m a n u s c r y p t s

..for dinner, that’s what we thought, after D had spotted it on her way back from work last week. No, she doesn’t work in Punjab, this is version 2.0 of what used to be called ‘Dal Roti’ in Koramangala, located just before the Sony World junction, on the left, when coming from the National Games Village direction, opposite the IBP petrol pump.

Dal Roti used to be the value-for-money North Indian joint we used to frequent in our first round of stay in Koramangala. Coincidentally, I remember mentioning the last time we had been there, that it was time for a renovation, and that seems to be exactly what happened. So Dal Roti is now ‘Chalo Punjab’ with a ‘fine dining’ tag to boot. We reached there just after 8, and easily got a table. I think that can be attributed to this being the first weekend (I think) after the re-launch.

Though the seating arrangements remains roughly the same, the ambience is must better, with more Punjabi flavor thrown in, in terms of props. I still wouldn’t classify it as fine dining, though its definitely a couple of steps above the initial version.

The menu is more elaborate though, and if anything, we were spoilt for choice. You could start with sherbets/shikhanjvi/thandai/khatte aam ka panna or chaas/lassi or even an ice cream doodh sheikh (they’ve had  quite some fun with the spellings and the names), about a dozen options priced between Rs.40-80. If you’re the shorba kind, you could try ‘loveleen de tandrust shorbe’ – 3 veg and 2 non veg options, priced at Rs.70/80.

There are more than a dozen veg starters including the Rawalpindi Railway Gobi and Peeo de Cheesy Palak rolls, at Rs.130/140. The non veg options would be about double of that, most of it in chicken (Rs.160/170) and about 4-5 options each in mutton (Rs.210) and fish (Rs.220) and a couple of prawn options too (Rs.250). For the main course, the grass eaters get to choose from about half a dozen dishes each of dal and paneer (including Major Patrick da paneer tiranga!!), in addition to over 15 other dishes, like ‘Simple di subz keema’, ‘marie memsaab di ishtew’, and ‘garima di gajjar methi malai’, priced between Rs.120-160!! There are about 8-10 options each in chicken and mutton (Rs.230-270) and 3-4 options in fish, prawn (Rs.230-270) and eggs (Rs.130-160).

To go with that, you could have paratha/roti/kulcha/naan, priced between Rs.35-65, or biriyani/pulao/rice (like the Punjabi Times Chicken Fry rice!!) They also have thali options on weekdays – Rs.140/180 for veg/non veg. Now, you get what I mean by elaborate menu. Phew!!

We skipped the shorba and started with a Chandigarh Chicken Cake (C3) That’s “generously spiced minced chicken cupcakes shallow fried served with a dash of coriander and chat patta masalas”. Its a perfect starter, complemented  well by the mint chutney, though 6 pieces in one portion meant that the stomach was filled a little more than we’d liked, especially when a glass of lassi was also used to wash it down. For the main course, we ordered a Kartarpuri Kajuwala Kukkad Kadi, “chunks of tender chicken simmered in a rich cashew gravy mildly spiced”, a Mardaan di Meat di Feast (!!), “a delicious recipe of tender juicy cuts of mutton slow cooked in a rich onion yoghurt & tomato, enriched with steamed spicy mutton koftas swimming in mouthwatering minced mutton gravy”, and to go along with it, a wheat naan and a cheese chilly naan. The chicken dish was more brown than white, but simply awesome, and I’d recommend it very highly. Thick and mildly spicy, it was done extremely well, so much that the elaborate mutton dish was reduced to second place, though those koftas were quite good.

I’d have liked to try some dessert too, but was completely stuffed. I think just reading that menu fills half your stomach!! There are about a dozen dessert options (Rs.50-120) – the regular North Indian stuff – phirni (though this is Pammi ji’s!!), kheer, kulfi, rabdi, gaajar halwa, gulab jamun, and even a Mango Dolly ice cream!! Mind it!!

