Restaurant Review: Laajawaab, Indira Nagar, Bangalore

Laajawaab
Krishvi Aspire, No 516, 1st Floor, C M H Road, Indiranagar, Opposite To ICICI Bank, Bangalore, 560038
Phone:
+91-80-42173232, +91-80-42183232

We decided to check out  Laajawaab because we were yearning for some good butter chicken and an assortment of indian breads. Burgers, pastas and sandwiches are all well and good but nothing beats a hot roomali roti and chicken cooked in Indian spices and curries. Thanks to Zomato's gift vouchers for the write for a bite contest, we finally got the opportunity to satisfy our need for some good Indian food.

Laajawaab is a fine dining restaurant. You will figure that out pretty much as soon as you step foot inside. I felt a little under-dressed when I entered and noticed the seating and  decor. We went there for a Sunday lunch and the restaurant was bright and full of life with people munching away while conversing and  couple of cute kids running around. The interiors were tastefully furnished with comfortable sofas and glass tables with beautiful curtains adorning the window overlooking the main road. The ambiance is exactly what you expect from a fine dining restaurant, classy with a touch of elegance thrown in.

The design of the menu was more interesting than the food offered at Laajawaab, but that is to be expected. It offers all your typical veg and non-veg main course and curries that a usual restaurant with an Indian cuisine offers. To somewhat deviate from the norm, we started off with the a couple of salads off the menu, spicy murgh chaat and spicy aloo chaat. I don't know if our appetite was affected by the lack of spicy Indian food, but we found both salads to be way too salty and spicy. I guess we should have taken the name quite literally. Unless you are having this with a cold beer off an extensive alcohol menu that Laajawaab offers, I wouldn't recommend either of these dishes. We had to cool down our senses a bit. So we opted for the piña colada from the mocktail menu, which was perfect for our stomachs at that moment. Beautifully put together with the most important fact being that it was cold.

Spicy Aloo Chaat
For the main course, we ordered the Murgh Lababdar along with an order of butter naan and two orders of roomali roti. The butter naan was crisp and buttery while the roomali roti was soft and flakey. One order of butter naan comes with 3 pieces of naan and one order of roomali roti has 2 pieces of roti. The roti was too good for me to just stop with one order, especially with the beautiful and creamy tomato gravy on the side.  So I had to go for seconds. The chicken, as I mentioned, was very good and was a perfect accompaniment to the rotis. For dessert, I really wanted to try the famous paan flavored ice-cream but, unfortunately, they were out of it. So we opted for the typical Indian dessert, the rasamalai. It was a good finisher for our meal, although a bit on the sweeter side.

We didn't find the portions to be less than what we usually get at places like this. The salads and the chicken dish was perfect for two people. In fact we were unable to finish the chicken because it was rich and filling. The price was average and what you can expect at fine dining restaurants like Laajawaab, not too expensive or cheap.

The service was pretty good. Very pleasant wait staff and they recommended a few dishes for us to try as well. The one thing we could do without is the constant serving of the food. I understand that usually happens in restaurants like this but I can move my hand a couple of inches for the second serving of the chicken. At one point, I actually thought they were going to physically feed us. It interrupted the flow of our conversation and was slightly annoying.

Overall, Laajawaab is a solid fine dining establishment. Although nothing really stood out for us and the food was average, it is a decent option if you are entertaining a few guests or for that lazy Sunday afternoon lunch where you just don't feel like cooking at home.

Items ordered -

Salads - Spicy Aloo Chaat and Spicy Murgh Chaat
Mocktail - Piña Colada
Main Course - Murgh Lababdar, 1 order of Butter Naan and 2 orders of Roomali Roti
Dessert - Rasamalai

Total cost - 930

"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy!"

Let's talk about beer, shall we? Why? Because they are so damn good, that's why! Unfortunately, living in India does not give us access to the wide range and varieties of beers available to people living in other parts of the world, such as the US and Europe. But, we have to make do with what we have and we do it quite well. A day will come when regional microbreweries become the norm in India and we will all be quite thankful for that. Let's move on to dissecting this wondrous sweet nectar known as beer.

What is beer and how is it made and how do I get into my tummy?

Whoa! Easy there kiddies. Let's tackle the beer making process first, before anything else. Beer is made of 4 main ingredients, water, hops and malted barley with yeast used for fermentation. That's it, only four. Can you believe it? Only 4! In Germany, the law requires that only these 4 ingredients should be used in the process of making beer. I love Germany. There are substitutes for barley, such as rice or corn that is used in the US, but for the most part barley is the main ingredient. Alright, on to the beer-making process!

The intitial process is called malting. The barley is harvested and converted into malt by steeping the dry grain in cool water for five to nine days. This process tricks the seeds into germinating and produces the sugar-producing enzymes required for the fermentation process. Once the barley is reached the desired sugar levels, it is then dried out. During the malting period, the beer gets it's color, flavor and it's body. Hence, this is an important step in the entire process.

The next step is the "mashing". The ground barley malt is soaked in hot water, which produces a liquid called wort. The hops* are then added to the liquid which provides the bitterness and the aroma from their natural oils to the liquid. This mixture is boiled for 1-2 hours, which allows the hops to flavor the brew. The adding of hops occurs at various intervals. Adding hops early in the boiling process gives the beer it's bitterness, while adding them late gives it the flavor and aroma.

ADD Special: Hops - Cone-shaped female flowers of the vine Humulus lupulus.

Image courtesy of whatnomints.wordpress.com
The fermentation process comes next. This is when the actual alcohol is produced. The cooled down wort is transferred into a fermentation vessel. This vessel is specifically designed to let the air out of the vessel without letting any air inside. Yeast is added to the liquid, which soaks in the sugar and in turn producing alcohol and carbon dioxide. This process can vary depending on which kind of beer you are trying to produce. In the case of ales, it lasts for a few days, whereas in the case of lagers, it takes upto several weeks. The beer is then transferred into storage vats for conditioning, which removes unwanted flavor and develops natural carbonation.

