South Indies: Mokka Junna Miriyalu Fry

Location: Bangalore (Indiranagar)

For a change I didn’t feel like cooking, I had had enough of north indian, Italian, burgers and sandwiches. I felt like having something different, something refreshing. I needed a change in taste. And because it was the end of a weekend, I needed something to cheer me up.

We (me and Sakshi) circled around on Indira Nagar 80 feet and 100 feet road thinking and re-thinking. We thought of several options but couldn’t decide where to dine. Then, it struck me. I decided to have my Sunday dinner at South Indies and try out some interesting south Indian options they had to offer.

As we were early, we got the table quickly and the waiter brought the menu. Along with it he got us some chips to munch on.

Their ‘Mokka junna miriyalu fry’ seemed to be especially tempting. This is basically baby corn marinated with crushed pepper , tamarind and besam flour served with three varieties of chutney. I wanted to try it for a looong time. The menu had an enlarged image of this and looking at it made my water. It tasted exactly the way it looked like in the menu … a-mazzing!!!

For the main course, we browsed through the menu and very quickly reached a consensus. We wanted to have their Appam and Kari Kari Stew. This stew is garden fresh vegetables cooked in a coconut milk based gravy, flavored with curry leaves and green chilies. This stew goes well with Appams and had been recommended by many friends.

The waiter came up to us and swiftly took our order on his i-phone.

The service was quick, I’m guessing probably because the order taking was computerized. The waiter takes order and sends it out. It is then automatically displayed on the digital signage along with serial number in the kitchen. The process is simple and quick. Coming back to food …

As soon as we had finished off the baby corn, he served us the stew. For the Appams there is always a live counter. It was delightful to have the freshly cooked steaming appam, served right off the pan. We ate off those in no time. For the repeat order we ordered the Podi Appam. This is appam sprinkled with a spicy masala and tastes even better.

We wanted to keep it light that day and so we stopped at this. But, there are several curry options here and you can accompany these with interesting varieties of dosa, roti, appam or parotta. Please click here for the menu.

I would suggest to all north Indians … Go on … do try if you want to have something beyond the regular.

Italian Khana

Location: Bangalore (Indiranagar)

I had not been for a buffet in a long time. I got the best excuse of going for one when I got up late last Tuesday. It was May Day and we had a holiday.

As it was already 10:30am when I got out of bed, I dint see any point in preparing breakfast. I woke-up my partner in crime (Sakshi) and suggested going for brunch.  As always, I started browsing on my smart phone for some good options. In just a few minutes we narrowed down to Little Italy weekday buffet brunch – one of the best in the city in my opinion. Probably the only place you get 100% vegetarian Italian food.

At the restaurant, we chose to sit outdoors.  As soon as we were seated the waiter arrived and then began a beautiful, splendid journey of Italian epicurean delights with a bit of Mexican tadka. And guys, let me share some of these visually … please don’t hate me for this gastronomical torture … though I love doing this to you all ;-))

Tossed veg. Salad from the Live Counter

Mixed sauce pasts with capsicum, sun dried tomatoes, broccoli and italian herbs

Here comes the wood burn pizza

Just can't stop ...

Here is another one ...

Crepe with fruits and chocolate sauce from the live counter ... yummylicious

Time for dessert

Everything wiped off the plate

Ahh mann ... im soo full ... 

One good thing about the buffet is that they serve you small quantities in a serving. That way you can taste everything and and enjoy the whole course from the starters to the dessert.


And guys let me tell you, the Weekend brunch offers more variety ... its bigger and better!!!

Pappu On The Highway

Location: Delhi-Agra Highway (NH2)

Dhabas are one of the best things about North India highways. Imagine going out with friends in the middle of the night and stopping  for parathe and chai . Or travelling between cities and stopping by for a hearty punjabi meal. Having food in the open at a dhaba during winters adds charm to the whole experience. This is something you cannot do down South.

The highways are dotted with clusters of little dhabas. Some great and some well … meh. Someone not familiar with the dhabas might land up at a very okay-ish kinda place and ruin the experience. So, all you lovely people reading this post, let me enlighten you.

The Delhi-Agra NH-2 was the most frequently travelled by me. It was mostly on the weekends with a bunch of friends. Stopping for food was a must.

The first choice from the plethora of dhabas for us was the Pappu Dhaba located midway between Delhi and Agra. Now you have to understand that there is loads of competition among these joints so there can be variations of pappu dhaba. So, be careful and go to the Asli Pappu Dhaba. That’s the authentic. Be prepared to wait for 10-15 mins for a table and another 15-20 mins for food. You might get lucky someday ;-)

Speciality here are the Parathas! You can order Tandoori or Tawa. And choose between Aloo, Gobhi, Paneer, Mix Veg., Onion, Mooli etc. etc. Huge in size, very rich in taste and soaked in ghee …  it’s how I can best describe them. Add a dollop of butter on top if you may :-p. They go very well with Dal Makhani and Curd. Of course a plateful of Tandoori rotis and Paneer are the people’s choice at any dhaba. And after all the food is eaten and gone, a glass of Chai is something you shouldn’t miss. Check out the menu on the left.