All of the above cost us just over Rs.800. The service was excellent, and except for a tiny delay in bringing back my credit card (hmm), it was extremely prompt. The price may perhaps not be justified by the ambience, but its more than compensated by the tasty food, great service, and the phenomenal amount of choice.

Chalo Punjab, 906/1, GNR Plaza, 80 ft Road, 6th Block, Koramangala. Ph:41105666/777

Since we’ve frequented both Oye Amritsar and Oye Shaava on Church Street, and enjoyed the experience, we were eagerly looking forward to the opening of Oye Amritsar in our own neighbourhood. The Koramangala version is in the building just before China Pearl, the same road as Vicky’s and The Esplanade too – the one-way connecting Inner Ring Road with the road from Forum to National Games Village. (refer either of the first two links for a detailed route). Parking is not too difficult, in any case there are many sidelanes on that road.

Since we planned to be there early, we didn’t reserve, but if you’re planning to be there after 8pm, reservations would help. The restaurant is on the first floor, and just like the Church Street version, watch out for the awesome posters on the stairway and actually all over the place. This seems to be a bigger place with indoor-outdoor seating options. The terrace faces the road, so its a good place to watch the world go by, if weather permits. It did, and there we sat. The only snag with the tables on the terrace is the lack of sufficient light – its difficult to read the menu, but you could ask for candles.

The dhaba theme and the ambience is the same as Church Street, but looks like the menu has been changed a bit. It’s been quite a while since i visited, so there might have been updates I’m not aware of. They serve alcohol too, here, and the bar seems to be decently well stocked.

The menu begins with veg starters, quite a few, and in addition to that, there are also tawa fried options. About a dozen options combined, priced, on an average, at Rs.90/165 for a half /full plate. This half plate option is something  i remember liking at Oye Shaava, so it’s good to see it in action here. There are also many options in non veg starters – chicken, mutton, prawns, and fish, priced at Rs.115-145/225. And if you’re the shorba kind, there are a total of 3 options – one each in veg, chicken and mutton, priced at Rs.60-80. The veggies really have no reason to complain, since I saw over 20 options for the main course. (Rs.145-165). In fact, I’d say there are fewer options in non-veg, but there are enough to choose from there too (Rs.180-345), including bheja and gurda, for those who love ’spare parts’. To go with that, there are rotis/naans/kulchas (Rs.30-45) and rice options (Rs.110-165).

So we decided to skip the shorba, and since the half plate option was available, we ordered two starters . Two half starters equal to one starter and all that logic.  The Dhuanwali Lahori Seekh (”Lahore, Paris of the East, home to the most creative chefs of the land of five rivers, crafted this seekh kebab of lamb mince smoked with coal embers and butter, skewered and tandoored”) and the Pahalwani Dhabe ka Maahi Tikka (”the famous rawas fish specially flown down from Amritsar and cooked to recipe by our friend Pahalwan Makhan Singh at his famous Maqbool Road eatery”). The Lahori seekh kebab completely disappointed, it was quite rubbery, and honestly, i have tasted better. I actually gave half a kebab (a non veg kabab) to D, so you can imagine. But thankfully, the Maahi tikka made up for it. We had to remind the guys for the pudina sauce though.

For the main course, we ordered a Murgh Lahori (”whole chicken cooked with all the glory of Punjab Sindh flavor) and a Bheja Fry (”lamb brains cooked in a spicy masala on the tawa”), and to go with that a Makki di Roti, and a Masalawala Kulcha. We also added an Amritsari Kulcha later. Both the dishes were extremely good, though the chicken dish wasn’t boneless. Excellent thick gravy, though. The brain fry is not recommended.. to those who cannot handle spice This one could actually compete for the best brain fry I’ve had, not including D’s of course.

The dessert section has the usual suspects – gulab jamun, phirni, jalebi, kulfi with rabri etc. (Rs.90-100) I haven’t seen a Gajrela and a Rasbhari before though. I would’ve tried at least one of them, but was too stuffed. There’s also a paan guy downstairs, in case you’re in the mood for the betels.

