burrp! Stats
- 19 Reviews
- 4 First to review
- 4 Places Added
- Been to 19 Places
- Burrping since Apr 27, 2007
- Burrping fromIndiranagar, Bangalore
Personal Stuff
- Occupation
- Graphic Designer
- Favourite Books
- Anything from these authors: Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Herge, Enid Blyton, Erle Stanley Gardner, Ruskin Bond, Khaled Hossaini | Autobiographies: MK Gandhi, Lee Iacocca, Richard Branson, Jack Welch | Periodicals: Rave, MAD, Wired, Sportstar, Reader's Digest,
- Favourite Music
- Anything goes. I just love music.
- Favourite Drinks
- Tea, Coke, Aam ka panna, Shikanji, Neembu Paani, Jal Jeera, Cold Coffee,
- Favourite Movies
- Ben Hur, The English Patient, Gladiator, The Mask, Dumb and Dumber, Ace Ventura, Cable Guy, Terminator2, Taxi Driver, Rocky, Matrix, Shrek, The Incredibles, Cars, Toy Story, Lion King, Robots, Monster House, Sholay, Gandhi, Bheja Fry, Mainey Gandhi Ko Nahi maara, Deewar, Jaaney Bhi Do Yaaron, Dil Chahta Hai, Krrish, One flew over the cuckoo's nest, Thalavattom, Chitram, Naad odee kaatu, Roja,
- Favourite Foods
- Rajma Chaawal, Daal Roti, Biriyani, Crab Masala, Prawn Masala, Chicken Sukka, Mackerel Fry, Sardine Fry, Salad, Soup, Banana Fritters,
hardlydavidson's Lists
Reviews by hardlydavidson
Mar 13, 2008
The Royal Orchid, 1 Golf Avenue, Airport Road, Bangalore
Rated: Good
For a Sober Ying and Yang
When it comes to eating out with wifey on special occasions, we somehow end up in a place owned by the BJN or the Royal Orchid Group. Like some inevitable truth, we find ourselves looking at some classy decor, great ambience, detailed menus with vivid descriptions under fancy titles. [It's about time they took us on board now :)]
Last week was no different. We headed out to Ginseng Oriental Restaurant, a family favorite, but one I'd never been to. After all the “wow, what food!!” stories I'd heard, I'd almost imagined a piece of China in there. It turned out to be, let’s say, more sober than I thought. The runway-like waiting lounge had a smiling hostess who ushered us in.
The decor didn’t do justice to my 'oriental' imagination. But that’s okay; I wasn't planning to eat the decor anyway. The tables had the required cutlery in addition to the dreaded chopsticks. Thanks to some earlier in-house practice I could at least pick up cucumber slices from the salad (me know no technical names of thees item) without causing much commotion.
We ordered mocktails which went by the names 'Shades of Blue' and 'Sober Ying & Yang'. The former was some regular blue stuff which I’m sick of seeing in Cafés and Bars, but the sober ‘thing’ had fresh green chili in it. Weird as the description sounded, it turned out to be quite an interesting drink with a cut, upturned chili piece emitting chili odour right into one’s nose.
I then ordered my favorite 'oriental' soup, the Manchow. It did not disappoint me. Its subtle flavours distinguished itself from the many regular Chinese joints in the 5 km radius. Unfortunately, an earlier heavy office lunch and my tight pants were becoming a hindrance to a wholesome meal and we ended up keeping our orders minimal.
One of us was off meat so we had to do with a largely vegetarian meal. The vegetable satay was quite ordinary and I wasted no time in calling it a con job. Single roasted pieces of Onion, Paneer, Tomato and Carrot on a stick smothered with some sauce (or whatever!) costing 45/- apiece will always be a joke as far as I’m concerned. This dish had 4 such sets and cost 175/-
We had hardly room for more so we decided on some simple fare. ‘Burned Garlic Fried Rice’ and ‘Vegetables in Fiery Manchurian Sauce’. (Burnt garlic sticks to the teeth like caramel but tastes a little krazzy4 consumption ;) so don’t try this at home). Each dish was flavourful and done to perfection. I polished what was served. Given the tight pants, it was an achievement.
