Location: Next to Kora Kendra, Borivili West
Overall rating: 2.5/5 stars
Food rating: 2.5/5 stars
Service rating: 2.5/5 stars
Ambience: 2.5/5 stars
Prices: Not expensive. Meal for 2 under Rs.500.
Recommendation: Worth a try. On the healthier side.
Googled to check which restaurant I could go to and found an unheard of one -- Granville Green. It is part of the Hotel Granville. It is a huge open air place with umbrellas (I believe they have an A/C version in the basement). It is not a new place. Seating being 4 cane chairs around a big table. The huge shadi ka fans blowing on you from both sides
I liked the way their Menu has been structured simply. For each cuisine, there are just a few dishes. The cuisines they have are: Indian, Chinese, Mexican, Italian, and Continental. Remember the menu items are not extensive.
We went in for Mexican.
(Good -- is used in this article to refer to food that is above average. Sort of 2.75/5. Not really recommending it, but saying that you will not be disappointed if you try it.)
Cream of Red Bean Soup -- Decent
I love bean soups. This was a fairly decent thickish red bean soup. A few crushed red beans could be found at the bottom.
Mexican Salad -- Good
The quantity was very good for its low price of Rs.75. Red and yellow peppers,lettuce leaves, rajma (red beans), fried taco bits (like fried papad ka chura), with oil and lemon juice dressing. Quite tasty.
Mexican Bhel -- Good (from nutrition point of view, taste was OK)
Red beans, fried taco bits, corn. Absolutely heavy -- so calling it a bhel is rather a misnomer. Price: Rs.105. I think it is a good side dish to fill you up and pretty nutritious.
Tacos -- Good
3 corn(+maida) tacos filled with -- yes, you guessed it, red beans paste -- and finely shredded cheese. Served, interestingly, on a bed of shredded cabbage. Rs.140
Enchiladas -- Good
2 enchiladas with, yes, you guessed it, red beans filling. There was a topping of cheese that had melted and with tomato sauce. Rs.240.
Nutrition notes: Mexican cuisine seems to be a healthy cuisine which is full of tortillas (corn or wheat flour) and rajma and veggies. One must go a little easy on the cheese to make it even healthier. Like any cuisine, this one also has been messed up by the Americans (Tex-Mex) and everything is fried and more cheese is added -- so such dishes need to be avoided.
Overall experience: It was a reasonably good experience for a reasonable price. (Rs.545). Service was OK. What I liked about the meal is that is was on the healthier and nutritious side. Taste-wise it was OK. Not a bad place to have a meal once in a while. There are so many other cuisines and dishes to try. Notable about this place is that we get these, er, exotic dishes at a reasonable price in Borivali!
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Currying favour at 360°, Vikhroli with South Indian FPSM
Fixed price set menu of Rs.99! (Check earlier reviews for details of the location, ambience, details, etc.)
Overall rating: 3/5 stars Good!
Value for money: Rs. 200 for Rs.99!
Nice experience of a south Indian lunch at a very affordable price in a good setting.
Lentil Soup -- Good
This was a very good dal soup. Quite thickish. Made of tuar dal mainly.
Banana Tadka Salad -- Good
This is what I mean by creative. Ever imagine making a salad with ripe bananas? Well, slice the bananas into roundels and pour a tadka over it. You can make the tadka with a bit of oil, thinnish tamrind paste, salt, chat masala and lots of curry leaves. Recipe is my invention. I liked it.
Lemon Rice -- Good
Mostly I have had lemon rice with regular fluffy fat grains of rice and not dainty basamati. The rice was nice and fluffy. Could have done with a bit more lemon and more masala.
Sambhar -- Good
This was a fairly decent sambhar with drumsticks and squash/pumpkin. Sort of felt that it could have done with more tomatoes and more tamrind.
Vegetable Porial -- Excellent
This porial was somewhat like a veg kurma and a veg jalfrezie. It really did not have a very south Indian touch. But it was very tasty with its tang and sweetness. Beans, carrots, and other vegetables but in slivers. Bit oily for my comfort.
Payasam -- Good
This was a rather thinnish payasam with moong (?) dal, milk and sugar.
Overall -- Good
Really nice set meal. For Rs.99, it is a steal.
Overall rating: 3/5 stars Good!
Value for money: Rs. 200 for Rs.99!
