Mani's

Rest : Mani's
Meal : Lunch
Loc : Matunga

I love South Indian thali's just love em, unfortunately neither my wife, nor my brother are big fans, which means i dont end up going as often as i'd like. They are both Cafe Madras fans, which means i drop them there and then drive over to Ramanayak's mostly to have my thali by myself and pick them up on the way back.

In any case, i was meeting a my friend Happy for a working lunch of sorts and was quite excited to return there since my epic Onam lunch last september (here) also my first visit to Mani's is here

The full meal, is served on banana leaves and served in a separate room and is all you can eat. 

not a fan of puris and so glad they serve chapatis here, large enveloping chapatis and crunchy, crunchy papads. 

this is the exact same meal i had at Mani's at my first visit i think, the veggie were great, on their own none of them stand out but together they are a pretty harmonious bunch. immensely enjoyable. 

the pickle is pretty awesome too and i a rarely eat pickle away from home. 

There was Rasam, Sambar, Curd & Buttermilk. my complaint continues to be the same, chilled buttermilk would be awesome but other than that, it was a stupendous meal. nothing to complaint about except the waiter thought i was part of his family and insisted i have an extra chapati and extra pickle. He figured my penchant for buttermilk and got me a couple of glasses.

By the end of it all i was extremely stuffed and did not have dinner. All for a 150 bucks. Enough said.

Food : 9/10
Service : 8/10
Damage : 150pp

Malgudi Tiffin

Rest : Malgudi Tiffin
Meal : Dinner
Loc : Bangalore Airport 

Walking to the gate with an hour to kill, i happened to chance upon what i thought was a delightful looking place, Malgudi Tiffin, with a place like that i figured i had to give them a shot. So in we went for a meal.

I started with a dinner thali, while my companions chose a gassi. 

Started off with a spicy rasam, boy was it hot. Tasty stuff. 

The Gassi came in a tiffin which was so cool, loved the way this was done, i know Masala Kraft at the Taj does tiffin's too. That is NOT my Blackberry. 

The thali was a pretty complete affair, the yellow kadi i thought was an odd selection but it was tasty. The avial was excellent and the daal was simply terrific. The tangy dahi, was just like i love. The pyasysam too went quickly. 

In fact, other than the food being a tad hot there was no real issue with the meal. 

The filter  coffee was okay, no great shakes. 

Overall, i thought the food and presentation was top notch and the service team was pretty accommodating and eager to serve. 

All in all a surprisingly good airport restaurant and priced reasonably too. 

Food : 8/10

Service : 8/10

Damage : 750 for 2.

A Tale of Two Onam's - Part 2 - Dakshin Coastal

The very fine folk who run ITC Grand Maratha & Dakshin Coastal have rightly guessed that i have a bit of a South Indian fixation and i was very happy to be invited to partake in the Onam Dinner. Traffic enroute was terrific and i tried to turn back once but it was physically not possible (fortunately) 

Dakshin of course is one of the only five star restaurants serving cuisine from across South India. So its appropriate that they celebrate an important festival like Onam. 

Took all my self control not to gorge on the poppadums. 

the chutneys were great, however the red chutney continues to be terrific 

The rasam was their standard Rasam, terrific as usual. 

The sheer number of dishes was immense, besides the accompaniments. They served red rice, which is traditional, a little odd for Northerners but actually goes well with a lot of the curries, sambhars and rasam. Speaking of sambhar, the traditional Keralite Sambar was possibly the best i have ever had anywhere. Chef Padamja said it was fairly basic home style which she has regularly. Totally stunning, and a sheer pity that its not on the menu and served regularly. 

The pineapple pacchadi stood out, simple, uncomplicated,  but just awesome, especially considering how hot the other dishes can be it was one of the cooling elements. Another stand out was the Thayir which was spiced curd, again brilliant. I am a sucker for curd. 

The Olam was a very flavourful dish as well, it would have gone so well with an Appam, which i could have asked for but that would have been cheating and i resisted the urge. 

The chaas was amazing, slightly fermented just as i like it. 

Didn't enjoy either dessert. 