Easy on your pocket and great in taste, dhabas make up for one of the best gastronomical delights in northern India. I simply love them and always always visit one on my trips to UP/Delhi.

Some other great dhabas on NH2 are: Haveli (on way to Chandigarh), Gulshan (Delhi-Agra), Murthal (on way to Chandigarh), Sureya (Delhi-Agra, near Palwal), Akashdeep (Delhi-Agra, near Sikandara)

So HOMP at Pappu ... 

'V' for Veg.

Location: Thailand

If you travel to Thailand and worry about finding vegetarian food ... I have some news for you ...

The place for you is Burger King. The burger is awesome, way better and filling than a McDonald's. Thai McDees do not serve veg food anyway.

Better still they have veg. sides too ... who is a fan of hash browns? They are wonderful and the quantity they served amazed me. Fries again are grreat. I felt better than those of McDees again. Both these crispier and munchier! :-p

Apart from the usual ketchup they also serve another chilli sauce and that adds another refreshing change to the regular. It makes you go 'tchaa'!

They should open outlets in India soon :-/!

And yeah ... Subway serves Veggie Delight. so that's another good option.

They were a great help during my trip to Thailand! :-)

Both joints are dotted all over Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket so no need of carrying an overload of Mathris and Achar ;-)).

Ek Plate Idli

Location: Malleshwaram, Bangalore

Another one of relatively unknown joints for having the most amazing south indian breakfast is the 'Veena Stores'. Its immensely popular among the residents of that area or people like me who know about it :-). Its  a humble little shop in  Malleshwaram where cooking happens at the back and the front is the sale counter.

It starts serving at around 06:30am in the morning and I would say 6:30-7:00am is the best time to go there unless you are willing to stand in a queue for your breakfast.

The best bet there is the 'ek plate idli' (rice cake). Served piping hot along with mint/pudina flavoured coconut chutney, gives it just the right amount of originality with a difference ;-). And they are the softest idlis I've ever had! :-)

The Vada ( Indian Donut ;-) )  again are Hot, Crisp and fluffy..  you ought to have one of those!

The yellow-ed and ghee-ed (soaked in ghee) Khara Bhaat/Upma again is a grreat bet. Again served piping hot, it becomes a nice complement to the idlis.

They serve tea and filter coffee but nothing amazing here ...

All you early birds ... rise 'n' shine ... visit Veena! :-)

Gobble the Street! ;-))

Location: Bangalore (V.V. Puram)

One of the best places to experiment with street food, this place is similar to the Khaogalli in Mumbai.  A treat for the taste buds, a paradise to chomp on the local southy flavor. It’s called Food Street! A must visit for Rocky and Mayur (HOMP).

Raw Mango (kairi) and sweet corn masala chaat to get you started with a sweet tang

Idlis so light and feathery you can easily wipe off 8-10

Rice roti with an edge … and Ragi with a notch

Davengiri butterrr dosa cooked golden and crisp

Throw in some north Indian chaats for a twist … not recommended though

Finish off with the matchless, unparalleled, awesomessst Gulkand, Fruit, Ice Cream dessert … im sure you’ll be left wanting for more …

Oh and the the VV Bakery is famous for the Masala Bun …

And there lots to explore and devour on the go J Sharing a few glimpses …

Arre aap bhi lijiye

Just eat away ...

Dessert to die for ... and we thought Gulkand was just used in Paan (Beetle Leaf)

Khaye jao aur Shivanna ke gunn gaaye jao

So Long people … till then Happy Eating! J

Bedhai Jalebi

Location: Agra

Happy New Year friends!  Hope you had a wonderful time!

I spent the last few days of Dec 2011 in Agra.  The temperatures had plunged to near zero degree levels! In such a time you tend to crave for fresh and hot food throughout!  The mornings are foggy and freezingly cold.

In such a scenario what better breakfast than the best local flavor of Agra … sweet, spicy and hot … it’s called Bedhai Jalebi!! One of my favorite breakfast menu since my college days.

It may look like Poori Aloo at the first glance but I’ll tell you it’s not.  It’s a whole lot different in taste. The Bedhai (Poori things) have a light coating of masala, made of daal, besan and spices inside while the patato curry is spicy with added ingredients like Paneer, Green Chillis, Coriander Chutney with a dash of Cream (malai) on top. Oooh writing it about it makes me wanna have it again right now. Alas I’m back in Bangalore :(. Some things about the north are great and should not and cannot be ignored. Food, being one of them.

To give you respite from all the spiciness, the Jalebi is served along with the Bedhai. Freshly made, juicy, crispy and hot, it goes extremely well with it. Other sweets that also go well with this are Moong Dal Halwa and Gajar ka Halwa. These are also served by the joints.

Two best joints for this breakfast in Agra are Hukum Chand near Bhagwan Talkies (the curry here is spicier) and Deviram on M.G. Road.

Anyone visiting Agra must try this once! You can get it packed as well and have at home/hotel but it tastes best when had on the spot.

P.S. Bedhai Jalebi is generally had throughout the year. Cold Lassi is served along with this during Summers.