Nice experience of a south Indian lunch at a very affordable price in a good setting.
Lentil Soup -- Good
This was a very good dal soup. Quite thickish. Made of tuar dal mainly.
Banana Tadka Salad -- Good
This is what I mean by creative. Ever imagine making a salad with ripe bananas? Well, slice the bananas into roundels and pour a tadka over it. You can make the tadka with a bit of oil, thinnish tamrind paste, salt, chat masala and lots of curry leaves. Recipe is my invention. I liked it.
Lemon Rice -- Good
Mostly I have had lemon rice with regular fluffy fat grains of rice and not dainty basamati. The rice was nice and fluffy. Could have done with a bit more lemon and more masala.
Sambhar -- Good
This was a fairly decent sambhar with drumsticks and squash/pumpkin. Sort of felt that it could have done with more tomatoes and more tamrind.
Vegetable Porial -- Excellent
This porial was somewhat like a veg kurma and a veg jalfrezie. It really did not have a very south Indian touch. But it was very tasty with its tang and sweetness. Beans, carrots, and other vegetables but in slivers. Bit oily for my comfort.
Payasam -- Good
This was a rather thinnish payasam with moong (?) dal, milk and sugar.
Overall -- Good
Really nice set meal. For Rs.99, it is a steal.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Italian FPSM at 360°, Vikhroli
Fixed Price Set Menu at 360° for Rs.99!
(Please read earlier reviews for more details of the place and experience.)
BTW, OK/Average is a rating of 2.5/5.00, which is not a bad achievement.
Minestrone Soup -OK/Average
Surprisingly, it was thin. Minestrone in Italian means big soup! Big soup = thick soup. But here it was water thin! Had some 50 per cent veggies -- that is what I like about the soups here. More of cabbage. Tomato flavoured soup. Had bits of parsley, I thought. Quite a decent soup with a nice tang (specially for the low low price). Strange that they don't serve the soup HOT! It is merely warm and almost ruins the taste of a good soup.
Cucumber and Dill Yoghurt Salad -- OK/Average
Cubes of cucumber in dahi with dill. Surprisingly, I could not taste the dill. Served cold, it was a bit of a nuisance having it with hot fettucine!
Fettucine ala Sorento -- Average/Good
This was an excellent fettucine pasta in pesto sauce. It was actually Good -- but surprisingly, the salt was very uneven. Some portions were salty and some almost devoid of salt. Vegetables were also a bit less and overcooked. Could not really taste the pesto. Served hot. Sorento btw is a very famous Italian area/style of cooking. They also had a Fettucine alla Verdure (Fettucine Pasta with Vegetables) for the non-veg part. Fettucine as you know is the tape pasta.
Fruit Salad with Vanilla icecream -- Good
This time, it was a bit cold. The fruit cubes were of different sizes. 3 Fruits = Melon, Papaya, and Pineapple. I love this fruit salad.
Overall
From my past reviews, you can make out that I am very fond of this place, specially the CHEAP promotional price! Each of the item is worth nearly Rs.99 and yet we get all (including a soft drink!) for just Rs.99! Today, was a very average experience. Is it diminishing marginal utility? The more ladoos we have the last one does not taste as good as the first one?
(Please read earlier reviews for more details of the place and experience.)
BTW, OK/Average is a rating of 2.5/5.00, which is not a bad achievement.
Minestrone Soup -OK/Average
Surprisingly, it was thin. Minestrone in Italian means big soup! Big soup = thick soup. But here it was water thin! Had some 50 per cent veggies -- that is what I like about the soups here. More of cabbage. Tomato flavoured soup. Had bits of parsley, I thought. Quite a decent soup with a nice tang (specially for the low low price). Strange that they don't serve the soup HOT! It is merely warm and almost ruins the taste of a good soup.
Cucumber and Dill Yoghurt Salad -- OK/Average
Cubes of cucumber in dahi with dill. Surprisingly, I could not taste the dill. Served cold, it was a bit of a nuisance having it with hot fettucine!
Fettucine ala Sorento -- Average/Good
This was an excellent fettucine pasta in pesto sauce. It was actually Good -- but surprisingly, the salt was very uneven. Some portions were salty and some almost devoid of salt. Vegetables were also a bit less and overcooked. Could not really taste the pesto. Served hot. Sorento btw is a very famous Italian area/style of cooking. They also had a Fettucine alla Verdure (Fettucine Pasta with Vegetables) for the non-veg part. Fettucine as you know is the tape pasta.