There are various steps along the way that is added or subtracted producing varieties of beer but this is the absolute, basic method for beer-making. As it is beer day here at FWTSC, there will be a second part to this post which will include the classifications of beer and recipes for some awesome dishes which include beer! Stay tuned for that.

Image courtesy of abcnews.com

AtoZ of Cooking: Part 3

Apologies for not posting the third and final part of the series. Long holiday weekend in India and I lost track of time.

Alright, here we go...

Image courtesy of stock.xchng

Unsaturated fats - A categorization of fats which are normally liquid at room temperature. There are two classifications of unsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats is derived from plants and can be found in olives, avocados and cooking oils such as olive oil, peanut oil and canola oil. The other is polyunsaturated fats, which can be found in grains and seeds such as corn, soybeans, safflower and as well as from fish. Unsaturated fats as a whole helps in reducing the levels of LDL cholesterol and maintain HDL cholesterol(the good cholesterol), although too much consumption of polyunsaturated fats may reduce levels of HDL cholesterol.

Viticulture - The art and science of growing grapes used to make wines. Among the factors considered as part of viticulture include soil, topography(sunlight and drainage) and microclimate (temperature and rainfall).

Whetstone - A flat brick of synthetic abrasives that is used to sharpen and hone a dull blade.

X - I don't know many culinary terms which starts with an X. If you do, please let me know!

Yeast - Microscopic fungi whose metabolic process are responsible for fermentation. They are used for leavening bread and in cheese, beer and wine making.

Zest - The colored outer portion of a citrus fruit, the skin, which is usually very lightly grated and used to provide flavor and aroma to dishes.

Image courtesy of stock.xchng

As I mentioned on twitter (@Nasher15), busy day today at FWTSC. I have a post coming up in the afternoon about everyone's favorite beverage, beer! Also a few more things planned, so stay tuned!

AtoZ of Cooking: Part 2

Image coursey of stock.xchng

Here it is! The most anticipated second part of the popular cooking series, AtoZ of Cooking! On second thought, maybe not.

And, by the way, Happy Friday everyone! The best day of the week, by far! It is certainly my most anticipated day of the week.

Alright, without further ado, here is the second part!

Kneading - Kneading is a process of working the dough to mix the ingredients, especially if you are using any sort of a liquid, and to develop the gluten in the flour. It expands the gliadin and glutenin proteins in the flour to form gluten, which gives all baked products it's texture.

Leavener - Leavener is an ingredient or process that produces or incorporates gases in a baked product in order to increase the volume, provide structure and give it texture. There are two types of leaveners, chemical and natural. Chemical leaveners include yeast, baking powder, baking soda and baking ammonia. Natural leaveners are steam and air.

Mirepoix - One of the common used terms by chefs, it is a mixture of chopped onions, carrots and celery to flavor various food items such as stocks, stews and liquid base for a sauce. The general mixture of mirepoix consists of 50% onions, 25% carrots, and 25% celery. It is pronounced meer-pwa.

Nappe - The consistency of a liquid, usually a sauce, that coats the back of the spoon.

Image courtesy of finecooking.com

Oignon piqué - A French term for "pricked onion". A bayleaf and clove punctured into a peeled onion and dropped into a liquid base. It is used to flavor the liquid for sauces and soups.

Parchment paper - It is a heat-resistant paper used throughout the kitchen for tasks such as lining baking pans. It is mainly used as a disposable non-stick surface.

Quality grades - A guide to the eating qualities of meat such as tenderness, juiciness and flavor based on an animal's age and the meat's color and texture.

Reduction - The process of cooking a liquid until the quantity decreases and forms a saucy consistency. Reducing a liquid by one-half means that one-half of the liquid still remains. To reduce by three-fourths means that only one-fourth of the original amount remains. Reducing by au sec means the liquid is cooked until nearly dry.

Sear - Searing is the cooking method to brown food quickly over very high heat. Searing is usually done to caramelize the meat, and to give it a nice brown crust which acts as a great contrast between the exterior and the soft interior of a meat.

Tempering - A process for melting chocolate during which the temperature of the cocoa butter is carefully stabilized. This gives the chocolate a smooth and glossy look.

Image courtesy of rebeccashapiroart.com

There you have it. The second part of the AtoZ of Cooking series. Hopefully you learned some cool terms to help you around the kitchen. The final part of this series will be posted tomorrow. It's Friday! So, go out and have a ball!

Recipe: Simple Chocolate Custard

Credit to kingarthurflour.com

This is a tried and tested recipe for a chocolate custard. I dont have to tell you that it's good. It has chocolate! Enough said.

The stuff:

Milk - 250ml
Bittersweet chocolate - 110 g
Granulated sugar - 100 g
Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp
Coffee liquer - 15ml (can also substitute about 1/2 tsp of instant coffee powder)
Egg yolks - 3

The procedure:

1. Heat the milk to a simmer. Add the chocolate and sugar. Stir constantly until the chocolate melts. Do not let it boil. Remove from heat and add the vanilla extract and liquer (or coffee powder)

2. Whisk the egg yolks together, then slowly whisk them into the chocolate mixture.

3. Pour the custard into ramekins*. Place the ramekins in a pan and add enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

4. Bake at 160C until the custard is almost set in the center, approximately 30 minutes. Remove from the pan and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

5. Garnish it with whipped cream and chocolate shavings and serve.

*Ramekins - Ceramic or glass bowls that can withstand high temperature.

AtoZ of Cooking: Part 1

Credit to instablogsimages.com

My intentions to start writing this blog is to give helpful information to an absolute beginner cook and to help them navigate their way around a kitchen. And for more selfish reasons, I might be able to pick up on a few things as well when I research about the topic I'm posting.