All of the above cost us Rs.900, that includes a service charge of 7.5%. Slightly inflated because they billed us for a full plate Bheja Fry even though we had ordered only a half plate. (that would’ve been sufficient) For those who haven’t been to Oye Amritsar on Church Street, you should definitely try this out. For those who have, you know why you need to drop in.

Oye! Amritsar, 54, Canara Bank Road, 6th Block Koramangala, Ph: 080 40994451

No, this is not one of those Hinduism-politics posts, Saffron happens to be the name of a Mughlai restaurant in Koramangala. Amazingly, there is next to no information available about it online. Thankfully it was located in an old haunt of ours – Jakkasandra (Koramangala 1st Block), so we found it rather easily, based on a landmark given in the TOI article, where we read about it.  To get there, when coming from the MG Road direction, continue on Hosur Road after Forum and take the left towards St John’s hospital (that’s the only way you can go. heh). Continue on the road, cross the next junction (with the Intermediate Ring Road) and go towards the Outer Ring Road, until you reach the junction with the road coming from 1st Block (signal – you’ll see Pinjara restaurant on the left), keep going straight until the next junction (you’ll have an HDFC bank on the right and Nous Software on the left), take a left here, and you’ll find Saffron on your right. Parking should not be a major deal, especially if you have a two wheeler, there’s a nice security guy who will help you out.

Saffron is on the first floor, and on the landing is the first theme indicator – a Mughal turban. The interior is simple, but with comfortable seating. Though the restaurant was fairly well occupied, I don’t think you’d need reservations, since there are enough seating options available. We got ourselves a nice corner seat. The menu explains the origin of saffron, from Kashmir, and its name in different places – kasubha in Philippines, kong in Kashmir, kesar in North India, and how the name is derived from the arabic ‘Zafaran’, meaning yellow. Apparently, the restaurant’s name was chosen for the splendour it exuberates. Oh, okay, we’ll get to the food.

The menu starts with soup options – cream, clear in veg and chicken (Rs. 40-65). There are starters, both in veg – french fries and various versions of paneer tikkas (Rs. 30-95) and non veg – fish tikkas, kali mirch , amritsari (Rs. 130-140); chicken tikkas – tangri, seekh, reshmi, hariyali, malai, pudina, tawa, kalimirch (Rs.95- 240); mutton – bara, peshawari, malai chaap, boti kabab (Rs. 150-165). The main course  has over twenty options in vegetarian – dal, rajma, paneer, mushroom, chana (Rs.70-100), a couple of options in fish (Rs.145), around a dozen options in chicken, including mughlai, handi, achari, some of which are available in three different quantity options – portion, half and full (Rs. 110-140 for portions, Rs.190-230 for half and Rs. 350 -385 for full), and about ten options in mutton – keema egg, brain dahi, kashmeri, qorma (Rs.120-135). To go along with that, you can either have rotis (about 20 options available) or biriyani. There are also raitas and salads. There is also the concept of ‘Shahenshah meals’, basically combo meals, with over a dozen different choices. There are a few basic veg options (Rs. 70-85), a couple of non veg roll options (Rs. 90-95), the larger veg options are priced at rs. 125-130 and the mughlai chicken and mutton are priced at Rs. 150 and 160 respectively. Interestingly, there are also quick snack options in the menu – sandwiches, cutlets, samosas, pakoras etc and a couple of pages devoted to Chinese options (soups, starters, main course with decent options in soups, startes and main course).

We started off with a Cream of Chicken soup. Though it wasn’t as thick as we expected it to be, it was tasty enough. We then had a starter – fish kalimirch, which was quite tasty, but at some points left us confused, on whether it was fish or mutton. Erm, yes, strange. By the time we thought of checking it up, the proof was safely lodged in our stomach. For the main course, we wanted the brain curry, that wasn’t available. We ordered a Mughlai chicken curry (half) and asked for a boti kabab to be brought as part of the main course. To go along with this, we ordered a butter kulcha and an afghani roti. The Mughlai chicken was good, though it was a brown gravy (we’d expected the creamy white). We ordered a keema kulcha  also later. The boti kabab was quite good, inspite of the bones. Must say, that the presentation of the kababs was quite unique and good. The portions are decent sized, and enough to make you feel full, but not bloated.

