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Experiencing great North Indian food at The Yellow Chilli, Goa!

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

When you are away from your home town, apart from missing your loved ones back home, you miss the typical home food the most. During my recent trips to Goa, one evening I was really missing the typical Indian food, especially the Dal Makhani and some Butter Naans and then I remembered The Yellow Chilli by Sanjeev Kapoor which is housed in the very famous Mall de Goa and I immediately jumped with joy, grabbed hold of my friends and we all headed straight to the restaurant.

The quirkiness of the places catches your attention immediately, with some amazing caricatures adorning the walls. The seating is casual dining type and is apt for families and youngsters both.

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To begin with we settled for some Masala Papad, Dahi Ke Kebab, Tangra Chilly Paneer, Lehsuni Murg Tikka and Chanak Tawa Masala. The Chanak Tawa Masala was easily the best dish, nice and crispy fish with a flavourful masala and I simply loved it. The Lehsuni Murg Tikka was another delightful preparation, the chicken was mouth meltingly soft and the taste of garlic was just right.

Dahi Ke Kebabs were nicely done and I loved the small innovation of adding a bit of cheese in the centre, which tasted quite well. The Chilly Paneer was good, but could have been better, as the taste of salt and garlic overpowered everything else.

For drinks, we tried Jaljeera, Butterscotch Caramel and Tarbooza and all of them were good. I personally loved the Jaljeera, my friend ended up ordering the Butterscotch Caramel twice so I am very sure it would be awesome too.

For the mains we settled for Lalla Mussa Dal, a hot favourite at the Yellow Chilly and Ghee Roasted Chicken. Both the dishes were great, and we relished them with butter naans.

Bebinca with butter made for our dessert and it was delicious. You can’t miss on trying a bebinca especially when in Goa. Overall it was a great experience of having typical North Indian food in Goa and satiating my taste buds to the fullest. So when in Goa do try the Yellow Chilly and I am sure you will love it.

The Yellow Chilli Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Dakshin Food Festival at Crowne Plaza Rohini!

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

The word Dakshin, by default doesn’t excite me much, because I am not a big fan of South Indian Cuisine, but recently when my foodie friends decided to visit the DAKSHIN Food Festival at Crowne Plaza Rohini, I reluctantly agreed. I am so glad that I actually went, because my perception of the Dakshin food changed completely, it was so so good that I can actually now say that I relished it.

The spread was an elaborate one and offered wide variety of dishes for both vegetarians and non-vegetarians. I tried quite few things and I have to admit that I loved each one of them. Some of them need a special mention, The Rawa Fish was an amazing preparation, crispy outer coating to an otherwise tender fish, it just melted in mouth. Chonka Idly, Maysore Bonda and Paneer 65 were other delightful preparations. I loved the tiny tiny crisp idly a lot. Mulagu Vada too was a delectable dish and so were Chicken 65 and Meen Pollichathu.

Then we tried the Veg Stew with Appam and it was simply delicious. Rasa Omelette was a dish that stood out for its awesome flavours. Ulli Theeyal Mutton and Mangalorian Fish Curry were relished with Malabari Paranthas and trust me they were drool worthy.

After a hearty platter of desserts, we ended our culinary trip to Dakshin, without having to go their actually and enjoyed ourselves to the core. Now I can say that I look forward to more such festivals and I am extremely open to explore more South Indian dishes.

Secrets in the Spice Mix- Book Launch by Pankaj Bhadouria at Piali, CP

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Pankaj Bhadouria, has been a household name ever since she won the title of first Master Chef India, and there has been no looking back for her. Her constant growth in terms of her cooking skills and her overall persona has been an inspiration to many women who used to think that cooking is only a duty and not a passion that can turn your life around. But Pankaj has proved her mettle over and over again, and more recently by launching her 5th book, she not only proves her capabilities as a chef but also tries touching a million chords by giving her readers exactly what they need.

Food is synonymous to breath for her and spices are the essence of it. Her journey of teaching kids in a classroom to teaching young chefs and cooks the art of making food is one of its kind. Right after winning the competition she has come to the world imparting her culinary skills to the world through the form of shows or books.

The right blend of spices is crucial to Indian cooking and it’s the combination of different spices that make some dishes so hard to resist. India’s First MasterChef Pankaj Bhadouria has identified around 50 such spice mixes with a tantalizing recipe following each spice mix which can be made at home. With 4 books to be acclaimed for, Pankaj’s 5th book, The Secrets in the Spice Mix, helps you make these wonderful spices at the comfort of your home and infuse some authentic flavours to your everyday cooking.

