Govinda

Rest : Govinda
Meal : Dinner
Date : 28/12/2006
Location :ISKON Temple, Babulnath
Company : Gautam, Dr.Bones, UTK, UTS

Experience- This is a pretty small place with seating for no more than 35 people and it gets crowded. The staff is mostly hare krishnas and the place does not serve any alcohol, meat, onion or garlic

Drink :Water

Food : We started out with a round of starters the chili paneer (75) which was ok, the schezuan balls (75) which were a little burnt and crispy but i like it like that and the dry manchurian (75). The starters and soups arent the strong point of this place. \
We moved on to the main course pretty quick which was The Veg Makhanwala (95) excellent stuff this, the paneer kadai (95) not bad, good taste, it isnt as good as the makhanwala but on the money. The Dal Makhani (75) was pretty weak. We got an assortment of Nan and Rotis the bread selection is pretty limited.
It was topped off with a bunch of fried papads along with a biryani which was too sticky for my taste and a veggie raita which was slightly on the salty side.
All in all the meal was good but short of great, however if one avoids the starters and gets a safer rice option the meal is bordering on a must have.
The only downside is the lack of punch due to no onion or garlic. but hey, you cant have everything.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 780 ($17)

Indias Most Expensive Restaurants

The following is a list of restaurants touted to be the most expensive in the country by Forbes. They arent necessarily the best but def the most expensive in the country.

Zodiac Grill - Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, Mumbai
Sakura - Nikko, New Delhi
Celini - Grand Hyatt, Mumbai
Zen - Leela Kempinski, Bangalore
Travertino - Oberoi, New Delhi
Pure - Taj Lands End, Mumbai
Dum Pukth - ITC Maurya Sheraton, New Delhi
Wasabi by Morimoto - Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, Mumbai
Orient Express - Taj Palace , New Delhi
San Gimigano - The Imperial, New Delhi

Bold indicates restaurants visited.

Spagetti Kitchen - Repeat Visit

Was at Spagetti Kitchen again this weekend. Got in around 1.30 and wasnt sure if id be seated but oddly enough most of the crowd waits for Copper Chimney (weird coz you could go to the mother ship which is less than 10 mins away)

Anyway they have done away with the Pomodoro roast soup which was a huge hit for me. I was pretty dissapointed and not sure how it would play out from there.

However they have seemingly brought in a slightly newer menu with some items gone and some new ones added. Not that much of a difference and they have also raised prices.

However the service has gone up a WHOLE notch. The new crew seems to be friendly, eager to please and on the money with their service. We spoke to our head server and said we were unhappy with the lack of pomodoro and he said to try minestrone and he voluneteered that he would take it back if we werent happy. Well.

We were happy with the soup as well as the service. The bruschetta platter has changed and turned into this 6 portion divvied up into regular and mushroom bruschetta and again one of the best dishes in TOWN. this was better than the Bruschetta from cafe Ivy which i thought was the best until now.

We got the spagetti with blood red tomatos done in olive oil and parsley. Fantastic, not a very rich taste like the penne paprika or the spagetti from Indigo Deli but this has a taste of its own.

I think this restaurant has turned a new leaf and gone from a inconsistent restaurant with great potential to a place that is going on to discover its potential.

Highly recommend it.

Food 9/ 10 Service 9/ 10

Damage 750 (16$)

Order
Minestrone Soup
Bruschetta
Spagetti with tomato and olive oil
Diet Coke x 2

New Yorker (new)

Rest : New Yorker
Meal : Lunch
Date : 21/12/2006
Location :Chowpatty
Company : Pie, Gautam

Experience- Terribly hungry but not in the mood for too much food, we decide to trek to the closes place possible for a quick quick lunch. The place has recently been renovated, seating has increased, the place itself looks like an impossibly high end, chic minimalist restuarant which is completely contrary to the cuisine, crowd and prices. Its also not as comfortable as it should be (not that it ever was a comfortable place)

Drink :Brownie Shake, Water

Food : The first order of things was a nachos with cheese as is their specialty. thing came out in less than 3 mins too. before the drink was there. talk about anticipation. Then we ordered half a portion of enchiladas which werent too bad, they tasted like they used to. the taste hasnt changed so far though the decor has.
At last we ordered the lebanese sizzler (they need more options for this thing) it was a bit of a mish mash, veggies, rice, chick peas topped with baba ganoush, hummus, some felafil, hummus and leabanese sauce (watever THAT is) It took a while to come, which i reckn means they werent anticipating this.
The choc brownie shake, was nice and big, had enougb brownies, but wasnt cold enough and was too heavy on the hersheys.

Rating : Food 7/10, Service 7/10

Damage : 700 ($17)

Japengo Cafe

Rest : Japengo
Meal : Lunch
Date : 20/12/2006
Location :Nariman Point
Company : Pie

Experience- A well lit, modern design outlook to this place. Not bad, in terms of design, seats made my back hurt though

Drink :Water

Food : The cuisine is spread around lebanese, japanese, italian and american. quite hodge podge. The hummus was not too bad, but it wasnt tasty either though the pita bread was fantastic.
We got the stir fry veggies in schezuan with rice. Very Japanese taste to a chinese dish. no kick, no flavour just sauce. Next thing was a Lebanese pizza thing which was pretty off too. i think. No real taste, salty cheese thats it.
The wait staff didnt know much about the food and when they asked if the meal was ok i said it wasnt, they didnt do anything about it other than saying its not very Indian. No Shit it isnt. I would have gone to Moti Mahal upstairs if i wanted Indian.
Rating : Food 3/10, Service 7/10

Damage : 850 ($17)

Tex - Mex - The Missing Cuisine

Bombay being the massive city that it is has a multitude of cultures and cuisines available much like New York City. One of the more popular NYC cuisines missing from Bombay is Tex-Mex. Tex-Mex is Americanized Mexican cuisine, heavy on the chicken, pork, beef, beans, salsa, sour cream, tortillas & guacamole.

The most popular tex-mex dishes are Chili, Enchiladas, Quesadillas, Chalupas, Burritos, Fajitas, Tacos, (soft shell and hard shell) served with tortillas salsa (regular or picante-hot) and guacamole made from avocados. Side dishes normally include referitos (refried beans) mashed potato's, chilli, mexican rice, charred beans, black beans.

Like any cuisine there is a related beverage service, unfortunately no one in Bombay so far makes a decent Margarita, although you do get Corona here(Dos Equis or XX is another good Mexican beer) Lemonade and Bloody Mary are other drinks that go well with Mexican food.

As a college student in N.America, Mexican food was on the cards very often. Post 12 am when you are in the hankering for fast food Taco Bell was a popular choice. Although taco bell is nothing close to proper tex-mex. There are fabulous options across North America and even England to experience this cuisine the way it should be.

On a Christmas trip to Yuma, Arizona(the pregnancy capital of America WITHOUT my contributions I might add) I once crossed the border and illegally entered, lived in Mexico for two weeks, it was probably the first time someone did THAT.

Having had Mexican food (in Mexico DF they serve termites much like our Singh-Chana all roasted and salted) in Mexico I would safely say that I prefer the tex-mex variety (eating a cactus somewhere in Guadalajara will do that to you)

India serves truncated versions of the tex-mex cuisine and is nowhere in the same league. The nachos are too bare (Tex-Mex nachos are served on a massive plate topped with beans, tomato’s, sour cream etc) the enchiladas too sweet and corn heavy. There arent enough choices with fillings, entrées or side dishes, no referitos or Mexican rice and no one uses Monterrey Jack cheese.

Back in the day there existed El Mexicano as well as Casa Mexicana both in Bombay based 5 stars but they have ceased to be a long time ago. As of now most tex-mex dishes are served in blanket fast food restaurants where there isn’t a focus or expertise on any one cuisine.

Of late places such as TGI Friday, Ruby Tuesday have opened doors but the cost of eating in these places is having to well EAT in these places (both are amongst the worst restaurants opened in this city chain or otherwise) The Hard Rock Cafe is an interesting enough place which offers some Tex-Mex fare. Its not one of the more glamorous cuisines therefore I think people are a bit slow to look at it on a establishment backed scale.

Some of the better restaurants abroad for Mexican food are the Don Pablo’s Chain (USA) as well as Il Cantina (Leicester Square in London and Texan Embassy near the National Art Gallery just off Trafalgar Square) There are numerous tex-mex places all over California and Texas. One can drive into Mexico from these states for some real Mexican fare.

Such opportunities for Bombayites are presently lacking.

Thai Ban

Rest : Thai Ban
Meal : Lunch
Date : 17/12/2006
Location :St John Road, Bandra
Company : Pie, Anie

Experience- A pretty small place this, its nestled between Papa Pancho and Cafe Basilico, the decor is ok, they dont have more seating than 30 i reckon and the ambience is eveningish, cosy and casual.

Drink :Water, Fresh Lime Soda, Ice Tea

Food : Sticking to the staples, we got the Tom Yum Soup which was a bit ginger heavy but the tangy after taste was interesting.
The appetizers consisted of schezuan potato (dont even ask, my protests were disregarded) it was spicy, generic schezuan taste, we also had the baby corn mushroom satay which was on the money, rich full taste and enough portions to make 3 people happy.
The main course was just green curry with rice, pretty good here,but again, it all tastes the same, as if all thai cooks seem to be cooking from the same recipe book. bit dissapointing that but no complaints.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 800 ($17)

The best bloody mary in the whole wide world !

The bloody mary is the holy grail of cocktails. Very difficult to get right and with complex construction. Usually it gets screwed by not being spicy enough, having too much vodka, being too spicy or being served without a salted rim.

I personally have tried cracking the riddle through different permutations Absolut pepper, dangling chilly in vodka for 2 weeks (it was college, give me a break) bloody mary mix (shhh) celery powder, horse radish sauce, short of adding some of my own blood i have tried just about everything. It has never really worked out. Therefore to save my innards from blowing up i decided to just consume this fine work of art from the hands of professionals.

