Beyond Dirty Pictures or idlis and dosas; Fashionably South!

Name: South Indies, Pune

Location: Ganesh Khind Road, Next to Pune Central, Shivajinagar

Contact: 020 41047272, 020 41057273

Time of Visit: 6^th December

I can get a yummy idli and dosa for thirty bucks around the corner. Why should I spend over three hundred bucks on South Indian food? That’s correct, vegetarian South Indian food. I’ll tell you why? This is no regular dosa and idli quick service joint, South Indies is an exquisite South Indian fine dining experience. A chain from Bangalore, South Indies is a one of its kind in Pune.

It is beyond the South Indian food we know; dosas, idlis, appams and stews. The lunch buffet spread of South Indies includes authentic curries, rasam and sweets from the four southern states of India. The ambience and service are classy, contemporary and keeping with the state of the art fine dining restaurants in Pune. While the service was fabulous, the best part was that the staff was well informed about the cuisine, the dishes being served as well as the company.

The buffet spread was not very extravagant in terms of the variety of dishes, but each of the dishes was top class in terms of flavour, freshness and quality. A rare instance in the world of buffet spreads. They have an ala carte menu with an interesting selection of soups, starters and main course, which very unique and interesting. This menu is a breath of fresh air from Indian restaurant cliché, the paneer tikka masalas and Veg Kadhai. For Vegetarians especially, this place is reasonable and a must try.  

From the rasam, green apple mulligatawny soup and podi (gunpowder) idlis to the poppadums, sambhar and stew each item on the buffet had a distinct flavour, yet subtle and tasty. The appam and stew in particular was by far the best I have eaten. If you think that nothing can beat chicken and beef stews from Kerala, you ought to try their small onion stew you will begin to rethink your preference. The appam was delicate and by far the best that I have eaten. There were dosas, idlis and chutneys as well, and they were fantastic. Yet, I preferred the vada curry, mushroom preparation with crispy, lachhaa Kerala parathas and coconut rice over them. For a meal that does not give you stomach problems and sweets to die for, you must try South Indies.

Haven’t you eaten the same old chocolate mousse and gajjar halwa a million times? You may not get over it, but you have to try yummy payasam and sweet made with potatoes with pumpkin halwa. It is unique, tasty and perfect. With the flair bartending mixing trick of filter coffee by the server the afternoon ended quite pleasantly. So, what are you waiting for Punekars? You have the passion for food and an appetite for searching something new. I bet, this is a menu you can’t memorise but that which you will remember. Go ahead, you will love it!

That Thing about this place is that it is a breath of fresh air from the same old menus where you don’t need to read the menu to place the order. This place is fashionably touching your Indian cords.

Ambience: Very Good 8/10

Value for Money: Very Good 8/10

Menu: Very Good 8/10

Service: Excellent 9/10

Food: Excellent 9/10

That Thing About This Place: Excellent 9/10

Very Good Ambience + Very Good Value for Money + Very Good Menu + Excellent Service + Excellent Food + Excellent That Thing About This Place = Excellent

Rating : 8.5/ 10

Have you ever been Really Confused about a Restaurant?

Name: The Place

Location: Before Main Street, MG road, Next to West End

Have you ever been really confused about a restaurant? Friends say it’s the best place for sizzlers in Pune, family exclaims ‘The Place’ is a big no, no. My brother says ‘The Place’ was his most memorable sizzler date. I trust his taste. Why did it take me this long to gather courage to try it out? The answer to that question dates back to 1993. The first time I visited ‘The Place’ was with my parents, when I was five. I have no recollection of that meal but since 1993 I have never been to ‘The Place’ again, until today. Why? I was told by them that the food here was, to quote them, ‘it was horribbble’. It has been almost two decades since. So, after mixed reviews, a lot of discouragement, many good reviews, I finally decided to find out for myself. Can you imagine the anticipation associated with this sizzler?

