GI Restaurant Reviews http://www.gourmetindia.com/index.php Tue, 31 Aug 2010 04:57:36 +0000 5 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1460-mysore-mylari-dosa/ recent trip to Masinagudi , we stopped by at Mylari hotel in Mysore . The Vidyarthi Bhavan / CTR of Mysore. Its famous for its Masala Dosas .
The Dosas here are a stark contrast to what you get in Bangalore . Its not crispy nor is it easily filling . You can eat up to at least 5 Masala Dosas in a sitting compared to maybe 1 1/2 at Vidyarthi Bhavan or CTR.

The vegetable is complete different from what you would expect from a Masala Dosa. Its smashed up and absolutely delicious. Easily the 2nd best Dosa i have ever had (first being Vidyarthi Bhavan).

Here is the address :

Phone: 9448608710
Address: 79, Nazarbad , Mysore- 570010, Karnataka
Landmark: Near Nazarbad Police Station

Some Photos :

As you walk down the road ,




At the the Entrance :







The Dosas being brought out ! On a Sunday evening the rush was quite low compared to what a Bangalore hotel would have been ! But no change in the Quality of taste !





Had a filling 5 Masala Dosas @ Rs 18 / plate & nice hot cuppa coffee ! And ofcourse they dont have any branches so beware of cheap imitations of the same name ! Suggestion , if your near mysore definitely drop by at this Hotel !

Also updates on the Masinagudi trip here : http://www.gourmetindia.com/travel/topic/5695-planning-on-a-trip-to-masinagudi/]]> Tue, 31 Aug 2010 04:57:36 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1460-mysore-mylari-dosa/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1459-himachal-pradesh-manali-restaurants/ Himachal Pradesh/ Manali Restaurants]]> Tue, 31 Aug 2010 04:25:14 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1459-himachal-pradesh-manali-restaurants/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1420-maiyas-restaurant/


]]> Sun, 18 Jul 2010 08:56:06 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1420-maiyas-restaurant/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1300-restaurant-menus/
Here in SA it's really only in the more upscale nouvelle cuisine restaurants that you find small menus with only a few different options, most restaurants, even some of the better ones, offer large, sometimes massive, menus with all kinds of different dishes that typically range from grilled steaks and venison to seafood, vegetarian and even sushi.

I find it quite interesting what people make of it....for me personally it always makes me a worry a little bit when I see such big menus with so many different dishes and styles of cooking, because I wonder how good the food can be if they are trying to cater for everyone's tastes. From a business perspective I also feel it makes more sense to clearly define your target market and then focus on delivering the right quality at the right price for your market, rather than trying to do a little of everything to suit everyone.

I got to thinking about this when, a few nights ago, we went out for dinner at one of Cape Town's more well-known and trendy restaurants, one with a huge menu. My wife ordered their teriyaki glazed salmon and it turned out to be far from fresh, in fact it tasted so terrible, she didn't eat any of it at all. When we spoke to the waiter about it, he replied that the problem is it's one of the least popular dishes on the menu, so it doesn't sell very often (which I took to mean that it had probably been in the freezer for quite a while).

Now, wouldn't it be better for this restaurant to rather not serve salmon at all and sacrifice that one extra option on the menu, rather than try to impress with variety and serve up an inferior product?]]> Sat, 24 Apr 2010 17:18:05 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1300-restaurant-menus/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1291-opening-a-restaurant-in-india/
As my profile mentions, I am planning to move to India soon and I hope to open a restaurant of my own in Mumbai. Now I've been trawling the web trying to find websites on the restaurant trade in India and especially Mumbai, but I seem to be coming up with nothing. Would anyone be so kind as to point me in the right direction?

Thanks!
Eugene]]> Sat, 17 Apr 2010 18:57:58 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1291-opening-a-restaurant-in-india/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1241-pizzahut-dining-restaurant-best-place-for-fast-food-lovers/
The restaurant was reasonably attractive with the trademark deep red colored walls and windows all round. They provide for a good selection of both, vegetarian and non-vegetarian items. The first thing we ordered from the menu was my son’s favorite, Garlic Bread Platter followed by other starters including Potato Criss Cuts, Arrabbiata Pasta and Masala Lemonade.

The garlic bread came on a large white plate with a buttery green substance on top which was obviously the garlic butter. The smell of garlic was phenomenal and extremely mouth watering too. The criss cuts were fairly golden brown in color, garnished with tangy salad severed with cheese dip which we all enjoyed religiously. My husband really loved the Arrabbiata pasta which included exotic black olives in a rich tangy tomato sauce served with a piece of crusty garlic bread. Post the starters we arrived at the main part of the menu, the huge variety of different and incredibly tempting pizzas.