Now i do understand that everyone has a different mandate for what is spicy and what is tasty. However a good bloody mary will make you smile with its complex satisfying taste hidden under a myriad of tomato juice and different spices.

Also, this is MY blog, so we will all go by ME.

A list of the five best places to have this precious cocktail.

(in no particular order )

1. Gramercy Tavern - New York, New York, ($8 - INR 350)
2. Marios Via Abruzzi - Rochester, NY ( $5 , INR 225)
3. Hard Rock Cafe - Bombay ($4.50, INR 200)
4. Spicy Tom Mary - JW Mariott Bombay ($7 , INR 300)
5. Gallop - Turf Club, Bombay - ($4.50, INR 200)

Outstation meals - Aurangabad

Taj Residency Aurangabad

Rest : In Room Dining
Meal : Late Lunch
Date : 13/12/2006
Location :Taj Residency, Aurangabad
Company : Sampy

Experience- in room dining. was quick.

Drink :Water,

Food :We were going to get some pasta and stuff but then we figured dunnow what pasta is like up here so we went for Indian which was a good idea. Paneer Makhanwala which was excellent, light red sauce, spiced a little, melt in your mouth paneer, naans were average (nothing like the ones you get at Masala Kraft) rice was ok. Came with a ton of papads and an onion salad.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 550($13)

___________________________________________________________________

Rest : Taj Residency
Meal : Evening Snack/Late Nigh Snack
Date : 13/12/2006
Location :Taj Residency
Company : Ronnie Tango.

Experience- in Room dining. on time.

Drink :Water

Food :we got hungry around 3 am after a little partying and came back to the room and ordered a taj veg club sandwich. Not bad at all, toasted properly, with delicious onion rings and cole slaw and a Tomato Saar which is just a regular tomato soup spiced up which wasnt too bad though ive had better soup out of a Campbells can.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 260 ($5.50)

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Garden Cafe

Rest : Garden Cafe
Meal : Breakfast
Date : 14/12/2006
Location :Taj Aurangabad
Company : Times of India .

Experience- The weather was nice so i chose to sit and dine outside. The rest itself was a typical coffee shop.

Drink :Coffee

Food : I hd the sunny side up eggs but they werent served with any accompaniments, just toast. The coffee was bad and i was quite dissapointed with the set up. They were only serving a buffet but were nice enough to give me eggs (or so i thought) i ended up paying 250 bucks for a cup of coffee and eggs. I wouldnt have minded that but it was just shite! RIP OFF !

Damage : 250 ($5.25)

Hornbys Pavilion

Hornbys Pavilion

Rest : Hornbys Pavilion
Meal : Dinnerish
Date : 10/12/2006
Location :ITC Grand Central, Parel
Company : Pie, Mr.Mattu.

Experience- We got to the hotel and werent willing to sit down for a MEAL coz of a truncated schedule, so we did what people with no time and hunger do, go to ze coffee shop. The ITC coffee shop is called Hornbys Pavilion, its tastefully done up, very classy, very generic. The place has an extensive menu, which is wider and fuller than any other coffee shop around (palms, shamiana, bayview etc) however its def priced on the higher side and located on the shitter side. So its a trade off for sure.

Drink :Water, Fresh Lime Soda, Bloody Mary, Margarita

Food :Ok, i didnt order the food coz i was in the loo, mr.Mattu is a ITC, Delhi chap and had been eating at Parel for sometime apparently the place to go there is Kebabs and Curries.

Anyway we got this veggie Kebab platter thing which is paneer, bread, tikkaish sauce, small cups of biryani, salan and raita. Fantastic little thing this. Great taste, for the accompaniements, the paneer itself was soft, velvety, very good.

Mushroom Wrap, not very interesting, it was tasty but just no real love, it came with a tomato sauce which didnt help it much.

Lasagna, not bad actually, tasty, tangy, enough veggies but the pasta layers itself were very tasty. Nice stuff.

The drinks were terrible. The Lime soda was ok, the bloody mary served with no ice, tasted below par, the Margarita was just plain BAD. they dont know how to make drinks over at ITC.

Service itself was slow, menus took a while, drinks too longer, the chaps were polite and nodded, but didnt understand much it seems.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 7/10

Damage : 2900 ($65)

Joshi Club

Joshi Club

Rest : Joshi Club
Meal : Lunch
Date : 5/12/2006
Location : Kalbadevi
Company : Darth & Ma Vader, Gautam.

Experience- A very basic place, wooden chairs and benches, its on the first floor and seems like a hostel cafetaria in its appearance. So its not an ambience or experience eatery. You cant sit across from each other either. Its all sideways seating.

Drink :Water, ButterMilk

Food :Ok, they serve two dals ( i went for the sweet gujju one) some fried farsan (not bad) on this day they served chana masala, aloo tamatar, some weird green thing, cauli flower, u get your start up off salad, pickle, onions, in the roti you get regular rotis, bhakri, bajra rotli and masala roti (new thingy, not bad) they served 4 mithai things but its over the cost of the thali if you want it. i avoid mithai so i didnt go for it. i however did go for about 5 glasses of chaas (buttermilk) which unforutnately is extra too. Rice is of course also available and khichdi in the evenings. The service is pretty good, although a little headless chickened with a lot of having to ask for things sometimes but its all good natured.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 400 ($8)

Corleone - Repeat Visit

Rest : Corleone
Meal : Dinner
Date : 2/12/2006
Location :The Intercontinental, Marine Drive
Company : Pie

Experience - Got in slightly earlyish around 7.30, the place was empty and we got the perfect table by the windows. The ambience was fantastic, once the lights dimmed.

Drink : Lemon Something (not lemonade) Bloody Mary

Food : We repeated the lemon drink we ordered on our first visit.still good. Now the soups were Pomodoro (tomato) and mushroom, both soups were underwhelming, especially since the tomato had been great before.

The appetizer was mushroom in olive oil and stuffing and the anti pasti, combined, the maitre d offered this to us since we werent happy with the soup. Very good, the oil and stuffing didnt overpower the mushrooms taste and the anti pasti was pickeled and then marinaded and served with rictotta cheese. The ricotta makes the dish.

For the entree we got the penne in an arrabiataesque sauce (should have avoided the eggplant in it) but overall it was a good dish.

I would like to say the service was excellent however, attentive, gracious and above the call of duty.

Damage : 1600 ($35)
Rating : Food 9/10, Service 9.5/10

Damage : 1600($35 )

Cafe Ivy

Rest : Cafe Ivy
Meal : Lunch
Date : 16/11/2006
Location : Annie Beasant Road
Company : Pie

Experience - A cosy place a bit more coffee shoppish than cafeish but hey long as they sell cheap vino im there. it dosent have a lot of seating (20-25) from wht i counted. the wait staff is patch some are good some equally bad. the waiters dont know anything bout the food either. the menu is eclectic pastas, wraps, burgers, biryanis so its a bit of everything.

Drink : Chantilli Sauvignon Blanc (95 rs) a good wine, if you let it breathe for a few mins before you start on it will reward you.
Ivy Shiraz (140rs) not bad, not as good as the Sula Shiraz but adequate(i broke my own rule of not drinking reds in the day just to try it)
Ivy Brut Sparkling Wine (150rs) excellent, dry but very easy on the palate they also have the popular Pompadour (175rs)
Affogato after lunch (40 rs) not bad at all. should have let it marinade a bit, im turning into an Italian

Food : i heard bad reviews but i did want to try it for myself and i am glad that i did.

Soup : The Soup of the day was Carrot so we avoided that all together.

Salad : Exotic fruit and pasta salad in balsamic (excellent, though i find the fruits disconcerting pie didnt and it was her salad so i cant complaint) i had the greek salad and it was very nice, feta cheese and had the right kick aftertaste (both salads 50 rs)

Appetiser : Bruschetta Wow! best bruschetta in the city so far (50Rs for 2 pieces) highly recommend it.

Main Course : Spagetti Aglio Olio and Penne Arabbiata

Now the aglio olio was good, the penne was good but instead of having the spicy angle it was more on the sweetish spicy side of things (it was a good taste but not what i expected from the arrabiata) i also ordered a side of garlic bread which was pretty good.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 1000 ($22.50)

Royal China

Rest : Royal China
Meal : Lunch
Date : 12/11/2006
Location : Sterling
Company : Pie

Experience - A much anticipated visit on a busy sunday afternoon. The restaurant is well set up, comfortable, classy and the wait staff is on the money. Attentive and available.

Drink : Bloody Mary, Diet Coke

Food : Everyone needs to understand one thing. When you go to Royal china you are going to a Cantonese reastaurant vs the usual schezuan. So be aware. We started with the Tom Yum Soup which was allright and a Wanton Soup which was bloody bland though it was recommended. For a appetizer we went for something i dont know what. was recommended and i had a look at it. I swear the thing moved...it looked like it came out of the Alien from the Aliens II. it tasted alien too. i for the first time in history sent a dish back.

After that we got some pan fried noodles in black bean sauce with vegetables. The noodles were good, tasty, crispy and didnt need another entree with it. Was a complete noodle and entree in itself.

Overall i was dissapointed. I dont think id go back, its not bad, its just not for me.

Rating : Food 7/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 901 ($20 ) they were kind enough to not charge us for the alien baby

Drinks - Recommendations

Just some random beverage recommendations.

Limeade - Corleone Intercontinental Marine Drive
Spicy Tom - Lotus Cafe - JW Mariott
Bloody Mary - Gallop , Turf Club
Stella Artois - Everywhere
Corona
Dos Equis
Singha
Tiger
Riesling - Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery Finger Lakes, NY (Spatlese)
Sula Shiraz - Sula Vineyard India
Thums up - Coca Cola India
Limca - Coca Cola India
Tropicana - Orange Juice
Appy Fizz
Shiraz Rose - Grover Vineyards India
Johnny Walker Black Label
Absolut Pepper
Margaritas Frozen - Don Pablos, Rochester NY

The Distillery - Mt Hope, rochester

i know i know, this isnt bombay but hey, this is my blog. so read and enjoy it.