There are about a dozen dessert options, mostly North Indian, but had custard and ice cream too. It had a couple of items which I havent seen earlier – gud roti and mal pura (malpua, i had thought). We asked for the latter, but it wasn’t available. So we settled for the regular gajar ka halwa, which was reasonably good.

All of the above lefts us lighter by just less than Rs. 750. Though the food was decent, the service could’ve been better. The food doesn’t take much time, but the post meal stuff – finger bowls, billing could’ve been much faster.

Saffron, #5, 1st Floor, 1st B Main, 1st Block, Jakkasandra extension, Koramangala. Ph: 41317579/41468178

Cilantro is the Spanish word for coriander leaves, say some on the www. (D was sure, i had to check. Makes sense – she cooks, I eat)  It’s a restaurant in Koramangala, say Bangaloreans, and as it happens many a time, everyone’s right. To get there – at the Sony World junction on the Intermediate Ring Road (Koramangala – Indiranagar), take a left turn towards Koramangala 1st Block (when coming from Indiranagar), and keep going till the next signal (thats where the Maharaja restaurant is – map), take a left at the signal, keep going straight, and where the road takes a natural right turn, you’ll see the Halcyon complex, inside which is Cilantro. Two wheelers can be parked right outside, and there are enough bylanes around for four wheeler parking.

Cilantro is promoted as a ’sunrise to sunrise cafe’, serves North Indian and Continental, and is spread over a semi outdoor and indoor space. We hadn’t reserved in advance, and if you’re going before 8, you can just walk in. We chose to sit outside, and realised that the unspoken part was that the mosquitoes joined anyone else who came after sunset, for their dinner.

They introduce you to their salad, pasta, and barbecue counters, which you can go for, in case the regular menu doesnt appeal to you. We thoroughly ignored the salad counter, gave a cursory glance to the pasta counter, where there was a choice of 3 pastas, and deliberated over the barbecue counter, where there was fish, chicken, lamb, pork, calamari, prawns before settling for items in the menu. The chef is quite eager to help you around.

The menu has sandwiches – both veg and non veg, with prices ranging from Rs.125 – 230, burgers, priced between Rs.130-155, both of which are classified under ‘any time’.

During regular meal hours, you have a choice of half a dozen soups, including veg and non veg, appetisers – including a couple of prawn and calamari options, and kebabs. For the main course, you could choose from the continental options – veg/prawn/ beef/ pork/ fish/ chicken or the Indian section which offers decent choices in veg and non veg, with rotis and rice to go along with them.

We started with a Chunky farm style chicken veloute soup. Though there is a creamy flavour to it, it’s actually made from stock (not milk) and has chunks of chicken. A very good soup, and they bring you a bread basket from which you could take white/brown bread, bread sticks or croissants.

For the main course, D ordered a “Red Wine Chicken Breast”, (chicken simmered in red wine, glazed and served with home made pasta) which was recommended by the staff, and i went for a Char grilled pork chops with bbq sauce, (served with cous cous and buttered tossed vegetables) which was recommended by the web reviews. The chicken dish was very good, from what little i tasted of it, and was served with sphagetti. The pork chops were well amde and the gravy was fantastic. The cous cous complemented it well. There were ’strange’ vegetables, which I didn’t bother figuring out, since I had meatier things to consider.

There were the regular Indian and Continental dessert options – gulab jamun, chocolate mousse and the like, the only one that stood out was a coconut caramel custard, but we decided to skip. They also serve liquor. Our bill came to just over Rs.750. After the meal, have a few polite smiles ready, since the chef and at least two more members of the staff ask you if you had a pleasant experience, and also inform you about a Sunday brunch. You could check out the place – pleasant and relaxing ambience, with loads of greenery, and decent food.