With that said, I'm planning on starting a weekly series that will showcase some commonly used terms by chefs around the kitchen so you can truly understand what they are saying when you are watching a cooking show or reading a recipe. This might be a weekly series depending on the interest level. Why is it called AtoZ of cooking? Well, because I will be posting 26 terms(A to Z, get it?), 10 terms per day over the course of 3 days, in each blog post to assist you with your cooking.

So, without further ado, part 1!

Aromatics - Commonly used ingredients such as onions, garlic, ginger, leeks and other herbs and spices are called aromatics. They help to enhance the natural aromas and intensify the flavors of other food items that you are cooking.

Blanching - Blanching is a combination cooking method where food items are briefly and partially cooked in boiling water and immediately placed under ice water to stop or slow down the cooking process. It helps to loosen peels from vegetables and to preserve the color of the vegetable, which helps during plating and presentation.

Clarification - The process of trapping impurities in a broth and transforming it to a clear liquid for cleaner presentation at the table. This is achieved by introducing a mixture called clearmeat into the broth, which contains egg whites, ground meat, any acidic product and mirepoix.

Deglaze - Introducing a liquid, in most cases stock or wine, in a cooked pan to dissolve the cooked food particles remaining on the bottom of the pan. This mixture usually is the base for a sauce, which accompanies the cooked meat.

Egg wash - A mixture of egg yolks and milk(or water) which is brushed onto the dough of a pastry to give it an extra sheen. This is an important aspect of baking as it gives that vibrant yellow color to the pastry that you are baking.

Fumet - A variation of a stock made from fish bones or shell fish shells and vegetables(mostly onions, carrots, celery) simmered in a liquid with various herbs and spices(cloves, peppercorns, thyme, parsley, bay leaves). This stock is mostly used as the base for seafood-based soups and sauces.

Gelatin - A jelly-like substance which is tasteless and odorless containing a mixture of proteins extracted from boiling bones and other animal parts. It is mainly used as a thickening agent and a stabilizer in various food items such as jam, yoghurt and cream cheese.

Homigenization - The process by which milk fat is prevented from separating out of milk products and forcing the cream to not rise to the top.

Instant-read thermometer - A thermometer used to measure the internal temperature of various food items. This is an extremely handy tool to have for even a basic cook as it prevents from overcooking. Some food items tend to get a rubbery texture if overcooked and having a thermometer is crucial to prevent that from happening.

Julienne - A type of cutting technique that produces stick-shaped pieces approximately 1/8 inch x 1/8 inch x 2 inches. This is a technique that is commonly used to cut vegetable for garnish.

Hope you picked up some cool new terms that you didn't know before which you can throw around your friends and impress them with your cooking expertise! Part 2 is coming up tomorrow morning. So, stay tuned for that!

Scanwiches

Ran out of inspirations for a sandwich? Want to torture yourself with pictures of tasty, sumptuous sandwiches, especially when you are hungry? Scanwiches has you covered!

Scanwiches has a ton of incredible pictures of sandwiches along with the ingredients, which usually inspires me to put together a sandwich. I warn you to not visit this website when you are hungry. You will practically drool at the sight of these sandwiches.

Here is my favorite:

Ingredients: Grilled Ham, Cheddar, Onions, Mixed Greens, Honey Mustard, On a Toasted Roll

Simple and delicious. Healthy too!

Check them out and you can view some glorious looking sandwiches! They might also give you inspiration to put one together for dinner! Enjoy!

Sandwiches galore!

Image courtesy of lifesambrosia.com

Do you know why I love sandwiches? I love them because they are so damn easy to make. You dont have to be five star chef to put together a couple of pieces of bread and fill the insides of it to your heart's content with whatever you desire. It is simple, easy and healthier than many other food options. From simple ingredients like cheese, tomato and lettuce to corned beef and goat cheese, you can design it and layer it with a ton of ingredients, provided the flavors go well together.

Another thing I like about sandwiches is the fact that they are so flexible. You can make a simple grilled cheese with white bread or you can make it with sourdough bread or Italian bread. The variations you can come up with are nearly endless, with each variation providing a completely different flavor, texture and taste.

ADD Special: Earliest recorded reference of a "sandwich"? Sometime between 70 B.C. and 70 A.D. a Jewish teacher called Rabbi Hillel created a Passover custom of eating haroseth(chopped nuts and apples) and mohror (bitter herbs) between two pieces of matzo (unleavened bread). The actual term "sandwich" came about approximately 200 years ago and supposedly invented by Sir John Montague, The Fourth Earl of Sandwich (No, I'm not kidding). He popularized the concept of eating meats and cheeses between slices of bread.

As a person who lived in America for quite some time, I'm obsessed with all types of sandwiches. From subs, heroes, gyros, hoagies to the basic cheeseburger and hot dog, I love 'em all. I dont even have to mention the size of some of these American sandwiches. Mammoth is not big enough of a word to describe these things. Buy a cheese burger and you can keep it for a couple of days. It is that filling. The thing about these sandwiches is that they include rich ingredients. That's the main reason it is so damn filling, not because of the size of it. The ingredients and fillings make or break a sandwich. You can put together a great piece of bread but unless you have fresh and nutritious fillings, it won't do any good.

Let's break down the crazy world of sandwiches, shall we? How do you classify a sandwich? Well, the two common classifications of a sandwich are hot and cold sandwiches. Simple enough? You can clearly get an idea of what constitutes a hot sandwich or a cold sandwich just by looking at them but let's take it a one step further.

Hot Sandwiches

Image courtesy of brooklynpaper.com. 5 guys burger! Yummmm!

1. Closed Sandwiches - These are your default hot sandwiches such as burgers, hot dogs, wraps and burritos. You know, two slices of bread or a tortilla/chappathi filled with hot fillings like beef, chicken, eggs and the like. These sandwiches also include cold fillings like slices of tomatoes and lettuce but the body of a closed hot sandwich primarily includes food items that are fried or grilled.