Chosen Piali, The Curry Bistro, as the venue for launch of her book, Panjak went on to conduct a live cooking session as well.

Piali’s menu is one of its kind and what makes it different is the class of curry and the spices that go into making them what they are! One such dish on the menu is the Thai Curry. Pankaj not only shared her secret spices and signed the books for her followers but also demonstrated the cooking of the Thai curry live for the present audience.

“I am really excited to be launching my secrets at Piali and the following live cooking session. I am happy to be able to share them with my audiences and where better than a place which savors the spices the most!” said an eager Pankaj.

Upon being asked what her favourite cuisine and dish was, she said it without any apprehensions that her favourite cuisine for sure is Indian, and she loves home cooked Khichdi, for the simplicity of the dish. Here is a glimpse of the event coverage right from the Piali’s Facebook Page.

She is such a down to earth person, that meeting her overtime, leaves me inspired totally. She fills me with so much of gratitude and warmth. I wish Pankaj all the success for her book, and stay tuned, will be sharing the book review and a recipe from it soon as I am currently reading my personally signed copy of the book, and in my kitchen trying the recipes.

 

 

Sixth Empirica- Restaurant Review

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Sixth Empirica, the latest connoisseur of multi cuisine food abodes the Main Club Road, Punjabi Bagh. Spread across two floors and a beautiful roof-top, 6th Empirica, the brain-child of the brother sister trio- Ankit Kapoor, Ekta Chhabra and Shweta Sehgal presents forth a lavish space for family and friends to enjoy a gala time.

I recently went to this place, though it was very far from my place, but as I missed attending the launch party, I thought I might at least go post launch for a food review session.

To my disappointment, the beginning was at a wrong note as the service was too slow, we were served the drinks and starters almost after one hour of wait. This is something I really want them to improve big time. This kind of a delay that too when not too many tables were occupied is not expected from a restaurant of this stature and should be rectified without a doubt.

Now coming to food, I was served Chicken Manchow Soup to begin with, along with an array of mocktails to taste. The soup was really nice and I loved their garlic chilly sauce which was served along with it. The mocktails too were nice, I personally liked the Kiwi and Strawberry one.

For starters, It was the Lebanese Platter, The Tandoori Non Veg Platter and Black Bean Fish Kebab for non vegetarians and Empirica Tandoori Kacha Aaloo Al Ankat, Empirica Paneer Tikka Parmigiana and Veg Kalmi Vada Kebab for vegetarians. The Lebanese Platter had 3 different types of chicken shish touk and the entire platter was good. The non veg platter had fish tikka, chicken malai tikka, chicken seekh kebab and chicken tikka, the chicken malai tikka and fish tikka were the best amongst all, did not like the seekh kebab much as I expected them to be really tender, but they were not. The chicken tikka was normal. The Black Bean Fish Kebab was just about ok, again I expected it to be really different and great, different yes it was, but not too great. In the veg selection I tried the kacha aaloo, which was actually too kacha, it was so difficult to break it even with a knife, I don’t know if oven baked potato is meant to be so hard and raw, at least for me, it doesn’t work.

The main course was better than the starters for sure and it is quite unusual for me, because at most places the starters top the chart. We tried the Gosht Nihari, Chicken So Changezi, Paneer Mughlai Lajawab, Veg Biryani and Dal Makhani, and these dishes were good. I specially liked the Chicken Changezi and Nihari in non veg and Dal Makhani in veg.

The Pineapple Halwa, which was served for dessert was definitely the best dish I that day. To conclude I would say that the food is average and can be improved and service like I mentioned needs a big time boost. They have ample space to cater to large groups and n number of customers, but without these improvisations, the decor and space won’t matter. I wish them all the best.

The Masala Trail Experience at Ansal Plaza

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

After a successful restaurant at CP followed by presence in the food court of DLF Mall of India, Noida, and a couple of other places, The Masala Trail by Osama Jalali found its foothold in the revamped mall of Ansal Plaza. Having tried food at both CP restaurant and Mall of India, I was fully aware of the speciality regional food that it offers and also certain what to order and what not to orders.

This time I started my culinary experience by ordering Amritsari Paneer Tikka, Mumbai Ka Ragda Pattice and the tried and tested Tower Chaat. The Paneer Tikka was nicely done, and I liked it. I ordered Ragda Pattice because I have been missing Mumbai food, though nothing can ever match that local taste, but this Ragda Pattice was quite nice. The spices were perfect, it was tasteful and delicious. The Tower Chaat undoubtedly one of the best dishes on the menu. We also ordered Spring Rolls, but I found them too oily so gave a skip. You can try the Vada Pao though, its nice.