Overall, the meal was great, it was worth the drive and very glad that i made it. Also of special note is the Onam Sadhya which is more expansive than their regular thali's is actually priced at around 2000 which is almost half the price of their regular thali's. 

While i enjoyed the food, i do hope they can change to the banana leaf for plating or atleast offer it as an option. Eating a Sadhya meal on a thali seems somehow incomplete. It certainly is a little challenging but i am sure they can find a solution, especially as they have been able to communicate joy of dining at Peshwari & even captured the opulence required at Dum Pukth. 

They would also do well to get rid of the entire course system, Rasam coming up in a glass is a tad too western in profile. I think diners are mature enough to handle the traditional way of being served a meal like this. 

And they totally need to have fermented curd and chaas with their regular thalis, not having both the things is a cardinal sin and i have been saying that for years. go for a mallu meal an andhra meal or a tam-bram meal  you will find curd and buttermilk as an integral part of the experience.

I know i am being picky but the food was awesome as was the service so not to gush too much but with just a philosophical tweak the experience would be elevated significantly. Certainly wouldn't hurt to try, atleast for thalis.  

Until next year, i suppose.

A Tale of Two Onam's - Mani's

'It was the best of times and it was the worst of times'

So begins a book with one of the most famous opening lines ever. 

Onam is my fav festival of the year, after Rakhi (only because i get gifts on Rakhi instead of giving em) I look forward to the Sadhya every year. This year I was very excited about Onam and in my enthusiasm and with my talent for making things hard for myself, i decided on doing two full fledged Onam meals on the day.

After what was possibly one of the worst mornings i have had in a long, long time, i headed to Matunga for the first one.

Mani's is an old Mallu institution in the once Southie strong hold of Matunga. The original Mani's outlet shuts down on this day and they take over a large dining hall where tables are laid. Since i was in the area already, i was able to make it in by 11.30 and was one of the first ones in, duly photographed and videotaped while eating.. (i pity whoever has to edit that footage) 

My banana leaf was not quite the right color i thought, the ones on either side of me were the right shade. 

the tamarind chutney and the pickle were a little disappointing. 

now, i dont recall all the dishes that were on play but there was banana chips and a sweet banana 

the red gravy was the best. 

the sambar and white rice was pretty good.

overall, the meal was alright. I was a little disappointed as they were not quite ready for the first few diners. The rasam took a while to come and we got only a spoonful of what was very delicious dahi. There was no chaas on offer either. The pyasam was terrific. 

At 250 bucks, the meal is also a touch expensive, compared to whats served by them regularly at half the cost. (chaas, dahi, sambar, rasam) So although not bad it was disappointing in the way it played out. Previous year i was late, this year i was early, perhaps i must try to make it there by 1 pm next year.

Also, for the first time i didnt go bull in a china shop and overdo the meal keeping in mind that i was to do another one later in the day.

Banana Leaf

Rest : Banana Leaf

Meal : Lunch Dinner
Loc : Somewhere in Versova

The last month has been quite trying on me, having to drive long distances into the suburbs, for work which can be testing and many a time not being able to get decent food, such is the location of the studios where i have ended up working in.

On one such evening, when we had eaten absolutely nothing since breakfast, i happened to call @Anaggh to play Virgil to my Dante and guide me through the infernal maze that is this part of the world can be to the uninitiated. 

A pleasant looking space with indoors and outdoors seating, the weather was okay so we sat outside and since we were starving we gorged on the chutneys which were pretty good.

Mrs J is on a fresh juices kick of late and that is all she drinks, she went for orange which was pleasant but could have done without the added sugar. 

the buter milk was nice, not as tangy or sour as i would expect but still fairly refreshing. 

The Butter Idli looked like anything we have had before, very unlike the flaky, disc shaped cakes one usually gets, these were gentle mounds, flattened and just tasted different and better. super impressed. 

I chose the Thali as i wanted to get a feel for their dishes and the truth is it was pretty good. nothing on there was disappointing however nothing was spectacular either.

Good curd rice, a little chilly and some pickle would go a long way however, chutney isnt the best accompaniment. 