The Distillery was a stones throw from a few friends who lived together on 365, Mt Hope bag opp the Mt. Hope Cemetery. The place itself is a sports bar and is typical wood, big tvs, nice big bar, very good help as well.

It gets superfriggincrowded, people have to WAIT to get a table from the middle of the week onwards. A friend said they were opening closer to where i used to live in Henrietta and another further up in Pittsford. Good for them.

They had a nice expansive menu and i usually got Bruschetta ($6.59) Loaded Fries ($6.99) Cheese Quesadillas ($6.50) Nachos ($6.50) Garden Burger ($6.50)

Topped with $4 Margaritas which used to also end up being 1 for 1 free and was one of the few places in Roc that served Stella Artois. I regret not having more American Beer while i was in America.

A meal from memory lane - Aladdins Natural Eatery

Aladdins is one of my fav restaurants anywhere. My first experience was at their Ithaca outlet which is just of Cornell the Cornell campus. It was a memorable meal coz i was accompanied by three very pretty ladies.
Anyway they have a few other branches in Pittsford & Monroe Ave both in Rochester and one more in Syracuse.

The food itself is a splendid mix of Mediterranean and it walks a fine line between Italy and the middle east along with some bits of Greece. The food itself is just fantastic. I used to eat there so much i got sick of it.

My usual meal there comprised of
Veg Chili ($2.95) which was served with Pita also a must have was an order of their Hummus ($5.50) also served witht he Pita.

The next course was usually very difficult because the usual option was a fab medit salad with feta cheese and greens ($5) or a falafal pita ($4.25)  or plain Falafal platter ($4) which came with some hummus and tahini yoghurt sauce.

The pasta were very interesting from memory they offered you a choice on what pasta you wanted and thats not what shape but literally how you wanted them flavoured. like plain or one was some red pepper thing another was pistachio. very awesome.

they had quite a few options but the ones i usually picked were Pistachio which was pasta in creamy sauce with pine nuts and goat cheese ($7.95) Pesto and Parmesan ($7.50)

Desserts were ok. i always went for the Spanakopita. The amazing thing is you would end up spending maybe $30 on a meal for two people and thats a lot less than what i have paid for some crappy meals in 5 Star Hotels (read Souk at the Taj)

The wine list was ok from but the memories were great! next time i am in new york im bloody driving up the 6 hours to rochester for a meal.

Indigo Deli

Rest : Indigo Deli
Meal : Birthday Lunch
Date : 2/10/2006
Location :Colaba
Company : Pie, Vishal

Experience - Well we were hungry and couldnt think of any other place to go. So we headed off to the Deli. It was crowded and they asked us to wait an HOUR. Then immediately offered us a table, we barely got our drinks and then they moved us to a booth. thank god for waiting.But then they continued to make us wait for our bloody food. 25 mins exactl till anything came onto the table.

Drink : Fruit Punch, disgusting looks, good taste.

Food : Well it was more of the same really. Although we all refrained from eggs as it was late. I got the spagetti without meatballs, vishal got a salad in balsamic vinegar and pie got their thin crust pizza with olives and mushrooms. The pasta was bloody fantastic. It sucks that i have to choose between things. The pizza i dont find that impressive anymore. i mean its thin, so bloody what. The salad again, was not too bad but not impressive in any way. The roasted mushrooms were bloody fantastic.
overall a good meal and def go there again.

Rating : Food 9/10, Service 6/10

Damage : 1400($32 )

Lotus Cafe

 

Rest : Lotus Cafe
Meal : Birthday Dinner
Date : 2/10/2006
Location : J W Mariott
Company : Pie, Vishal

Experience -  We walked around the entire hotel hoping for something interesting food wise. But all the other restaurants Saffron, Mezzo Mezzo offer a very generic experience so we settled on the Lotus Cafe which had a bloody buffet but atleast variety.

Drink : Spicy Tom (Best F****** drink ever had two) Brownie shake, they made it specially for pie.

Food : Well it was a buffet. They had a limited salad bar, cheese and crackers, soups (very weak selection of one veg and one non veg) No pasta selection, a pizza stand (avg pizza) tempura stand (above average) pasta made to order would have been nice too. No real selection of breads. The majority of the food was indian so you had some good paneer, excellent dal, your usual nan, biryani, yoghurt etc etc. The Desserts were allright too, nice big selection, cakes, cheesecakes, choc fondue thingy, ice creams. End of the day only thing memorable was the bloody drink, spicy tom.  

Rating : Food 9/10, Service 6/10

Damage : 1800 ($40)

Lings Pavilion

Rest : Lings Pavilion
Meal : Lunch
Date : 19/9/2006
Location : Near Regal, Colaba
Company : Pie

Experience - Pangs of hunger, a movie showing, decision between China Garden, Royal China and Lings. We chose Lings coz i hadnt been there in YEARs and since it was a quick meal i decided not to go to China Garden which isnt a rush rush place nor Royal China which i wanted to try out and came highly recommended. The service at the restaurant was terrible at best.

Drink : Fresh Lime Soda, Pepsi

Food : We ordered the Veg Noodle Soup (very average) sweet corn soup. Both soups were pretty pedestrian. The starter was a steamed wanton, which was ok, not too bad but nothing to write home about. Main course was mushrooms, in a black sauce which was not too bad, with terrible pan fried noodles. Pie had the potato thing, which was i think a schezuan potato, not too bad. i think rice would have been a better choice, but overall the meal wouldnt have been tht much better.

Rating : Food 6/10, Service 4/10

Damage : 900($20 )

Corleone

Rest : Corleone
Meal : Sunday Brunch
Date : 18/9/2006
Location :The Intercontinental, Marine Drive
Company : Pie

Experience - 1 pm sunday afternoon,proper italian in mind. Only real options are Trattoria at the president, i wouldnt mind but its just too generic an experience or Vetro which i dont know enough about and expect to be a complete rip off as well.We got a prime table, overlooking marine drive. excellent location. Service was top notch. best i have had in a while. Attentive, caring and non intrusive.

Drink : Lemon Something (not lemonade) Ice Tea

Food : Before i begin, everyone needs to try that lemon drink. holy cow, it was good. it was coke, mint, lemon, sugar etc. It was a complete wow. Now the soups were Pomodor (tomato) which was excellent, well done, unique taste and Minestrone (very bad) bland, tasteless and no amount of salt and pepper solved anything. The appetizer was mushroom in olive oil and stuffing. Very good, the oil and stuffing didnt overpower the mushrooms taste. We then went for a pizza The siciliana which was sundried tomato, two cheeses, olives. Not too bad. thin crust, well made, i dont like olives, but it was pretty good.
Next time im going to go for pastas (they have an impressive selection) and leave pizzas out. For dessert we got the Lindt special, which was a lindt choc brownie with icecream. not too bad. but not worth the 20 min wait.
overall a good meal and def go there again.

Rating : Food 9/10, Service 9.5/10

Damage : 1600($35 )

Dum Pukth

Rest : Dum Pukth
Meal : Dinner
Date : 17/9/2006
Location :ITC Grand Maratha Sheraton, Airport Road
Company : Pie

Experience - classy decor, very comfortable seating. emptyish however. the whole hotel itself seems like it is on some kind of a downward spiral. not a hot shot place not entirely run down. more like its on the way down. we were actually trying to get to Bandra to go to Papa Panchos but Bandra Fair traffic was murder and we ended up here.

Drink : Thandai

Food : We ordered the thandai for a drink it was excellent. We opted to avoid appetizers and soups and go straight to the food. So we got the paneer in tomato gravy, excellent, succulent paneer, lightish gravy. great taste. The Dal Makhani, again, excellent, distincitve taste, well done. The Naan, which was ok (no one makes the Naan like Masala Kraft at Taj) then the Biryani, which was average (ive had better at Shamiana and Palms) with garlic raita. Overall the meal was good but short of excellent.

Rating : Food 8.0/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 1700($38 )

Henry Tham

Rest : Henry Tham
Meal : Lunch
Date : 16/9/2006
Location :Colaba, next to Tommy Hilfiger
Company : Pie

Experience - nteresting decor, its very non- Chinesish in its look. Modern, Sushi barish. The ground floor has a few tables, a lounging area and a long bar. The upper floor has a few tables. HUGE red chairs. Not the most ergonomically efficient design. but what it leaves you with is an unsually largish, open space to dine in. You do have to sacrifice intimate corners for tht. It seems def form and style over everything else. Not a good idea for a restaurant.

Drink : Aqua

Food : I opted for the set lunch which comes with a soup (hot and sour, very good) appetizer (grilled tofu, suspiciously Hakka style, very weak) main course of Hakka noodles (allright) with veggies in garlic sauce (nice, very nice but weak veggie choice) boiled veggies (excellent, top notch) and green beans in some crap (avg) The dessert was choc mousse, something white in a big thing of ice and fruits (avg again) Overall it was a promising meal, i think dinner would be more of an experience then lunch. They do serve these peanuts which are boiled and marinated in something (EXCELLENT!!!)

Rating : Food 7.0/10, Service 4.5/10

Damage : 800($15 )

Goa Break!

So was in goa for the weekend. a rundown on the meals

Hotel Breakfast
Hotel Breakfast consisted of eggs sunny side up, toast, juice, coffee. Avg breakfast, not too bad, nothing overly dramatic either.
Puri Bhaji - Spicy, in the morning, never had this for breakfast before. Well done, but not something id like to try again
Aloo Paratha with Yoghurt - Not bad, the parathas were cool, with a helping of onion in it, just wish they were warmer.