Pizza Hut is perhaps best known for their pan pizzas - named so because they are baked in a deep-dish pan in an oven, generally round, bread. We ordered for a Teekha Paneer Makhani and Margherita. We thoroughly relished the Masala Lemonade with Teekha Paneer Makhani Pizza which was stuffed with soft and fresh panner, capsicum, onion, red paprika and lots of mozzarella cheese put generously with tandoori sauce. Our final indulgence went well with its name Trio Temptation, which is a medley of three scoops-Chocolate, Fruit and Honey Crunch with choco sticks.

Overall, we were very impressed with the lovely ambience, great taste, amazing variety and above-average service offered by Pizza Hut.]]> Thu, 25 Feb 2010 08:22:03 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1241-pizzahut-dining-restaurant-best-place-for-fast-food-lovers/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1198-el-bulli-to-shut-down/ elBulli takes a step forward
world's best restaurantDuring his speech at the Madrid Fusion Summit, Ferran Adrià
outlined the action plan of elBulli for the years 2010-2020.

In 2012 elBulli will celebrate 50 years since its conception, so Ferran Adrià and
Juli Soler have decided to commemorate this anniversary with the closure of
one cycle and the beginning of a new phase, in which a radical approach to the
creative process and the pursuit of new challenges and stimulus will be the
main priority.

Based on this approach, the agenda of elBulli for the coming years will be the
following one:
1) In 2010, elBulli will open from 15th June until 20th December.

2) The opening calendar of elBulli for 2011 will be released during
September 2010.

3) elBulli will remain closed to the public during 2012 and 2013. This
period will be devoted to thinking, planning and preparing the new
format for subsequent years:

a. In consequence, this will allow elBulli to have two creative
centres: elBullitaller, currently located on Portaferrissa Street in
Barcelona, and elBullirestaurant itself in Cala Montjoi.

b. During this time all the know-how about elaborations, techniques
and styles acquired after 30 years of creative research will be
analysed, and the results of said work will be compiled in a
comprehensive and thorough encyclopaedia.

4) elBulli will open again in 2014, constantly challenging the possibilities
of the concept of a restaurant, based on the following criteria:

a. Research will be prioritized over production.

b. Each season will be different in terms of opening dates and times,
capacity of the restaurant in terms of diners, staff, etc.., going
beyond the pursuit of innovation that elBulli has been undertaking
ever since the decision was made, among other things, to open
only for 6 months, offer only one sitting per day and cancel the
standard menu.]]> Thu, 28 Jan 2010 02:05:54 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1198-el-bulli-to-shut-down/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1135-joladajowar-roti-meals-in-bangalore/
Nalapaaka in Rajajinagar is a huge crowd puller. They serve 2 kinds of rotis on somedays (probably weekends?) - the crisp N Karnataka version like a papad and the usual soft one. Yennegai , an Usal, an addictive mirchi bajji ( it is not fried, but stuffed very lightly with a besan mix), majjige, rice, rasam,sambhar and payasa are served. For some reason , if you opt for no rice and have as many rotis as you wish, you pay Rs.37 and if you do have rice, your bill is Rs.73.
You get everything except the rice,rasam and sambhar for the former price, so its a no brainer to just stick to the rotis.

The service is not very quick and the rotis are sometimes not very hot. You might have to wait for 15- 20 mins on weekends as it is very popular in these parts.These are minor quibbles, overall it is still a very good place.

They also have other NK specialities like mandakki and davangere dosa at non meal times and i'd like to try them out sometime.

A brand new find on MG Road called Emgee's (dont think the Mahatma would have approved) also serves a very good jowar roti thali.
This is a tad more expensive at 100 bucks, but the place is air conditioned and is probably the only thali place where you use finger bowls at the end.

Service is excellent and in addition to the usual suspects in the Thali, they also serve a very good kosambri and a dry vegetable. They are very generous with their Tuppa (ghee), the best companion to a fresh off the tava roti.