Overall, i liked the food, it has potential, they have quite a few curries and stews that are of interest to me and its a pity i only made it here after my weeks of eating mostly crappy food in the area. Its pretty modestly priced but on the higher side for a South Indian joint.

Food : 8/10
Service : 7/10
Damage: 650

Hotel Delux

Rest : Hotel Deluxe
Meal : Lunch
Loc : Near Citibank, Fort.

I have heard about Hotel Deluxe from a few people on my twitter time line as well as through some of my independent research. As some of you may know i have quite a taste for South Indian thalis and am always in pursuit of more.

Deluxe is located in Fort and can be hard to find. In fact even our GPS got it wrong, (iphone 4s, google maps) the phone was off by about 300 metres.  Anyway Deluxe is an old hat, serving some serious Malyali food for the working folk in and around the very busy Fort area.

the meal started with pickles and chutney. All of it delicious.

Then came the veggies, there was Avial which is a traditional dish and one of the better known ones. There was a pineapple stew which was just fantastic, whoever thought a sweet entree could be this delicious. There was a tomatoish curry which was pretty good too. The last one i did not like so much.

Pictured here is the rasam which was also delicious, loved it. they were quite stingy with it, serving it in little cups which was quite annoying as it was quite good. The other one is the Payasam, which was also pretty freaking delicious.


They did not serve any puris or roti or breads of any kind. You could choose between their red rice (which isn't actually red) or regular white rice which is then served with dollops of Sambar. Boy this was some heady stuff. Must have had two mountains of rice with the sambar and gobbled it down.

I am quite happy to have made it to Deluxe, its closer than heading to Matunga every time i am jonesing for Southie food. Deluxe though is not free from problems. The place is basic, functional, though they do have a limited air conditioned section as well.

The service on a bank holiday was pretty laid back, they took their time getting us started, rasam was brought after repeated reminders. The thali comes with no butter milk or yoghurt, so we ordered separates. They did not have yoghurt but someone went and bought us little cup. The Buttermilk was fantastic nice, tangy taste but not ice to cool it down.

Overall, the food is just brilliant but there are way too many things missing, i would have liked a chapati to start with.

However, all things considered, it was certainly not bad and considering the price, i should just keep my mouth shut.

Food : 8/10
Service : 7/10
Damage for 2 : 240

Dakshin - Disaster

Rest : Dakshin
Meal : Dinner
Loc : ITC Grand Maratha, Near the Airport.

I am a big fan of South Indian food, dine out regularly for thalis at Ramanayak, Mani's amongst others. Am also a fan of the ITC hotel chain because they are unique amongst 5 stars in trying to promote Indian cuisine with their restaurants.

My Venezuelan born, American educated and Germany employed friend Edgard, who is a bit of a world traveller was in town for a day and i thought i would take him for a taste of something he is least likely to get anywhere else outside of India. We settled on Dakshin as North Indian cooking is easier to find compared to South Indian. Unfortunately my experience at ITC though was less than stellar.

Dakshin is one of the big ITC brands with multiple outlets across India. As the name suggests they do a cross section of dishes from across the South, recently they added the Coastal moniker to the brand. My previous visit is here although I have eaten there this was the first time i opted for a Thali.

Things meal began typically with chutneys, the tomato being the best one, the garlic second best, the coconut and green were okay.

The poppadums were nice, the traditional white ones were best, the rest were way too oily.

The Rasam was okay. More like a vegetable soup than a tomato rasam, certainly not in the league of a Ramanayak, Mani or even a Cafe Madras. Disappointing.

they serve molgapoddi, gun powder and other mixtures to which one can add ghee and have it with plain old rice as well as with the other dishes.

There is something they call the Iyer trolley, where they serve mini versions of Uttapams which was okay, one of them was a sweet banana based which i completely avoided.

The two starters were Vadai which were again, fairly basic and dry. The second was a some fried veggies which actually reminded me of something i would get a Chinese joint in a small town.

The other items in the thali were an eggplant curry which i did not like much, roast potatoes which were nice. The appams were okay.

The tomato pappu was a tomato gravy with lentils etc, it was decent, there was the tendli vegetable which i did not enjoy much, the stew was pretty good.