Fruit Salad with Vanilla icecream -- Good
This time, it was a bit cold. The fruit cubes were of different sizes. 3 Fruits = Melon, Papaya, and Pineapple. I love this fruit salad.
Overall
From my past reviews, you can make out that I am very fond of this place, specially the CHEAP promotional price! Each of the item is worth nearly Rs.99 and yet we get all (including a soft drink!) for just Rs.99! Today, was a very average experience. Is it diminishing marginal utility? The more ladoos we have the last one does not taste as good as the first one?
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Mexican FPSM at 360°, HomeTown, Vikhroli
FPSM = Fixed Price Set Meal (Rs88 for Veg, Rs.98 for nonVeg plus taxes) FPSM is my terminology.
Here is the 4 course meal, served as soup, starter-cum-main course-with-accompaniments, fruit salad with icecream. One free soft drink is also offered!
Pepper Pot Soup
One of the finest soups I have had in recent times. Felt like it was a 5-star hotel soup. Pepper was very, very bearable. The consistency was divine -- slightly thinner than a thin coconut milk consistency. It was mainly made up of carrots and tomatoes. Very little tomatoes, I suppose, as the tang was not there. There were plenty of thin granuales of garlic (size of a smallish sugar crystals). If the temperature was 5-10 degrees hotter, it would have been perfect/great/divine! But given the rainy day today, it was OK. Still I would give it 4/5 stars.
1- Bad 2-Poor 2.5-Average 3-Good 4-Perfect 5-Divine
Pineapple Salsa
The chef has a way with food. He really combines the food and tastes and textures so well, that the food really seduce you. I am not sure whether this can be called a salsa. I have heard of only Tomato Salsa. Well, these were very tiny cubes of pineapple (say 1/8th the size of a sugar cube), with even tinier pieces of ginger, garlic, corriander and green chillies (w/o the bite/theekapan). I really enjoyed this one -- though the serving was tiny. Was served in the smallest flat chutney dish. Not complaining, just describing! 4/5 stars
Burrito with tomato salsa and cheese, accompanied with gaucomole, sour cream, with side portions of Mexican rice and refried beans (er, rajma). The burrito had a decent spinach filling and the burrito was topped well with stringy cheese. Apparently, it was splashed with tomato salsa, but I could just see a very thin sauce on the side. The wrap was OK, but a tad undercooked. If I were the chef, I would definitely try to improve the wrap (looked like one of the readymade ones). 2.75/5 stars
Gaucamole was indeed novel -- it was surprisingly thickish and roughish (freshly made and not the smooth, bottled one!) with chunks of, I believe, er, avocado! Loved its nice fresh green colour, with hints of yellow. Taste was different but good. 3/5 stars
Sour cream is an international favourite. I think it is a lip smacking taste. This one was really sour, very much like dahi, but with a cream consistency. 2 tablespoons. Passable. 2.5/5 stars
Mexican rice was nothing but thin long grained rice with brown colour! Disappointing. Cannot believe that such a creative chef could mess up on this one. But, er, take my criticism with a pinch of salt because in reality there may be no such thing as Mexican rice. Any Mexican or someone who has been to Mexico should be able to clarify this one for us. 1.5/5 stars (This rating may be very mean, but do remember that it is very subjective. Also, the problem is with the name/description. If you call it brown (colour) rice -- the rating is 2.5/5 stars!)
Refried beans/rajma A fistful. Just right for me. This was again average. 2.5/5 stars. It was not very flavour-full. Maybe the burrito and the other stuff, which were really good in many ways, overshadowed it.
Plated Serving: All these were served on a single large 10 inch oval plate. So most of the stuff stuck to each other and made it difficult to really, really enjoy the meal. But, I understand, for such a low promotional price and during the rush lunch hour, this is the best that they could do.