This was easily one of my best eating-out experiences in recent times. The calm, smiling and concerned waiters asked us to comment on the food and suggested ideal accompaniments when required and kept away otherwise.
Dinner for two with a non-alcoholic beverage each is easily INR 1000 (provided you do not touch the Evian bottle at the table.) which is not too much considering the service and the simple-but-classy-ambiance which was way above average.
The last thing I expected here was Indian music. Well I was more shocked than surprised when I heard some Punjabi tracks from the Hindi movie ‘Boom’. I looked around nobody seemed to bother. I shouldn’t have too.
Verdict: Well, I'd love to go here again. But this time I'll be trying out anything but sober.
peace,
HD
Dec 23, 2007
110, 6th Cross, 6th Block, Near Koramangala Club, Koramangala, Bangalore
Rated: Average
Kubay. Khoob tha!
On summer afternoons, a few years back, sitting in Kubay with the windows open, it was difficult to believe you are not in some coastal town. The eating area was bright; the thin white and blue curtains fluttered as if they were playing with a cool sea breeze. The huge, music CD collection ensured that all kinds of numbers were played like a medley. The waiters in blue shirts reminded you of a bright blue beach. If it weren't for the traffic outside you would not believe we were in Koramangla. With a great Mangalore experience, at prices that didn't burn your pocket, Kubay WAS a shining star.
Kubay gave me my first experience of Mangalore cuisine. The fresh masala on the fish, the Cocum juice, the chicken sukka with grated coconut (very similar to some mallu recipes), the succulent prawn, the red gravy where u could put fish, crab, chicken, pork and serve as "different" dishes (On the menu you see it in this format: “type of meat”+”Gassi”). I was not overawed. But little did I know I would get hooked on to it! Today, I'm a fan of everything Mangalore. (Must be true, I married a Mangalorean)
After the flash back, here's the story:
I went back to Kubay about a month back with wifey, after a really badly organized, Jagjit Singh show at the Koramangla Indoor stadium. Wifey and I stomped out, midway during the show, and looked for some nearby joint to provide succour. We looked for ‘Soo Ra Sang’ but there was no trace of the place (Have they closed?). Reluctantly, we stepped in to Kubay, the closest decent joint in that area.
I must say the depression we were in, was completely alleviated, once the first dish came in. Pepper prawns. Mind-blowing! Butter Garlic Prawns. Slurp. Slurp! Butter Garlic Squid. Good but too bland for my taste! Fish curry rice. Splendid! Baked Fish with masala wrapped in a plantain leaf. Yummy! It was beginning to look like the beginning of the Glutton age. The 4 plates of fresh pan pole, 2 plates of soft Sanna and Cocum juice hardly got any attention.
We hardly talked, but still had a really swell time. A "jhalak dikhlaja + pet pooja" of Mangalore sea food, all at just 700/-. It filled the tummies and hearts of two people with joy!
Needless to say, I started marketing the resurgence of Kubay. Two weeks later we were there again, this time with a friend. We started checking out almost the same dishes, this time including pork. But it began to look like they were having a "trough" time, that day. People from another table were giving a piece of their mind to the manager about the pork being old and the skin being hard. The first dish we ordered, butter garlic prawns, was so-so. The sickening feeling told me, that this wasn’t one of the days in the gluton age. We had an average meal and I came back disappointed.
I believe that a restaurant cannot get old. Only the cook does. At barely 6-7 years, Kubay seems to be ageing. The management has changed so much here that the experience is rarely the same between a few months.
To sum up:
If you like Mangalore-style sea food, this is one of the few small places which use fresh catch. Their door shutter reads “Gone fishing” and you’ll see that full day on a Monday, because they are closed that day.
Kubay, even today, has the potential to surprise your taste buds way beyond your expectations. Just that you must go without any.