Hotel Dinner
Hummus - Not too bad, served with soft whole pita, which were very good. Chana masala and puris (hate puris) but the thing wasnt bad. not too spicy either. The fried rice was disgusting.

Brittos
A goa instituiton on Bagha beach. Not too bad, the ambience is nice, chilled out as most places. The crowd is a mix of family, celebrity, wanna be and the expected dosage of expats.
We had the paneer tikka which was excellent. Really enjoyed it. Chewy, soft and very tasty. Lasagna, not too bad but not exactly what i would expect of a lasagna. Interesting but not recommended. Tiramisu was ok, but weak. Chocolate Walnut thingy wasnt too bad. Drinks Kingfisher, Bacardi Breezers, Damage 540.

Dont recall the name
There was this restaurant just off Calangute Beach opp some clothing stalls. Not too bad. we only got some soup and pizza margeritha. Excellent pizza, very well done with mozzarella cheese and oregano. Def recommend it.
Drink - Mineral Water , Damage 150.

Shalom
Its a meditarranean lounge/restaurant. It had an extensive menu but we didnt want to experiment too much so we went for the Mezze platter which came with some excellent hummus, baba ganoush, tabouleh and cacik. all of it was bloody excellent. didnt expect such good med food in Goa. The restaurant has a branch in Delhi in GK1 for anyone who wants to try. Drink - Sula Zinfindel (excellent, had a whole bottle at Trattoria in Bom) Baileys, Damage 950

Airport
Desperate lunge for food at the airport. mixed emotions. The stall offered batata vada and cheese sandwich which was top notch, bloody excellent. while the restaurant served some disgusting noodles.

Spagetti Kitchen

Rest : Spagetti Kitchen
Meal : Lunch
Date : 17/7/2006
Location :Colaba Causeway
Company : Pie

Experience - Lunch, Early for a change.

Drink : Pepsi

Food : Experience was similar as usual, SK is consistent if nothing else. The ambience is also good and place fills up quick. We ordered the mushroom capuccino soup which was good but the tomato basil soup is out of this world. The main course was a margerita pizza and penne in vodka and tomato sauce.
The margerita comes with parmesan instead of mozzarella which makes a huge difference. the pasta was excellent. in fact its so good always pull back from trying the pesto out which i really really want to.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 800($15 )

Trattoria

Rest : Trattoria
Meal : 2am Dinner
Date : 16/7/2006
Location :Taj President
Company : Pie

Experience - It was real late and after a night of jumping around we needed some chow. So having not been here in a while we decided to treck up and see things. They made us wait for 2 mins but then we got in allright.

Drink : Capuccino

Food : So we got the Minestrone, to start with, the most excellent pizza which came with bell peppers and mushrooms and a past i cant remember but it was red. Things are a bit hazy so do forgive me. Memory serves tht the meal was quite good, the pizza was thin and perfect and the pasta wasnt too bad either. The Soup was average however. Id give the capuccino a miss as well. I do remember that the place continues to be loud as a fish market even at 2am.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 1300($30 )

Cafe Churchill

Rest : Cafe Churchill
Meal : Late Lunch
Date : 15/7/2006
Location :Colaba Causeway
Company : Pie

Experience - Late lunch, wat out waiting for 20 mins (first time ive waited in a long long time) i had a nice parking spot and didnt feel like making out for Indigo Deli or Cafe Basilico so we stuck it.

Drink : Pepsi, Fresh Lime Soda

Food : Hmm, i ordered the Spagetti in Marinara with garlic bread ( i think it makes me sick) and there was a sandwich with some cheese. The food was ok. The pasta wasnt too bad the sandwich was average. My problem is the service and presentation. Service is haphazard (i know its busy but thats not an excuse) The pasta should have come in a bowl, thats how it is meant to be and it should be served atleast WARM rather than the luker side or luke warm. It could have been better but it wasnt. Dissapointing and NOT worth the wait.

Rating : Food 7/10, Service 6/10

Damage : 300($6.50 )

Gallop

Rest : Gallop
Meal : Dinner
Date : 14/7/2006
Location :Race Course, Opp Haji Ali,

Experience - Early evening out. Thought to make it an interesting evening out. Gallop is great location, good ambience with great service.

Drink : Bloody Mary, Cold Coffee

Food : Took a while to decide whether to go for Indian or Continental. I always end up going for Indian when im at Gallop. Next time around im going for Continental. We split a Mulligatawny, fantastic. very well done, perfect taste. We went straight to the entrees which were Paneer Salan which is a SPICY hyderabadi style dish. Dal Makhani, Naan and a Roomali Roti. Topped it up with Steamed rice. The dal makhani was very good, not as good as Masala Kraft but almost there. The Salan was frigging spicy, so spicy that it still is burning, but it was really good. worth it. The Naan was dissapointing in the sense that it was small, crispy rather than soft and fluffy like Taj Naan's. The roomali was ok.
A special mention for the bloody mary. Please, try them out. Best ive had in the city so far, so good i had two, one after the other.
Impressive meal, would do it again soon. highly recommended for ambience, food and service.

Rating : Food 9/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 1000($22 )

Indigo Deli

Rest : Indigo Deli
Meal : Late Lunch
Date : 2/7/2006
Location :Colaba,
Company : Pie

Experience - On a desperate schedule, we showed for a late late lunch.

Drink : Coffee Black, Mango Shake

Food : We ordered Eggs, sunny side up, with toast and a side of baked beans. Pie had ordered the sundried tomato thin crust pizza which they forgot to put in. Basically we switched to a sandwich which was also pretty good. Forget what it was now. The eggs were perfect. The sandwich was pretty good too. Pie ordered choc mousse to top it off with which was very good and subtlely different from other ones u get out there.

No complaints except for the service which was slow and slacked up but its fine. the food was worth it and im def going to make the indigo deli a regular haunt.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 6.5/10

Damage : 750($18 )

Crepe Station

Rest : Crepe Station
Meal : Breakfast
Date : 25/6/2006
Location :Bandra,
Company : Pie, Anie

Experience - Especially hungry in the morning and was looking for a nice lill breakfast and couldnt think of any other place i would be except for the Indigo Deli which seemed too far a drive.
Drink : Coffee Black, Capuccino, Watermelon Juice (complementary)

Food : i stuck to my usual English Breakfast, sans the eggs, was very good. i enjoyed it very much, just like last time. The machine pressed coffee was excellent as well. perfect for a dreary Sunday morning. My companions got the pan cakes, which i was dying for, im glad i didnt try them on because they were friggin horrible. Rubbery, hard, un pancake like, being used to eating pancakes in N.America, i am a bit finicky about em. Still being hungry i also went for the Caprese Crepe which was tomato, mozzarella and some mushroom. Superlative, again, very well made and very tasty. The watermelon juice, i hate and since they didnt have any ice it made things doubly worse.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 713 ($18 )

Masala Kraft

Rest : Masala Kraft
Meal : Dinner
Date : 23/6/2006
Location :Taj Mahal Hotel, Apollo Bunder,
Company : Mom, Dad, Gautam

Experience - Great restaurant, good ambience, the place is done up well. Although very generic, it is quite a chilled out place to be having dinner. I however dont think the minimalist take on the surrounding works for an Indian eatery

Drink : Bottled Water

Food : The menu isnt expansive, but its thoughtfully chosen to give you a taste of all that you can gather from the cuisine of the North. There is a decent enough selection for vegetarians and they have a tiffin option which we did not try.
We ordered the Peepay wale choley, Dal Makhani, Naans, Kulcha & Pulao. For some reason i had a hankering for bread which is weird.
However the food was superlative, the choley were fantastic, well done, full of taste and the kulcha that came was soft and a perfect accompaniment for the choley.
The Dal Makani seemed thoughfully prepared, again an explosion of tastes, very similar to the choley yet you could very easily tell the difference between the two tastes, subtle but vivid.
The Naan was quite soft and warm rather than the the crispy, hot ones u get at other places. Better Naan then most other places.
The portions werent bad either, three of us at quite easily while my mom nibbled a little. Overall you could easily feed 4 people with this much food.

I am going back there, again sometime very soon.

Rating : Food 9.0/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 1900 ($45 )

Indigo Deli

Rest : Indigo Deli
Meal : Late Late Lunch or an Early Early Dinner
Date : 22/6/2006
Location :Near Regal Cinema, Colaba,
Company : Pie

Experience - Was really hungry and a friend had mentioned the food at Indigo deli. Being right across it i figured it isnt much of a stretch to walk in. i got the first table and sitting inside reminded me a of a more minimalist/modern Brasserie somewhere out of Milan. Love the ambience (although the generic football fever is boring!)

Drink : Mango Smoothie, Lime-Soda

Food : They have a nice expansive menu, from breakfast eggs in half a dozen styles, to main courses, pasta etc. We went for the baked mac&cheese with a side of mashed potato, the pizza with olives, sundried tomato and a tangy cheese, also got a side of garlic potato. The pasta was very good, not too cheesy it had this sourish taste, worked very well for mac and cheese, a diff take. However i like my baked thing to be a bit more dry but no harm no foul. The pizza, well i heard TOO much bout it so i was a little dissapointed. the crust is impossibly thin and crunchy. Like a poppadum but the taste worked out well. I wouldnt try it again simply coz its too friggin thin and there are a few other things on the menu i really want to try. The Mash potato, oh my god. heavenly, best mashed potato i have ever had. the garlic potato sucked real bad. it was raw and then i asked em to change it and it was too well done.
All in all a good meal, decent portions, but very enjoyable meal. cant wait to go and try some other stuff.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 1063 ($25 )

Papa Pancho Da Dhaba

Rest : Papa Pancho Da Dhaba
Meal : Dinner
Date : 15/6/2006
Location :Somewhere in Bandra
Company : Pie

Experience - Was looking for Red Box and not knowing where anything in Bandra is i passed by Papa Pancho, then passed by them again and decided to hit it coz i was friggin starving marvin. There was literally no one there and we had the place to ourselves. Its a bit weird, the ambience is allright but a bit too forced.