2. Grilled Sandwiches - These sandwiches are primarily put together by buttering up the bread on the outside with fillings placed inside and browning the bread by placing it on a frying pan or a grill. This is one of my favorite types of sandwich. A simple grilled cheese sandwich dipped in tomato soup or a nice hot panini fresh off the grill, nothing better than that.

3. Deep-fried Sandwiches - The heart attack of the sandwich family. These things are closed sandwiches but they are dipped in egg batter and breadcrumbs and deep fried which gives you that terrific crust formation on top of the bread. The Monte Cristo sandwich is a good example for a deep fried sandwich and I'll be providing a recipe for that down below.

Cold Sandwiches

1. Basic cold sandwiches - These sandwiches are similar to the hot sandwiches but it contains mainly cold fillings. Raw vegetables and pre-cooked meat are usually used as the filling for these types of sandwiches. Tuna salad sandwich is a pretty good example for a closed cold sandwich.

Image courtesy of sunsetbeachclub.com

2. Multidecker sandwiches - The clue is in the name. It's a multi layered sandwich with 3 or more slices of bread and multiple fillings. The club sandwich with layers of turkey, bacon, lettuce and tomato is the perfect example for a multidecker sandwich.

So, those are your categories and sub categories of the sandwich family. It is a very difficult process to categorize sandwiches as they include whatever you can get your hands on. You can pretty much put anything between two slices of bread and call it a sandwich. I've had pizza sandwiches, pasta sandwiches and various other out of this world concotions. As I said, sandwiches are the most flexible dish in the food universe.

And there you have it, some history and categories of sandwiches. As I said, sandwiches are supremely easy to put together. It's healthy, nutritious and filling if you include the right ingredients. Sandwiches are the chameleons of the food universe and you know what they say, a good sandwich is only a couple of minutes away.

On to the recipe! This is a simple sandwich that you can put together in like 20 minutes and I can practically eat it every single day of my life.

Monte Cristo - my variation

The Stuff:

White bread - 2 slices
Softened butter - as needed
Chicken breast - 1
Ham, sliced thin - 2 slices
Swiss cheese or any kind of cheese really - as much as you want
Egg - 1
Milk - 2 tbsp
Ketchup - 1 tbsp
Mayonnaise - 1 tbsp
Jalapeños - couple of pieces for that extra kick or you can even add hot sauce.
Juice of half lemon
Salt
Pepper
Cinnamon - a pinch

The Procedure

1. Season the chicken with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Grill the chicken until it's cooked.
2. Cut the chicken breast into thin strips or shred them.
3. Add ketchup, mayonnaise and jalapeños to the shredded chicken. Mix and set it aside.
4. Spread one side of each slice of bread with butter.
5. Arrange the chicken filling, ham and cheese on top of the butter on one slice of the bread.
6. Place the other slice of bread on top of the cheese, butter side against the cheese.
7. Beat the egg and milk together. Add a pinch of cinnamon to this mixture. Dip the sandwich in the egg batter and allow it to soak for about 1-2 minutes.
8. Shallow fry the sandwich until you get that crispy golden exterior. This is basically similar to a French toast at this point but only with fillings.
9. God! Why do you want more steps! It's done! Hog hog hog! Enjoy!

Sneak peek #2: Sandwiches

Quiznos Chicken Carbonara.

Quiznos, please come to India. I'm missing you terribly!

Sneak peek: Sandwiches

I have a huge post about my favorite comfort food, sandwiches, planned for tomorrow morning. I just wanted to give you a sneak peek by posting my favorite version of a ham and cheese sandwich.

The stuff

Bread - 2 slices
Butter - To spread
Dijon Mustard - To spread
Ham, sliced thin - 2 slices
Swiss cheese - 2 slices
Pineapple, circular shaped slice - 1 slice

The procedure

1. Spread butter on both sides of the bread and slightly toast them in a frying pan.
2. Spread mustard on one side of the toasted bread. Don't overdo it. We just need a slight hint of the mustard.
3. Layer up the cheese, ham and the slice of pineapple, in that order. You don't want the cheese on the pineapple.
4. Place the sandwich on the same frying pan, if it's still hot, to melt the cheese.

That's it. Your ham and cheese sandwich plus pineapple is ready! I know it's a bit out there to add pineapples to this concotion, but trust me, it's good. I've made this a million times and get rave reviews each time.

Happy hogging!

Zomato's Write for a Bite Contest

I've apparently won this week's contest for my review of Purple Haze in Koramangala, which you can find in it's entirety down below.

Zomato is an awesome restaurant discovery service based in India. The greatest thing about Zomato, for me, is the fact that they have menus of a ton of restaurants located in the metros. It is really helpful if you are looking for the price or the type of cuisine a restaurant offers. They also have an iPhone app(Blackberry and Android as well) which has come in handy numerous times for me when I'm figuring out what kind of a cuisine I'm in the mood for and looking for restaurants around my neighborhood. They are also on twitter @Zomato.

Obviously they also have reviews from users like myself and they have this contest every week in which they select the best reviews of the previous week and award them with gift vouchers to various restaurants.

Check them out and write reviews of restaurants you've visited. Maybe you'll even win a gift voucher like I did. Free food never hurts!

TOTD: Starch Retrogradation

Terminology Of The Day

August 9, 2011

Starch Retrogradation: When the starch molecules in a mixed batter or dough loses it's moisture content after the baking process, it's referred to as starch retrogradation. As a result, baked goods become dry or stale. That doesn't do anyone any good.

Now you know...

Brought to you by, uh, no one actually. Sponsor me!!

Biscuits or cookies or whatever you want to call it!