Another regional food that I had been looking forward to try since long was the Bihari Litti Chokha, so I thought why not give it a try. To be honest, I found the taste of mustard too overpowering for my personal liking, though I loved the Chokha, but those who have the taste for mustard, admired it a lot. So if you don’t have an issue with the mustard taste, go ahead and try this one. Recommendations came in very strongly by my friends.

One of my friends ordered the Banana Poori, for me it was a dish probably I won’t have ever ordered myself, but I would have certainly missed something good if I didn’t. Thank god for my friend, she ordered, I tried and loved it. The Banana Pooris, with a hint of sweetness were so soft and good, that I did not even feel like trying the sabzi along with it, the poori in itself was more than sufficient.

A fantastic and must try dish that I discovered this time was the Triple Sack Rice, I mean it was a winner dish for that lunch. Three layers of goodness, crispy noodles, manchurian gravy topped with fried rice, it was a delightful dish and I personally recommend trying it for sure. Hakka Noodles were good too.

We also tried the Mumbai Tawa Pulao, which again was nicely done, but after having this Triple Sack Rice, nothing else could hold my attention.

For desserts, we tried one of their best, the Matka Kulfi, and also the Haji Ali Fruit Cream, which too was nice.

Overall I can once again say, that if one wants to try different regional food, Masala Trail is definitely the place where you can satiate your different cravings under one roof.

The Masala Trail Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

The Town House Cafe, CP- a foodie’s paradise

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

If you want to enjoy good food and spend some cosy and comfortable time with your friends and family, The Town House Cafe is the place for you. The decor is minimalistic and comprises of huge and comfortable sofas, and some big windows overlook the busy outer circle of CP. I spent a rainy afternoon enjoying the delectable food with a few of my friends and I totally loved the experience.

Coming to food, here are my recommendations

Chicken Salami Tacos, a very nice preparation with chicken tikka chaat with some veggies wrapped in a chicken salami and shaped like a taco, its definitely a must try.

Poached Chicken Salad with Wasabi Dressing was another great starter. Though I am not very fond of wasabi dressing, but thankfully it wasn’t really overpowering the overall flavours and hence I liked it.

Chilly Chicken, Chilly Prawns and Chilly Paneer were all very good, hot and spicy, and when I say spicy, I really mean it. So those who don’t prefer spicy food, shouldn’t order these. I loved the prawns very much, so so delectable.

Chicken Seekh, Chicken Malai Tikka, Paneer Tikka, Mutton Galauti, Mutton Seekh, The Non Veg Platter are totally worth indulging in. Soft and tender meat, perfect spices, these dishes are any non-vegetarians delight.

The dishes I loved the most included the Chicken Bruschetta, Chilli Garlic Chicken Dimsums, Hoisin Chicken Dimsums and Falafel. They all were so good, and you really can’t afford to miss them, especially the dim sums. They were so juicy and tasty that you can’t have enough of them.

For the mains I ordered a Mixed Sauce Chicken Pasta and also tried some Dal Makhani with Butter Naan. Fish N Chips too were good, I can say that because I indulged in hearty two bites of the same, sharing from my friends.

The Tiramisu that I had for dessert was by far one of the best I have eaten in recent times. Please do try it. It was so moist and creamy and perfectly flavoured. I loved it completely.

 

The Town House Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Robata Grill at The Kylin Experience, Holiday Inn, Mayur Vihar

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Robatayaki, often shortened as Robata, is a Japanese technique of grilling, quite similar to barbecue, in which food items on skewers are slow grilled over charcoal. Usually Robata consists of grilled vegetables, meat and seafood and is relished world over now. It typically began in the North of Japan and its history is very old. In those days, people used charcoal to make tea, by digging a pit in their living rooms, hanging a chain from the ceiling and leaving tea-pots etc to simmer. Later on this method was used for cooking other food items as well and specially the fishermen started keeping hot charcoal with them whenever they went for fishing, to enjoy a hot meal. Robata as a process started from that time.

Bringing the authenticity of those flavours and times, with the obvious improvements, Chef Suprabhath Roychowdhury along with his team came up with this idea of Robata Grill festival at Kylin Experience, Holiday Inn, Mayur Vihar. The sheer joy of watching the live grill was so overwhelming and I thoroughly enjoyed the flames engulfing the meat from time to time and the aromas emerging were enough to make my mouth water.

