m a n u s c r y p t s

The BJP central leadership is in a crisis state. In the state of Karnataka, the BJP government has dissension in its ranks. Its a bad time for the saffron party, but all that didn’t stop us from visiting Kungh, a restaurant on Castle Street, serving Kashmiri cuisine. Eh, connection?  From Pampur, thirteen kilometres from Srinagar, where it is cultivated, it comes to us – Kungh (pronounced Kong), Kashmiri for saffron.

To get there, get on to Richmond Road at the beginning (Lifestyle) and then take the right on to Castle Street. Some set of government guys seem to be digging there for that treasure, but you should get parking in one of the side lanes.

This is the second ‘Saffron‘ we’ve encountered in Bangalore. Its an absolutely unpretentious place and somehow manages to convey a very homely feel, which is reflected in the way they treat customers too. They suggested dishes and combinations, told us what would be sufficient, talked to us about the ‘wazwan‘, (which I remembered reading in Salman Rushdie’s “Shalimar the Clown”) and generally made us feel absolutely comfortable.

So, on to the menu. There are starter options in veg, cockur (chicken) and maaz (lamb). The veg options consists of paneer, cauliflower, potatoes and mixed veg. (Rs.50-100). In chicken, you can choose from the special fried chicken (waza cockur), the boneless tandoor grilled chicken, (troosh cockur), the spicy version (talith cockur) or a cashew grilled version (kaju cockur) (Rs.150-200). In lamb there’s Tabaq maaz (fried ribs), seekh kabab, barrah kabab, or the pasanda kabab. (Rs.150-250)

For the main course rus (gravy) options in veg consist of bottle gourd, brinjal, palak, mushrooms, potato, priced between Rs.75-100. In chicken you could have qorma, malai or kungh (Rs.150), and the mutton options consist of rogan josh, dhaniwal qorma, marchwangan qorma, rista (dumplings in spicy gravy), or the yakhni/goshtaaba. (Rs.175-200) There are also a couple of daal options. (Rs.50-75) To go with that, you could choose from roti/naan/phulka or rice (steamed/kungh or kabab pulao) While we went through the options, they gave us a complimentary kahwa. Amazing stuff, that!!

We started with a seekh kabab (”minced lamb grilled in tandoor and fried). Extremely well made – smooth, cut into small rings, and with enough flavour to make it probably the best I’ve had in Bangalore. I was tempted to order a waza cockur, but there were too many things to try out in the main course. So we ordered a Kungh Cockur (spicy gravy), a yakhni (”lamb dumplings in yoghurt gravy”), and to go with that a naan, and steamed rice. We ended up ordering one naan later. The chicken dish was excellent, but the yakhni was definitely the pick. A great combination with rice. The meatballs were extremely soft, the ‘melt in your mouth’ kind, and had a good combination of spices that lent it a very unique flavor. Highly recommended.

In addition to dessert options which included kheer, phirni, khubani ka meetha and a badam meetha, you could also try the kungh lassi/nimbu, kahwa, sheer chai, or the noon chai (salted tea). I asked for a khubani ka meetha, but was persuaded to change my mind to a badam meetha, and it didn’t disappoint. D had a kungh sweet lassi and she’s got a new favourite drink.

All of the above cost us Rs.700. Definitely worth a visit, for a unique cuisine and some excellent service.

Kungh, #332, Castle Street, Ashok Nagar Ph: 41126043

…is back, at a new location, and since the old version on Vittal Mallya Road was a favourite, we had to check out version 2 too. The new Spiga is on St.Marks Road, on the 4th Floor of the Halcyon Complex, that erm, funny white building right before you turn into Vittal Mallya Road. Two wheeler parking can be found a couple of buildings before this one, and for those with a couple of extra wheels, there’s valet parking.

Spiga is a rooftop restaurant, semi-outdoor, with different sections. Some of the tables give a nice view of the cityscape. I’d describe the ambience as fine dining meets lounge. Dim lighting and candles with techno/house pulsing in the background. I personally preferred the coziness of  the home-converted-into-restaurant earlier version. This is cool too, in the white cushion mediterranean kind of way (which I think is the idea) and quite a neat place for a romantic dinner, but it lacks the character/uniqueness of the old place. Maybe that’ll happen over time, and the halcyon days will be back.