Nov 29, 2007
V3 Trinity, 1020 First Floor, 80 Ft. Road, First Block, Koramangala, Bangalore
Rated: Good
Pleasantly Surprising!
Cafe Terra is a 26+2 seater (yes I counted the chairs), small, first floor joint in Koramangla. Small enough to be comfortable. Big enough to have a decent number of items on the menu.
Sandwiches, waffles, bacon, muffins, omlettes, pasta, pancakes, toast ... and loads more. I sampled the Belgian breakfast which had waffles with honey, muffin/cake, coffee/tea, potatoes. It cost 110 INR and the 'yum' factor was really high.
One aspect that I think enhances your time here is the big shelf of comics and magazines. I jumped on the MAD magazine that I thought I hadn't read. The food ordered came quick too. Tintin, Asterix, Garfield, Calvin n Hobbes, DC comics and other magazines are separately shelved. How cool is that! It turned out to be one really relaxed and lazy Sunday breakfast.
Wifey enjoyed the Garfield which was a Diet special issue and was laughing throughout. She also loved the coffee. I had little trouble with the tea. The milk came in a teacup which i found hard to transfer without spilling. (Not because I was laughing hard at the Mad gag)
The decor is very basic and frankly not even important if you consider what’s on the table.
This place is womanned by a pleasant mannered lady. The smiling waiters compliment her style. A breakfast for 2 will set you back by Rs 250. Other items are reasonably priced.
Simply Terrafic!! :)
Peace.
HD
Sep 07, 2007
Johnson Market, Richmond Town, Bangalore
Rated: Good
Sheekh and you will find ... Fanoos!
I am a fan of consistent performance. Sport, work or food. Ever since i arrived in Bangalore as a college student, I've had a good relationship with Fanoos. For cash-strapped college students, when all the other joints looked like piggy-bank demolishers, fanoos stood out like an inviting joint. Fanoos is a word of Persian origin and means a "lamp". Their recent 'rebranding' has put it all in perspective, graphically.
It is a stand-ard stand and eat joint. Buy a token first, then present it to the guys at the counter and then wait. Strangely, this is the part that consumes most of the time when you have an outing to this place. The staff is a strange set. Rarely smiling. A constant hassled look about them. (One consistent thing I don't like). But I’m sure they can’t help it. I guess they feel like cornered rock stars. With dozens of hands reaching out to them and demanding instant performance. And deliver, they have to.
Like I indicated earlier, the roll lovers down each piece in 5 minutes flat. (Probably because there is nothing else to do) No place to relax and eat (with a fanoos roll who would want to). You can at the most cross the road and sit on the bikes in the bike parking lot across the street.
This used to be a relatively shabby joint, with greasy kitchen walls and a restaurant environment which would make the stomach of any sissy, churn. (I used to be sissy). Then you just get used to the stuff. These days they’re much cleaner. Rebranding, additional sit-in restaurant have contributed. This is one place where greasy palms mean someone’s really enjoying the food.
::The Roll models::
When you get here you can order Chicken Rolls (Minced), Sheekh rolls which are available in three sizes. Sheekh Roll, Jumbo sheekh roll and the XL sheek that’s called Mambo sheekh roll. (Now that’s funny! They should’ve called it Mogambo) then the entire range of Kababs (kebobs which are more than jolly). Chicken kabab, kalmi kabab, shammi kabab, reshmi kabab.
The chicken Shawarma is just about ok. The Empire hotel gives good competition in this regard. The beef Shawarma is mind-blowing. (Oh! I want one right now!!) The only vegetarian stuff available here is the pieces of onions and lemony flavoring agent. Sad but true.
Some of the stuff has lot of oil but still palatable. The fastest moving item is the sheek kabab. You tend to buy one. Then another one. Then you decide to skip the official dinner and buy another two. (That used to be the only sequence I enacted here). I used to live with 4 other bachelor boys. Things would get dangerous if I were to forget to get the parcel on my way back.