After an eighteen year long wait, I tried the sizzler at ‘The Place’. This is a small, in-room dining place with simple furniture and a practical setting, located in the heart of the city. Although the restaurant was full, it wasn’t noisy or chaotic, although, we did hear the occasional chittering-chattering of the sizzlers. Don’t you love that about sizzlers? They are so animated, such a happy, lively dish! When I look at menus, I get really excited, there is just so much food on that card, and it makes me want to eat everything. That’s why, I usually choose from the specials of the house or recommendations.

I was meeting two of my school friends, Roshan and Arjun, who frequent this restaurant and always order the same sizzler, ‘Piri Piri Chicken Shaslik’, they announced it like a song. It sounded very exciting. The best part, it was not long before my vibrant, Piri Piri Chicken Shaslik sizzler was brought to my table. The worst part about sizzlers, it is so hot, I either end up scorching my tongue a little or go crazy waiting for it to cool down a little. It smelled, well, alright. It was a safe first bite, since I had the fries without the sauce. Finally, I tried some chicken and the rice. My first reaction was, ‘Roshan was smart to have opted out of the rice’ because the rice was bland. But when the spicy chicken hit my tongue, I said, ‘thank God I have the bland rice to get me through this’, because the chicken was really, very hot and spicy.

I am an Indian and a true spice queen at that, believe me, I can eat very spicy food. Yet, the Piri Piri chicken in this place was something else. Piri piri is a type of chilli, it comes from South America and it is meant to be very spicy. I have eaten Piri Piri before but there were no fireworks in my mouth, I could not take it, this was exceptional and not in a good way. Arjun and Roshan were surprised too, they said, ‘It’s never so spicy!’ I could not even eat the last piece of chicken because the chilli had gotten into my head by then. The veggies were bland with no sauce but crispy, so they helped my palate in a way. The French fries, they were as good as any other French fries. The sizzler was filling and reasonably priced. In the end, I will not go with any of the reviews I had heard about ‘The Place’. It is not the best sizzler place in Pune city and neither is it the worst thing to do to your palate, well, at least not the worst if you don’t order the ‘Kill me with Chilli’ Sizzler.

Six Guidelines for the Next Time You Eat At Barbeque Nation.

Name: Barbeque Nation

Location : Sayaji Hotel, Hinjewadi, Pune

Contact Number: 020 - 42121212

Barbeque Nation, the World on a Grill. A Non-vegetarian Buffet for Five Fifty Rupees (as on date) and vegetarian for five hundred is a steal. That is the weekday price inclusive of all taxes. I bet you cannot get a better deal for such a wide selection of good quality and great tasting grills, main course items and desserts. This is probably why there is a long queue of patrons waiting patiently for a table in the Hinjewadi BBQ Nation, all seven days of the week. So, keep that in mind, which leads us to the first tip.

First Tip: If you are planning an evening at BBQ Nation, for two or for twenty, make a reservation. Even for a weekday booking at BBQ Nation, Hinjewadi it is important to make a reservation at least a day or two prior to get a confirmed reservation. If you don’t make a reservation, be ready with a picnic basket and crosswords to pass a couple of hours outside the restaurant. If you call early on the same day for a reservation, especially on a weekend, more often than not, you will not get a confirmed reservation.

I am telling you, because I have spoiled an evening. I called on Saturday morning to book a table for the same evening, did not get a confirmed table, got there at seven ten that evening and the restaurant was full with a long queue of people waiting outside. It seemed as though they were distributing free food. This time I was smart enough to make a confirmed reservation for my father’s birthday, two days prior to the occasion. They book in two slots only, 7:30pm and 10:15pm, confirm a bunch of times and nearly threaten you to get there in time if you want a table. Believe me, it all seemed pretty rude, pricey almost insulting to be told that many times to be in time, like a teacher would threaten primary school children.

We were on time, and considering the huge crowd waiting outside, the restaurant policy seemed reasonable. I would still prefer if they had toned it down a little though.

Second Tip: Be sure to starve yourself for a meal or two prior to stuffing yourself at BBQ Nation. Take my advice you will thank me for this even if you are a big eater. This place is heaven for foodies and you will be full just trying all the items on the menu.