We got in by around 7.30, and got a table without reserving in advance, but by 8, the place was quite crowded. They seem to have a well stocked bar, and the liquor menu is quite extensive, with what looked like a decent collection of mocktails, shooters, and aperitifs in addition to the usual alcohol options. I couldn’t spot a KF beer, my regular benchmark, though there were other brands.

There are only two soup options – one veg (roasted pumpkin) and the other non-veg, at Rs.120. So, we had the Chunky Chicken and Veg soup, which would have been great if it had been a tad thicker and creamier. It was good though, with the promise of chunky chicken pieces met. It comes with garlic bread, and an additional portion of garlic bread is  complimentary. To be noted that there isn’t a by-two option, but the table was small enough, and the bowl big enough for us to create the option.

In case you’re the salad kind, there are four kinds available – Caesar, Neo Classical Greek, Oriental and Pear & Walnut. All have veg and chicken options, and are priced at Rs.150-180 and Rs.180-210 respectively. And if you prefer starters, there are quite a few options there too, in veg (including a paneer dish), fish, prawn, lamb and from thai, mexican and mediterranean cuisines. Priced at Rs.100-180 for the veg, and Rs.200-250 for the non veg.

Pasta options consist of alfredo and pesto, with veg and chicken options. (Rs.200/250) There’s also a fettuccine with bacon and prawns. (Rs.280). The main course has about half a dozen veg options, a little more in chicken, and a few interesting options in fish, prawn and lamb. There are a few Thai dishes in this mix too. D chose an Olive Fish, “Grilled fish, white wine mint sauce, olives, sprinkling of pine nuts, spinach rice, hasselback potatoes, with feta and onions. I chose a Mediterranean Chicken, “Seared chicken, red peppers, feta, mashed potato and pasta”. D’s fish dish was a bit on the bland side, with (strangely) a lemon flavor. She liked my chicken dish better. Unfortunately for her, I did too. I’d definitely recommend it. I want to try out the bacon wrapped fish sometime though.

There are half a dozen dessert options, some of which you may not find anywhere else like the lemon ricotta pie, the ginger orange cheese cake, or the oreo cookie cheese cake. No, we didn’t have any, and yes, I find it difficult to face myself in the mirror, especially when I think of the rich chocolate fudge cake.

The meal cost us just 0ver Rs.700. Loved the logo, and the black and siver business card. The service could’ve been better. We asked for water at room temperature, and got ice cold water, though they replaced it. We were asked if the main course could be served, while we were still having the soup, and in spite of asking them to wait, they served it almost immediately. Thankfully, we had just about finished the soup. Also, a word of caution. The main course portions are only just about sufficient, and if you’re going in hungry, a starter is recommended. Drop in for a pretty neat ambience, good food and yes, the desserts!!

Spiga, No:9, St.Marks Road, ‘Halcyon Complex’, 4th Floor. Ph: 42110469/70

Cornucopia is part of a ‘cricket homestay’ called ‘The Bat and Ball Inn’, supposedly owned by Sreesanth, Uthappa, Charu Sharma and one other partner. No, you won’t find appams here, the place serves Continental and Italian fare.

Here’s a map that will show you how to get there. While you can access it from Hosur Road, its easier to get there via Richmond Road. On Richmond Road, take a left turn immediately after TNT (opposite Citibank) and then take the first right. You’ll see the place on the right. It also hosts a cafe called ‘Silly Point’, and a boutique (which I think is) called ‘Dressing Room’. (It was about to rain, so my focus was on getting inside, especially since we had lost much time in trying to figure out the location, and had a movie to catch) From what we saw there, you don’t really need to reserve.

There are two seatng options, one a regular restaurant closed setting, and the other behind this, which is a bit more open. On the way to the latter, you have a passageway lined with framed caricatures of cricketers. I half expected to see staff in cricket gear, but they haven’t gone that far with the theme.

The menu has a lot of options, both veg and non veg – Continental and some Italian too. You can take a look at the entire menu here. There are soups, starters and salads, in addition to the main course options and desserts. We started with a ‘Spiced chicken and corn soup with lemon grass’  (cream of chicken and corn kernels with spring onion, coriander, chilly and lime). The soup was extremely good, probably the best we’ve had in a long time. It was moderately spicy and on a chilly Bangalore night, was a perfect start. If you’re planning a long leisurely meal, you might want to check out the starters too.