Cilantro, PB 4708, No: 9, Drafadila Layout, 4th Block, Koramangala. Ph: 41102200

One of the side effects of the vacation was the discovery of a restaurant in (almost) our backyard. We saw a write up of Rakabdar in the Jet in-flight magazine, and as always checked it up on Burrp before deciding on it. Rakabdar is located exactly opposite Forum Mall on the Christ College/Dairy Circle side. That, I assume, also takes care of your parking queries.

A ‘Rakabdar’ is a master chef of the royal courts of Awadh and Lucknow, so now you know what cuisine to expect here. They were considered “alchemists of cuisine”, as they sought to better their recipes every time they served it. No, they are master chefs, and so there’s no reason to feel that they’re experimenting on you.

The restaurant is on the second floor, and we were escorted there after a tiny halt at the reception on the ground floor. We had reserved in advance, but since its a new restaurant, that proved to be unnecessary, as there was only one other group during the entire meal. So we got to choose a nice cosy corner. They have a couple of  seating options which could’ve offered a Forum facing view, but for some reason they’ve chosen to have no windows there. Wonder why.

We decided to skip the shorba options and asked for a starter recommended in the menu – the Seekh Kabab Imtiazi,  “skewers wrapped with lamb mince mixed with cassia powder, mace and kashipur chilli and char grilled”. There were a lot of veg starter options, and quite some in sea food too, though the latter are quite expensive. While we waited for the starter to arrive, they gave us a complimentary kulcha with dal and chana gravies. That was quite a different take from the regular papads. The starter was excellent and fairly large in terms of quantity. The chutney given along with it did complement the taste, but I felt it could’ve been better.

For the main course, we again went for two dishes recommended in the menu – Achari Paneer, “paneer simmered in a tangy gravy of pickled tomatoes” and Murg Rizala, “boneless chicken stuffed with herbs and green chillies, dum cooked in a gravy of yoghurt with a hint of almond and garnished with egg”. We asked for the paneer dish to be made spicy, since the chicken gravy was bound to be bland. To go along with that we ordered an Aloo & Pyaaz Kulcha and a missi roti. Again, there were lots of vegetarian and meat (chicken, and a few lamb) options for the main course, but only one seafood option. (prawn). Our choices were a bit of a downer though. I’ve never been a fan of ‘achari’ dishes, but this one had sounded different. However, it suffered from an overdose of what we figured was a cumin flavour. So we didn’t like the paneer dish much, though that could be due to our taste preferences too. The chicken dish was better, though the bones were conspicuous by their presence. (as against what was printed on the menu). When we asked them, they insisted  it was a menu mistake and not a cooking mistake. The gravy was quite good, very creamy and thick, but some parts of the meat were undercooked. The kulcha was good, and the roti,  just okay.

We were quite stuffed and so couldn’t check out some special kulchas we haven’t seen anywhere else. (zattar and cheese, for instance). While on the subject of missing out, here are a few items you could consider. If you’re the seafood and shorba type, there’s an interesting shorba made of prawn, calamari, salmon, ginger, lime leaves and orange juice. You could also try out the biriyani, since dum b is an awadhi speciality too. You can judge how stuffed we were from the fact that we even skipped dessert. Other than the usual suspects – phirni, gulab jamun and rasmalai, there was also a Shahi Tukra and something we hadn’t seen earlier – Qubani ka meetha.

They seem to have an extensive beverage menu – lots of white and red wines, martinis, single malt, cognac, apertiffs, and a decent selection of mocktails and cocktails, among other things. Your parameter of reference is as always KF beer – thats at Rs.150, and the bottled water is at Rs. 40.

The service was quite good, and they even took us on a tour of their lounge – aira, on the third and fourth floors  of the same building. The fourth floor option seemed quite a nice place to lounge around, excellent cityscape views – in a small way reminded me of 13th Floor.

Our meal cost us Rs. 1165, and that includes a service charge at 10% and the taxes.

Try the place if you’re in the mood to splurge on a slightly different cuisine, especially if you want a change from the nearby excellent but usual options of Sahib Sind Sultan and The Taste of Rampur.