I love me some baking, whether it be a simple loaf of bread or absolutely delicious pastries like blueberry muffins, banana nut bread or the Masterchef Australia's elimination challenge special, SCONES! I think baking is the single most hardest thing you can master in the kitchen. Every single aspect of the process needs to be precise and accurate for it to be considered any type of a success. The risk is great but, ultimately, the reward is that much more greater. There is no better feeling than biting into a fresh off the oven muffins or the soft doughy biscuits.

ADD special: Did you know how the term "biscuit" came about originally? It is a french word and was coined to describe twice baked cakes. "Bis" = twice and "cuit" = cooked. It literally means twice cooked. Originally, biscuits were first baked and then returned to the oven for further baking.

Let's talk further about biscuits. Biscuits are referred to two completely different things. To the British and for most other parts of the world, they are referred to what Americans call cookies. They are small, hardened and flat pastries which can be had as a snack. If you ask for biscuits in India, we will guide you towards an aisle that sells sunfeast and bourbon biscuits. Ahhhh Bourbon! Not the whiskey, the biscuit! Although Bourbon whiskey is so damn good that it is referred to as God's nectar, but I digress.

In America, biscuits are usually referred to soft cake-like thingys. They are a staple of a typical thanksgiving day feast and are usually served with gravy along with, of course, the gigantic bird of epic proportions, the Turkey! The American biscuits are the cousins of what is called scones in Britain and most other parts of the world, although there is a major difference between the two. Scones contain eggs and butter which makes it a richer man's version of American biscuits.

One theory proposed by Elizabeth Alston in her book "Biscuits and Scones" is that early British colonists came to America with the recipe for scones only to find out that they couldn't find or afford the necessary ingredients to make them, mainly fresh butter and eggs. They decided to include lard instead of butter and completely eliminated eggs, which gave them something that was similar to scones, American biscuits. By the way, if you like to try your hand on baking these awesome creatures, give that book by Elizabeth Alston a try. Some amazing recipes for scones in that one and a used version of that book costs a penny on Amazon! Difficult to find a much better deal than that.

Is this all too confusing? Its picture time!

Biscuits in Britain and all other parts of the world!
Cookies in America!

Biscuits in America!
Scones' cousin in other parts of the world!

Scones, uh, everywhere?

And there you have it! Some history of biscuits and scones. Damn, now my mouth is watering for some freshly baked biscuits. :(

I don't have an oven right now to make them but you can! Here is a simple, absolute basic recipe for some good ol' fashioned country biscuits!

Country Biscuits(American)

Note: This will give you about 15-18 biscuits.

The stuff

All-purpose flour - 600 g
Salt - 12 g
Granulated Sugar - 30 g
Baking Powder - 30 g
Unsalted Butter - 210 g
Milk - 720 ml

The procedure

1. Sift the dry ingredients together, making sure they are blended thoroughly.
2. Cut in the butter. The mixture should look mealy; do not overmix.
3. Add the milk and stir, combining only until the mixture holds together.
4. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured working surface; knead until it forms one mass. Channel your inner chappathi maker. We are looking for that kind of a texture.
5. Roll out the dough to a thickness of about 1/2 inch. It should be thick. Do not roll it out too thin, like the aforementioned chappathis. Cut into circular shapes with a floured cutter.
6. Bake at 220C until the tops are light brown and the interiors still moist, approximately 10-12 minutes.
7. Remove the biscuits to a wire rack and cool.
8. Uh, there are no more steps. Hog those things! Om nom nom nom!

Review: Purple Haze, Koramangala, Bangalore

Purple Haze
No.65, Jyothi Nivas College Rd, 5th Blk, Koramangala , Bangalore
Landmark: Opposite Udupi Krishna Bhavan
Phone: 41104747

How do you celebrate international beer day? By getting sloshed on beer at purple haze, of course. We decided to celebrate this wonderful occasion by checking out a place we've heard a lot about. We had an unusually difficult time locating this place and were driving around for a good 15 minutes while circling the same roads twice. Patience is definitely not our virtue, especially when it comes to beer. Beer, NOW! We finally located purple haze in what looked liked a narrow alleyway and once that was done, good times were had by all. 

I wouldn't recommend driving to this place in a car because there is no possible way of parking in a narrow street. We had a difficult time parking our bike as it is. From the outside, purple haze looked like a trendier version of your local watering hole with it's lighting and the host standing outside welcoming people. It had a much better opening act than my other favorite pub, Jimi's. Once you enter inside, the trendiness kicks it up a notch. We entered the non smoking section on the ground floor accidentally and sat there for about 5 minutes before we realized that the smoking section is on the first floor of the pub. The signs clearly state that on the outside but as I said, no patience until we get that first pint of beer. 

The smoking section was humongous, compared to the smoking section of Jimis but be forewarned, the place fills up quickly. We went there around 7 and only couple of tables were taken but within half hour, the place was full capacity. So if you are planning to come here after 7, be prepared to wait it out. The seating was quite intimate, to say the least. If you turn the wrong way, you'll probably hit someone in the face and that's not a good thing when dealing with drunks. The seats were kinda hard and after an hour or so, it can get quite uncomfortable. I recommend moving to a table for 4 where you can enjoy comfy couches instead of the wooden chairs. 

The ambiance was terrific. This is a hard rock/heavy metal pub at it's core and the decor further proves it with posters of Hendrix, Nirvana, Floyd and Morrison adorning the place. The music progressively got louder through out the night with Lamb of God playing at full volume at it's peak. You think you know loud music but you actually don't until you hear Lamb of God and SOAD at full volume with people head banging away and creating a ruckus. It was an amazing experience punctuated by the entire bar singing Metallica's enter sandman in its entirety. I'm usually pretty  laid back and chilled out but even I had to join in during chorus. You'll definitely enjoy the people and the ambiance of this place if you enjoy hard rock and metal. 