For the main course, we ordered a Stuffed Chicken Breast Nanterre (chicken breast stuffed with minced pate and mushroom grilled and served with a red wine, green chilly and cheese sauce) and a Poached Chicken Breast Clemenceau (chicken cooked in wine and mushroom, finished with cream, herbs and crushed peppercorn). You have to order mashed potato separately, though they didn’t bill us for the bread and flavoured butter. Both the dishes were extremely good, with distinct flavours that I could detect even with my taste buds being retired hurt (thanks to a bad cold). The chicken was done well, and not undercooked (like in many places that serve Continental stuff) and the sauces were simply superb. Both dishes highly recommended.

We were too stuffed for dessert, so that’s been left for the next time we drop in. Thankfully, the end of the meal also brought a mini shot of chocolate and coffee, in a semi liquid state, with chocolate just managing to edge out the coffee flavor. Coffee takes revenge by not allowing the mix to get too sweet. I refuse to intercede because I’m busy convincing myself  that its dessert.

All of the above cost us just below Rs.800. With desserts and starters, it would be around Rs.1000. The service deserves special mention because it was extremely prompt. You should drop in for a relaxed ambience, extremely good food and if I have to judge from that mini-shot, awesome desserts.

Cornucopia, 3, Laurel lane, Richmond Town Ph: 41149495

As Namma Metro construction turns MG Road into what seems like the aftermath of a Transformers All Spark brawl, and as pedestrians and motorists battle it out for control of the footpath, we decided to wake up and smell the coffee. Okay, there was a significant delay between the two, but Cafe Pascucci (part of an international chain) which opened shop right in the heart of the battlefield, between the HP petrol pump and Prasiddhi silks, (just before Brigade Road when coming from the Trinity Circle direction) was where we landed up on Saturday night. Parking? Don’t you get it? MG Road as you know it, is gone. So, try parking at Bangalore Central/Brigade Road and walk it up.

So we stepped off the chaos and entered this lively cafe, which was almost full at 7.45. But we managed to get a decent table. The music was loud enough to drown the memories of the world outside, though the tracks were a few years old. The ambience is absolutely great, well lit, with comfortable seating, a great place to hang about, and if you get one of the two seating options facing MG Road, you can have a great time watching the world go by.

For all you coffee lovers out there, there is a separate menu card only for that!! But before we get there, the food. Italian is the cuisine, and there’s a decent spread, if not elaborate. There are about half a dozen appetisers, ranging from Rs.45-65, both veg and non veg, with add on options of olives, cheese, chicken stuffing etc, for prices ranging from Rs. 15- 30. There are also an equal number of salads, but mostly veg, ranging from Rs 75-150.

For the main course, you can choose from pasta – penne/fusilli (Rs. 75), and then add your choice of sauce (Rs.25), add a couple of extras from a choice of 8 for Rs.25 (mushroom, broccoli etc)  and chicken/smoked chicken sausage for Rs. 35. If this doesnt work for you, you could try a Gnocchi di spinaci, risotto (with veg/chicken add ons) or spaghetti, all of which range from rs.125 – 150. There are also sandwiches – you can choose your bread (regular or multi grain) at Rs.55/60, spread and fillings which are priced from Rs.20-40. You could also try out Piadine (an Italian bread).

We chose to start with a Fresh herb crumbed chicken with cheese and paprika dip. The portion had six pieces, so quite good on the quantity front, but was a bit salty. The dip was just about good. For the main course, D ordered Spaghetti Meatballs, and I chose Fusilli with creamy sauce, mushrooms, parmesan and smoked chicken sausages. Both the dishes were very good, though the garlic bread they gave along with the dishes were too crusty. Though we had read in some reviews that the quantity was very less, we felt that, for the price, they were quite decent sized portions. We could be biased because they left enough space for dessert The only cause for complaint was that, in spite of specifically asking for the main course to be brought only after we finished the starter, all the 3 dishes were brought together. Thankfully, the main course stuff was really hot, so no real heartburn.

And now, a preview of coffee heaven. A dozen different kinds of espresso, a similar number of capuccinos, half that number of hot chocolate versions, and soft drink/juices- including a bottled coffee soda, five kinds of filter coffee, from different parts of the globe, 13 kinds of iced coffee, ten kinds of teas, a dozen different ice cream combinations almost all of them operating in exquisite combinations of chocolate, coffee, whipped cream, chocolate sauce etc. You get the idea!! No, actually you can’t. Not until you see those photos, which I thought was sadistic, because whatever you choose, you will always miss the others that reached the final round!! After excruciating elimination rounds, I settled for an African Nera – made of chocolate ice cream, coffe ice cream, espresso coffee, dark crema confuso coffee cream, chcolate sauce and cremino chocolate. D chose a Yogurt Cappuccino fruit, made of gold espresso, light yogurt mousse, and fruit. My loud slurps towards the end were a testament to my deep appreciation.