Drink : Masala Chaas x 2 and Ice tea Peach

Food : We went for the paneer handi dish of the day, which comes with Parathas, yoghurt, dal makhani. Good thing i didnt order anything other than that. The paneer handi was very good, kind of real spicy and reminded me of this Mirchi ka Salan i had at the Best Western in Hyderabad. very good but my stomach burned the entire next day. The dal makhani was very good too. i wish they offered some more dahi though. only a small cup. Got some rice too but it was microwaved which you can tell coz its brittle and dryish.

All in all a good meal, good portion and decent quality of food. would go there again if i was in the mood for indian.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 360 ($9)

Souk!

Rest : Souk
Meal : Dinner
Date : 14/6/2006
Location :Taj
Company : Gautam

Experience - Very nice ambience, Souk is at the rooftop of the Taj Tower and has a great views
the decor is kind of modern minimalist and the service is allright.

Drink : Diet Coke

Food : The cuisine is spread across different parts of the Mediterranean. We ordered the Shorba Adas, which was this egyptian soup with onion straws. Allright, not great, in fact i have had a better version at the Cafe Basilico. the humus khabez which is hummus with chopped pickeled veggies. It was allright, not great, passable.
The Felafil, was also not bad, but quite passable. The two mixed together raised the quality of the meal to a touch above ordinary. We decided to split the entree so we ordered this Greek Spagetti, which was lots of tomato, parmesan cheese, in a light, red and white sauce. This was the coup, very light, but full of taste. Highly recommend it to anyone.
Overall the experience was dissapointing, i would have expected Souk to be in league with Wasabi and Golden Dragon but its barely about 60% of the experience. Also they were scrimping on the Pita. I mean jeez, with the pasta i got two pieces of pita ? seriously, i have great respect for the Taj, but this is too much (or too little)
Much emphasis was placed on the decor and lesser still on the food. Also allowing people to waft in wearing shorts is unacceptable. I think white people can still get away with anything in this country (and i say that as a person who has a huge cirlce of friends who live abroad and visit)

Rating : Food 6/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 2100 ($50)

Motil Mahal

Rest : Moti Mahal
Meal : Lunch
Date : 5/6/2006
Location :InOrbit Mall
Company : Pie, Anie

Experience - nicely done up restaurant, family ambience as well. Enjoyable place to go definetely.

Drink :Mango Lassi, Diet Pepsi

Food : Again, i let people order, since they had prior experience with the place. Was a mixed bag really. We got the Dal Makhani, Paneer Makhani, Missi Roti, Laccha Paratha, Nan. The Dal was very good, the Paneer Makhani was very bland, the paneer was just tossed into the gravy which was bright red without much taste. I was dissapointed, but i should have gone for the Kadai Paneer. Im going to def try out the restaurant again when i have a chance, it looks promising.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 550 ($15)

Crepe Station Breakfast.

Rest : Crepe Station
Meal : Breakfast
Date : 3/6/2006
Location : Bandra Carter Road
Company : Pie

Experience - Slow, slow morning, hankering for a western breakfast. Couldnt think of any other place and had ZERO desire to go 5 star. Got there around 11 am were 4 tables full so it was an ok time of the day. My second time at CSation and this time i sat on the outside at the Al-Fresacish space to keep an eye on my car, not knowing the parking traditions of Bandra.

Drink : Mango Juice (not bad at all) Coffee (ok) Watermelon juice x 2 (complimentary with the dishes we ordered)

Food : I ordered the English Breakfast sans the bacon and pie ordered a sandwich. The waiter was kind enought offer mushrooms to replace the bacon which i readily accepted. the Breakfast consisted off 2 eggs sunny side up, grilled tomato, mushrooms, sides of toast. was just wat i needed. delicious, filling, fun. Took me away from bombay for a bit. The sandwich wasnt bad either. I highly recommend the mornings at Crepe Sation, they also have a new joint at juhu. The sandwich was served with a small potato salad which was very good.

Rating : Food 8.7/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 500 ($12)

China Gate

Rest : China Gate
Meal : Dinner
Date : 3/6/2006
Location : Bandra, Turner Road, down the road from Zenzi
Company : Pie, Anie

Experience - A hankering for Chinese, no desire to go to on to Link Road and we decided on this. It was a bit early when we got in around 7. Oddly about 5 tables of people there and we were the only Indians, it feltl like we were in Hong Kong or something.

The service was ok, the waiters brought out the appetizers before the soup was done. A huge Faux Pas in my opinion, despite being asked to hold it they continued to anyway. Then the server dropped some food in my drink and on asking to replace it , they did, but charged me for it. i dont like creating scenes so i didnt bring it up, but i was unhappy bout that treatment.

Drink :Diet Pepsi

Food :Ending up busy making phone calls i only called for the soup (wanton for me, telenpien or something like tht for them) i found out they ordered the entire meal without me. Usually a bad idea when i am concerned.

It was an all appetizer meal consisting of Schezuan Potato, Onion Pancakes, Dim Sum, Spring Rolls. The soup was First Grade (mine was anyway, the other one was terrible) the Onion pancakes were slightly oily, but allright. the schezuan potato is a disgusting dish i loathe, the Dim Sum again was top notch, very enjoyable, the Spring Rolls, were allright, not too bad, but not great either.

The overall meal was pleasant and above average. The restaurant is also quite huge and we had the chinese contingent peering over their table, walking over to ours and pointing out the dishes they wanted. Quite Funny!

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 6/10

Damage : 900 ($18)

Soam

Rest : Soam
Meal : Dinner
Date : 28/5/2006
Location : Babulnath
Company : Gautam

Experience - It is a 7 min walk so we just winged it. originally intending to go to Food factory but impulsively went across to check if there was space. i guess we hit a slow patch and were seated immediately. Service was reasonably prompt.

Drink : Diet Pepsi, Kala Khatta (not bad) Mango Lassi (very good)

Food :Quite an ethnicish menu serving some south indian and bombay fast food. but majority of the menu is gujarati and maharashtrian. we had the misal pav, which was good, tasty but i think a bit too spicy. we had the chana masala with puris, not bad, the paneer makhani with parathas which was good and the mung dal khichadi which was crap. Overall the food was not bad but on the average side at best. Patchy, inconsistent and frankly, not what i expected. i was expecting an ethnic feast but i think for tht you have to go to smaller restaurants in like populated locales.

Rating : Food 6.5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 385 ($9)

Pizzeria.

Rest : Pizzeria Uno
Meal : Dinner
Date : 27/5/2006
Location : Marine Drive.
Company : Pie

Experience - Got there desperately hungry. Was told there was a 15 min wait but they let us in about 2 mins. Although i was prepared to go to Trattoria. Got the last corner table. Faboulous. Service was great, even though they were quite busy. Some day i hope they get air conditioning going. But even without it, not much of a problem.

Drink : Diet Pepsi, Berry Cola (very good but has to be very cold)

Food : We got garlic bread with cheese (very good) paprika potato wedges, more potato no paprika, Bombay Masala pizza (awesome as usual) the food as always was very consistent except for the wedges. Almost all that was expected from a fav haunt.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 5oo ($12)

Pot Pourri

Rest : Pot Pourri
Meal : Late Lunch
Date : 26/5/2006
Location : Turner Road, Bandra.
Company : Pie

Experience - In Bandra AGAIN. This is becoming a habit. Was on my way from a meeting and decided to meet a friend for lunch. Another friend recommended Pot Pourri and i was right across the street from it. i decided to stop in. Its a nice cozy place, Al-Fresco in a way except for the temp roof. No Parking, is murder. There werent a lot of people there so the help was almost exclusively ours.

Drink : Diet Pepsi, Brownie Shake
Food : Interesting menu. They cover a lot of ground from sandwiches to salads to pastas. A very limited soup menu however. Anyway since i was hungry i went for the roasted red sauce with penne which is really a long way of saying Arrabiatta. Pie went for A hash brown burger. The pasta was good. Slightly spicier then i liked, but still impressively done. I enjoyed it immensely. The burger again was solid. Very good, didnt fall apart which is good. Tasty. Served with fries and a half hearted salad. The brownie shake was not good at all. Not enoug brownie, not enough taste. For dessert we got the irish whisky choc thing and mousse. both were average at best. the mousse being the better bet.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 550 ($14)

China White

Rest : China White
Meal : Sunday Brunch
Date : 21/5/2006
Location : Turner Road, Bandra.
Company : PK,Anie Vishal

Experience - In Bandra AGAIN. Well another of my Bandra sojourn. Its like ive discovered a whole new world of new food. Im so glad i avoided Bandra for so long. The place is done up very nicely. Interesting decor, dimmish lighting. I liked it.
Drinks - Diet Coke, Water, Ice Tea.

Food : Rather expansive menu. We ordered, noodle soup, wonton soup, hot n sour mushroom bun, spring rolls, schezuan potato, singapore noodles. Soups were on the money. I liked mine very much, the noodle soup was kind of blandish, didnt taste the hot and sour. The schezuan potato wasnt what we thought it was. it ended up being very french fryish. Not good. The mushroom bun off the dim sum menu was very very good. The spring rolls were horrible, the noodles were average. I think we messed up coz we were so busy chatting that we didnt really pay attention to what was being ordered. So even though it was dissapointing, i think we would be allright if we went in again and ordered peacefully.