Third Tip: This one is for the ladies only or at least I hope it is. Do not wear a tight dress to this dinner. I know we all love, to pull out those LBDs for a fancy dinner date, but choose one that is loose and forgiving. So that, while you are looking pretty perfect, you can down lots of those kebabs too since we both know we don’t want to miss out on the yummy food. As for the gentlemen, well, try not going for the tight trousers, buttons popping is not forbidden but frowned upon, like peeing while swimming in the sea.

Fourth Tip: Moving on, the crab claws in the seafood curry were gorgeous. Remember to ask for crab hammer or cutter to be brought to your table. They do not bring them on their own and you don’t want to be in my shoes and wound your mouth or break your teeth while breaking the crab claws with them.

Fifth Tip: Don’t fill yourself up with the kebabs because the main course is worth a binge. Don’t fill yourself up with the main course because the dessert is worth a binge.

Sixth Tip: Vegetarians, on your own or accompanied by non-vegetarians, let not the word grill misguide you. BBQ Nation has a great selection of grills and main course for vegetarians as well. There is a wide variety of vegetarian items, marked efficiently apart from the non-vegetarian items, with great taste and quality. You don’t want to miss this.

Mutton seekh kebabs, were juicy and delicious in particular. The chicken grills, tangdi and the chicken main course, murgh lazeez were average in taste and quality. The chicken kebabs as well as curry made me believe that the standard of taste and quality has gone down at BBQ Nation. Apart from the chicken preparations, the buffet and grills were very good, in terms of variety, quality and taste. The service made the experience very special. There was a crispy corn, not mentioned on the menu but served on that day, it was crispy and amazing, taste-wise, the best among the rest. The gulabjamuns and white forest pudding were stood out in taste among the other desserts. The service was great. Value for money, awesome! It was an evening well spent and certainly worth the prior planning. My take, a little work on the chicken preparations, would work wonders.

Rating: Great Service +Good Ambience + Very Good Food + Great Value for Money = Excellent

             8 on 10

Café Bay leaf, Holiday Inn – at Hinjewadi, Pune

Café Bay leaf is a twenty four hour coffee shop and the only dining room that is currently operational at the Holiday Inn, Hinjewadi. The Ala carte menu had an interesting variety of cuisines although the list of items wasn’t very long. I was unable to sample any items from the Ala carte menu since the restaurant had opened recently and the Ala carte menu wasn’t operational. The buffet was reasonably priced at Rs. 449 plus taxes as on 9^th July, 2011. The selection of items on the buffet menu included a variety of dessert however, the number of appetisers were limited.  

Ambience

The outlet is very spacious; it has not been over crowded with tables placed to close together. Even on a Saturday evening, although the restaurant was full, there was no chaos or hustle bustle that would hinder a private conversation.

Service

The service was good. The waiter was prompt, attentive, and polit. He did not seem to intrude us through the dinner yet kept an eye if we needed a thing or two.

Food

The food was average. There was no item on the buffet that I was extraordinary or something that I would choose to come for. The items placed were included oriental, continental and Indian cuisine, they all tasted decent but there was no X factor in any of the dishes or cuisine.

The Non Vegetarian appetiser Murgh kali mirch was was succulent and delicious.

The salads and the middle eastern dips especially the hummus and the labneh were good.

In the main course, Gobhi adraki tasted special, unique and had a wonderful, well pronounced flavour. It was the only memorable item on the Vegetarian main course. The other dishes tasted average and regular.  

In the non vegetarian main course, the cumin crusted fish with spaghetti did not taste good. I only went for a small piece and I was curious because the description seemed new but I was disappointed because the flavour did not compliment each other, the spaghetti barely had any flavour and fish was too dry.

Chicken with sliced Bamboo shoots, the oriental main course was the best tasting dish in the slection although the chicken in this case was also too dry yet flavourful.

Chicken Hyderabadi tasted decent but the mutton rai tamatar was like homemade thin curry mutton lacking the full flavour of the tomatoes and the rai.

The dessert buffet looked very attractive. I must mention they had a long list of items on the dessert buffet. Many of these desserts were eggless, making it a delight for the vegetarians. The mixed fruit parfait, orange pastry and banana cake were good. The other desserts were average but the variety nonetheless, made them a delight.