If you’re planning to go for lunch, they have a fixed menu combination – salad, pasta and dessert, at Rs.149 and 179 for veg and non veg respectively.

Our meal cost us just below Rs.600, absolutely good value for money. The coffee menu and I look forward to meeting each other again, several times.

Caffe Pascucci, United Mansions, 39, MG Road, Ph: 40912134

Relax. Its the name of a restaurant.

We heard about the place sometime back from Balu, and since it was just past the swine flu season, thought it a good time to check out some Coorgi stuff (read pork). The restaurant is located on Residency Road right after the Museum Road junction. (map) There isn’t any parking facility for four wheelers, maybe you can use the paid parking on the Brigade Road extension, 2 wheelers can park in front of Imperial. Its quite  a little hole-in-the-wall and you’re likely to miss it if you aren’t looking for it.

The ambience just about passes muster and the place obviously caters to a regular crowd that really doesn’t mind the peeling wall paint and broken tiles. Its quite dimly lit and there is no air conditioning. But hey, we came for the pork, so let’s get to that fast.

The single page menu begins with a quote attributed to Conficius (sic) ” A family that dines together grows sideways together”. We were obviously in the mood to be living examples. You could choose from roti/chapati, rice – hot snow balls/ rice noodles (though they didn’t have the latter when we asked for it), veg dishes  – dal, beans, rajma, sprouts, pumpkin and even a rasam, ghee rice and its combos (veg/ pork/ mutton/ chicken) whose costs range from Rs.45-85, or the plain rice versions of the same, or even chapati meal combos (Rs.50-75). The menu ends with a few juice options and another quote “For a healthy life, choose your restaurant like you would choose your spouse”.

We ordered a couple of rice rotis, a ghee rice – mutton curry combo, a Coorgi pepper chicken dry and a Coorgi pork dry. I would’ve liked to try a fried fish too, but wasn’t sure if it’d be too much. Hot fluffy rotis, though they took a while, and such awesome pork that D, who isn’t a erm, natural pork eater like me, ended up eating the pig, like a ….. you get the idea. In fact, though the chicken was quite good, it was completely eclipsed by the pork. The ghee rice was the other highlight, reminded me of the stuff I used to hog during college days. Excellent. I didn’t fancy the mutton curry much, though it was coconut based, but D liked it. we had to order a couple of chapatis more and again, it took a while.

All of that, including a mineral water – Rs.15 , cost us just over Rs.250. If you’re looking for a fine dining experience, stay away, but when in the mood for some good pork, in a college/PG hangout ambience, complete with ABBA music in the background, do check it out.

Wild Spice, #1, Cariappa Bhavan, Field Marshall Cariappa Road (thats Residency Road for those who didn’t know), Ph: 09880381009

That’s the retaurant formerly known as Saigon. In fact, when you approach it from Brigade Road the signage with the new name is difficult to miss, but the front signage is still that of Saigon. This is on the 2nd Floor of the building that houses Oye Shaava, Oye Amritsar and Ruby Tuesday. They have valet parking too, and for those wondering, no, I didn’t try it out for my two wheeler. :p

As you go up, do check out the posters of Oye Amritsar, good stuff. On the second floor, we were greeted with a nunchaku doorknob. Wonderfully creative start. In fact the entire place, I realised was a creative trip. I didn’t take photos and hoped someone had, and my faith in the www was reinforced when I came across this site.

We had reserved a table, but if you’re going early (before 8pm ) that may not be required. There are some great 2 seaters that give you a view of Church Street, and options for larger groups too. I love those ‘watch the world go by’ views, as regular readers would know. The welcome mat greeted me warmly and told me that they were not too sticky about formalities, and that I should look around, enjoy myself, but asked me to save space for dessert.

The person in charge of our table asked us if were familiar with the dining style they followed. I’d only read one review so he explained the concept of Mongolian Barbecue. Daniel, as he introduced himself, did a great job of explaining it, and said that we would be served soups and starters before we got on with that part. The staff uniform is the Karate Gi gear. Daniel wore a red belt which means he’s a captain. Stewards wear yellow belts.