Rating : Food 5/10, Service 8/10

Damage : 1500 ($35)

Vista

Rest : Vista
Meal : High Tea
Date : 17/5/2006
Location : Taj Lands End, Bandra.
Company : PK,

Experience - In Bandra again. Couldnt think of a place to go. The coffee shop in the Atrium was completely packed except for some crappy seats. So we went up to Vista. Wasnt very busy but they had a few tables filled. Seating was immediate, as was service.

Drinks - Cold Coffee, Water

Food : Expansive menu which covers a lot of bases. Pizza, pasta, indian, soups etc. We ordered a plain cheese pizza, white bean soup. The pizza was great, highly recommend it, think, crispy, looked like it came straight from new york. The soup was horrible. Like the kind of thing you eat when you are sick. Even then it would make you sicker. They served some bread along with stuff like a dipping thingy made of olive oil and something. Icccky, they should offer some balsamic vinegar

Rating : Food 7/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 850 ($18)

Crepe Station

Rest : Crepe Station
Meal : Dinnerish
Date : 1/5/2006
Location : Bandstand, Bandra.
Company : PK, Anie

Experience - I was promised pancakes. Somehow i found pancakes, but they only offer them at Breakfast (i know its a breakfast thing but come on. have a heart) my fluttering my eyes didnt work either (not that it has before) The place itself is strictly ok, not too many tables, i reckon around a dozen, service is on the slowish side and its not that great in terms of decor either. It was reasonably crowded.

Drinks - Orange Juice, Thums up

Food : They have an impressive menu, for a restaruant their size, A bunch of diff cuisines, soups etc, Which kind of makes you wonder how they really do with the food and consistency. I got a Caprese sandwich which was excellent, my mates got some paneer sandwich, which was good too they said. It wasnt a bad meal at all, the chips were ok too. Its a nicely set up joint but then id have to go there 2-3 more times to sample the rest of the food. Quite frankly Bandra is out of my jurisdiction.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 6.5/10

Damage : 350 ($8)

The Saltwater Grill

Rest : Saltwater Grill
Meal : Dinner
Date : 29/4/2006
Location : Chowpatty, Bombay
Company : PK

Experience - We got there a bit early and fortunately it wasnt as busy then so we were seated right away. the place has a fantastic ambience and is a great place to stay and hang out. A bottle of wine, old friends, memories. The place is highly recommended even though the food was inconsistent. I would def go there again if only for a bottle of wine.

Drinks - Water. They werent serving alchohol for some excise protest. Goddamn revolutions ruined this world and my dinner.

Food : Hmm, this was a mix bag. We started with a mushroom soup and broccoli and irish cheddar. Mushroom was great but Broccoli (vilest of reeds) was quite shameful. We went for a greek salad with feta cheese and grilled veggies with Ricotta. The greek salad was ok, the feta fresh but the grilled veggies were absolutely horrible and bland and i only got a dollop of ricotta. Not enough to create some taste. Also, the appetite not being what it used to be we got one main course and split it which was Spagetti in a Pomodoro sauce and it was absolutely incredible. Excellent taste (almost like Little Italy) very good. The dessert was a chocolate monstrosity which was recommended and to be ordered 25 mins before actually eating it. Unfortunately i think they could have done with about 50 mins coz it tasted like bournvita. Absolutely useless. I mean i would have been better rubbing it all over my body and rolling in the mud rather than eating it.


Rating : Food 6/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 1800 ($40)

Grand Cafe at the Hyatt

Rest : Grand Cafe at Hyatt Grand
Meal : Evening Snack
Date : 19/4/2006
Location :Grand Hyatt, Kalina, Bombay
Company : PK

Experience - Reasonably crowded for 6pm but not too bad. All kinds of people businessmen, tourists, freaks, marriage meetings. No Valet, how disgusting. What kind of a hotel chain opens up without a bloody valet. I am supposed to park my OWN car?

Drinks - Coffee, Water

Food : Probably the greatest club sandwich in the history of the world (for what i paid for it, it better have been) Absolutely awesome, had a hint of balsamic vinegar which made it even more amazing because its a taste not many Indians are used to. But it was def a top drawer sandwich. The fries it came with were on the other hand quite tasteless and i wasnt impressed. The coffee as well, nothing great.

Rating : Food 8.9/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 800 ($17)

Piccadelhi - A Delhi Meal

Rest :Piccadelhi
Meal : Early Lunch
Date : 17/4/2006
Location :Connaught Place, New Delhi.
Company : Siddhartha

Experience - Not very crowded, but it was only around 12 on Sunday morning. After looking for something interesting we gave up after counting 3 McDonalds and 2 Pizza Hut within 1 mile round. Anyway, the place has a london theme going, which is interesting ambience wise.
Order - Manchow Soup, Mezze Platter, Chili Garlic Noodles

Drinks - Coke,Bottled Water

Food :The food was terrible. The mezze platter had some salad, hummus and baba ganoush. All of it tasted quite horrible. Nothing seemed authentic, the falafal, the less said the better. The Manchow soup was hot and spicy but not interesting at all. The Chili garlic noodles were a lot of chili, plenty garlic, no taste.

Rating : Food 2/10, Service 4.5/10

Damage : 550($14

Spagetti Kitchen

Rest :Spagetti Kitchen
Meal : Lunch
Date : 31/3/2006
Location :High Street, Phoenix.
Company : Palak, Vishal

Experience - Not very crowded, although it got busy right after we settled in around 1. Unfortunately we got suckered into the ground floor vs our splendid first floor corner table.

Order - Tomato soup with lime and something for palak, mushroom capuccino for me, thin crust margerita with jalapenos and mushroom, Penne Arrabiata, Garlic bread with cheese,

Drinks - Ice tea lemon, ice tea peach.

Food : I thought the mushroom capuccino was great but then i tasted the roast tomato which was DIVINE. Thats what i am getting next time around. I got these two little breadlets with mushrooms which were fantastic. I wonder if they have a whole dish like that. The garlic bread was good, enough garlic and enough cheese, melted in your mouth. The Pizza was good, i wouldnt recommend jalapenos because they are FIERY but it was well made, and crisp. The Penne was good but dissapointing. I dont know what was missing, but there was no bite in the taste. It wasnt bad but it wasnt complementary enough for the rest of the meal. The Ice tea lemon was really good, the peach was too sweet.

Rating : Food 8.9/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 1100($29)

Palms

Rest :Palms
Meal : Mid morning meal
Date : 29/3/2006
Location :The Oberoi
Company : Palak, Vishal

Experience - A favouraite mid morning meal place this. Not very crowded but it did have a few people. Unfortunately our usual table was occupied (Bastards) so we got one next to where the band is. Didnt like it much.

Order - Muligatawny Soup, Tomato Soup, Quesadillas, Spanish Omlette, Garlic Toast

Drinks -Water

Food :Mulligatawny was fantastic as was the garlic toast. The quesadillas were allright, not the greatest of portions but good on taste as usual. DIdnt taste the omlette though.

Rating : Food 9/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 1150($30)

Cafe Basilico

Rest :Cafe Basilico
Meal : Dinner
Date : 23/3/2006
Location :Colaba opp the Gulf Hotel.
Company : Kunal.

Experience - A reasonably crowded time. not too empty not too full. The service was quite prompt. Its an enjoyable place, you feel like you might be in Brooklyn by the looks of it.

Order - After very much deliberation and because my friend Kunal was running late i went for a Mediterranean sandwich, followed by a Pasta

Drinks - Water

Food : The sandwich was interesting. The falafal was kind of hard, the hummus was tasty, the whole package worked well. Unfortunately the size isnt nearly filling. They serve overnbaked potato as a side. However it is not the kind served in steakhouses or Arbys Stateside. It is chopped potato with spices on it. Which was super dissapointing. The pasta was the same as the one i had last time, but i forgot to ask them to hold the olives, which dropped the taste down a few notches. It was still quite tasty but not near as heavenly as last time. The bread on the side continues to be the onion laced focaccia. I would much prefer a bread basket.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 8.5/10

Damage : 800($18)

Bade Miya

Rest :Bade Miya
Meal : Late Dinner
Date : 17/3/2006
Location :Colaba immeditely adjacent to Gordon House and behind the Taj.
Company : Anil, Adil

Experience -Well its been years since i came to Bade Miya for a roll. Three atleast. Mostly get my rolls either at Wraps&Rolls Lower Parel or Ayubs near Asiatic Library. It was reasonably busy.

Order - Since my stomach is on strike and i had an early dinner at work i ventured for the traditional Paneer roll.
Drinks - Sprite

Food : The roll was like i remember it, spicyish with big chunks of paneer and onion. Not bad at all and a lot less spicy and much fatter than the Ayubs roll. I had 2 bites out of Anil's Paneer Masala thing. Wow. it Rocked. with its fluffly roomali rotis it tasted fantastic. Slightly spicy but bursting with taste.

Rating : Food 8.5/10, Service 6/10

Damage : The entire check was about 300 or so (so close to 8o a piece) $7

Not Just Jazz by the Bay

Rest :Not Just Jazz By the Bay
Meal : Lunch
Date : 13/3/2006
Location :Marine Drive
Company : Gautam

Experience -Well its the first time i have left the office for lunch in a long LONG time. Being in the area for related work we were thinking of where to eat. Indian Summer would have been a good choice but the point was to go light. So Jazz it was, the place was ok about 12 people or so there. Although once we sat down another 15-20 did walk in.

Order - A buffet - A light veggie soup, pilaf potato and okra, macaroni salad, cole slaw,paneer and pineapple salad, salad beans, hummus n pita,pasta salad, corn salad, noodle salad, chick pea salad, mushroom salad, they had 1000 Island, Ranch, Blue Cheese, Italian dressing as well. They also do sandwiches and i got the mediterranean which was tomato, hummus, peppers, onions, mayonnaise (eww)

Drinks - Diet Coke, Fresh lime soda

Food : The soup was middling, not bad but nothing to write home about. The salads, were the same as the Sund buffet with some varations. Almost all of them were really high on taste except for the pasta salad which reeked of mayoniase (a crime against humanity, people i implore you lets get rid of these disgusting condiments Mustard the other one) Anyone looking for a good meal with plenty of options and some interesting tastes this is the place to go. surely. The desserts are their weakest point, i didnt even try them but they had some choc cake and strawberry mousse.