Cost-wise their offerings are purse friendly. A decent snack/meal (whatever you want it to be) can be had for 100 Rs per hungry tummy (You can’t be serious if you say "I'll have just one roll". ONE roll?!?!) Sheek rolls are 35/- and with every size the cost goes up by 10/- or so.
They have a sit-in restaurant next door where the same stuff can be ordered. I guess it’s to rope in the families.
Best time to go? Anytime after dusk. The initial set of items may not be flavorful but what you get after 8pm is the stuff that everyone talks about.
In short, these guys make rocking rolls!
Aug 30, 2007
16th Main, HAL II Stage, Opposite Kodihalli BESCOM Office, Indiranagar, Bangalore
Rated: Average
Arty Burpy ;)
The board reads “Sethji Home food and Art Gallery”.
So you really don't know what to expect. You enter and find a vertical chart with a list of items, the likes of which warms the cockles of any north-indian-food loving heart. Parantha! Aloo ki subji, Gobi, Mutter ... you already feel at home.
Soon a gangly waiter pops-up near the window and wants to know what you'll order. I’ve only seen one guy take orders all the time. If you are a regular, he’ll know what you'd want. For me it was the “meals”.
One good method of testing a new eating joint is by eating their “meals”. This ensures that you get a fast moving item, something safe and regular, you get a dekko at the variety and get to judge if the specials are really that! I did that here too but stuck to meals largely because I felt it was a wholesome and light meal at the end of a tiring workday.
Order taken, you sit on the plastic chairs and look around and see where or what the art gallery is all about. You can’t miss it. Right there, on each wall there are one or more paintings made by Sethji.
Sethji (Tilak Seth) is a septuagenarian gentleman. He looks like a writer, lost in thought, contemplative, looking at the youngsters lapping up the dishes, which his team has cooked. He makes his presence felt by either walking around the premises or by sitting on his couch kept at a distance from the dining area. No, he is not intrusive.
The art gallery is actually the many number of paintings this man has made in younger times. The quirks don't end here. Each of these paintings has a Sher (Urdu couplet) written on it. Each carries his pen name, "Talab".
There's nothing spectacular in either the paintings or the shers and you begin to wonder what this is all about. Then the aroma and taste of the Mooli Parantha tells you that you are in a place where they ... probably make great Paranthas. While other joints like “Lalitas”, “Bobby Dhaba” make real yummy stuff, I must admit, Sethji’s paranthas are much more homely.
The "meals" is seriously good deal. For 35/- you get 4 phulkas, 2 sabjis, 1 raitha, aam ka achhar and the universal-freebie-throwaway-salad (One slice of onion and two slices of cucumber). The Gajar ka halwa is also great tasting but runs out pretty fast. I’ve only tried one drink, 'the Khus ka sherbet', which was fluorescent green in color but still tasted ok. Singles who don’t know this place, rejoice! Now you do!
When you run into hunger pangs and run out of ideas/ places and still want a ‘garam garam ghar ka khaana’ experience, Sethji’s is a good choice. A no frills place, a max of 20-25 people can sit in the designated room or in the roofed portico. A good meal for two will easily fit in 200/- (Especially if you are the types who workout and will scream if you see butter/ghee).
That’s not all, Sethji organises events like Mehfils and Kavi Sammelans in the same premises. One such event went by the name “Mehfil-e-Husn-eTalab” (I saw a poster near the wash basin). It seems surreal that all this exists outside Lucknow, Radio and Television.
Here is one restaurateur who is in his in his own time-zone and has no pretensions. For his efforts I think I’ll dedicate a light humored sher for this grand old man.
Phulkon kay deewaney hain
Aloo-mutter kay parwaaney hain
aapkay parathon ki khushboo mein zaroor kuch baath hai
hum sab ko khush karney mein Sethji,
aapka homely food ka sach much bada haath hai
Translation [just doesn’t do justice]
We are fans of the Phulkas you make
We are fans of the Peas-potato preparations
Your Paranthas have special aroma
Thanks to you
All of us foodies are real happy
peas.
HD
[My rating for this joint is actually 3.5. Not sure if that makes any difference]