This buffet at Café Bay leaf at Holiday Inn Hinjewadi in reasonably priced and offers a great variety of items for the price. The dessert buffet being the main attraction at a price like that. Although the food does not taste extraordinary, the money was well spent.

Café Basil = Good Ambience + Good Service + Average Food + Good Value for Money

Rating = 6.5 on 10

Korean Donuts and a ‘Mehendi’ like Beverage! Seven Reasons That Will Make This Hangout Your Favourite

Name: Peter Donuts

Location: First Floor, In the Building Right Next to the Only petrol Pump in Aundh Area

Saturday evenings are meant for friends, laughter and a lot of catching up. In this case Dhanashree and I had a lot more catching up to do after we met last year in London. Dhanashree had gone abroad for her education right after school, since then we had been in touch and she is one of the few friends with whom, years of absence don’t matter. She was visiting her family in the city during the summer so she gave me call two days ago and we decided to meet at Peter Donuts. Well, this place  doesn’t really serve a new Korean recipe for donuts but it is a Korean Donut chain that has come up in the vivinity. I had heard a lot about this place and its Donuts. It is a little café on the first floor right next to the Aundh Petrol Pump, the glass windows are visible from the road and it always looked interesting. Finally! I thought to myself. So I drove down in the rain, through the chilly air this Saturday evening, surprisingly I found a parking space right below the café.

I entered through the brightly coloured door, with the specials scribbled on, Donuts, Waffles, Ramen? Interesting! I was very surprised to see this centrally located café with just a few tables occupied on a Saturday evening. I was happy there was no chaos, staff shouting out names or hustle bustle. It is hard to find a peaceful café to chat with a friend.

 Why you would love to come back to this place?

First on My List: We were able to have a loud yet private conversation.

Peter Donuts is a small café in comparison with other cafés in Aundh, yet because of the large glass windows and the set up of the place it looked spacious and pleasant. The thing that struck me most about this place was that although there was limited space, the tables were well spaced and well placed. Like a lot of other hangouts in the vicinity, it did not feel like a lot of strangers were part of our conversation or that we were sitting in a wedding reception, cluttered and claustrophobic.

The Second:

This is a self-service outlet with the happiest staff I have seen in a café and because they look happy, they serve you better.

The Third:

They have a unique menu, the list of items isn’t very long but it was very interesting to note the variety and mix of items. I mean you can find the regular Iced teas, Fruit Smoothies and Cold Coffee in every other café but how frequently do you come across a Green Tea frappe?

The Fourth:

The Green Tea Frappe; I have never heard or tasted anything like that in any of the café I have been to in the past. Most of us have tried green tea but a Green Tea latte? Well, that’s something new and interesting. I had to try this one. Remember the happy staff I had told you about? They can really cheer you up. You should have seen the look on their faces the moment I said One Green Tea latte frappe please! They all seemed amused and curious. One of them asked me, ‘have you tried it before?’, ‘No’, I said ‘but I would love to’. ‘Mehendi Sarkha aahe!’ meaning it tastes like henna he smiled and exclaimed in marathi, still looking very amused. This made me very curious about the drink.

I sat by the glass window, soon the drink was ready! They did not shout out my name but just politely pointed put that my drink is ready. I faint, pale green coloured drink, it smelled nice and sweet, not like green tea. The moment I sipped it, the entire staff who had been observing me raised their eyebrows with a smile to ask me whether I liked it. I smiled back and as I swallowed my drink, there it was the strong smell and after taste of the green tea. Ohhh! So that’s what they were talking about , the ‘Mehendi Sarkha Taste’, not pleasant. I am a fan of green tea but this Green Tea latte Frappe was not pleasant. I swallowed it like Dhanashree and I would have swallowed glass of milk on school mornings.

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It was an interesting drink, worth the try I would say but I don’t think I would like to order it again. I don’t know whether it was done to hide the after taste but the green tea frappe was too sweet.

