Eating it out @ Bali

Location: Bali, Indonesia

We visited Bali this September and I have to say the trip was great. We had good fun and it was a nice break from routine. The trip was of course highlighted with some great eating joints we tried. And yes, there WAS mouthwatering vegetarian available.  Here are three places I most enjoyed:

The Earth Cafe

The Earth Café:  This one is located in Seminyak and serves only vegetarian food. The menu is also complimented with super healthy drinks; classified as tonics, antioxidants, energy boosters etc.. The place is cheerful and has this earthy rustic feel, thus justifying its name. Several foreigners throng the place indicating a growing consciousness and preference towards vegetarianism. We went here twice and tried several items from their menu. Falafel with hummus was brilliant. Planet Platter was just okay but the stir crazy noodles was great. Black beans burrito was decent and their Spaghetti with some kind of vegetable balls was really good! And I loved their drink called ‘bali boost’. A must try if you fall in the vegetarian/health-conscious category. Service is good but you might have to wait just a little while before the food arrives at your table. Read reviews here.

Planet Platter

Super healthy drinks

Stir crazy noodles

Mykonos: This one serves Greek cuisine. Yes Greek and we managed to find decent veg options yet again. The ambience was pleasant and the service was very quick. Prices were low-average. We enjoyed here in their open air seating. Read reviews here.

Trying Greek at Mykonos

Sasa’Ristorante: We were famished and decided to give sasa a try. The façade looked inviting and we chose a corner table for two all set to enjoy our meal. While the food was great, the service was pathetic. It was extremely slow and the waiter failed to take our order correctly. However, I will give 5 stars to the food. The garlic bread was awesome. We tried the basic Margherita with extra mushroom and it was simply awesome! We had to cancel our order for the remaining dish we had ordered as it was taking them forever to get it. Had it not been for the bad service this could have been a great experience. Read reviews here.

I hope this was helpful for people planning to visit Bali sometime soon (esp. veg folks). If you have been to some good food joints in Bali, I’d love to hear from you. With numerous places to try, this is what I had for now. Cheers!

Related posts: Eating it out @ Pondy

Vegetables in Hot n Sweet Curry

You Need (serves 2-3):

• 6-7 tomatoes
• 2-3 green chilies
• 5-6 button mushrooms
• 2 white onions
• 1 capsicum
• 1 carrot
• 5-6 baby corn
• Tofu 150-200 gm
• Olive Oil
• Salt, Pepper

For the curry, we need to prepare the sauce and the vegetables.

Take the vegetables (capsicum, mushroom, white onion, baby corn) and tofu , chop them they way you like, sauté them and keep aside. Tofu would be square or rectangular pieces of equal size generally and the carrot will have to lightly boiled.

For the sauce, take 6 medium sized tomatoes, cut them into big pieces and keep aside. Add about two chopped green chilies and grind them in a mixer.

Take 2-3 tsb of olive oil in a non-stick wok. Add 2 large spoonful of ginger garlic paste and lightly fry it for 3-5 minutes. Add the tomato and green chilli paste to the wok. Add salt to taste and let it cook on medium heat for 10-12 minutes.

Add about 3 large spoons of tomato ketchup and 3 large spoons of red chili sauce to give the sauce a hot and sweet flavor. Add the sautéed vegetables and tofu cubes to the wok. Add freshly ground pepper on top and let it simmer for 1-2 mins. The curry is ready!

Tastes good with steamed rice or basil rice.

Go ahead, try out this simple recipe and enjoy!

Holland Village: A foodie's delight

Location: Holland Village, Singapore

Holland Village is a foodie’s delight! Located in west Singapore it has numerous casual dining options along with several watering holes. The area has its own MRT station and Bus Stops making it very convenient to get there.

On offer here are various local and specialty eateries – Mexican, Indian, Japanese etc. along with fast food and dessert joints. It also houses a large food court serving mainly local cuisine. Find out restaurants in Holland V here.

This place is a crowd puller especially the evenings where you will find a lot of foreigners and expatriates thronging the place. After around 6:00pm the street is cordoned off with temporary barriers allowing no vehicles. The merry making and food & drinks practically spill out onto the street. The music, food and the camaraderie lend a wonderful festive atmosphere to the place.

As of now I've only tried one restaurant here called ‘AlPatio’. It serves Mexican cuisine and is quite popular among the crowd. Like everything else it has limited vegetarian options but was worth one try. The ambiance was pleasant and service was good. The food was decent but not extraordinary.