We had a choice of Burnt Garlic veg soup and a Sweet Corn Chicken soup. I asked for half a bowl of the latter and was only disappointed that I couldn’t get D to try it out, though I kept telling her it was very good. The solid attack  started with 5 veg and 5 non veg starters. We had Chinese green dim sum (mushroom and corn), crisp potato, cauliflower in spicy ginger sauce, grilled vegetables in tangy sauce, and veg dim sum, I evinced only passing interest though the cauliflower starter was exceptional and the others were good too. The non veg starters – Fish in chinese parsley sauce, chicken wings, lamb in BBQ sauce, chicken dim sum and prawn papaya spring rolls, were obviously given more attention. (except for the last one since prawns are allergic to me )   All of them great,  and I loved the chicken wings, awesome stuff. If you like something, feel free to ask for a second or even third helping. But remember there’s the main course and deserts to follow.

The main course is the Mongolian barbecue. You get your bowl and select from over a dozen kinds of sliced vegetables – mushroom, bamboo shoots, capsicum, cabbage, broccoli and so on, arranged in a buffet. You are then asked to choose your sauce from a display board and the meat/s you would like to add, and they stir fry it for you. To go along with it, you can choose steamed rice, fried rice or noodles with veg and non veg (lamb, fish, chicken) options. I ordered my stir fry with lamb and a pepper & onion sauce, and chicken noodles to go along. D ordered her stir fry with chicken and spicy chinese wine sauce and veg fried rice (@#$%, Veg? asked I !! and was rewarded with a Buddha smile) to go along with it. The other sauce choices for the day were Sweet and Sour,  Golden Garlic, Hunan, Oyster/Chilli Oyster, Hot Garlic, Chilli Plum and Sapo. The stir fried stuff and your rice/noodles are brought to your table, in less than 10 minutes. Awesome. You could order another round if you’re upto it, maybe with a different sauce. I remembered the desserts and didn’t.

The dessert options were Sago Float, Fried Mango, Cut Fruit, Ice Cream Date Pancake and Chocolate Mousse. We tried all, and you can guess what I asked for a second helping of. I was also tempted by the Sago Float – coconut flavoured with jelly like Sago ( D says sago is sabudana), but chocolate always wins.

All of this – soups, starters, main course, desserts work like a buffet -  charged Rs.349 + tax for dinner (works out to Rs.785 for two) and Rs.249 + tax for lunch (fewer items, I suspect). They also serve a la carte based on your preferences, there’s no menu card. They do have a liquor menu though, thats extra. I am not trying to hustle you, but you do need to give this place a try at least once, for the unique dining experience it offers. I’ll be your fortune cookie and say “Go on an empty stomach. Serve you well, it will”

Hongkong Hustle, 2nd Floor, Asha Enclave, #20, Church street, Ph: 41122855

Khansama – The Royal India Master Chef is a BJN Group endeavour at UB City Mall. The theme is royalty, and it serves a mix of cusines, though skewed towards North indian dishes.

The mall also hosts Shiro (Lounge), Oakroom (multi cusine), Ecstasy (desserts/cafe), The Tasty Tangles (Oriental), Rajdhani (that thali has been on the pending list for a while now!!) ..quite an elaborate food court…  So, maybe you could go a bit early and figure out what gastronomic mood you’re in. We, however, reserved in advance, and were quite surprised to see a few tables occupied by 7.30. Maybe they all wanted to get back in time for Juno.

The ambience is quite befitting the royal theme the restaurant has. Massive portraits, swords, assorted mounted animal heads , and a few guns thrown in too on the walls. The lighting has been done well too, not too dimly lit, and not too bright either, enhancing the effects of the entire setting.

We started with a ‘Dhuanr Murgh Tikka’ starter. That’s “succulent and creamy pieces of chicken infused with italian smoked mozzarella”. It was quite good, and went well with the chilly sauce. D liked the mint sauce though she rated it a bit lower than the one in Copper Chimney. There are quite a few options in veg and non veg, the seafood starters are costly though. If you’re the soup kind, there are quite a few choices on that front too.