The Fifth:

Ramen. This is an oriental thick spicy noodle soup which I have seen in many movies and been very tempted to try, but I never could because it was never on the menu! Ramen, is not available in any of the cafés I have visited in Pune before. It was a very unique dish on the menu, reasonable priced for such a unique dish and it served as a mini meal. I have seen burgers, sandwiches and savoury rolls in cafés but this was something that sets Peter Donuts apart from the rest, you can only have ramen at Peter Donuts!

The Sixth:

The Sushi item, Onigiri. This is an exclusive. Sushi is really scarce in Pune. You won’t even be able to try sushi food in a handful of places. In my knowledge, there is just one other place, a Japanese Restaurant on the other side of the city that serves sushi but no café in this city serves any type of sushi. The best part, you get to sample to have a sushi meal at a very reasonable price. This piece of onigiri will surely not burn a hole in your pocket. No need to fuel up your car Aundh residents, Sushi has come really close to you.

The Seventh:

The Donuts. Don’t worry I have not forgotten about the Donuts, after all, the place is called Peter Donuts. Well, I will just have to say, there are Donuts and then there are Donuts that are above all other Donuts. You have to see them to believe it.  

This outlet is very unique in many ways but it is the menu that really sets it apart from all others. I can’t wait to go back and try out the Ramen and the Sushi, may be another day, when I haven’t already had a heavy lunch. 

Ciabatta, Martini and the tale of two last benchers at the Alto Vino, Marriott, Pune

As children, my sister and I would always dread our judgement day, the day when our annual results came out. We made sure we watched all the movies we wanted watch, ate all the ice-cream we wanted to eat, before the annual open house at school. After all we were not the toppers of the class, we were the naughty, talkative ‘last benchers’, and the parent teacher interaction was never welcome. So, this dinner at the Marriott Hotel for my sister’s first year result for her Bachelors in Arts, was a rather rare and special occasion for all four of us. It was a happy Thursday evening in the beginning of June. The Pune air was cool, the staff at the Marriott hotel was warm and upon entry into the spacious Italian restaurant Alto Vino, the ambience looked chic and, well, brown! with the contemporary wooden interiors. The only thing that was lacking from this otherwise perfect evening was the quiet. There was a lot of noise and hustle-bustle in the restaurant for I which I can hardly blame the restaurant staff. We were all excited about my younger sister’s result and we did not let the noise come in the way of our celebration.

When you and I step out to enjoy a meal, we know that we can easily find delicious food anytime of the day and at a price that does burn a hole in our pocket. Although, Daddy was paying tonight, I was a little more critical of the food and the service because I knew that he was shelling out more than he would on a random regular meal on the weekend.

I started the evening with a classic Martini; something that you cannot go wrong with, it was piquant, perfect! As I sipped my cocktail, I looked around to find most of the tables occupied on a weeknight, a lot of the tables were occupied by families, this being the last leg of the summer vacation. We just love Italian food, now, don’t we?

The chicken broth with bean and mushroom soup was brought to our table, I have tasted a chicken broth with mushrooms many times, even tasted it in little café’s in Italy, yet none of those compared with the distinct flavor this broth had. I think it was the flavor of a specific type of mushroom that was used in the soup to give it this simple aromatic flavour.

The Antipasti, soft boiled eggs, with truffle flavor mashed potatoes, salad with parmesan shavings tasted, only okay. What gave the antipasti its character was the strong, unique flavor of truffle. The sharp, defining flavour, of the mashed potatoes, tasted good, but was lumpy. I have eaten soft boiled eggs, I have cooked soft boiled eggs and that was not it. These were hard boiled eggs, out from the refrigerator and onto my plate.

I must mention here that the ciabatta and olive tapenade served alongside the courses was top class. That crisp crust of the bread, so soft inside with the strong olive flavour went down really well. The other mild dip that was served alongside the bread was, well, not great. I hate to sound cheap, but I love to eat the bread because it is neither listed on the menu nor chargeable on the bill!