The curd rice was quite a disappointment, they did not have any lemon pickle but the garlic pickle they served sort went with.

The Payasam was actually the better dessert and was liked by all on the table.

Overall, the ambiance of the place is okay, the service is top notch, informed, prompt and eager to serve, although i will dock points for the hard sell on wine.

Now, the food was just average, compared to a Ramanayak or a Mani, the food is not even in the same sport, let alone league. You get a great deal of starters, which is a definite contrast to RN & Mani's. However the starters aren't that great and ruin your appetite for the mains (which in turn are also pretty weak, a total loss-loss)

Of course the setting is opulent and the service completely unhurried but when it comes to the food its just not up to the mark. They even scrimped out on yoghurt and buttermilk, which you would get as standard with any south indian meal. When you consider the price 3000+ taxes on the veg thali and 3500 on the non veg, it was not only downright stingy it was bad form.

Dakshin needs a fundamental re-think of their offering. Get a Ramanayak cook to come in once and show you how its done.

I know we don't go into 5 stars to have cheap meals but even by 5 star standards the ITC pricing is outrageous, Konkan cafe, at the Taj President, serve a Konkani thali which is a ball park offering for Rs.1200.

Now i have no problem paying up, hell i pay the prices at Kebabs n Kurries, provided I get good food. At 3000 + taxes even a good meal wont do, I want a GREAT meal.

Shame on me though, i could have a fantastic thali for 120 bucks, i chose, this. Can't blame anyone else.

Food : 3/10

Service : 8/10

Damage : 9500+ tax for 3 without booze.

PS. There was also an unfortunate incident with a paan, the paan they served was pretty bad, all three of us were in various state of discomfort almost immediately.. Mrs. Jain had a messed up throat and could not taste or eat anything the whole of the next day, besides she also had some ulcers in her mouth. I had some ulceration and couldn't taste a thing pretty much the whole of the next day.

Dakshinayan

Rest : Dakshinayan
Meal : Dinner
Loc : Teenbatti, Walkeshwar

Dakshinayan sits on the insanely busy Teen Batti/Walkeshwar stretch, in fact the restaurant is bang opposite the turn where teen batti meets the road towards Hanging Garden.Beware of rush hour.


Though they have been around for a while, i have always been partial to the Matunga joints for my South Indian fix. So on a complete lark at 9.30 on Sunday night we decided to go check Dakshinayan out (Jjamppong sits about 120 meters away)

We started with the rasam of which there was a bowl full. Good stuff this, immense heat but not too spicy and not very sour either. The only thing annoying was the boat load of pepper that I had to keep spitting out.

The molgapudi idli was pretty good, mrs Jain thought it was the best she had tasted in a long time. While i didnt think it was that great it certainly was not bad. A little ghee or butter would have really made it awesome.

The garlic rava dosa was quite spicy, had opted for the rava and no the mysore to avoid the fiery stuff but it showed up nonetheless. Had to leave half of it.

Their sambar is not bad, mild and not to sweet.

they serve two chutneys and the brown one is a LOT spicier than the red one.

The appam and stew was not bad. The appams could have been better and the stew was very mild and bordering on the sweet.

The curd rice was pretty decent, however add the pickle they serve on the side and it completely changes into all kinds of wonderful! Absolutely brilliant.

Overall Dakshinayan is a decent option to the Matunga belt, especially if you live 10 mins away like us. The food is decent and if they just tweak things a little, it could be stellar. They need to make a little effort and it could really push things up a notch.

For example, the china they serve the food in, is not only chipped but inconvenient to eat from. Rasam can be served in a glass, and without the 100 pieces of pepper. The stew in a soup bowl is very inconvenient.

Also, the idlis we had were definitely not the freshest, the appam was okay, the stew was sweet. Maybe it being Sunday night, they had prepped things for speed.

Service is efficient but not very friendly, the waiters seem to have the aloof South Indian style down pat. They are also a dubious lot, serving bottled water on the table and adding it to the check without asking. When we did point it out, they took it off by scratching it away.

Worth a try if you are in the mood but not willing to go drive to Matunga.

Food : 7/10
Service : 7/10
Damage : 500