To satisfy my taste buds I tried some chocolate dipped churros at Churrosity and these turned out to be sweet cinnamon laden delights.

Of course I'm not done yet. I would like to go back there and try other options. You are welcome to join me :-)

Anyone else been to Holland V? Do share your experience or recommend eateries to try out ...

Here are a few captures:

Marché: A unique marketplace restaurant

Location: 313 Somerset, Orchard Road, Singapore

This Friday, we went to a really great place at 313 Somerset, Singapore. I had been wanting to visit a Marché restaurant and I got my chance this weekend. And what an experience it was!

Marché stands for healthy nutrition and offers food that is cooked right before your eyes. This is a chain of restaurants serving freshly cooked Swiss cuisine. The place is built in the form of a European marketplace along with European style seating and interiors. The place is thoughtfully created and offers a warm and cozy ambiance.

This is how the system works. You queue at the entrance - the host hands you cards which will get swiped for your purchases within the market restaurant – you then follow the Maître de who takes you to your table - once you are seated he/she will place a ‘reserved’ sign on it - now you are free to roam around in the restaurant, make your purchases and enjoy them at your table - once done you again queue up at the counter, pay the amount accumulated in the restaurant card and you are done.

It offers a wonderful variety of beverages, antipasti, rostis, pizza, pasta, crepes, salads and desserts. You get to choose your ingredients and watch the chefs create magic with them right in front of your eyes! And need I say about the quality and taste? As stated by the restaurant itself the ingredients are all very fresh. And the food was delicious, full of brilliant flavors and served with appetizing sides. I had a great first experience at Marché and I’m now a big fan of this place. The concept of a market place restaurant is unique and that is what greatly enhances the whole experience. I loved it! Of course one visit is not enough to try all that you want to and I’m definitely going back there again.

Here is a splash of the place and the food we tried:

Remember the bells from DDLJ?

The Dessert counter

Plain Potato Rosti with sour cream

Vegetable & Cheese Savory Crepe

Tea & Coffee counter

My cappuccino and some weird tea from Egypt for wifey

I'm so happy... ain't I? Great food has that affect on me!

So what do you think about this place? Have any of you been to Marché or similar concept restaurants? Do share your experiences/thoughts.

Cheese Corn Balls

You Need (Makes 8-10 balls):

• 1 Cup Sweet Corn
• 1 Cup Processed Cheese (Grated)
• 1-2 Green Chilies
• 2 Spoons Maida (White Flour)
• 1 Spoon Cornflour
• Salt, Pepper to taste

Preparation: Boil the corn for 2-3 minutes. Put the corn in the mixer and give it a very slight grind (just run the mixer for like 2-3 seconds, 1-2 times) so that you have the corn in small chunks.

In a bowl, add the cheese, maida, corn flour and seasonings to the corn. Add some water and mix it all well, so that you have a doughy kind of a mix.

Spread some oil onto your hands and roll the mix into small balls. Fry in heated oil on high flame.

You are done! Serve hot and yummy cheese corn balls with some sauces and enjoy!

Do share how they turned out for you. Also, share if you have similar simple snack recipes.

Sa-nook: The Thai Express

Location: Clementi Mall, Singapore

We were just strolling around in our neighborhood Clementi Mall and spotted the Thai Express restaurant. A blown up menu of its special offerings on the restaurant glass made us realize that it did serve vegetarian options. (Here is a selection of their veg. menu). Impromptu, we decided to give it a try.

Here is what we tried from their vegetarian menu:

Tom Yum Hed Nang Fah (Tom Yum oyster mushroom soup)

This was hot 'n' spicy! But they had the freshest mushrooms and cilantro in there and the broth had this lemony tang and the zest of lemon grass. The aroma was just so pleasingly oriental ... almost calming to the mind. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Spageti Phad Kee Moa Kaab Pak (Thai-style stir-fried spicy spaghetti with vegetable, tofu and Thai herb)

As stated on their menu this was spicy!!! Actually way too spicy but it did have delectable flavors. It opened up the taste buds with the hotness and after a time I started to enjoy it while my taste buds ignored the hotness. They served the dish with powdery sides of chilli flakes and groundnut which was something new for me.

And, a chilled glass of iced tea to cool off some of the hotness. Again this had the lemon grass flavor which made it different from what you get in India. The refreshment it offered was worth my money.

Vegetarians: Here is another veggie option for you in Singapore! Has anyone tried Thai Express anywhere? Do share what you tried...

Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice

Hi All,

Introducing 'Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice', a short personal documentary compiled by Astha Prakash.

Hope you all Enjoyed it! :-)