Skipping to the main course, I had ordered the diavola style chicken. The portion size was large with two joints of chicken served with beans on my plate. I love it when my meal looks large and satisfying, if you have a small appetite; I suggest you skip the beginning courses to finish your extravagant poultry main course. The caramel colour skin of the chicken was soaked in its marinade, so full of flavour even on the inside of the chicken breast! The flavour and aroma of the wine in the sauce, served on top of the beans. A great marriage of colour and flavours was on my plate. I would love to go back to the Alto Vino for this diavolo style chicken, a treat for poultry lovers.

Next in line for a taste was mom’s spinach and ricotta ravioli. It was creamy, mild and subtly delicious. This familiar item from the Italian selection, is a common favourite and for the Italian food lover, it is always something you can count on, when everything else seems unfamiliar. Although, this ravioli was good, it did not taste great, I have tried better tasting spinach and ricotta ravioli, many a times.

Dad loves to steal a bite or two off our plates every now and then, but today was my turn to steal, not one or two bites, but nearly half his saffron risotto with prawns. You wouldn’t blame me, if you had tasted it yourself. This one compels you to sin. I can almost taste it as I begin to remember and describe the risotto to you. The prawn was fresh, cooked just right, juicy and full of flavour. The risotto was creamy yet with a subtle, rich saffron flavour, ummm, so good! There was a very unique quality in this risotto, the defining flavour of saffron captured my senses, yet pronouncing all the other flavours of the seafood, the Arborio rice, the herbs in a mellow yet memorable song.

The taste of the risotto just lingers on, I so wish I hadn’t tasted the mushroom ravioli in tomato sauce after the risotto. I am not sure whether my taste wisdom was influenced by what I had tasted before or was this dish really mediocre. But, I can say, I love mushrooms but I did not like the mushroom ravioli. Something was amiss; the flavour of the mushroom in the ravioli was not pronounced and well married with the others.  This dish does not have the quality to lure you back to this Italian joint.

Anyway, let us move on to my sister’s favourite part, the dessert. Like many other Italian restaurants, Tiramisu, was not only on the menu but also the speciality of the house. All I can say is, if this is what their Tiramisu always tastes like then they better come up with a new recommendation for dessert. Whoever made this Tiramisu was extremely generous with all the ingredients, the coffee flavour was too strong, the dessert was too sweet and the cream was not light. 

Will I come back to Alto Vino? Yes, but certainly not for the Tiramisu! I already know what I am going to order next time, this time a plate full, may be two, I think you know too. Yes, the Saffron risotto with prawns. 

Eating with the Expert; Four Things You Must Remember During a Meal at Arthur’s Theme

What would you cook, if a celebrity chef arrived at your doorstep? Confused? I was confused too. If I knew, I would be writing a book of my own titled; Recipes Mr. Big Shot Chef has never tasted. Not only is it tough to find unique recipes but also making them really delicious is colossal task. So, I decided to take Chef Rakesh Sethi of Mirch Masala fame, that telecasted on STAR Plus to a restaurant that I could trust. Lately, Chef Rakesh has been working on a show called Tea Time for Foodfood, where I met him while working for the channel. His knowledge and experience about food encouraged me to ask a lot of questions and once I was back in Pune, I invited him over to visit us with his family.

Chef Rakesh Sethi and Me

The reason I chose Arthur’s Theme in Lane 6, Koregaon Park to take him for lunch on a Sunday afternoon was that everyone I know loves that place. Although, for a high profile Chef the menu of Arthur’s Theme wasn’t really unique, they do have some unique names and the food is fresh and tastes good. I am so glad that I wasn’t in the kitchen making that Brown Sauce or the Hot Chocolate Fudge. It is tough to impress a man who knows that the Fudge has been cooked for 10 minutes instead of 7 minutes which is the precise duration for which it should be cooked.  

When we arrived with Chef Rakesh’s teenage, twin boys and his friendly wife we were warmly welcomed by a gentleman who was dressed in casual clothes. We gathered that he might be the owner or a friend or relative of the owner since he was not formally dressed like the rest of the staff he also seemed the more concerned about guest satisfaction than the rest of the staff. We were seated by the glass, the preference for water was inquired and the embarrassing faded menus were handed over to us.  When I take a formal guest to a good restaurant, I do not expect the menu card to look used and faded, might as well not give me the menu and just read out the options like on a roadside dhaba. The menu had a wide selection of what is often referred to as continental dishes primarily French and Italian, a few oriental and some options that could pass as an Indian dish given their similarity to Indian descriptions. The wine list was concise but an interesting combination of whites and reds, rose and sparkling, Indian and Imported.