As we sat down to relish the meal, we discussed the history of Robata, as I mentioned above and listening to this conversation was as intriguing as the meal. The menu consisted of Sole Fish in Yuzu Mustard Sauce, Tenderloin with Korean Sauce, Lava Black Bean Chicken, Jumbo Prawns in Hot Pepper Sauce, Lamb Satay, Lemongrass Chicken Satay, Pork Belly in Teriyaki Sauce, Vegetable Skewer, Leek & Mushroom in Spicy Basil Sauce. Minus the prawns and tenderloin, which I don’t prefer, I tried all the dishes, and all were nicely prepared.

Sole Fish, Chicken Satay and Vegetable Skewers, I liked the most. I found the mushrooms a little too salty for my choice and also one thing that I didn’t prefer much was, that after a point, almost everything tasted little similar. I feel that the flavours need to be a little more strong for them to stand out from each other. Nevertheless its an experience worth it, and I am sure you will enjoy. After trying a couple of desserts and a hearty meal and long conversations, we set out back home, creating memories forever.

 

Mangofied at Farzi Cafe!

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

Come summers, and Mango the king of fruits, is the only good thing about the season. Farzi cafe wanting to make the most of this summer season, launched a mango special menu and trust me, its totally worth indulging in.

To begin with, we ordered the Green Mango and Raw Papaya Salad with Peanuts and Imly Chutney, a very refreshing, sweet and sour salad, it will surely have your taste buds lingering for long.

Up next we tasted the Roasted Fish Tacos with Shredded Greens and Mango Salsa, these were the best dish I tasted that evening, and I really wish I could have eaten a little more of them. I just had one taco and how I miss them even while writing. I am definitely going back for these, and make hay while the sun still shines 🙂

Raw Mango and Mushroom Kulchas, and Ghee Podi Baby Idlys were next from the menu, and I actually liked them both, especially the kulchas. They were crisp from the outside, and the inside filling of mushrooms and mango was nice, soft and juicy.

Then we tried the Tandoori River Sole with Kachi Amby Ki Chutney and Popped Amarnath, was a delightful preparation, the tandoori fish tikka seared with mango chutney, adding the sour punch to it, gave a very unusual dynamism to the dish.

Spiced Chicken Balls was another stellar dish and is definitely a must have, they were really nice and juicy and the green mango chutney topped on it was simply amazing.

Ginger and Aam Papad Prawns, were good too, but as I am not very fond of prawns, I just had one, and found it to be decently prepared.

For mains, we tried Andhra Fish Curry with Raw Mango and Steamed Rice and it surely was a delectable preparation. The taste of raw mango enhanced the curry flavour, and it teamed well with the rice.

I also tried the Aubergines done with Asparagus, Cherry Tomatoes and Mango Masala, though the masala was nice and flavoursome, but I found the sourness a little too much to go with aubergines. A little less of mango masala could have been a better deal. Well thats as far as I am concerned, rest its always a personal choice.

We also tried a couple of dishes from the regular menu, which included Duck Samosas, Chicken Tikka Masala and Lamb Biryani, and all these dishes were amazing. I especially loved the duck samosas.

Mango & White Chocolate Popsicle, Vanilla Pod Cheese Cake with Aam Ras, Deconstructed Rabdi , Parle G Cheese Cake and Chocolate Bomb. Coming to the mango special desserts first, the mango and white chocolate popsicle was delightful and really sweet, the vanilla pod cheese cake too was an interesting preparation, the pouring of aam ras over the cheese pod, made it look drool worthy and so was the taste. Deconstructed Rabdi, which comes along with some other Indian sweets was a nice example of molecular gastronomy, the central ball was broken, some rabdi was poured on to it and it further broke down and tasted quite nice. The parle g cheese cake was a bit disappointing, as I found it to be almost sugarless and also because of the cheese cake sandwiched between two biscuits, it was difficult to break and eat it. The chocolate bomb is great for all chocolate lovers, though its one of the most common desserts now, but its always a pleasure.

This was my first visit at Farzi, and though I liked almost everything, no special mocktails for the mango festival left me a little disappointed and I think they should have definitely come up with some options in that. For cocktails lovers, they do have decent options, but non-alcoholics will have to settle for mocktails from the regular menu only, nevertheless, I think the Mango Festival at Farzi surely calls for a visit and you must go, till mangoes and summers last..! Enjoy
Farzi Cafe Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

B.E.D.- Beverage, Entertainment, Dining- BED is really true to its name!

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

A newbie on the block, and nestled in the N Block Market of GKI, this place is surely to become a favourite with people, especially the South Delhiites, as true to its name, it provides great beverages, great entertainment and great dining experience.