Rating : Food 8.8/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 600 ($14)

Subway

Rest :Subway @ High Street, Phoenix
Meal : Lunch
Date : 5/3/2006
Location : Phoenix Mills, Lower Parel
Company : Gautam, Rishab, Aditya

Experience - Eating out just about everdya for the past week and a half i had zero intention of sitting down and ordering at a table. Besides being dressed in Hobo chic didnt make it hard to decide on a quick, hit n go meal. Subway is a place dear to my heart because it provided me with some serious meals throughout college. A perennial favouraite. The place was solidly crowded and we had the seriously idiotic uncle who cut in line ahead of me with his really annoying child who begged for cheese. I wont say anything other than hey, they both have to live with each other.
Order - A Veggie Delite with lettuce, tomato, cheese, lots of pickles, onion, japalenos, green peppers, salt n pepper, oil, vinegar and a smattering of casesar sauce.

Drinks - Peach ice tea

Food :Good, filling. no complaints. i wish they has a bit more choice in terms of bread other than parmesan oregano and wheat bread. Stateside there is like 4 choice usually. It was a good sandwich. However the ice tea just kicked major ass. I dunnow how they made it but it was very good.

Rating : Food 4/10, Service 6/10

Damage : 110 ($2.50)

Five Spice

Rest :Five Spice
Meal : Dinner
Date : 1/3/2006
Location :Opp the Asiatic Library, Colaba
Company : Gautam

Experience -This eatery is always full regardless of the day. A testament to its reasonable prices and very indianised oriental food. The service however is usually always average at best.

Order - Spicy noodle soup, Sweet corn forfor Gautam, Kung pao potato, hakka mushroom

Drinks - Diet Coke, Kingfisher

Food :Massive let down really. the place used to be good fare or atleast consistent. this time it was just blindly spicy and real low on taste. The soup was reasonably ok but the appetizers were really mediocre as was the whole experience. Too loud, crumbling paint, semi retarded wait staff. Another place i am never going back again it seems.

Rating : Food 4/10, Service 6/10

Damage : 600 ($14)

Cafe Basilico Brunch

Rest :Indian Summer
Meal : Sunday Brunch
Date : 12/2/2006
Location :Opp the Gulf Hotel, Colaba
Company : Gautam

Experience -Well, the same as last time, laid back bordering on lazy, although all tables had a reserved tag they were nice enough to seat us. Although they took their own sweet time in taking my buffet plate which was kinda annoying, no one wants a pile of dishes, especially on tables as small as theirs.

Order - Sunday Brunch for me, Soup for Gautam.

Drinks - Diet Pepsi, 7UP

Food : Good. The buffet here costs almost twice that of Jazz by the bay, has half the number of dishes. However the dishes are unique and very interesting. They had pasta salad with sun dried tomato, mediterranean salad, a very unusual japalepno hummus and a sun dried tomato hummus. Each of those items was fantastic, unique in its taste, the dishes at Jazz are great but not singular like these. The main course was Lasagna, which was great, perfect except it fell apart once i put it on the plate. Spagetti in Alfredo with mushrooms, fantastic, again. There was also oddly rice with malaysian curry which while tasteful and superspicy dosent fit with the cuisie but i wont complain. The dessert was black and white mousse cake, im not gonna say anything except when my brother bit into it on our way home his eyes popped out of his head. Fantastic.

Rating : Food 9.2/10, Service 8/10, Dessert 9.2/10

Damage : Bhavesh treated us but i would reckon 700 ($17)

Indian Summer

Rest :Indian Summer
Meal : Dinner
Date : 8/2/2006
Location :Marine Drive/Churchgate
Company : Bhavesh, Sumit

Experience - Not bad, an old city favouraite, havent been there in a long long time. Place was full even though it was a Wed night. Menus were quick, food was resonably quick as well. No problems, no complaints.

Order - Cheese corn balls, Paneer Kadai, Black Dal, Balti Vegetables, Garlic Naan, Tandoori Roti, Steamed Rice

Drinks - Kingfisher, Thums Up

Food : Good consistent food. The paneer was soft and squishy, not too bad and spicy of course. The balti veggies were super spicy veggies though, i wouldnt order this again because the spicyness of it completely overpowered the taste. The Black Dal rocked !!! top notch. The garlic naans were nice and garlicy. The steamed rice well, first time ever having steamed rice with indian food. Dont like it.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 8/10

Damage : Bhavesh treated us but i would reckon 1200 ($30)

Spices

Rest :Spices
Meal : Lunch
Date : 7/2/2006
Location :JW Mariott, Juhu
Company : Won Joon Lee.

Experience - Not too bad. The rudest thing is popping my hood, booth open for inspection. What a bunch of idiots run this place. If i really wanted to smuggle a bomb i could keep it under my seat, why not check there as well? Maybe the Govt of India is providing security. I dont mind popping the hood open, security is security but paying lip service to it is annoying. The wait staff itself is allright, no real complaints on them. Menus were prompt, the food took its time but not late just slightly longish. I dont like the decor of the restaurant much and would rather spend time at the much more lavish and better located Lotus Cafe.

Order - Sweet Corn Asparagus Soup, Miso Soup, Som tam, white rice with green curry, soba noodles and teriyaki sauce.

Drinks - Ice tea, Diet Coke

Food : Not bad at all. The soup was ok, the miso soup i was told wasnt all that. Som tam, nice, you cant go wrong with peanuts as i have said before. The green curry was fantastic, i forgot how superb tasting and yet spicy thai curries can be. Very good, The noodles werent too bad, but compared to the curry they seemed weak. On their own they do hold their own however.A good if not memorable meal.

Rating : Food 8/10, Service 7/10

Damage : 1450 ($40)

Shiv Sagar

Rest :Shiv Sagar
Meal : Snack
Date : 4/2/2006
Location :Kemps Corner
Company : Maxim, Feb.

Experience - Had this urge for a Dosa and since work got over early i decided to come home and then pop by Shiv Sagar for a dosa. Service is always quick here since quick turnaround is what these joints are based on.

Order - Plain Dosa, Onion Uttapam

Drinks - Thums Up (coke pfffttt)

Food : Both the Dosa and the Uttapam were great. The dosa was the right amount of crunchy. Perfect. i wish they had more Sambar though.

Rating : Food 9/10, Service 9/10

Damage : 65 ($1.20)

Starters and More - II

Rest :Starters and More Meal : Dinner Date : 2/3/2006 Location :Near Eros Cinema, Churchgate Company : Vishal Experience - We walked in around 8.30, seated right away. The wait staff made us wait a bit as well as didnt ask us for or serve water. Service was reasonable but nothing to be proud of . Order - French Onion soup, Veg Platter, Jalapeno Poppers with Cheese Drinks - Kingfisher, Ice tea Food : Oh dear, that was a disaster. The platter came with reshmi kabab, fried wantons, mushroom quesadillas, something else completely abomninable and some corn fritter thing. Absolutely disgusting food, i could taste the oil on the wantons, the kebab was dry as sin, the , mushroom quesadillas were respectable, the abomination was just that, the corn fritter was below average as well. Quite disgusting food and we left almost all of it there. Ordered the cheese jalapeno thing to see if they were really that bad. It was just about average, but the thing is you cant really screw up cheese and jalapenos can you. I am sure they tried. The Ice tea was probably the best in the city however. Rating : Soups 9/10, Ice tea 10/10, Food 2/10 Damage : 850 ($18)

International Meals - Recommendations!

From notes and from memory ill list a few places i have enjoyed some great meals.

Apogee
Leicester Square, London
Great mediterranean pastas with good breads, great wine. Must visit especially if the weather outside is non-londonish. Its not very expensive around 12-15 Sterling($18-$20) but a nice place to spend an afternoon with friends.

Monza
Knightsbridge, London
A small restaurant but by no means cramped. Great food, big portions, a bit on the home made side of things in terms of style but delicious. A tad expensive ( about 35 quid or US$60) but worth it. Also if you are lucky to go in around the Grand Prix then you are guranteed to run into someone.

Aladdin
Monroe Ave Rochester, NY & Off Cornell campus Syracuse, NY
An all time fav. Meditarranean mix with both sides east and west. You have hummus, chili, baba ganoush & then pastas with goat cheese, sun dried tomatos that would make your eyes pop out of your head. Price was reasonable too all said and done you could be out of there for $20-$25.

Penang
Prince Street & SOHO New York City
Sushil took me there a few times fantastic malaysian food, spicy, brothy, with the greatest smelling coconut rice in the world. A tiki style place with some super attractrive servers. Go for a Roti Canai, Penang Satay, Clay Plot midori sour at least once. Damage about $35-$50

Texan Embassy
Cockspur St,( i think) Nearest tube is Piccadilly circus
A cantina style mexican place in a great location and a must stop by.Its a large place with two floors, good atmosphere , quite festive, the food itself is quite decent fare depending on who is in the kitchen. Go for Coronas, chile con queso, dinner salad, chips and guacomole, fajitas. Damage about 20quid (30$)

Beverly Hills Cafe
4000, N 46th Avenue, Los Angeles, CA
My cousin took me there after a night of partying. They have a great bunch of things you can choose from, All american fare, eggs, health food, soups. Go for the loaded potato, spicy peanut vinagirette salad. Rocking!!!! Damage - cant recall, cousin always paid.

Gramercy Tavern
East 20th Street, New York
I met a friend for drinks here and we decided to meet again there for dinner the following day. Although a meat eaters realm more than mine it had some interesting fare like the Portobello tart, Tomato basil salad, potato puree and a vegetable sandwich. Its a bit pricey, Damage was around $50 or so with drinks. I have been told its been voted one of the 50 best restaurants in the world in 2005.