 First : If you are accompanied by a guest on one of your trips to Arthur’s Theme, please be sure to either, all order the same soup or tell the waiter to bring them to your table at the same time. On this instance, the Minestrone was served ten minutes before the other soups being the Guy of Warwick, the seafood soup and the Ationette, the mushroom soup. Our guests had to wait for ten minutes before they could start eating their soup and by the time our soups were served, theirs were cold and the taste did not matter anymore. All Chef Rakesh said was, ‘It is Garlicky’. The seafood soup was mellow and subtly flavoured with herbs, while the Mushroom soup had was delicious also dominated by the flavour of garlic. But the taste of the soup did not matter to me after being embarrassed in front of my guests.

Minestrone

Second : Make sure you have the waiter repeat the order. We had ordered two fresh lime sodas for Chef’s twin sons. Only one was served at the table and the waiter forgot about the other one. I offered to remind and bring another soda but by then the twins were already sharing the one that was served.

Chef Sethi trying Napolean

Third : Do not order Napolean and Henry VIII, both chicken dishes at the same table if you are intend to share both dishes or try something new, like we did. Both these dishes have the same sauce, the only difference being Henry VIII had a slight wine flavour. Other dishes included Humbert which was Paneer Shaslik with tomato sauce on a bed of rice, the twins said it tasted good, Chef liked it as well. Ferdinand, this was mushrooms and paneer in a creamy tomato sauce, full of flavour, rich and wonderful. Amanda was chicken with a barbeque sauce, I did not get to try this, by the time I got to it, it was over, so I am guessing that it must have been good. Napolean and Henry VIII are both chicken dishes with brown sauce and pepper flavour. Henry VIII with the ‘chef’s special wine flavoured sauce’ was nice but the chicken was slightly overcooked making it dry and stringy on the inside.

Napolean

Henry VIII

Fourth : This is a strict MUST NOT DO if you don’t want to spoil the flavour of your wonderful meal, DO NOT eat that mint they serve at the end of the meal. It tastes stale and has a chalk-like quality. It totally tortures your tongue and makes you want to buy another mint from the close-by vendor.

Hot Chocolate Fudge

To mention the dessert, I thought it was delicious but ‘the expert’ said it was three minutes over the time of cooking! That means even though the Hot Chocolate Fudge was yummy, it could still be yummier, there was room for improvement. Well, that is the benefit of dining with the expert. The experience was Arthur’s Theme was good. Fine company and good food made for a lovely, satisfying Sunday afternoon. I would like to thank Chef Rakesh Sethi for his pearls of wisdom while dining with me. 

Rating 7.5 on 10

The Great Punjab Expectations: The Confessions of a Butteroholic

You know one of those evenings when you are thinking about that Oh! So buttery, out of this world flavour of dal makhani, when you are just craving to get some of that rich, creamy taste in your mouth and which makes you want to lick your fingers to get that last delicious drop of dal. On one such evening about a week ago, I had called for some dal makhani, vegetable kadhai, reshmi kebabs and roomali rotis from the Great Punjab branch of Baner Road. This branch of ‘Great Punjab’ opened over a year ago in this vicinity and a couple of my friends and family members have been frequent visitors ever since. I have eaten at Great Punjab a couple of times and I was craving for their dal makhani. My anticipation was driving me up the wall when that dal was finally delivered at my doorstep but as soon as I hurriedly opened the box and tasted the dal, my beautiful dream, my imagination shrunk to bits. That flavour which makes us want to wipe the vessel with our fingers and enjoy every bit of that dal, was missing. The dal makhani I ate on last Wednesday, tasted like any other dal and dal makhani is not just any other dal, it is ‘The Dal’. The dal makhani did not have that smell of freshly ground spices and that buttery flavour that we love. The vegetable kadhai and roomali rotis tasted decent. The reshmi kebabs weren’t juicy, they seemed dry and bland. 