Fruit Salad: This is one of the best fruit salads I have had. I skipped the ice cream. There were 3 fruits: Melon, Papaya, Pineapple. Not sure whether there was black grape also. All fruits were cubed perfectly, a little smaller than a sugar cube. Served, perfectly, at room temperature. Each fruit had a distinct taste -- which means they were added in the bowl individually and not kept mixed (which would rub the taste on one another!) The fruits were of the right consistency and taste -- firm and with the right amount of tartness and sweetness. 4/5 stars
I LOVED the Mexican meal. It was just perfect for me in terms of size, taste, and price. But to have a great meal created by a good creative chef is indeed a blessing. To pay just Rs.100 for the entire experience is a double blessing. Each of the courses, themselves are worth Rs.100 each. Rs.399 would actually be a good price to pay for such a meal (portions being adjusted here and there). But thanks to the promotional offer, I had it for just Rs.99 (88 plus taxes)!
Please note: available only for lunch (NOT for dinner). Lunch time could get crowded as today, and service could be a bit tardy.
Here is the 4 course meal, served as soup, starter-cum-main course-with-accompaniments, fruit salad with icecream. One free soft drink is also offered!
Pepper Pot Soup
One of the finest soups I have had in recent times. Felt like it was a 5-star hotel soup. Pepper was very, very bearable. The consistency was divine -- slightly thinner than a thin coconut milk consistency. It was mainly made up of carrots and tomatoes. Very little tomatoes, I suppose, as the tang was not there. There were plenty of thin granuales of garlic (size of a smallish sugar crystals). If the temperature was 5-10 degrees hotter, it would have been perfect/great/divine! But given the rainy day today, it was OK. Still I would give it 4/5 stars.
1- Bad 2-Poor 2.5-Average 3-Good 4-Perfect 5-Divine
Pineapple Salsa
The chef has a way with food. He really combines the food and tastes and textures so well, that the food really seduce you. I am not sure whether this can be called a salsa. I have heard of only Tomato Salsa. Well, these were very tiny cubes of pineapple (say 1/8th the size of a sugar cube), with even tinier pieces of ginger, garlic, corriander and green chillies (w/o the bite/theekapan). I really enjoyed this one -- though the serving was tiny. Was served in the smallest flat chutney dish. Not complaining, just describing! 4/5 stars
Burrito with tomato salsa and cheese, accompanied with gaucomole, sour cream, with side portions of Mexican rice and refried beans (er, rajma). The burrito had a decent spinach filling and the burrito was topped well with stringy cheese. Apparently, it was splashed with tomato salsa, but I could just see a very thin sauce on the side. The wrap was OK, but a tad undercooked. If I were the chef, I would definitely try to improve the wrap (looked like one of the readymade ones). 2.75/5 stars
Gaucamole was indeed novel -- it was surprisingly thickish and roughish (freshly made and not the smooth, bottled one!) with chunks of, I believe, er, avocado! Loved its nice fresh green colour, with hints of yellow. Taste was different but good. 3/5 stars
Sour cream is an international favourite. I think it is a lip smacking taste. This one was really sour, very much like dahi, but with a cream consistency. 2 tablespoons. Passable. 2.5/5 stars
Mexican rice was nothing but thin long grained rice with brown colour! Disappointing. Cannot believe that such a creative chef could mess up on this one. But, er, take my criticism with a pinch of salt because in reality there may be no such thing as Mexican rice. Any Mexican or someone who has been to Mexico should be able to clarify this one for us. 1.5/5 stars (This rating may be very mean, but do remember that it is very subjective. Also, the problem is with the name/description. If you call it brown (colour) rice -- the rating is 2.5/5 stars!)
Refried beans/rajma A fistful. Just right for me. This was again average. 2.5/5 stars. It was not very flavour-full. Maybe the burrito and the other stuff, which were really good in many ways, overshadowed it.
Plated Serving: All these were served on a single large 10 inch oval plate. So most of the stuff stuck to each other and made it difficult to really, really enjoy the meal. But, I understand, for such a low promotional price and during the rush lunch hour, this is the best that they could do.
Fruit Salad: This is one of the best fruit salads I have had. I skipped the ice cream. There were 3 fruits: Melon, Papaya, Pineapple. Not sure whether there was black grape also. All fruits were cubed perfectly, a little smaller than a sugar cube. Served, perfectly, at room temperature. Each fruit had a distinct taste -- which means they were added in the bowl individually and not kept mixed (which would rub the taste on one another!) The fruits were of the right consistency and taste -- firm and with the right amount of tartness and sweetness. 4/5 stars
I LOVED the Mexican meal. It was just perfect for me in terms of size, taste, and price. But to have a great meal created by a good creative chef is indeed a blessing. To pay just Rs.100 for the entire experience is a double blessing. Each of the courses, themselves are worth Rs.100 each. Rs.399 would actually be a good price to pay for such a meal (portions being adjusted here and there). But thanks to the promotional offer, I had it for just Rs.99 (88 plus taxes)!
