The new dimsum place in Bangalore - Yauatcha

Until recently, I'd always thought the word dim sum stands for a particular dish in Cantonese cuisine. And then I learnt that it is a term for a set of bite sized dishes that were historically served along with tea tasting (yum cha). Tea houses along the much travelled roads would be frequented by hungry travelers / farmers to relax with tea and small plates of dim sum. 

According to the wikipedia stub on dim sum:

The unique culinary art of dim sum originated with the Cantonese in southern China, who over the centuries transformed yum cha from a relaxing respite to a loud and happy dining experience. In Hong Kong, and in most cities and towns in Guangdong province, many restaurants start serving dim sum as early as five in the morning. It is a tradition for the elderly to gather to eat dim sum after morning exercises.

So what exactly constitutes dim sum? There's a range of food, from steamed (eg. char siu bao - steamed buns with pork) to pan fried (turnip cakes) to deep fried (duck rolls, mini spring rolls etc.). Most of the food is served in steamer baskets to keep them warm. Typically, dim sum restaurants also offer plates of steamed green veggies, roasted meats, congee and other soups on the aside. Custard tarts are especially popular as a dessert.

Some of the key things about dim sum-
Small serving sizes 3-4 pieces / dish, one can order multiple dishes and share with the whole family. 
It is usually a loud and noisy dining experience, hardly suited for a romantic dinner. The open kitchens, loud wok noises and big groups of people eating together are hallmarks of a dim sum house. That's what Yauatcha aims to provide - a loud and happy dining experience. 

Yauatcha is a contemporary Dim Sum tea house which opened in London in 2004, receiving a Michelin star within one year of its opening. The restaurant is a modern interpretation of the traditional Chinese teahouse. After its launch in India in December 2011 in Mumbai, the restaurant has opened in Bangalore this month. 

We were invited for a preview lunch at the newly opened Bangalore Yauatcha and the first thing that struck me is once you enter the restaurant, you forget you are in a mall. I guess the noise distracts and then the food takes you in its fold. The ambience comprises of simple decor with clean lines and fresh colours. There's bar seating as well, where guests can order anything from the food menu as well. Given that we were invited as a preview guests, I am hoping the service remains as courteous and as attentive to the many guests who come in as the restaurant gains popularity over the coming weeks.

 My lunch partner tried some of the specialties of the house and he has noted his experience here. What I loved about this place is an exclusive vegetarian menu, which was specially designed keeping in mind India's vegetarian population- so we have enough options to choose from instead of having to choose the only available veg stuff. 

My meal started with some Truffle Edamame Dumplings. The highlight of my Yauatcha experience were the fried turnip cakes. A foodblogger friend from Bombay had high praise for this dish when they had opened in Bombay and I was told that this tastes nothing like turnip (which is one of the very few vegetables that I don't care for at all). I have a simple policy when it comes to eating fried food. It has to taste SO good that the calories are worth it, and these cakes truly fit the bill. Topped with crunchy bits of fried garlic and shiitake mushroom (lots of this), I was truly in food heaven. 

The dipping sauces added the extra wow factor to this dish. 

For the mains, I had the Stir fried Udon noodles in Black pepper sauce - loved the texture of the thick udon noodles and the fresh bean sprouts that were a part of this dish. 

The stir fried green beans with shiitake mushrooms was one of the best green beans dishes I have eaten in a long time. Whole beans, blanched and stir fried in the wok with finely chopped shiitake mushrooms was a delight in terms of texture and flavour. I could have eaten the whole bowl by myself had it not been on the saltier side, given that the noodles were also a tad over salted. I'm aware that Cantonese food is known for its high sodium content, but since I consume less salt on a daily basis, my taste buds are highly sensitive to salt. 

The dessert was left it to our host manager to recommend and his recco was the Raspberry Delice. It was a stunning dessert, as you can tell from the picture, and one of my friends tells me that it's Yauatcha's most Instagrammed dish. Raspberry - chocolate is a heavenly combination and this dessert did full justice to that. I'm told while this is their most popular dessert, the other desserts are superb too, which I intend to try out when I'm there next time. 