It was almost empty when i went. I hope people patronise this place so they dont shut down. It is very good value for money in an excellent location ( right next to higginbothams)

The Yennegai in both aforementioned places is made with Naati (local) brinjals and not Bt brinjals (a personal preference, am very suspicious of GM veggies)]]> Tue, 17 Nov 2009 04:28:30 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1135-joladajowar-roti-meals-in-bangalore/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1045-kubay-bangalore/ Thu, 13 Aug 2009 05:18:50 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/1045-kubay-bangalore/ http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/963-aloro-restaurant-at-the-oterra-hotel/
We were greeted by Chef David Bassan who started off our gastronomic odyssey with an amuse bouche of tiny thin crust pizzas baked at their wood fired oven. With toppings of sundried tomatoes, basil, asparagus and mozzarella cheese, they were perfectly done and we were told that it was merely to whet the appetite. Perhaps the imported Italian flour made all the difference.

The menu was chosen by Suresh in advance and so we started with -

Insalata di carciofi, pere e formaggio di capra con lame di tartufo nero. Salad of artichokes, pears and goat cheese with black truffle shavings.
The artichoke was tender and well done while the alternating textures and flavours of crisp lightly caramelized pear, tart cheese and musky undertones of truffles certainly hit the spot. One salivated for more truffles but hesitated from asking, given the latest international pricing of the black truffle from Northern Italy’s Piedmont Province registering at 3000 euros per kilo.

Millefoglie di granchio con pomodoro e sedano, acetosella all’arancia. Crab meat “mille feuille” with tomato and celery served with orange dressing


This arrived as a dome of crabmeat, chopped tomatoes and celery on a pastry base. The orange dressing complimented the buttery crabmeat and was of a melt in the mouth consistency. The chef when complimented, proudly spoke of how he personally inspects the day’s purchases for freshness and the necessity for the right amount of cooking time and temperature.

Noci di cappesante in manto di petto d’oca affumicato e foglie di idivia appena scottata. Baked sea scallops, wrapped in smoked duck breast, served on endive leaves

The texture was creamy with a nutty undertone and a hint of sweetness. The saltiness of the smoked duck breast wrapped around the scallops seemed to make the latter still taste a little of the sea.
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Ravioli di salmone con crema agli asparagi. Fresh salmon ravioli with asparagus sauce

The previous dishes having set a rather high benchmark, this one proved to be a little bit of a disappointment for while the Salmon was fresh and well done and the asparagus sauce coating the ravioli complimented the delicate flavour, the dough seemed a bit tough around the edges.

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Lutiano Dorato arrosto con crosta di pistacchi, al melograno e balsamico invecchiato. Roasted red snapper with pistachio crust, pomegranate and aged balsamic vinegar

The pistachio encrusted fillet of Red Snapper was just fork tender and the 10 years aged Balsamic vinegar and pomegranate helped add the highlights to the moist fish. As the Italians themselves would say – Molto Buono


Carré di agnello in crosta di erbe mediterranee con scalogni caramellati, salsa al basilico e cracker al pecorino. Rack of lamb in a crust of Mediterranean herbs, caramelized shallots and basil sauce with Pecorino cheese flavoured cracker

Tender chops flown in from New Zealand surrounded by the sweetness of caramelized shallots. My protests of the meat not done well enough at the bone were brushed aside by Suresh who averred that my palate had been spoilt by too much of Indian style chops. I mutely nodded and proceeded to demolish the last slivers of meat on my plate.

We paused for a breather to take in the interiors of the Aloro,which though appealing, seemed plain compared to the rest of the hotel. The only concession to a theme based décor would have been the mosaic floors and the brick lined walls of the live pizza counter which was faintly reminiscent of a country style Italian kitchen. Perhaps the emphasis was meant to be deliberately on the food and the beautiful food sculpture.

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Though by this stage we were completely sated we proceeded further to the dolce, dessert as a nice closing paranthesis to the meal - tiramisu served in a glass, chocolate cannelloni stuffed with ricotta cheese and coffee crème brulee,

Lastly Coffee and a smorgasbord of decadent moulded chocolates were placed before us but we remembered that the wages of gluttony is breadth and wisely refrained!

We left with the satisfaction of having had a true fine dining experience. Some of the chefs have honed their skills at the best hotels across the globe.The service was exemplary and the waiters seemed well informed of all aspects of the dishes.

Would we go again? Given that most of the restaurants in the city dole out standard (mis) representations of excessively seasoned and sauce slathered pasta in the name of Italian cuisine and that the food here is light, almost ephemeral, made with olive oils, vinegars, flours, condiments sourced from artisinal producers, we certainly would.

Average meal for two would come upto Rs. 2000 /-
A selection of wines and liquor available.

Usha Vijayaraghavan]]> Tue, 28 Apr 2009 13:51:34 +0000 http://www.gourmetindia.com/topic/963-aloro-restaurant-at-the-oterra-hotel/