Rakabdar, 7, Bhuvanappa Layout, Hosur Road Ph: 43431111, 43431100

A recent addition to Indiranagar’s North Indian dine out options, this restaurant is on CMH Road – the non metro side. When coming from the Koramangala direction – on 100 ft Road, take a right turn at the CMH Road- 100 ft Road junction, you’ll find the restaurant on the right, opposite ICICI bank, just before Fabindia. Valet parking is available for 4 wheelers and there’s a 2 wheeler parking right across the road.

The restaurant is on the first floor, describes itself as ’swaad ka khazana’, and has two sections, one has a regular restaurant seating, and the other is more of a lounge section. (though they don’t seem to have a liquor license yet) We’d reserved in advance, but found it wasn’t required, especially if you land up before 8. There are a couple of nice 2-seat options, which give you a view of CMH Road. The ambience is otherwise pretty ordinary, with piped instrumental hindi music. The menu is shaped like a pankha (fan) and offers standard Delhi/North Indian cuisine.

There were only the regular shorba options, but quite a few starter options (veg and non veg – including 2-3 sea food options), so we ordered a starter – Gilawati Kabab, which was described as “a unique mouth watering lamb kabab with the distinct flavours of Lucknow”. I liked the way it was served – on a tiny paratha, but the taste was skewed towards one flavor – nutmeg, says D. That took away from what would otherwise have been quite a good dish.

For the main course, we ordered a Paneer Lababdar – “cottage cheese simmered in an onion and tomato gravy”, and a Murgh Methi Malai – “chunks of chicken with fenugreek and cream”, and to go along with that, an onion kulcha, a khaas amritsari kulcha and later, a plain naan. There was an interesting fish dish, (in addition to a couple of regular gravy options) with spinach and mint, but we decided to play safe. The paneer dish was quite ordinary, though spicy, and seemed quite lumpy to me, maybe because I was expecting a uniformly thick gravy. The chicken dish has a creamy white gravy, and an excellent one at that. This one I recommend. The portions are quite large and easily sufficient for two people. Both the kulchas were well done, the Amritsari kulcha is slightly spicy and has a stuffing (potato/onion). The dessert options were the regular suspects, except one – Paan Ice Cream, which I would’ve tried if I wasn’t so stuffed.All of the above cost us just over Rs.850, so its a bit on the expensive side.

In essence, nothing extraordinary, but if you’re around Indiranagar, and are in the mood for North Indian food, you could check it out.

Laa Jawaab, #516, 1st Floor, opp ICICI bank, CMH Road, Indiranagar. Ph: 42173232/42183232. [i can’t understand people who communicate their website url just to show a parked domain

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

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

Continuing the Asian theme for this weekend (we saw CC2C on friday, a movie i strongly recommend you not 2 c, until it arrives free on TV), we decided to move on to Kabul yesterday. Kabul’s Bangalore version is on Residency Cross Road, the one way that goes up from Residency road and lands you next to Symphony on MG Road. You could park on Brigade road/ Bangalore Central and walk. Just adjacent to it is Malgudi (belongs to the same group), and that mortal enemy of anyone who even contemplates a diet – Corner House

So, we reserved in advance, but actually, on hindsight, not at all necessary. We were alone when we started, and by the time we were through, there were about 3 other groups. The ambience is quite nice with comfortable seating, though from the music played, Afghans are huge fans of Pankaj Udhas and Jagjit Singh.

As the name suggests, the place serves Frontier cuisine. Though we’d planned on starters, we ended up trying a shorba – Murg Kabuli Shorba, which was fine, except for a strange oily flavour it seemed to have. You could try out the Murg Jehangiri starter, sounded nice – chicken legs with minced mutton stuffing.