To summarise, we loved all the dishes we tried, just that it's not for a quiet dining or for having a conversation or a business meeting. It's family style sharing and eating, and loud conversations over good food. I do wish they pull back on the salt a notch, since anyway as Indians we consume way too much salt and a lot of health conscious people are trying to cut down on the salt intake. Having said that, I shall peg Yauatcha as one of the must try new restaurants in Bangalore for its new concept and unique dishes.


DETAILS
Yauatcha 
Level 5, 1 MG Road Mall, MG Road
Opp Vivanta by Taj, Bangalore 560 008
For reservations call: 1800 266 1000
Or email: reservation.bengaluru@yauatchaindia.com

Parking - Mall parking
Credit cards accepted
Child friendly? - a little too noisy to manage noise sensitive kids, but the good part is no one will hear your kid talk loudly or cry.
Meal for two (without alcohol) ~INR 2000

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ChefAtLarge Table: The big Sunday Brunch at Novotel

Novotel, located in Outer Ring Road, one of the business districts of Bangalore, targets customers for both business and leisure. Their signature restaurant, The Square, offers a global buffet concept with a mix of live cooking added to it. The Sunday brunch is mainly laid out in The Square and it extends into their new restaurant Blue Terrain, on the first floor.

As a part of Chef at Large bloggers table, we were invited to one of the Sunday buffets. It's fun to meet the fellow bloggers (in this occasion with the spouses & kids), for a relaxed weekend meal over conversations. When we got in, the others were already tasting the food and clicking pictures (well of course!) and seeing the vast spread laid out, I was surely in a spot as to what to eat :) A few sips of their house sangria was very much in order.

Where you start all depends on what you are in the mood for. If it's breakfast you are after, there's a variety of freshly baked breads, with bacon, chicken sausages and baked beans to choose from to construct your own version of the full English breakfast. You can get freshly made eggs, waffles, pancakes, french toast and dosas to order, at the live stations specially set up for all of the above. 

After this, it's a good thing to do a full survey of what's on offer, because there's an enormous variety here - A whole range of veggies, meats, cheeses and dressings to make the salad of your choice, Pav Bhaaji / Kheema Pav station, SE Asian curries, noodles, soups, South Indian varieties, Continental varieties, Pasta and Pizza stations. Needless to say it's impossible to even taste everything and it can even get a bit overwhelming with one not knowing what to eat.

I started with a salad picking some of the fresh vegetables on display with the Italian dressing. A little more attention to keeping all the raw ingredients covered (especially the cold cuts) will get them more points on food hygiene.  Since I love Mediterranean food, I hovered around the antipasti section which had the mushrooms, rosemary olives, hummus, tabbouleh, marinated cheeses and eggplant and chose the hummus with some bread, along with some olives and mushrooms. 

Some of the kababs, the saffron fish etc. were lying on the hot plates for too long, looking somewhat shrivelled and overcooked. It would be good to do the basic prep and then prepare these nibbles when the customer asked for them. From the mains, I had a Mediterranean Style Grilled Veg with Cous Cous, which was a good dish, the vegetables generously grilled and flavoured and the couscous light and fluffy. I would have loved to have a go at one of the Thai curries which I was told had the options of red, green, massaman and yellow curry, unfortunately I didn't find when I was looking for it and so had to give it a miss when I discovered it well after dessert :)

This brunch extends to Blue Terrain on the 1st floor which is a barbecue restaurant by the poolside. You could choose from chicken, fish, meats and also a selection of vegetables, fruits and paneer. Personally I wasn't over enthusiastic over the barbecue spread at the poolside, probably because I'm vegetarian, or because the spread at the Square was so much better. The vegetables on skewers and the grilled fruit were two of the dishes I liked here. The paneer dish was quite under seasoned and didn't have anything much going for it. With their menu listing a number of rubs and marinades, I'm sure they could have done better with the paneer after informing us of the available options. The swimming pool here is bound to be a hit with the kids and adults to love to swim and work up an appetite. My meat eating friends quite enjoyed the steaks done to their liking and the chicken on skewers. 