After the comsi comsa food last week, my family wasn’t interested in going to dinner at The great Punjab this week, ‘Why spoil an evening?’ said Dad yet I could not let that hope of a Butterilicious Dal makhani shrink to bits and just to save my hope, I insisted on paying a visit to the same branch of Great Punjab again. In all fairness to Great Punjab, a lot of things can go wrong in the taste of the food if the delivery man gets delayed after he has picked up the food from the restaurant. I wanted to sample the same items once again to let you know if the quality of food at this place has gone down, or is it just the food delivered at your doorstep that suffers low quality.

I threw a tantrum, not leaving them a choice, my mom, dad and sister complied. We were seated at a table up the stairs. The dining area was spacious with deep brown, wooden furniture, along with big jars of pickle to enhance the aesthetics of the room. The restaurant staff was courteous and polite, I looked at the list of North-Indian delicacies, just to review my options. I knew what I wanted. After placing the order, I observed the people seated around us, a family with two little children, the children seemed distracted and not really into their meal, their mother kept forcing them to eat while their father was really engaged in eating, he seemed to be enjoying his meal.   As for my table, I was having a pleasant evening, conversing with my family and in a couple of minutes the food was served. 

This time the dal makhani at Great Punjab was good, it was really really good, it was Butterilicious! The smell of ground spices and the richness of cream and butter, it was the kind that would make you want to lick off your fingers. I am glad I did not give up hope, and I am sure that my family was glad as well. That taste would linger in my memory for days, calling me back to Great Punjab. Turns out, that the quality of food at Great Punjab has not gone down and the dal makhani will make your mouth water. Roomali rotis, again, well, why not roomali rotis at this place are soft and large, besides I enjoy ordering something I haven’t learnt how to make. The combination of rotis, dal and kebab is made in heaven. The reshmi kebab, a boneless chunk of chicken was juicy and flavourful but it was mildly spiced and somewhat mildly seasoned as well, with the dal accompanying it, a little less salt in the kebab was a favour to my taste buds. It was an evening well spent. That day, when I had the food delivered might have been a one off day for Great Punjab or the delay would have taken a toll on the taste of the food. I think I can rely on Great Punjab for a good meal and I can’t wait to sample some more of its dishes.

Great Punjab = Good Food + Good Service + Good Ambience + Valet Parking

Rating = 8 on 10

What's Next???

I will be sampling a few dishes from the menu of ‘The Great Punjab’ which is a famous, old brand in Restaurants. Its Baner branch opened over a year ago and some of my friends have been faithful customers ever since. I have frequented the place in the past, but last week I ordered some food home and I did not enjoy my meal this time. I will be visiting the restaurant, to find out whether the quality of its food has gone down or is it the food delivered to your doorstep that suffers the compromise on food quality.

What's the Blog all about???

Pune’s big heart, or rather big stomach has fit in it dishes from different parts of India and cuisines from around the world.  
In this set of articles, my aim will be to visit the old and new ‘eating addas’ in and around Pune, that boast about attracting my greedy friends, trying them out and telling you, whether they are really worth the money, or the fuel you spent, in trying to get there. Food matters, Experience matters and so I will review Pune’s long -time favourites and let you know whether there is a change in the experience and sample the new additions on their menu along with the old hot-favorites.
When the mood was perfect, the company was perfect and the place wasn’t, haven’t you wished that somebody had warned you earlier? I am only writing to save you from the disasters that some of those otherwise perfect evenings can be. The food, the service and of course the company you are in decides whether or not you will be coming back to that place. Sometimes, the ambience, the cutlery and valet parking is on our priority list, yet before we sign that big fat cheque what matters is the experience, an evening well spent on. Whether it is fine dining, a pizza joint or a small, corner hawker that sells missal pao, I will be looking for Freshness, Flavour, Germ-free food with good Service. 
If you share my values of Food matters, Experience matters, are enthusiastic about trying out something new and looking for fresh, clean and yummy food, I hope you will enjoy reading on.