Please note: available only for lunch (NOT for dinner). Lunch time could get crowded as today, and service could be a bit tardy.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
360° restaurant in Home Town, Vikhroli
Table d'hote Menu at 360° restaurant in Home Town, Vikhroli (LBS Marg, 1 Km from flyover)
Gurudath Baliga, a friend, put a status on Facebook that the soups and pasta at this place was good. Thanks -- Gurudath! So I went and the place had a lot of surprises.
Had 4 course meal in this special set menu for a fixed price. Read to the very end for several surprises.
Soup:Lemon coriander soup
Small serving. Full of finely diced carrots and cabage, full of corrainder leaves, flavoured with lemon -- in a sort of white soup. I liked the soup. 3/5 stars
Salad:Khimchi
I liked the decent serving of khimchi. In addition to the cabbage, they had slices of cuccumber in it. Quite good. 3/5 stars
Vegetable: Vegetable Singapore
A small bowl (200 ml) of this vegetable. This was full of cauliflower, babycorn, red capsicum, etc. Sour and sweet, the taste was really good. The veggies were perfectly crunchy and very well cut. 3.5/5 (I am a little mean here -- should actually give it a 4/5.)
Noodles (or Rice): Hakka noodles
Got a huge mountain of very tasty noodles (say a 500 ml bowl overturned). The noodles were perfectly cooked with tons of spring onion green leaves finely chopped. I loved the caramalized onions in it. I could eat this the whole day. Believe me the onions were cooked to perfection. It had lots of thin slivers of green capsicum too. (Gave in to gluttony today -- and finished the whole bowl as the server was a bit reluctant at first to give me only half!)One of the best hakka noodles I have had in recent times. 3.5/5 (This time I am not mean!)
Dessert/Drink: Icecream/softdrink (I am not sure whether you get both or you choose one. But I did not have either of them.
Ambience: Excellent A grade. Nice decor and comfortable seating. Feel of a posh restaurant
Surprise! Surprise! Surprise!
Guess how much I paid for this royal treat? Rs.499? Rs.399? Rs.299? Rs.199? Rs.99!
You will not believe me! But the price is Rs.88 plus taxes. Which makes it Rs.99! I had one of the most memorable meals of 2010 (No5 I think) for just 100 rupees!
I could not believe it when I began eating and repeatedly asked several waiters about the price. I thought the price is Rs.88 per course -- and it would have still (well, almost) been worth it!
Here come another surprise! Tomorrow, it will be Mexican. Every day the set menu changes.
Third surprise: the same set menu is available for dinner also at the same price!
BTW, this is a full fledged open throughout the day restaurant. As the name suggests it is multi-cuisine and has everything from Indian to Chinese to Pizzas and Pastas and Chats. The rates for all these are quite decent (and not exorbitant) for a class restaurant albeit in an odd location.
Unbelievable, isn't it? Well, this is a promotional offer! So rush before they stop the offer.
Their phone number as in their card: 6177 5253
They are on the First Floor of the Home Town (home decor mall), located in 247 Park.
Gurudath Baliga, a friend, put a status on Facebook that the soups and pasta at this place was good. Thanks -- Gurudath! So I went and the place had a lot of surprises.
Had 4 course meal in this special set menu for a fixed price. Read to the very end for several surprises.
Soup:Lemon coriander soup
Small serving. Full of finely diced carrots and cabage, full of corrainder leaves, flavoured with lemon -- in a sort of white soup. I liked the soup. 3/5 stars
Salad:Khimchi
I liked the decent serving of khimchi. In addition to the cabbage, they had slices of cuccumber in it. Quite good. 3/5 stars
Vegetable: Vegetable Singapore
A small bowl (200 ml) of this vegetable. This was full of cauliflower, babycorn, red capsicum, etc. Sour and sweet, the taste was really good. The veggies were perfectly crunchy and very well cut. 3.5/5 (I am a little mean here -- should actually give it a 4/5.)