Grilled veggies, Paneer Tikka, Grilled fruit, Mango Mojito

After a few nibbles on the barbecued stuff and cooling off with mango mojito, we went back down to the Square, to escape the heat of the outdoors and to have a taste of the desserts.

The dessert counter again had plenty to choose from - the macarons especially were very well made! A live churros counter where you could choose to have the churros with chocolate, vanilla or caramel sauce was interesting addition to the array of desserts served, such as the Picardi, baked chocolate tart, a blueberry based dessert and a seasonal mango dessert which was a light sponge topped with some chopped fresh mango.  I very much loved the mango based sponge dessert and the macarons were just the way they should be - a mix of crisp and chewy. The deconstructed cheesecake kind of dessert served in a glass was definitely the show stealer for me.

Being a mom to a 4 and a half year old boy, I must give special mention to the kid friendly aspects of this brunch. They had a separate menu laid out for kids at a low level so kids can serve themselves, including a special candy section. Kids' menu comprised of fried potato wedges, pasta gratin, mini samosas, fish fingers among other stuff. There was an extremely friendly lady in the lobby with a fully set up table to do anything arty and crafty the kids wanted to do. She also turned out to be so good with face painting and balloon art. The kiddie pool at Blue Terrain means the kids will completely exhaust themselves splashing around and will be ready for a long snooze once you hit home.
(This review is a part of the ChefAtLarge Bloggers' Table)

Novotel Bengaluru Techpark, Opposite RMZ Ecospace Business Park, Marathahalli - Sarjapur Outer Ring Road, Bengaluru – 560103

Sunday brunch-12 noon – 3.30 pm

Rs 1499 (Plus taxes) Includes Buffet at the Square, Barbeque Grills from Blue Terrain, Unlimited Soft Beverages and complimentary usage of pool. One Kid below 10 years of age eats for free with every paying adult.

Rs 1899 (plus Taxes) Includes Buffet at the Square, , Barbeque Grills from Blue Terrain, Unlimited Alcoholic Beverages and complimentary usage of pool. One Kid below 10 years of age eats for free with every paying adult.

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The Punjabi Food Festival at Jamavar, Leela Palace, Bangalore

                         

Some of us bloggers and food writers were invited for the Chef's tasting table on occasion of the Punjabi Food Festival at the Indian restaurant, Jamavar, the Leela Palace. Chef Farman Ali, the Corporate Indian Chef at The Leela Palace Bangalore had designed the menu using his innovations on traditional Punjabi cuisine. 


The menu was selected from the vast special menu that's out for the two week Punjabi Food Festival from 13th May-26th May. Jamavar has four food festivals in a year, two showcasing North Indian cuisine & two from the South.

The current festival gives the food connoisseur a wide range of Punjabi dishes to choose from - both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. We started the meal with a refreshing Ambi Panna- a raw mango drink before moving on to starters. There's also the thandai and a variety of shorbas to start the meal with.

The vegetarian spread of starters comprised of  palak di tikki,  paneer amritsari, and gande di bhaji (onion fritters). This Palak tikka was like no other I've ever tasted. Soft inside with bites of corn for texture, crisp on the outside and the roasted tomato chutney on the top not only provided a brilliant contrast of colour but also of flavour. 

Palak Di Tikki

Tomatoes roasted in the tandoor and ground with a mix of spices for the perfect balance of sweet, sour and spicy was what made this chutney extra special with great depth of flavour. If there is one thing you must taste from their special menu, I'd recommend this one. The other starters recommended by the chef are tandoori kukkad di chaat (tandoori cooked chicken tikka tossed with chutney and vegetables), jheenge de pakore (tiger prawns marinated in a tangy masala coated with gram flour & deep fried), machhi de tikke (fish tikka). 