For the main course, we ordered a Kofta Zartaari (”paneer, potato dumplings done the zartaari style), a Murgh Darbari (”an affable combo of spring chicken and eggs in a silky smooth gravy”), and to go with that a portion of Punjabi Zaituni Naan (”traditional flour bread – baked in the tandoor with black and stuffed green olives, basted with light spanish olive oil” – its not boneless). We were told that the chicken dish would be a bit sweet, but the kofta would provide the spice. It turned out almost the opposite, with the Kofta gravy being a tad sweet (but the Kofta itself a bit spicy) and the chicken dish  being mildly spicy. The bread was quite awesome, one portion has two naans, but quite small, so we ordered a Lal Mirch paratha too. Good stuff, which (thankfully?) didn’t reach the levels of our hari mirch adventure at Heera Panna. The menu offers quite a lot of choices, some even from South Indian cuisine, since the theme is more royalty than any geographic area. (though the menu has only sher shah suri and the Mughals)

There were a few dessert options, but we were too stuffed to try any, but quite likely the next time. The service is quite good, and the wet towel was really refreshing. Except for perhaps one odd occasion, the BJN restaurants have always delivered on the food quality, though I keep making digs at their snobbery efforts

The cutlery is also a bit unique and I loved the goblet though it was a bit heavy. By the time we left – around 8.30, the place was quite crowded. And uncharacteristically, they even gave us some good meetha paan in the end. (have seen only the paid version in other BJN group restautants). All of the above cost us just over Rs.1150 (inclusive of a 10% service charge and taxes). Great food and a good ambience, I’d recommend checking it out.

Khansama, 2nd Floor, UB City Mall, #24, Vittal Mallya Road. Tel 41114499

Sikandar is the Hindustani name of Alexander the Great, and that’s the theme of this restaurant in Garuda Mall. Theme, only in terms of the food, not the decor, though they do have a few glass paintings that depict this. The place is usually crowded on Saturdays, so we reserved, got there by about 7.45, and got one of the window seats I have a liking for. Surprisingly, it didn’t have full occupancy at any point during our dinner. Blame it on you-know-what. I wonder if that’s the same thing I should blame for them using a fan instead of the air conditioning!!

We decided to try a non chicken starter this time, and settled on the Adana Seek, described as “Turkey’s single greatest contribution to the world of street food. Lamb mince skewered on a sword, typically spiced and enlivened with paprika flakes and made the way it has been for eons in the Turkish town of Adana”. Judging by the taste, and the awesome flavoring, it definitely is a great contribution. Highly recommended, the only disappointment being that I expected to see the sword..and didn’t. The mint chutney provided with it wasn’t great though, so skip it.

For the main course, we ordered a Murgh Siyali Kalimirch. The description in the menu reads ” Housewives in Siyalkot, Pakistan, take fierce pride in preparing their own versions of this dish of tender chicken cooked in sealed clay pots with lashings of freshly ground peppercorn”. We also ordered a Kadaiwala Machchi, “the best example of robust food made from simple earthy ingredients that’s the essence of Punjab’s cuisine. Fish tossed with fresh tomatoes, peppers and pounded spices”.  To go along with it, we ordered an Ulta Tawa ka Paratha – “the copper mahi tawa lends its special flavour ro these griddle roasted saffron flavoured parathas” , a Paneer aur Pudina Bharwan Kulcha, and when that proved insufficient, a roti too. What hasn’t been mentioned in the menu is that the chicken dish is a white gravy one, but that really didn’t matter. Its one of the best chicken dishes I’ve tasted in a long time. Whatever version this one is, I think they should stick to it!! The fish was good, but not in the same league as the other. The paratha was good too, and the only thing that was disappointing was the bharwan kulcha ( I think that has something to do with it not having a descriptor line..hmm)

D felt that the choice of dishes has been reduced. I am not sure, but yes, there are about 4 chicken gravy dishes only now, so she could be right. The portions are quite large and more than sufficient for two people. They also serve liquor. The service this time was quite tardy though, in spite of the cold looks we gave the staff when they delayed in serving/refilling the water/bringing the bill. All of the above cost us just less than Rs.900. If you haven’t tried the place, you should, at least once. We chose this place specifically for this weekend because its one of our favourite places in Bangalore, and deserved to be the 50th Bangalore restaurant to be reviewed on this blog.

The Legend of Sikandar, 4th Floor, Garuda Mall, Magrath Road. Ph: 41252333

The name’s an attention grabber. And so it was that we decided to drop in on a lazy Sunday. You can find it off St.Marks Road – the part that goes towards Residency Road. Soon after you take a left from Museum Road, you can see it on the right, packed inside a tiny lane. (after the petrol pump, and a ramshackle plot).