Bon Marche
Yonge Street, Toronto Canada & Villa Marie, Montreal, Quebec
This was a real find. Recommended by my friend Nina Von and then i in turn recommended to my friend Sushil on a trip to Montreal. What a great idea, the restaurant gives you a sheet called passport, you go to different cuisine stalls (open market style) and get your dishes, they then stamp your passport and then you pay at the end. There are diff seating styles too, from fine dining, to bistro, to cafe style. Fantastic place, i have been there on every visit to Toronto and Montreal. Best part was i ate to my hearts content and never could crack the $25 barrier. Only problem is you can spend more time getting food and then you do conversing.

Bayleaf
W 56th Street, New York
Went here for my best mates graduation dinner, great indian food. Paneer masala, dal makhani, naans, raita. Oh yeah, this is probably one of the best indian restaurants in the city, i have heard it is inconsistent but it was great the night i was there. The late great John Ritter was holding court the same night as well. Damage i would reckon around $35 a pop.

Amma
East 51st Street, New York
A smallish restaurant serving some great indian food, better than you would get in India. Its decorated in a rural indian motif with yellow walls, the food is super tasty, rich and heavy. The paneer, the naan and boatloads of rice. Damage around $25 without drinks.

Don Pablos
Jeffesron St, Rochester, NY
An old college haunt, had some great fun meals here with mates, they have 3 different salsas, margeritas you wouldnt believe, some good refried beans as well. Was cheap too $15-$20. With copious amounts of Dos Equis or Corona.

Bicce
Borgospresso, Milan, Italy
Wow. Italians know how to enjoy a meal. I spent 2+ hours here just eating by myself. Being a vegetarian they were nice enough to indulge me and make alternatives to the traditional anti pasti meats with cheese and crunchy bread. The food was superlative but it wasnt a meal it was more like an experience. Damage was around $20

Verdi
Mirabello Piazza
Another great meal, luscious pasta, delectable bread, cheese galore and half a bottle of wine. I dont remember anything else except how sinfully good the meal was. The place is a bit on the trendy side but i was there for lunch cost around $18 or so.

Cafe Basilico

Rest :Cafe Basilico
Meal : Lunch
Date : 29/1/2006
Location :high Street Phoenix, Lower Parel
Company : Felix, Genevieve

Experience -Fortunately Felix & Gen were back in town just for the day, it was great to see them, not wanting to do the usual Sunday Brunch (at Not Just Jazz) so we decided a place i hadnt been and that they were familiar with. The service was reasonable, there was no greeter and i had to pick up the menu myself as well as Felix and Gen who picked the silverware themselves. Comepletely unacceptable.

Order - Felix & Gen ordered the Basilico lunch while i went for the potato, garlic soup for the entree i had a baked penne pasta with a red paste of tomato, basil and parmesan. Apple Crumble pie for me and Gen got a mousse cake.

Drinks - Diet Coke for me, Something Mango (Gen of course)

Food : The lunch had a bunch of salads, hummus, baba ganoush, pasta salad, they had entrees as well, spirals in arrabiata, ravioli in white sauce (might have been Alfredo). So it was an appetising spread, they used feta cheese as well, which is the greatest of cheeses. The soup was allright, different, kind of bland, but served hot with a side of onion foccacia bread. Not too bad, but not something i would pick again. The entree was another matter. Fantastic, succulent olive oily taste with the thick spicy paste. very good. recommend it def. The apple pie, was well, i got decieved into buying it because it looked like the heavenly one from Moshe (Moshe Shek is also the ex-partner chef of Basilico) I had a bit of the mousse cake and it wasnt too bad but not great. The side of bread served with the pasta was well, too heavy, id prefer a bread basket where i can choose what i want.
In the end, brilliant in patches, it seems like a place that might have been past its heyday, i hope i am wrong because i will give it another shot soon.

Rating :Food 8/10, Dessert 3/10 Service 6.5/10

Damage : $35(1500)

Spagetti Kitchen

Rest :Spagetti Kitchen
Meal : Dinner
Date : 20/1/2006
Location :high Street Phoenix, Lower Parel
Company : Gautam, Rishab

Experience -It was a spur of the moment decision, we were in the area and left a party early to get some eats and decided that though it was about 10 on Friday night High Street offered the most options for food even if the odd place was full. The service was patchy, they didnt do what was asked, too too long but it was a busy night and they were plenty polite.

Order - Lasagna with mushrooms, cheese, tomato bits, margerita pizza with bits of tomato and parmesan cheese, vodka penne

Drinks - Diet Pepsi, Heineken

Food : impressive. all of it. very good. The lasagna was a strong mushroomy taste, a lot heavier on the palate contrasted with the light, tomato fluffiness of the vodka penne, it melted in your mouth, the sauce seemed kind of bland but it wasnt, it was just so light it took a little effort to enjoy it. The pizza wasnt bad at all, thin crust, with parmesan cheese, excellent taste, parmesan is a great pizza cheese. The bits of tomato added to the bite.

Rating :Food 9/10, Service 6.5/10

Damage : $30(1200)

Hidden Treasures - Buddha Bhelwala at Charni Road

Continuing with Hidden treasures again in south bombay in the charni road area adjacent to the street that leads to Hinduja college is the bhelpuri etc wala who we call Buddha (mainly coz my mother used to call him that)
i havent been by there for a while but when we do go by we make it a point to stop by. Its like a covered shack and is almost always crowded in the evenings.

They have the usual menu Pani Puri, Bhel Puri, Dahi puri, Chaat, Samosas, Tikki, Dahi vada and regular bhel along with kanji vadas (im afraid they arent upto the mark) but the rest of it is just fantastic street fare
The strategy is to go for the pani puri, when your spiced out you get a dahi puri next and then you get a chat or aloo tiki to get the fires burning again. At this point you can back to the dahi puri or go for the bhel. You pretty much cant go wrong with anything as long as you dont get kanji vadas (a dislike maybe coz i have had them only at home) Although its best to plan what you eat so you can get the best of the lot in.

its pretty cheap although a bit more expensive then street fare but the quality and taste you get it is a steal.

each item costs about 12-15 rupees so approx damages usually end up being something like 60 ($1.20)

Hidden Treasures - Phoenix Mills, Lower Parel

For those of you who happen to pass the High Street Phoenix area in Lower Parel there are a bunch of restaurants within the complex- the ones i have been to Noodle Bar, Bombay Blue (not recommended) Sphagetti Kitchen, Monza McDonalds, Subway and Pizza Hut and Barista.

BUT

if you want to eat something with a great taste and instantaneous there is a small roll shack near the main quadrangle (McDonalds side) the shack is located diametrically opposite the Barista. They make a variety of rolls with chicken, veggies, paneer in diff sauces schezuan, satay, peanut with cuisine ranging from Thai, Malaysian, Indian, middle eastern.

The best thing of the lot is the falafal and hummus roll. I was standing near waiting for the car and decided to pick one up and lo & behold what a piece of work. The second best thing i have had off a shack (the best is the lebanese stand outside Brooks Brothers on Madison Ave in NYC for $6.50 you get falafal with hummus, brown rice, hot sauce and a sprite) it tastes almost authentic, ive had diff kinds of humus, this one is traditional and the whole thing just explodes in your mouth with taste. Im thinking of trekking up there for sometime this Sunday and am looking forward to see if it was a fluke.

Drink - Diet Pepsi

Damage - 90($2)

Rating - Thai Roll 6.5/10 Falafal Roll 9/10

Starters and More

Rest :Starters and More
Meal : Dinner
Date : 18/1/2006
Location :Near Eros Cinema, Churchgate
Company : Sumeet, Bhavesh, Hussein, Brijesh

Experience - We walked in around 9ish and were seated right away. Menus were prompt as was the food. They had a live band playing some fabulous music, so the entertainment was great as was the tennis match on the big screen. the service itself was quite schizophrenic, in and out, prompt at times lost at others.A large number of expats seem to frequent the place, good to see a mix.

Order - French Onion soup, carrots in dip.

Drinks - Diet Pepsi

Food : The schezuan, chips n salsa as well as the beer from the night before had finally caught up with me and i wasnt up for any kinda dinner. So i decided to go light with my soup and carrots n dip. it was a preplanned commitment otherwise i would have cancelled alltogether. Having to look at my bastard friends eat the variety of platters that came in was extremely difficult. The dip was good, kind of tartar saucish, with a tomato tang. The carrots werent too bad, the cucumber was sub par. The French onion soup was great but not big enough in quantity. im looking forward to going back sometime soon.

Rating : Soups 9/10

Damage : unknown (left early)

Oriental Blossom

Rest : Oriental Blossom
Meal : Dinner
Date : 17/1/2006
Location :Marine Plaza
Company : Vicky

Experience - We walked in around 9.45 and were seated right away. Menus were prompt as was the food. its a nice, quiet sort of place.

Order - Chicken Spicy Egg soup, Mushroom soup, Crispy bean curd, Crispy schezuan vegetables, three treasure salad.

Drinks - Water

Food : Having just finished a round of multiple beers at Geoffreys downstairs we headed up for food. Not being very hungry we decided to stick to soup and appetizers. My mushroom soup wasnt too bad. I mean they had mushrooms so it cant go wrong. The taste was kind of interesting but i wish it were a bigger bowl, kinda like they have at All Stir Fry. Vicky said his chicken soup was very very good, very different, spicy yet great. The appetizers were allright, the bean curd wasnt too bad but very spicy. The veg schezuan seemed a bit generic, but the three treasure salad was like a two treasure salad. Coz they had some greens in there which werent too attractive.

Rating : Soups 8/10 Food 7/10

Damage : 800 ($16)