In the vegetarian main course, we got a taste of curries showcasing different flavours and textures. Amritsari vadi paired with potatoes in a spicy-tangy sauce, the legendary sarson da saag with generous quantity of white butter (they didn't leave out the extra butter and jaggery when serving this), and the simple home style gobhi mutter where big florets of cauliflower mingled with plump green peas in a delicately spiced mix. Some of the other options from the extensive festival menu are Jheenga kadai, Kukkad Sarson da, Lobster masala, Bharmay Kareley and Bharwaan Guchchi Kesari. Of course, no self respecting Punjabi menu is complete without the ever popular Mah Ki daal, tasted as luxurious as the silver cups they were served in.

What's a festival meal without some sigh-inducing desserts! Punjabi cuisine has some lesser known desserts like badam te gurh da halwa (almond-jaggery fudge), Pinni Nabha Di (sweet made using udad dal & dried fruits which were served as a part of the tasting plate. Also served were the ever popular desserts like kesar pista kulfi, jalebi-rabdi and a slice of fruit. Chef Farman Ali was also talking about Haldi ka halwa something I've never heard of, where fresh turmeric is ground and roasted in ghee before proceeding to make a halwa with it. This is not a part of the menu, just the constant innovation the chef tries to bring in by introducing ancient foods to the modern palate.

The special menu also has set menu options at INR4000/person comprising of 3 starters, 4 mains, roti, rice and desserts.
To check the whole bunch of pictures from the Chef's table I attended - click here (Facebook album)

Details:Jamavar, Leela Palace, 23, Airport Road, Bengaluru
Punjabi Food Festival from 13th May-26th May 2013
Open for lunch & dinner
For Reservations, call 080-3057 1344 / 1234
Meal for 2 - Approx INR5000

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SaffronTrail Food Times Edition-01

This is the first edition of the SaffronTrail Food Times, where I'll try and share food news in and around Bangalore- be it new restaurants in the city, food workshops that enthusiasts can participate in, food festivals hosted by restaurants and so on. I'm thinking of having this a fortnightly or monthly column. If you have anything interesting for me to share here (Bangalore based), do mail me at saffrontrail [at] gmail. Please understand that I shall use your information at my discretion and cannot promise to post everything that comes my way.

SAFFRONTRAIL FOOD TIMES EDITION-01

Weekend Breakfasts in Bangalore

We found two breakfast places which couldn't be more different from each other. 

One serves up the Full English Breakfast, cocktails you can feel less guilty about over drinking in the morning, absolutely sinful Red Velvet waffles and thick French toasts. I don't know if you've guessed, we're talking about the 'Breakfirst' at Monkey Bar. Apart from eggs, waffles and toasts, vegetarians have a few other choices like the Handwo, Chilli Cheese Vada Pao and a really big croissant called the Mobar Maxi Croissant. There's a Big Bang breakfast specially for vegetarians called the Garden City which comprises of gratinated vegetable crepe, feta stuffed mushrooms, hash browns, grilled tomato, baked beans and jumbo toast. Mobar has tied up with theindianbean.com to serve up a specially formulated single estate coffee blend, so you can be sure that you're in for some good coffee.

Expect to be put behind by INR1500 for two people. There's good music and the company of breakfast loving enthusiastic morning crowd and one must give them points for innovation (Red Velvet Waffles, Pita with Pandi etc.). The good part is you can skip lunch altogether and have a long snooze after filling up here.

Monkey Bar, 14/1 Krishna Manere, Wood Street, Richmond Road, Ashok Nagar, Bengaluru - 560025. Phone: 080 41116878/ 79 | www.mobar.in

Weekends 9 am-12 noon

The other breakfast we loved was the all you can eat spread at Kamat Yatri Nivas (Hoodi). The  South Indian breakfast serves all the usuals. The Masala dosa, vada, kuzhi paniyarams are freshly made in small batches. The other items served are masala idli, puri-chana, khara-baath, bisi bele baath, mangalore buns, akki rotti, watermelon juice, fruits, rosogulla, coffee/tea. They also had bread, butter, jam and some other things I may have missed. The buns were delicious, and our friend said that the kuzhi paniyarams were as good as the ones he had eaten at a small eatery in Coimbatore. I don't think there's any other breakfast in Bangalore that can beat the 'VFM-ness' of this one. If you live in and around Whitefield, don't miss this. It is a steal at INR 125/adult, 75/child. 