The food. You don't come here for food, period, at least not for the main coursey type. You have a variety of starters from chicken tikka to hariyali kebabs and chilli fish along with sandwiches and burgers. We opted for those three starters along with peanut masala as our starters. The food was unusually good. I was expecting typical pub food but it felt like we were having food from a good restaurant. The quantity was decent, one starter can be shared by two, but the price was a tad on the expensive side. The quantity and quality was top notch so you can look past the cost of it all. 

Purple haze also has a vast alcohol selection. Whatever you want, it's here, from Jack Daniels to an assortment of wine. They have a pretty good selection of beer as well; your usuals Kingfisher, Fosters to Heineken and Corona. That was a major positive for me. When I saw Heineken, I practically shrieked like a little girl. Major kudos on the selection of alcohol. Happy hours are on Monday through Thursday from 12:30 to 7:30. You get 25% off on all alcoholic drinks. Unfortunately we came here on a Friday which put a damper on things. 

The service was amazing. A very pleasant, courteous and quick staff. Even with drunks like us hooting and hollering away, they were patient while taking orders and made sure to check up on us at frequent intervals. One quick note on service. It was pouring outside, a torrential downpour and we were pretty drenched before we entered the bar. Once we started hitting the beers, we didn't notice a small pool of water surrounding our table. The staff noticed it, even with the dimly lit room and cleaned it up immediately. Little things like this matter and that's why they get high marks in this category. 

Purple haze is a safe haven for alcoholics. From great ambiance, awesome staff, amazing starters and a ridiculously vast alcohol selection. I don't usually give out 5 stars to any place unless it impresses our socks off and purple haze deserves that more than any other place we've visited. I think purple haze has become our new favorite watering hole. 

Items ordered : 

Alcohol - 2 pitchers of beer and 3 large shots of royal stag whiskey with sprite

Starters - Chicken Tikka, Chilli Fish and Peanut Masala 

Total cost - 2150

Review: Jimi's Beer Cafe, Koramangala, Bangalore

Jimi's Beer Cafe
Qwiky's Coffee Building, #467, 80ft road, 6th block, Koramangala , Bangalore
Landmark: Near BMTC Bus Depot
Phone: 41217849


Where is the bloody entrance? Why can't I enjoy what looks like a great place to just chill out to some rock music with a pitcher of beer? Don't worry kiddies. You just have to enter this local watering hole through a coffee shop. They share the same entrance. Once you figure that out, you are in for a good time.

Jimis is one of the places I wanted to check out when I first came to Bangalore. It had several things going on. It is a stones throw away from where I live and the place is named after my favorite guitarist of all time, Jimi Hendrix. And did I mention it's a BEER cafe? Sign me up!

The term beer cafe is slightly misleading. When you mention those words, I'm expecting a place where you can get beer from across the world, especially my favorite, the Guinness extra stout. I haven't had Guinness since I came to India and I'm missing it quite terribly. But at Jimis, they only serve Fosters or Kingfisher aka piss water, which was quite disappointing when we first looked at the menu.

The ambiance. Jimis is basically a glorified version of a local watering hole. It has a smoking and a non smoking section. The smoking section is much smaller and can get quite stuffy but once the beer starts going down by the pitcher, it doesn't really matter. The seating in the smoking section is designed for midgets. We were barely able to squeeze into a table for two. So we switched to the couch that's seats 4 and is infinitely more comfortable. The song selection is decent. I was expecting, you know, Jimi Hendrix but I heard only a couple of songs of his both times we went there. There was some Metallica, Floyd, Aerosmith, Nirvana; basically a lot of classics. The selection was quite good overall.

The food selection. We opted for the vegetarian items during our first visit. We ordered the pasta, which was above average and a veggie sub, which can be described as mammoth. It was just something to munch on while we washed it down with some beer. For our second visit, we decided to try the non vegetarian items on the menu. We ordered the chilli pork, which was fantastic albeit a little cold. We ordered a chicken burger to go along with it. The only problem with the burger was that the bun was too hard. When I order a burger, I'm expecting a soft exterior to enhance the crispiness of the chicken, but that was not the case here. Overall the food was pretty good for a pub.

There are various options when it comes to the serving size of the beer. You can get the pint, pitcher or the alcoholic's dream, the fountain. The prices are pretty cheap. We ordered a pitcher during the first visit and got Fosters, which was great. The second visit, we ordered the pitcher again and we got the glorified piss water, I mean Kingfisher. That completely ruined our experience. I don't know if we have to request for Fosters specifically when ordering a pitcher. Next time, we are definitely doing that.

Overall, Jimis is pretty solid to get an after work beer or a before work beer if you want to live dangerously. Cheap beer and something to munch on during the inhalation of the said beer are the major plus points here. The ambiance is quite good and the service is slightly slower than your average pub but the chill factor overrides that.

This has been our default place to get beer and to relax after a stressful week of work and it gets the job done quite well. I'm quite happy to call Jimis my local watering hole and it'll remain the same until I leave Bangalore.

Items ordered -

First visit:

Death wish beer cocktail and a pitcher of beer
Club sandwich
Pasta

Total cost: 800

Second visit:

Pitcher of beer
Chilli pork
Chicken burger

Total cost - 880

Review: Mocha, Koramangala

Mocha
577, Kalyana Mantapa Road, 80ft Road, 8th Block, Opposite to Bethany High School, Koramangla Main Road, Koramangala , Bangalore
Landmark: Near Koramangla Police Station
Phone: 30224711


I'm not sure why we chose Mocha to satisfy our sheesha needs, but we did. I don't want to call my Mocha experience a complete disappointment because I was really digging the decor of it all but nothing really stood out for me. I guess it's the "chain" hookah place of India because I noticed that Chennai has a couple of branches as well. And it really did have the "chain" feeling to it. It's like having a burger at McDonalds. It's good but it's not personalized and doesn't have that extra touch.

