Some of us eat to live, some others live to eat….

… it goes without saying that I belong to the latter group who live to eat!!! I am a self pronounced foodie who loves to cook for others and eat what others cook. Now, whether there is a message in that statement is for everyone to guess and for me to make…

Before I look at some of the places to miss and not miss in Bangalore, I must admit three things- I am a “full-too” meat eater, I am not a party-goer and am a complete tea-a-holic. So, those looking for vegetarian, disco and alcoholic suggestions might want to give this piece a pass. However, I do pub hop occasionally to sip in some mocktails and listen to some great music.

Tea

If you are looking for some great tea and looking at options outside of your regular Assam tea, Darjeeling Divine and the like, then “Infinitea” at Cunningham road is the place to be. They serve a variety of tea ranging from black to green to Chinese and flower-based tea. The latter is fun. Your tea leaves come in the form of a ball and opens up to a flower form when brewed. The Greenita and Chinese white tea is a must-have along with a limited but well prepared spread of appetizers of companions in this case, i.e- Bruschetta, momos & Bengali Samosas. If you feel adventurous then try the chilly-tea. But, I must admit- take it at your own peril.

Ambience: Neat, full of tea and tea cups.
Cost: 2 glasses of tea each and a couple of starters should cost you around Rs.700-800

Chinese Food

I discovered something post my trip to Hong Kong and Uncle Sam’s country recently- An Indian can only eat “Indian Chinese” food. It really is a case of “Indie-Cheen bhai bhai!!!” The authentic Chinese food that is served abroad is a far cry from the ones we get here. Our food is much spicier than the bland original served in the far-east or south east of Asia. But some of the Chinese food that is served in Bangalore has seen a greater fusion with Andhra Chinese being a norm at most of your friendly neighbourhood eateries. The Chilly chicken almost feels a south Indian sambar/rasam mix inspired Chinese gravy. And the Chicken Hunan invariably has more chilly powder than what the entire bunch of Chinese cooks in China have ever seen.

There are very few places that can really claim to serve Authentic Chinese food in Bangalore. Unless you want me to write on which eatery serves the best Kannada Chinese and Andhra Chinese food. Hailing from an urban middle class family, I will confine my suggestions to hotels that fit our wallet, albeight a tad pushing it. That only goes to say that I would not be recommending some of the other finer options in the 5 & 7- stars of our city.

China Pearl in Koramangla and Mainland China in Domlur are 2 places that I would recommend anytime.

China Pearl serves some of the best crispy thread like chicken and also a Thai chicken fry with sweat and sour sauce. For someone who does not like sweet & sour variants, this is a clear move away.
Ambience: Very Chinese with loads of red. Nothing too flash!!! Major concern here is the difficulty in finding parking during peak hours coupled with the lack of valet support.

Price: A full course meal for 2 should cost you anywhere between Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200.

Mainland China is a perfect Chinese show-stopper and serves some really good authentic Chinese food. The closest to the real thing with necessary ‘Indianization’ in terms of that little bit of extra spice. The pan fried noodles; both vegetarian and chicken served here is the clear winner. Try out some of the bland Chinese variants of Fish that are really well cooked with lime and other sauces blending in really well. Love the Chinese tea they keep serving through our meal.

Ambience: Nothing too flash again!!! More than enough for a good meal. Excellent service. Only irritant I find is their push to get you to buy a loyalty card which actually gives your nothing in terms of benefit. Come on, who is going to visit the same hotel some 20 times to get a discount.

Price: A full course meal for 2 should cost you anywhere between Rs 1,300- Rs1,500


Afghani/Persian Food

Your search for Afghani/Persian food should end at “Samarkand” Simply the best hotel in Bangalore in terms of an overall dining experience, food quality and options. Book your place before hand. Sometimes even 2 days in advance to get the time slot you want. This place is crowded and swarmed most times with corporate outings and family gatherings.

One starts off with a selection of sauce and bread sticks to dip. The sauce in itself is so engaging that we tend to binge on the freebie until the food arrives.

The Chandni Kabab served here is my closest experience with nirvana. The flavour merges into the meat really well and along with the Reshmi kabab offers foodies what we call a real-lip smacking proposition. They serve a mutton variant (the name of which I can’t quite remember) that simply defies logic. The mutton is cooked over night in low flame and hence blends in really well with the spice and the meat is so tender that it leaves you wondering whether it really is mutton. Slightly spicier than the kabab varients I talked about, but just a dream mix of spices and well cooked mutton. The saffron rice is probably the simplest preparation you would ever have and that is really the USP of this dish. The rotis (bread) are made slightly differently and are thicker and slightly heavier on the tummy.

Don’t miss the Bakhlava (a desert that tastes like a chocolaty wafer) and the soup which is nothing but chicken/ mutton stalk.

Ambience: Really well designed with dark lighting, artificial ceiling with stars in the sky and waiters who are decked up aptly. An informative menu with details of the food served and its origins is a good read while you wait for the food.

Price: A full course meal (and I must admit no foodie can do else-wise) for 2 will cost you around Rs 1,800- Rs 2,200. Alcoholic drinks not included.
Two other places that are really good and a must visit, but some steps below the real King I listed above are “Ummerkot” in Koramangla and “Raaga” in CMH Road. The latter is slightly lighter on the wallet and serves some of the finer deserts in the form of kheer/phirni. Most parts of the menu of all the three hotels are similar; the only difference could be in the name. Hence, if you are in one part of the town, you need not drive all the way elsewhere for a particular hotel in Bangalore traffic, as your dining experience is not going to changing much, barring that at Samarkand.

I had this hilarious experience when I asked a waiter in one of these hotels that I need something similar to the Chandni Kabab they serve in Samarkand as I cant find it here. He showed me a particular dish with a straight face and said, “This is more or less the same thing, it’s just named differently.” The taste varied slightly and that I presume is more so because of the Chef’s and process followed being different and not because the ingredients used are any different.

Next week, I will come up with some more interesting places to dine at for North Indian, South Indian, Punjabi, Sea food, Continental and Italian cuisines.


Note: Please note that I had visited some of these hotels several months back as I simply could not have visited all of these hotels in the last month, unless I am some sort of corporate lunch companion (I meant VP’s & Directors in MNCs ). Hence, some of the items in the menu or service levels could have changed.