Spread across 2 floors, the upper floor also has an attached balcony, for some cosy private seating, outdoors. The interiors are very chic and English. Huge posters adorn the walls, and the seating is lounge type with comfortable couches and chairs.

To begin with we ordered, Sliced Chilli Chicken, Lamb Galautis and Crispy Tofu. The sliced chilli chicken was outstandingly delicious, I mean so delicious that we ordered twice. The galautis, were mouth meltingly delicious, soft and tender. The crispy tofu, though crispy on the outside, was really soft from inside and it too made for a delectable dish.

Next we tried Spicy Chicken Dumplings, Duck Dumplings and Mushroom Pate along with Big Fat Loaded Potato and Some Chicken Wings.

The dumplings were very well done, and I loved both the varieties. Mushroom Pate was a unusual kind of dish, where in mushrooms were like a paste on a rusk like toast, but it surely was delicious and I loved its mild taste. The baked potatoes loaded with creamy mushrooms was another winner dish for me.

Fried Prawns and Lamb Chops were the next dishes we tried, though I personally gave prawns a skip, but my friends did praise it a lot, but yes the lamb chops were amazing. Very tender and the masala was perfect, I enjoyed them thoroughly. Also tried the Avocado Sushi, and must say, it was very well prepared.

For mains, I just called for Stuffed Grilled Chicken, which was stuffed with 4 cheese and spinach and served with Mushroom Sauce, and OMG, it was just lovely. The chicken was grilled to perfection and the mushroom sauce enhanced the flavour like anything.

For desserts, we tried the Mango Mousse, Brownie with Ice Cream and Chocolate Fondant, all three of them were delicious. Brownie was the only dessert in which I thought there was a scope of improvement, as it could have been a little more chocolaty and gooey. Rest the mango mousse and chocolate fondant were great.

For drinks I highly recommend, the Oreo Shake and Chocolate Shake and Peach Le Fizz. They are worth slurping and perfect to beat the heat.

This place should definitely be on your list, and I am sure you will enjoy being here.. its time to go to BED…!! 🙂

BED Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

3 Pegs Down- Eat, Drink, Enjoy!

Posted on by Aditi Malhotra

After a shopping spree in Saket, rather than settling down for the food court at the mall or the already explored restaurants within the mall, we came out of the mall and walked up to check out 3 pegs down, located just around the backside of Select City Walk, Saket. In the day time, it seemed like a quaint place, just perfect to spend some time chilling with friends and enjoying some good food and drinks that too on amazing offers.

We began our culinary experience with Spicy Chicken & Corn Salad, Family Nachos Plank and Chargrilled Mushrooms. The salad was simply amazing, loved the spicy dressing with chicken which was perfectly balanced with the sweetness of corn.

The Nachos Plank, served the four of us and was more than sufficient, it was tasty as well and the chargrilled mushrooms are definitely a must try, grilled mushrooms tossed in tahini sauce served with hummus, pita and garlic made for an unusual yet amazing combination and kudos to the chef for coming up with such an innovative combination.

Murg Malai Tikka, Safed Til Paneer Tikka and Lamb Seekh Kebab are also not to be missed as each of them was one better than the other and simply drooling experiences. The Paneer Tikka literally melted in the mouth and so did the Chicken Malai Tikka and Lamb Seekh. They were so tender and delicate and full of flavour that one can’t get over them easily. I know that I am going after all of them very soon.

We also tried the 4 Seasons Pizza and Spaghetti Aglio Olio, but for me, both these dishes could have been better or may be my expectations were raised after the scrumptious starters.

For the mains, we tried, Achari Vada Pao, Pulled Chicken with Pao, Veg Burritos, Dal Makhani and Lahori Kadai Paneer. The Achari Vada Pao and Pulled Chicken with Pao are must haves, they were both really good. Even the veg burritos were nice, but I am personally not too fond of burritos. The Kadai Paneer and Dal were well prepared and with assorted breads like Lachha Parantha, Mirchi Parantha and Garlic Naan, they tasted amazing and made for a complete meal.

 

They serve some amazing cocktails and mocktails too and have offers running all through the day, so that you can make the most of it.

Now coming to desserts, we tried the Tiramisu and Payasam, but somehow both the desserts did not impress me. Though the chef explained that they were not prepared in the traditional manner and had his own twists incorporated in the recipe, I somehow feel somethings are better original and those tastes, textures and flavours should not be tempered with. But overall it was a day well spent, enjoying hearty conversations over hearty meal and drinks.

 

 

3 Pegs Down Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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