Noodles (or Rice): Hakka noodles
Got a huge mountain of very tasty noodles (say a 500 ml bowl overturned). The noodles were perfectly cooked with tons of spring onion green leaves finely chopped. I loved the caramalized onions in it. I could eat this the whole day. Believe me the onions were cooked to perfection. It had lots of thin slivers of green capsicum too. (Gave in to gluttony today -- and finished the whole bowl as the server was a bit reluctant at first to give me only half!)One of the best hakka noodles I have had in recent times. 3.5/5 (This time I am not mean!)
Dessert/Drink: Icecream/softdrink (I am not sure whether you get both or you choose one. But I did not have either of them.
Ambience: Excellent A grade. Nice decor and comfortable seating. Feel of a posh restaurant
Surprise! Surprise! Surprise!
Guess how much I paid for this royal treat? Rs.499? Rs.399? Rs.299? Rs.199? Rs.99!
You will not believe me! But the price is Rs.88 plus taxes. Which makes it Rs.99! I had one of the most memorable meals of 2010 (No5 I think) for just 100 rupees!
I could not believe it when I began eating and repeatedly asked several waiters about the price. I thought the price is Rs.88 per course -- and it would have still (well, almost) been worth it!
Here come another surprise! Tomorrow, it will be Mexican. Every day the set menu changes.
Third surprise: the same set menu is available for dinner also at the same price!
BTW, this is a full fledged open throughout the day restaurant. As the name suggests it is multi-cuisine and has everything from Indian to Chinese to Pizzas and Pastas and Chats. The rates for all these are quite decent (and not exorbitant) for a class restaurant albeit in an odd location.
Unbelievable, isn't it? Well, this is a promotional offer! So rush before they stop the offer.
Their phone number as in their card: 6177 5253
They are on the First Floor of the Home Town (home decor mall), located in 247 Park.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Kandhe Pohe & Dhansak
Thanks to Facebook, one discovers one's true friends. I had not updated my status for 3 days and there was Mohan Sule enquiring why it is all quiet on the gurudutt front.
A phone call to him and I was enquiring what Meenal was cooking these days. So mad about food this year -- in fact, I remember starting a discussion on breakfasts at the local Reliance Super store. I came to know from the 70-year old from Jabalpur (?) that he had Jalebi and yoghurt (dahi) for breakfast. BTW, Pushpesh Pant mentioned this in his last article too!
I had given a surprise visit to Mohan and Meenal on January 26, 2000 (?) The date is easy to remember, but the year! Well, in 1999 Yukta Mookhey won the Miss World, and on Jan 26, 2000 my daughter won the society fancy dress competition posing as Miss World (She wore a similar costume to that worn by Yukta Mookhey.)
But to me what was most memorable that day was the Kande-batata pohe made by Meenal. Nice big poha, perfectly puffed up, nice yellow colour and perfectly warm. I think she had already put the limbu in it too. (Not served separately as I like it nowadays.) Now, you will ask me what is so great about Kandhe pohe (kande means onions and poha is flattened rice)? I have had this so many times, but it was never perfect! Perfection or excellence is what I am talking about. All the ingredients need to be right, perfectly cooked, and served well.
You can have kande pohe in most Maharastrian restaurants. None of them are a match. Of course, the ambience and friends also contributes a little to the experience and rating. Their well kept house with the right amount of artistic touches and their friendship might have added to the experience.
My friendship with Mohan goes a long way back. I remember visiting him, and his mother would always make a perfect cup of tea. I would always look forward to that cup of tea. It is too long back, so I cannot remember the snacks she made for us. I would rate her's as one of the 5 best teas I have ever had in my life.
When Meenal got married to him, I am sure I must have tasted several of her snacks too. But I really enjoyed the Dhansak she made. Those days I was not too much into food and was in fact tasting it for the first time. I really enjoyed the nice, fluffy, long-grained rice. The Dhansak dal was superb with the right consistency and taste. It was very interesting that the pumpkin was totally mixed with the dal. The garnish of fried, brown onions is one of the tastiest garnishes. In fact, I could eat is as a complete meal. These onions added to the taste and overall experience. Above all, I remember, both the dal and the rice were hot and steaming. Mercifully, these were pre-microwave days. Apparently, even then I was interested in cooking as I remember her telling me the secret to the fluffy rice.