From the outside, Mocha looked like the typical cafe/hookah joint. There are two floors, and the smoking section was on the top floor. The staircase to the smoking section is on the right when you first enter Mocha. The pathway to get to the staircase was interesting to say the least. We had to cross a small bridge like structure and fight off plants and I was afraid I was going to have to wrestle with some snakes to get there. I love me some hookah but I'm not that desperate guys. It was nicely done, actually and that deserves some major kudos.

I guess the decor and the ambiance is the only reason to visit Mocha. The seating arrangement was interesting. We went there on a Saturday evening and the place was quite crowded. We were directed towards a couple of swingsets but we decided to switch because it was rather uncomfortable. Uncomfortable is definitely not what you want when you are relaxing with some good hookah. The decor was excellent and it had a real Mediterranean feel to it from the couches and the sofas to the general vibe.

We obviously started off with some hookah. We ordered the Maarakesh flavor. It was a milk based rose flavor and I felt like I was drinking a glass of ice cold rose milk that mom used to make. It was definitely a interesting choice but not something we would choose again. The service was very good as we had to keep bugging the waiting staff to refill our coal and they did it without rolling their eyes at us at any point. The hookah experience was decent and it was further improved by the always beautiful rainy Bangalore weather.

The food. We started off with a black forest shake and a coffee float of some kind. It was basically a scoop of vanilla ice-cream in a cup of coffee. The cup they served it in was more interesting than the drink. The black forest shake was pretty good and the serving size is huge as you can imagine. It came with a layer of whip cream and I felt like I had to drop down and do some pushups just to get rid of the guilt factor. It was insanely huge.

We didn't order much off the actual food menu since we went there basically for the hookah. We ordered the chilli bean nachos as the starter and the cream cheese panini. I liked the former but could do without the latter. The panini was quite soggy and it was almost falling apart. I was expecting a lightly toasted and firm sandwich but got a mushy mess. The taste was good but it didn't really improve the dish.

The service was average. The refilling of the coal was a plus but the service was quite slow. I guess the crowd could be used as a reason for that but I really didn't want to wait half hour to get my panini. The waiting staff were friendly and courteous and that was a huge plus for me.

It was an average experience, overall. If you want pretty good ambiance and a place to just lounge about with some good hookah, Mocha is a decent enough option. But don't expect anything out of the ordinary.

Items ordered:

Hookah - Marrakesh
Drinks - Black forest shake and coffee float
Starters - Chilli Bean Nachos and Cream Cheese Panini

Total cost - 900

Review: 898 Steaks & Grill, Koramangala, Bangalore

898 Steaks & Grill
898/3, 80 Feet Road, 6th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore
Landmark: Opposite IBP Petrol Bunk
Phone: 41435973


If you are looking for a rooftop restaurant with a great view, decent food and quick service, 898 is the place for you. It is located on 80ft road, third floor on top of the 13 spices restaurant. It's kinda snuck away in a corner and is difficult to notice when you are coming from Sony World Circle, but that is one of the reasons the ambiance of this place is difficult to compete with. We went there on a Sunday afternoon, mainly looking for some decent steak options and we found plenty.

First, the ambiance. It is a rooftop restaurant and is almost covered by greenery on all sides. It feels like you are sitting in a garden somewhere and enjoying a nice steak fresh off the grill. That is difficult to construct for a rooftop restaurant and 898 pulls it off quite well. The seating is almost too cozy. There are various options, from regular seating to swingsets and beanbags. I'm not sure whether it's the timing or something else but we were the only ones there. So we had the entire restaurant to ourselves, which could make me slightly biased. Nonetheless the ambiance was excellent.

This a steak joint. Period. If you are looking to bite into a juicy steak, 898 will satisfy your needs quite well.

We started off with a mocktail called Capiroska. It was a weird concotion of Kiwi, strawberries and lime. It was not what we expected and texture of it was quite off. We were put off by the taste of it as well. It's not something we would order again.

For starters we ordered the honey chilli potatoes. It was a typical potato starter that didn't really stand out from other offerings. It was a default dish that could be made at home but the flavor was decent.

For the main course we ordered the 898 marinated steak. This is where 898 really stood out in our opinion. We ordered the sizzler platter and the presentation was very creatively done. It came with the usual sides, mashed potatoes, veggies(carrots and beans), and garlic bread. The steak was quite big and could be shared by two people. I requested it to be medium rare, which is usually the way I want my steaks cooked, and it was done to perfection. The pepper sauce was slightly overwhelming but it was a terrific combination for the juicy steak. Perfect steak and perfect serving size. Can't really complain about that.

We underestimated the size of the steak and ordered the grilled chicken sandwich. The sandwich size was above average but the honey mustard sauce put it over the top. It was a perfect combination of mildly spicy chicken and the sweetness of the sauce. The steak was quite heavy and we had to pack half of the sandwich but it was quite good.

The service was excellent. The waiters were friendly and courteous and checked on us frequently. That may have something to do with the fact that we were the only ones there but the overall the service was very good. I can't stress enough how fast the service was. We received the mocktails and the starters within minutes of ordering. That is something anyone could appreciate.

Overall, 898 is a pretty good restaurant with great ambiance, enjoyable food and absolutely lightning quick service. The price is a little bit on the expensive side but it can be overlooked because of the overall package. It's definitely a multiple visit restaurant or a once in couple of months type restaurant. If you are looking for a decent steak joint, this is a place that could interest you.

Items ordered:

Mocktail - Capiroska
Starter - Honey Chilli Potatoes
Main Course - 898 marinated steaks and grilled chicken sandwich

Total cost - 800

Review: Mr. Beans, Koramangala, Bangalore

Mr. Beans
100 Feet Road, Near Koramangala Water Tank, Next to Karnataka Bank, Koramangala, Bangalore
Landmark: Near BDA complex,
Phone: 41115717

A perfect place to hangout and watch the world go by. We decided to check out Mr. Beans on a Sunday afternoon as we were in the mood for something hot (drink) and light (food). It was amazingly cozy and the cafe is designed in a way (divided into sections) that you get privacy without feeling left out. It is very difficult to pull that off and Mr. Beans scored high marks in that category. The ambiance was terrific and it is definitely a place to laze around and enjoy the beautiful Bangalore weather.