Kamat Yatri Niwas, Graphite Road, Hoodi Circle, Whitefield. Phone: 080-28459075 | kamatyatri.in - Weekends 7am-10am, no reservations required.

CBTL celebrates 50 years with a new menu

Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf has introduced a new menu with more focus on healthy and gourmet options. 

We liked their Japanese Cherry Green Tea and Swedish Berries Tea, both made using loose leaf tea bags. These are a perfect choice for those who want to spend time in a cafe without loading up on calories. For those who like their high calorie drinks, they also have a Hot Double Chocolate  with Caramel Swirl and whipped cream :)

Among their healthy eating options, I liked their Roast Vegetable with Hummus. Their Greek salad however was a disappointment because of tons of fake feta. Even if it was paneer, it was a stale one. Their muffins are the giant American size, I'd recommend it be shared between 3 people! Their Chocolate Chunk muffin was loaded with chocolate chips. Try their signature Ice Blended coffee in your favourite flavour. 

http://www.facebook.com/TheCoffeeBeanIndia

Branches: Koramangala, 1MG Rd Mall, Inorbit Mall (Whitefield), Phoenix Market City

A cozy cafe inside a mall- Plus 91

Photo courtesy: Aravind Balakrishnan

Newly opened at the buzzing Phoenix Market City mall at Whitefield, they are the modern upmarket version of a multicuisine restaurant with a bar. From chaats to steaks, they have it all on their menu, along with an extensive alcohol and drinks menu. Theirs is a cozy ambience of a street corner cafe, with a little outdoor section. The indoors nearly makes you forget you are in a mall. The fact that they have a jukebox gives them extra points from my side. We were invited for their pre-launch Sunday lunch and they were playing vintage disco for which I'll give them two thumbs up. We tried the radga patties, a modified version of sev puri (using baby papads instead of puri), paani puri, frankie, paneer tikkas and the sizzler. While the penne pasta in tomato sauce was perfectly made, the chaats needed some help from the roadside chaatwala in terms of textures and flavour. The feedback was passed on and I hope they'll get better in that department. As they have an extensive appetisers menu, I think this will be a good place for a couple of after work drinks and small bites, for those working in and around ITPL. Their dessert menu is limited to three items. In case you're wondering about the origin of their name, it indicates India's phone code :)

Plus 91, Phoenix Market City, 1st Floor, Mahadevpura, Whitefield Road, Bangalore-48.

Phone- 80-65995666 | https://www.facebook.com/Plus91India

Hours: 12 noon-11.30pm, walk-ins welcome

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On Smoke House Deli - Bangalore

Me with Riyaaz Amlani
 [Photo courtesy: Swapna Venkatesh]

I think it was the year 2003-2004 when a bunch of friends discovered Mocha on Hill Road, Bandra. Mood lighting, mix and match of antique and modern furniture, the smell of strong coffee and hookah smoke hanging in the air along with some great music selections made it quite the perfect place to hangout. 

I still remember their unique concept of having price tags on furniture and art, so you could literally buy a chair and take it home if you fell in love with it. Later, there was one in Juhu with a most perfect location across the sea and you could sit on their comfy sofas, order a huge mug of coffee and catch up on all the gossip with friends or just people watch. It's been 10 years but my tastebuds remember their fantastic apple pie and one hell of a killer dessert (taste & calorie-wise) which I think was named 'Death by Chocolate' & of course I remember feeling all 'posh' having to choose from a menu featuring coffees from different parts of the world. Don't scoff at me, I was after all in my 20s then! I remember hearing the name Riyaaz Amlani who was behind this chain of coffee shops and admiring his creativity. And then his name was all over the restaurant scene in Bombay, with the Salt Water Grill at Chowpatty and dozens of other restaurants around the country.