For the main course, we ordered a Doodiya Murg, which is “boneless chicken cooked along with milk, cream, khova and topped with malai”, a Mirch machli Masala, “boneless seer fish dum cooked with tomato and topped with herbs”, and to go with that an aloo paratha and a makhini kulcha. The rotis werent sufficient, so we ended up ordering a Masala Kulcha too. There was so much potential in that damn description of the chicken dish, but… don’t fall for it!! It actually tasted like a dal curry (parippu curry, for those who know Kerala cusine). The fish curry wasn’t so great either, and for once I was complaining at the extravagant size of the portions. With Corner House nearby, the dessert menu is wasted, especially since it doesnt offer anything spectacular.

The service, for what its worth, was quite good, attentive and there were no delays at all. All of the above (including a bottle of mineral water for Rs.45) cost us just under Rs.750.

You’re advised to try out Sikandar (Garuda Mall) or Copper Chimney (Bangalore Central), both of which are in the vicinity and offer similar cuisine. The food is guaranteed to be better. (I realised I havent written about either place, shall do soon!!!)

On our way back, we noticed Chung Wah (on the same road) Once upon a time (when we came to bangalore), we had to wait to get a seat there, and now, on a Saturday night, there were all of 3 tables occupied. The times, they are a changin.

Kabul, # 45/3, Residency Cross Road, Ph: 08025580440

That name and the description – ‘a contemporary cuisine restaurant’, in a paper insert that said “Get greeted by an Italian host, experience western ambience, place your order for a continental dish with a chinese attendat (sic) to be cooked by a flame chef” meant that I really had to take a look myself, even though (for some strange reason) I had the same feeling I did when i bought tickets for Himesh’s Karzzz, this, despite it being a part of the Azad Group (the same that owns Tandoor)

To get there, (when coming from the Indiranagar side), after the Sony World junction, take a right turn on to the road that has William Penn, Barista etc, and then a left towards Jyoti Nivas college. The place is after the Apollo clinic, and before the Qwiky’s outlet.(both roads are one ways)

I’d begin with saying that whoever decided the name should take a long hard look at the menu card. My professional experience (brand) tells me that higher powers must have insisted on having ‘Tandoor’ in the name for some strange synergy only they can perceive. The menu is a mix of continental, oriental and a few north indian items. The issue is that there is very limited ‘depth’ in each category, with the continental part being slightly better off. For me, the very fact that a restuarant with such a name has Tabasco and HP sauce on the table jarred. Though the seating is quite comfortable, the ambience is also like the menu – lacks any specific theme. They play “9x music”.

Anyway, considering that there were only a couple of choices in chicken gravies, and we’d rather go to a specialised Oriental cuisine place if we wanted that, we decided to go Continental, and started with a Mushroom Cappuccino soup, which is “white wine and thyme flavoured cream of mushroom”. D asked for chicken in it too, and got it. Must admit that the soup was pretty good. They also gave us some bread with some special butter, which seemed to be mustard based.

For the main course, we ordered a Flame’s mix grill – “a combination of chicken, lamb, fried egg served with potato roesti and grilled tomato”, and Lasagna alla pollo – “baked layer of pasta with chicken bolognaise, parmesan and cheese sauce”. The mixed grill was strictly okay, i really have had better stuff – in terms of quality and quantity(at Indijoe, for example). The Lasagna was definitely better though the garlic flavor was a bit too much, but the quantity was quite sufficient.There were a few dessert options, including a rice kheer+strawberry ice cream combination, but we really didn’t feel adventurous enough.

Wallet wise, it set us back by a little less than Rs.700. The service is pretty decent, though  after every course, two people ask you how the food was.That gets irritating after a point. The pricing means that the target crowd is definitely not the JNC kids, who have way too many options around anyway. I really wish they’d concentrate on one kind of cuisine though, this spread really didn’t appeal to me.

Flame of Tandoor, #63, Near Jyothi Nivas College, Koramangala Industrial Layout. Ph: 41104337

PS. Okay, I admit, maybe I was just disappointed that the chef didn’t turn out to be one of the Fantastic 4. In my defence, ‘Flame chef’ is very misleading. The Italian host was missing too. Okay, I’ll stop nitpicking!!