The food was quite good. There is a variety of things you can choose from, from pastas, burgers, subs and sandwiches. We started off with a chicken hot dog and honey cappachino. The hot dog was HUGE and a perfect starter for two people. I didn't expect it to be that big. It was basically a small loaf of bread with veggie fillings and a chicken sausage on top. It was even pretty to look at. The cappachino was perfect for the cloudy weather. We then ordered a chicken club sandwich, which was also quite big compared to typical sandwiches you get anywhere else. It was slightly cold and my preference is usually a warm sandwich but it was not unedible. The sauce was extremely good as it had a smoky flavor to it.

For dessert, we ordered a slice of black forest cake as we were already quite full. It was not a typical black forest cake in that it felt more like regular chocolate cake but it was a good finisher.

Mr. Beans also offers hookah, which was slightly more expensive compared to places like Mocha. We didn't try it out as we decided to keep it for another time.

Mr. Beans is a place where you can just chill out while getting the privacy that other "lounges" don't usually offer. We found that as the biggest plus. The portions of the food is quite large compared to the price and it is a great bargain. They also accept sudoxo coupons, which we used.

We thoroughly enjoyed spending time here and we intend to make this place our regular hangout.

Items ordered:

Chicken hot dog
Honey cappachino
Chicken club sandwich
Black forest cake

Takeaway:

Chicken Mushroom Roll
Chicken Burger

Total cost: 560

Review: Banana Beach Bar, Koramangala, Bangalore

Banana Beach Bar
54, Canara Bank Road, 6th Block, Koramangala , Bangalore
Landmark: Near Vijaya Bank
Phone: 41303452, 9900088511


We decided to check out Banana Beach Bar for my birthday this past weekend since it looked interesting from the outside when we frequently walk past it. You can get a general idea of the decor and the vibe of this bar without even visiting the place since its quite clearly specified in the name itself, Banana BEACH Bar. The place has an interesting look what with it's beach chairs, cabanas and boat-like structures. It has a pretty chilled out atmosphere provided you come in and leave before 8, which we did. It gets quite crowded after 8 and there were droves of people coming in when we were leaving. Another perk of visiting this bar before 7 is the happy hour. 1+1 on beers and I would imagine other drinks as well since we only opted for beers during our visit.

The alcohol selection is quite large. They even had a pretty snazzy looking mocktail menu. We decided to order a couple of mocktails along with the beer just because of the interesting names. The toffee based mocktail was a pretty big hit on our table. It had an unusual taste of coconut and toffee with other exotic flavors that we couldn't really figure out. It was interesting and highly recommended.

We didn't order much food as we opted for the starters alone to go with the beers and mocktails. We ordered dim sum, which I'm having for the first time in India and a variation of cheese balls. Both were solid starters but the quantity compared to the price was pretty low. You get six pieces of each and they were rather small. You have to order at least a couple more starters if you intend to stay for more than an hour. The starters just vanished within seconds. There are also combination platters which you can order as the main course; Indian, Chinese and both come with vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. We opted for the Chinese vegetarian platter which came with noodles(also have an option for rice), chilli paneer gravy, and fried crackers. It was your typical Chinese main course and it was pretty filling for two people.

The service was excellent. We were constantly checked on and the person serving us was very pleasant and helped us with our ordering. It was also very quick and the presentation of the dishes was excellent as well. High marks for the service category.

We went to BBB mainly for the decor and ambiance and it scored highly in that category. It is definitely on the expensive side but you can look past it based on the awesome experience you'll have at BBB. Overall, it's a very good place to chill out and relax while getting the feeling that you are hanging out at a beach somewhere.

Items ordered:

Beer - 2 pints + 1 free
Mocktails - Toffee something and something with fairy in its name - Forget the names
Starters - Dimsum and cheese balls
Main course - Chinese vegetarian platter

Total cost - 1500

Hello world!

Eeeeek! Sorry about that. That's the programmer in me trying to break free but worry not, I'll keep him busy in the future.

Welcome to the world of me trying to be an expert in all things food! As you read on, you'll come to the understanding that I'm not nearly the expert I make myself out to be. Nonetheless hope you enjoy your stay and learn a thing or two or teach me some cool things about food too! As you know by looking at the caption up top, I'm an amateur foodie, the keyword being amateur!

A little background on myself. I'll use bullet points to explain the things I've done so far because if I start writing about it, I'll be here until the world ends in 2012! Just a joke. Ok, stop, I don't believe in that. I was just kidding, don't go!

That little episode up there will tell you a lot about me, a severe case of bad jokesitis and an even worse case of ADD or what I like to call the devil's prune juice. Why? Absolutely no idea.

Anyway, what was I saying...Oh yeah, my life in bullet points. Here we gooo

- Name - Avinash
- Age - 25
- Born in India
- Moved to New York when I was 6
- Struggled mightily trying to pursue a career in CS including working shitty jobs sitting in front of a computer for 24 hours a day
- Decided to follow my passion, which is killi, er, cooking for people
- Came back to India at 22 and enrolled in a college for culinary.
- Will graduate and hopefully continue to further my passion in all things food

So there you have it. An interesting and eventful life. Oh, who am I kidding?

Just to give you a quick summary of what you will find in this blog. My awesome and spectacular restaurant reviews(ugh), some cooking tips that I find interesting(barf), some recipes that I've made(keep it to yourself!) and things I find interesting in the vast universe of food!

Hope you enjoy your stay and tell your friends if you find my blog, at the very least, somewhat entertaining.

With that said,

Go eat that food!

If you hadn't noticed, that's my little catchphrase. Terribly unimaginative, yes. Ok ok I'll change it. God!