It was such a pleasure to share a table with Riyaaz and a few other foodblogger friends to celebrate the opening of Smoke House Deli, their first restaurant in Bangalore. Day 2 of opening, and the restaurant was buzzing from 8 pm onwards- credit it to the location (100 ft road, Indira Nagar) or the building that now stands like a show stopper on 100 ft road or the fantastic menu & drinks. 

One thing that catches your eye as soon as you enter are the hand sketched walls - black on white, and you keep looking at it for the entire time that you are in the restaurant. Quotes, quaint old Bangalore institutions, new music bands and more, all find their place on the walls, including the depiction of a haunted house in the city. 

The credit for this goes to the Busride Deisgn Company whose founder Ayaz himself gave us a walking tour of the walls. Yes, that's right!

The drinks menu include plenty of fresh fruit flavours, with an interesting mix of spices and some of them even use smoked fruits. Between the 5 of us, we tried & tasted drank the watermelon martini, green apple martini, smoked musk melon martini, smoked pineapple & vanilla martini and many more that will be kind of embarrassing to admit on this blog!

Their menu lists a range of fresh fruit, herb & floral infusions out of which the Californian Plum, Star Anise & Lily was pretty sensational. 

Among the vegetarian appetizers, the tofu sesame sliders looked and tasted amazing, with the sesame oil aroma wafting through the dish. 

The spiked cottage cheese skewers, the paprika puffs with wasabi salsa both had bags of flavour. My favourite salad was the asparagus with grape, smoked fig and white balsamic vinaigrette. My perfect salad has to have a balance of all flavours - salty, sweet & sour and a mix of textures and this one hit all the right notes. 

While the table was tasting a variety of mains, the spinach ricotta ravioli was generously stuffed and perfectly cooked, a little niggle for me was that I don't like my ravioli smothered by too much sauce. The wild mushroom risotto was something everyone on the table dug into with gusto. While I gave the desserts a miss, I feasted my eyes on some of the beauties in the display counter, early in the evening. 

For entire set of photos - check Saffron Trail's Facebook album


Smoke House Deli
Category: All Day Dining / Bar / Breakfast
Price: A meal for 2 with a drink would cost roughly Rs.1500 plus taxes

No. 1209, Ward no. 12, HAL IInd Stage, 100 Ft Road, Indiranagar. Opp. Nike showroom, Bengaluru 560038

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smokehousedeli
Twitter: @smokehousedeli
Phone: 080-25200898 / 99
They are open from 11 am onwards

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A Photo essay of Flavours of the World at Park Plaza Hotel

The world famous dish from Spain - Paella

Paneer Mirch Ka Shoal from the Indian grills counter which also has the subji aur badam ka sheek, matar ki tikki and Mysore Bonda | Fresh vegetables for grilling | Chicken satays being grilled

Chicken sausages and grilled marinated chicken breast | Vegetarian kababs/ starters plate

The Laksa counter with beautiful, fresh ingredients for soups and stir frys

A variety of Chinese mushrooms - edible, yes! I asked them if they could make me something from that, but it was for decoration purposes, it seems :)

Visually appealing salad arrangements - Beetroot with artichoke, roasted pumpkin with carrot and garlic, homemade chicken roulade, lamb roulade

More Salads

Arabic style biryani

The wide main course spread comprising of Thai curries, stuffed zucchini, mashed potatoes, Kadi pakodi ( I loved this), Gujarati khichdi, Dal Kabuli

The regions covered in the Flavours of the World buffet are the North Western Frontier Province, Rest of India, Far East, South & North America, Mediterranean region in the form of interactive chef stations, grills and hot buffet stations. Apart from this there is a range of desserts to choose from. There's a huge variety to suit every foodie's likes. Only, don't try to sample them all! This event is on on Saturday evenings until April 2013, so if you are in Bangalore, do make it a point to check out the flavours of the world festival and don't blame me if you come back thoroughly stuffed :)

Venue: Mélange,

Park Plaza Bengaluru,

90-4 Marathahalli, Outer Ring Road, Bangalore

Time: Every Saturday. 7:00 PM – 11:30 PM

Until: April 2013

Price: INR 999 plus taxes

With select alcoholic beverages: INR 1499 plus taxes

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