Meenal is from Ahmedabad and it would not be wrong to say she is half-gujrati in some ways. Ahmedabad is also a food paradise and if there is one outstanding community known for its love of food it is the Gujaratis. Just at the char rasta opposite Iskon Temple/Food bazar there I had a decent plate of roadside kanda poha (note the change in spelling) for Rs.2 (?) for a katori (plate made out of dry leaves) full. For a road-side vendor to give me such a nice, cheap snack at 9.30 am in the morning was indeed good! It was decent and if I give it say 2.25/5.00, I would give Meenal's a 5/5!
I think the secret ingredient of Mohan's mother, Mohan's children's mother (er, Meenal) and all mothers is simple -- they just add a dash of love and of course their years of expertise. Restaurant foods don't have this ingredient -- so you know why they taste so ordinary.
A phone call to him and I was enquiring what Meenal was cooking these days. So mad about food this year -- in fact, I remember starting a discussion on breakfasts at the local Reliance Super store. I came to know from the 70-year old from Jabalpur (?) that he had Jalebi and yoghurt (dahi) for breakfast. BTW, Pushpesh Pant mentioned this in his last article too!
I had given a surprise visit to Mohan and Meenal on January 26, 2000 (?) The date is easy to remember, but the year! Well, in 1999 Yukta Mookhey won the Miss World, and on Jan 26, 2000 my daughter won the society fancy dress competition posing as Miss World (She wore a similar costume to that worn by Yukta Mookhey.)
But to me what was most memorable that day was the Kande-batata pohe made by Meenal. Nice big poha, perfectly puffed up, nice yellow colour and perfectly warm. I think she had already put the limbu in it too. (Not served separately as I like it nowadays.) Now, you will ask me what is so great about Kandhe pohe (kande means onions and poha is flattened rice)? I have had this so many times, but it was never perfect! Perfection or excellence is what I am talking about. All the ingredients need to be right, perfectly cooked, and served well.
You can have kande pohe in most Maharastrian restaurants. None of them are a match. Of course, the ambience and friends also contributes a little to the experience and rating. Their well kept house with the right amount of artistic touches and their friendship might have added to the experience.
My friendship with Mohan goes a long way back. I remember visiting him, and his mother would always make a perfect cup of tea. I would always look forward to that cup of tea. It is too long back, so I cannot remember the snacks she made for us. I would rate her's as one of the 5 best teas I have ever had in my life.
When Meenal got married to him, I am sure I must have tasted several of her snacks too. But I really enjoyed the Dhansak she made. Those days I was not too much into food and was in fact tasting it for the first time. I really enjoyed the nice, fluffy, long-grained rice. The Dhansak dal was superb with the right consistency and taste. It was very interesting that the pumpkin was totally mixed with the dal. The garnish of fried, brown onions is one of the tastiest garnishes. In fact, I could eat is as a complete meal. These onions added to the taste and overall experience. Above all, I remember, both the dal and the rice were hot and steaming. Mercifully, these were pre-microwave days. Apparently, even then I was interested in cooking as I remember her telling me the secret to the fluffy rice.
Meenal is from Ahmedabad and it would not be wrong to say she is half-gujrati in some ways. Ahmedabad is also a food paradise and if there is one outstanding community known for its love of food it is the Gujaratis. Just at the char rasta opposite Iskon Temple/Food bazar there I had a decent plate of roadside kanda poha (note the change in spelling) for Rs.2 (?) for a katori (plate made out of dry leaves) full. For a road-side vendor to give me such a nice, cheap snack at 9.30 am in the morning was indeed good! It was decent and if I give it say 2.25/5.00, I would give Meenal's a 5/5!
I think the secret ingredient of Mohan's mother, Mohan's children's mother (er, Meenal) and all mothers is simple -- they just add a dash of love and of course their years of expertise. Restaurant foods don't have this ingredient -- so you know why they taste so ordinary.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Konkani Lunch -- 2nd Best Meal of 2010
My first best meal of 2010 was in the first week of January. I had not started the blog, so I did not note it down. So I do not remember the meal entirely, but for the fact that I had the world's best pathrodo (the Konkani version of alu vadi or patra). My sister-in-law Manju, according to me, makes the best pathrodo in the world. It is quite spicy, very surboos (fluffy?), the alu leaves just shine. I have a feeling that tingalavra bendi and rice was also part of this meal. Tingalavra is a white bean, do not remember its English name now.