The ambience has a wooden-metallic grunge look that goes well with the factory name.  The  “Damp Wall. Please do not lean” is a good touch. “The logo is inspired by the Maori symbol “Koru”, which represents renewed energy and new beginnings. The name and the logo is a symbolic adaptation of the meaning, and that of the humble egg.”  The menu is a great piece of work, and shows that that they take the egg part of their name (and positioning) very seriously. Its a spoof on the foldable user manuals that come with consumer durables (including the multiple languages). It is an absolute pun fest with eggxpectations, egghilarative snacks, eggxotica, eggsamplers. eggciting combos all making appearances. So you can see why I didn’t need any egging on to take an instant liking to the place.

We started with an Egg Pasta Frittata and an Eggs Florentine. The frittata is a “hearty meal of penne in frittata and baked with cream and parmesan”, and is served with garlic bread. I’d read reviews that it was awesome, but it was just about okay. The Florentine, which is “soft boiled eggs on a bed of spinach and a creamy sauce and topped with parmesan” was a much better dish. Both are served with garlic bread (which they didn’t have, so we were given  bread toast, and they used sweet bread, hmm)  If you’re not really hungry, the portions are quite sufficient, and make a good snack, but if you’re out to gorge, then you’d want a second course, like us

I wanted an Arroz Con Huevos, a mexican dish, which looked spicy (from the menu) but it wasn’t available. So we went for an Egg Cannelloni Alforno, a “tube pasta stuffed with eggs, mushroom and red pepper” and a Polish omelette. The Alforno is excellent and had a distinct tangy flavor that was a welcome relief. They seem to have a slight geography problem since we got an Irish omellete – has potatoes flavoured with chives and lemon juice. The latter is served with toast, butter and jam. We ended with a bread custard, that was one of the desserts of the day, and was quite okay. (the ones who came in earlier finished the caramel custard).

They seem to have discontinued several of the menu items – paratha curry, rice curry and chinese combos, wraps, subs and crostinis, wonder why. There is a ‘Manipal connection’ part of the menu which reminded me of college life. Meanwhile, for the health conscious, you can have all the stuff, with only the egg white, for an extra Rs.10 per item. All of the above cost us Rs.450, an absolute value for money outing, and one that we thoroughly enjoyed.

The Egg factory, Ground Floor, White House, St.Marks Road. Ph:42110041

Judging by our liking for the place, Copper Chimney should’ve been written about quite a while back. Copper Chimney is a restaurant on the 5th floor of Bangalore Central, serves Frontier/North Indian fare. Keeping in mind the lunar surface that is MG Road, and the abundance of one ways in the area, we usually park at Garuda Mall and walk up.

We usually reserve in advance, especially since we like to sit outside. That’s only possible if you’re 2-3, but the seating inside is quite comfy. The fifth floor setting ensures that its nippy outside especially in the winter months. Once it was so windy that they closed the section outside. That’s the only time we sat inside.

So, we started with a Chicken Kali Mirch – “boneless chicken marinated in yoghurt, spiked with freshly pound black pepper, and gently grilled. Awesome stuff, especially if you are the kind who likes the pepper flavour. The mint chutney they gave was superb, went great with the chicken, and we ended up finishing the entire bowl. Lots of pieces so you wouldn’t complain about the quantity either.

For the main course, we asked for a Murg Patiala – “chicken breast simmered in a rich cream sauce topped with sieved eggs”, and deviating from tradition (fish), a Kadhai Paneer – “batons of cottage cheese stir fried with onions and peppers and spiced with freshly pounded coriander seeds and red chillies”, and to go with it a naan, and a tandoori roti. The chicken dish was a tad blander than it usually is, or the starter’s flavours were messing with my taste buds. But the paneer dish was spicy enough.Its only once that we’ve had dessert at Copper Chimney, the rest of the time we were stuffed, and this time was no exception. And so the meal ended there. The service was a bit tardy this time, but nothing to raise a furore over. Yes, I realise I’m quite biased.

They’ve quite a few choices in mutton and serve alcohol as well. There are a few ‘hatke’ options of breads too – like Taftan and Kabuli Naan. In essence, a place you must try. Meanwhile, all of the above cost us just below Rs.900. No mineral water this time

The thing that brings us back to Copper Chimney (other than the great food) is the wonderful view (when you take the two seaters outside) of Bangalore’s skyline. It makes you reflect. Food for thought.

Copper Chimney, 5th Floor, Bangalore Central, Residency Road. Ph: 080 66111800