It was just two of us who went out for dinner on a friday evening. The Paya Shorba was good. The Lamb Kebabs were nothing out of the ordinary. The Biriyani was good. It was the wet kind that is made on a griddle than the Dum cooked one. The Lamb Beliram was decent.

In the end, we walked out thinking that we either ordered the wrong dishes or the place was overrated. My friends still stand behind their ratings. I would go there another time. And may be, I will stick to the Mumbaikar dishes.. Now, I have to convince my wife to join me one more time. I also fervently hope that they do up the place.

Ghufa - eating kebabs in Jaya Nagar

I was intrigued when a good friend of mine spoke about a new Afghan/Frontier restaurant in Jaya Nagar. No offense to the folks from that part of town, there were hardly any choice for meat eaters for long.

We had two choices - a continental and Ghufa. We chose the latter. I must admit that I was really glad to have found this place.

We landed up in Ghufa at the Hotel President during lunch time. The place was pretty free. The first thing that strikes you is the decor. They have recreated a cave. The staff wear Raj era outfits. I guess our server found it a little comical to wear the outfit. He had an amused look most of the time.

The food on the menu was interesting and different from the standard fare. Especially vegetarian stuff. I would not recommend the Afghan meat samosas. They were too oily for my taste. But the soup was nice and spicy!

We decided to stick with the starters. A few more vegetarian kebab platters kept us going. For a change they were tasty.

We sped to the dessert. Tried Ghufani ka Meetha and Gulab Jamoon with litchies in them. I liked to former. Of course, both were incredibly sweet, just like I love them.

Road Trip in Bangalore...

I am returning to Roadtrip after a few years.

For those of you who dont know, Roadtrip is a biker themed restaurant serving Italian and Continental food in Domlur.

The service was nice and unpretentious. And that is all that was good about our outing. Food was mediocre. We ordered Bruschetta. In my opnion it was a joke! The chicken, beer & cheese soup was good. But was served slightly hotter than luke warm. I love my soups at a much higher temperature. The bread that was served along with it was okay.

The biggest disappointment was the main course. I ordered Moussaka ( minced lamb, aubergine and cheese which has been baked )... The end result on my plate was mediocre at best. My partner in crime ordered Ratatouille. He was not pleased either. I think he was more disappointed than I was.

Another sad news was that they no longer have a liquor license. So, no wine either.

It will take a lot of convincing to get me visit Roadtrip again. I would classify it - avoidable for now.

Empress of China @ Intercontinental Grand, New Delhi

I also got a chance to check out the Empress of China restaurant at the Intercontinental Grand in New Delhi. I love to eat in Chinese restaurants. The chance of moving away from cutlery or your fingers to two bamboo sticks always excites me. I have a tendency to eat very fast. Chopsticks make me slow down.

It was dinner time. We dropped in without a reservation. The welcome was okay. It was definitely not of the levels I received at the Cilantro, Trident Hilton. But, I guess that is fine.

It was still lent. So, I did not get a chance to try the meat and fish dishes on offer. Honestly, I was not impressed with the food. It was definitely not bad. But, definitely not the aha kind as well.

Surprisingly for a 5 star restaurant the mocktails did not seem to be expensive. I tried something that I dont remember, but was decent. If my memory is correct the glass the a tiny one. :)

This is definitely one restaurant which did not impress me. Might give it one more chance. But, only if another exciting choice is not available.

Kamat Bugle Rock, Bangalore

I am always on the lookout for places which dont bite my wallet, but gives a unique dining experience. I have had a few chances to check out other Kamat Restaurants. I have always thought the cleaniness was something that was left to be desired of late in Kamat restaurants. When I heard that Kamat opened a new place in near Bugle Rock Park, I wanted to give it a try. Plus, my team wanted me to take them out for our monthly ritualistic lunch.

As always stick to the tried and tested. We went in for the special meals with Jowar bhakri. Kamat folks have mastered the art of making these stuff - the softest and fluffiest that I have ever come across.

Their trademark aubergine dish is also amazing.

The desert is pretty pedestrian - a simple fruit salad.

If you get to this place in the evening make sure you find a place on the terrace. They have live classical music on weekends. Should be interesting.

The place is new. So, it is all very clean and inviting. The service is decent. And they take credit cards.

Highly VFM (Value for money) place. Must try if you are a fan of Jowar Bhakri.

12 more hours and counting...

There is something about the last day of Lent. I cant wait to try all the meat and fish that I have been away for the last 40 days.

I guess the waiting is worth it. To think of it, the last week was especially tough. I was travelling to New Delhi and the temptation almost got the better of me. I had to confine myself to the veggies at four different superb hotels!

Tomorrow morning, I will be with my parents for breakfast! We have the traditional Kerala style breakfast on Appam and Chicken Curry. My dad's the best! Never really like Chicken Stew. I could never stand it.

Lunch is more meat and fish. I am looking forward to eating Pork. Dad makes it the most wonderful way. Mine is good as well. Spicy and fatty.. with the skin in the curry makes it just wonderful.

By the end of lunch, it will be hard to drag myself from the lunch table to the bed. Most of the times, I will be too full to try dinner. :)

Ah.... it is just 12 more hours to go before I can start to dig in. ;-)

Sahib, Singh, Sulthan @ The Forum Mall, Bangalore

Interestingly the name stands for three steam locomotives the ushered in the age of steam in India. The restaurant is themed on a railway station in the Raj India. The food is definitely the Burra Sahib kind.

If you are a fan of the hot, spicy raj food, this is the place. I would recommend sitting inside the railway car.

It has been some time since I visited the restaurant. I dont even remember what I ate. But the food was definitely tasty. I cant wait for my next visit.

Though on the slightly expensive side, this is a place to visit.

Cilantro @ The Trident Hilton, Gurgaon

I fell in love with this place, the wine and the food. We turned up at the hotel after sundown. The place acquires a magical atmosphere with the pink stone walls, the pool with flames in it and the beautiful lighting. The lobby and the white floors (marble?) are just too good. The maitre'd was really nice. Her choice of wine - Pinot Grigonzio was nice. Even for my non-oenphile tongue, it tasted good. :)

We went for the buffet, I would call it more of a set menu. It was good!

The bread was okay. I have seen better specimens. The soup, Minestrone, should have been served hotter. Well, I like my soup this way.

It was still the season of lent, and I was staying away from meat and seafood. This meant that the only pizza I could eat was vegetarian. We ordered one fresh from the oven, and it tasted heavenly.

The desserts were out of the world. I had my fill of them. We polished it all off with some port wine. For some reason, I always like my port a little chilled. May be, my taste for wine is pedestrian. :)

Somewhere along the line, the waiters disappeared. Probably because it was past midnight and no longer considered regular working hours. In all, it was a great experience. I will go to Cilantro again. It is well worth the experience.

Karaikudi in Chennai...

I was in Chennai last week. Could not resist the chance to check out the food scene. Heard of Karaikudi, a Chettinad restaurant. It was five of us who decided to give it a try.

Ambience - Okay
Food - Okay
Service - Tardy

We tried the Kothu Parotta which was decent. And keema dosa - which was good. Paniyaram was good. Chettinad Chicken dry was avoidable. Same for Prawn Varuval. Maybe, we did not know what to order. But the overall experience did not match the hype about the place.