My second best meal of 2010 I had yesterday. Same venue, same master chef -- my sister-in-law, Manju.
I can never wait for food. I began eating this meal and thought -- hey, I should take a picture. So with my left hand, I took the cell from my right pocket and quickly took this picture. Not a great picture, but you get the idea.
You see the rice and a fantastic tomato dal. I just don't know what is the magic in her fingers but believe me I have never tasted such fantastic dal before. Still trying to figure out what made it so tasty. BTW, what I loved about the dal is that it was watery. Hey, dals should be like this! Not the thick sauce consistency for me. Needless to add, it was not dalitoy (Konkani dal) -- which is regarded as the kuldevata (reigning deity) of the konkanis.
Then, starting from left, in anti-clockwise direction, you can see a small roll of patrodo. This must be the 10th time I was having this dish made by her. It tasted the same. Only thing is this time, I could taste the hing (asfoetida). Today, it was double than the normal size. You feel less guilty! Naturally, I put lots of coconut oil on it.
Next to it is the Batate song (spicy red konkani potato dish). Amazingly spicy and tasty.
Next to it is the harve kela phodi (raw green banan shallow fried with a rava/sooji coating). Absolutely crisp and tasty. Cut in the right size, so cooked uniformly.
Next to it is the tendle bibbe upkari (tondli/gherkins and cashew nut dish). As far as I know, Konkani's are the only one's to have a dish like this. This is a favourite and is served at most amchigele (konkani) marriages. The kajoos were really huge -- almost an inch long sometimes.
What more can a person ask for, when he is served 3 of his favourite dishes in one meal. Well, the picture is there and these words (which are but a poor attempt to explain a divine meal) are there. 2 great meals in 5 months is not a bad life at all. So when I have the next best meal, I can always come back here as a reference point.
Could it have been even more heavenly? Yes, ambe upkari (a konkani dish made with small sweet mangoes, a bit of jaggery, and a rai tadka) is yet another of my all-time favourites.
For more pictures and more information on konkani and amchigele food, join the Konkani Amchi Food group on Facebook.
My second best meal of 2010 I had yesterday. Same venue, same master chef -- my sister-in-law, Manju.
I can never wait for food. I began eating this meal and thought -- hey, I should take a picture. So with my left hand, I took the cell from my right pocket and quickly took this picture. Not a great picture, but you get the idea.
You see the rice and a fantastic tomato dal. I just don't know what is the magic in her fingers but believe me I have never tasted such fantastic dal before. Still trying to figure out what made it so tasty. BTW, what I loved about the dal is that it was watery. Hey, dals should be like this! Not the thick sauce consistency for me. Needless to add, it was not dalitoy (Konkani dal) -- which is regarded as the kuldevata (reigning deity) of the konkanis.
Then, starting from left, in anti-clockwise direction, you can see a small roll of patrodo. This must be the 10th time I was having this dish made by her. It tasted the same. Only thing is this time, I could taste the hing (asfoetida). Today, it was double than the normal size. You feel less guilty! Naturally, I put lots of coconut oil on it.
Next to it is the Batate song (spicy red konkani potato dish). Amazingly spicy and tasty.
Next to it is the harve kela phodi (raw green banan shallow fried with a rava/sooji coating). Absolutely crisp and tasty. Cut in the right size, so cooked uniformly.
Next to it is the tendle bibbe upkari (tondli/gherkins and cashew nut dish). As far as I know, Konkani's are the only one's to have a dish like this. This is a favourite and is served at most amchigele (konkani) marriages. The kajoos were really huge -- almost an inch long sometimes.
What more can a person ask for, when he is served 3 of his favourite dishes in one meal. Well, the picture is there and these words (which are but a poor attempt to explain a divine meal) are there. 2 great meals in 5 months is not a bad life at all. So when I have the next best meal, I can always come back here as a reference point.
Could it have been even more heavenly? Yes, ambe upkari (a konkani dish made with small sweet mangoes, a bit of jaggery, and a rai tadka) is yet another of my all-time favourites.
For more pictures and more information on konkani and amchigele food, join the Konkani Amchi Food group on Facebook.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
