NeVs KiTcheN

Fat Labrador Cafe - A unique find in a bustling city like Pune!

2019-02-27T18:05:00.002+10:00

It’s been six months since I relocated from Melbourne to Pune, and as I am slowly getting a hang of things in India, getting my confidence back, being fearless while crossing the road, having all my senses on high alert at all times, the one thing that I have been on the lookout for is GOOD COFFEE. Now everyone’s definition of good coffee varies, but since I am a self-proclaimed coffee snob, good coffee for me means the name of the coffee should match the actual drink served. So, if it’s a cappuccino it can’t be a latte, an espresso can’t be a long black, you catch the drift.

Now India is predominantly a Chai or Tea loving country, so there are chai lounges, tapri’s (around the corner shops), tea cafes everywhere, that serve all varieties of tea. Coffee is still just an item on the menu, at most of the restaurants and cafes, to tick the box. So, if you see Coffee on the menu, it means a packet of instant coffee, mixed with hot milk and served with or without sugar, as per your preference, in a shot glass sized cup.

Like I said earlier India, or to be more specific, my state Maharashtra is a chai loving state, and I am sure this is related to the hot and humid weather for most part, and partly because in a fast paced, overcrowded place, its truly the survival of the fittest, so a strong cup of chai gives you the right kind off buzz to get you through, whatever the next few hours throw at you, be it catching the next train, going for a client meeting, meeting your boss, or planning on bunking the next lecture, we all need that cutting chai to help us get through. I know I digress, this is not about the chai culture of Maharashtra, however I will write about it soon. So, all these weather, commuting, and daily life conditions, are not conducive for a strong cup of black coffee, which is my coffee of choice, and neither is a milky, frothy, cappuccino. The middle ground for us is something called Filter Coffee, which is a traditional south Indian coffee. A perfect blend of strong, creamy, tasty, and delicious. However, in the city of Peshwas, and Marathas, Anna Idli, or Vaishali are as close as it gets to an udipi filter coffee, and may I say Anna Idli does do some justice to serving you with authentic filter coffee, but Vaishali and Wadeshwar, the two most popular and old fast food restaurants, are far from it.

So as I was happily enjoying my Anna Idli filter coffee almost every day, until my school friend who knows me better than I do myself, told me about the Fat Labrador Café (cool name right- more about that later), located in Bavdhan near DSK Runwara. When a friend who has known you since your kindergarten days recommends a place, you know it’s going to be good. And I am glad that she not only introduced a place that prides in serving authentic filter coffee, but whose owners are as cool as the name of the café.

Aniket and Smita the owners are so friendly and dynamic, and their menu reflects their love for different food, coffees, and meeting new people. They are both well-travelled, well read, and so easy to connect with which makes the entire #FatLab experience, extra special, cozy, and comfortable.

Cleanliness is not even an issue, as I said they run it like its their home kitchen, the menu is at par with any of the gourmet cafés in Australia, with a wide selection of coffees ranging from the traditional filter coffee, to Vietnamese coffee, including a babyccino, which gave them the final stamp of approval from me, that this place is truly a coffee and continental food lovers delight.

If you are looking for some quiet time by yourself, or you would like to meet up with an old friend, or just spend a lovely evening with your partner, or just hang out with your squad, this is the place to be. It’s got a lovely outdoor seating area, tables for a large group, or my favourite high chairs and bar table.

Smita is not only an excellent barista, and chef, but she and Aniket both share a passion for coffee, and they will help you pick the right coffee beans (also sold at the café) for that perfect morning cuppa.

The food menu ranges from masala omelets, to pasta, to a power muffin, and everything in between, all freshly prepared, and served on a crispy fresh sour dough bread, baked by their in-house baker.

And as if this wasn’t enough, and I am sure you’ve guessed it by the name, The Fab Labrador is a cat and dog friendly café, and the fat lab in question is none other than the owners very own Cookie the lab.

The cafe also hosts and they regular host cuddling sessions, coffee making sessions, book reviews, quiz evenings, and many other fun events most of which are free.

Please do stop by for a nice filter coffee when you take your dog out for a stroll, and you and your pet will bond even better, as I guarantee you, you will both look forward to that walk, as there will be a lovely cuppa joe waiting for you at the Fat Lab Café. And who knows, you might meet some very nice, like minded people here as the place only attracts genuinely food, animal, and coffee loving people, who in my opinion are the best kind ;) ;)

Do follow them on Facebook and Instagram @thefatlabradorcafe to get updates on latest events hosted at the cafe.

Ho Chi Minh Vietnam Food Journey

2019-02-26T21:49:00.001+10:00

Ho Chi Minh or Saigon hits you with a scattering of mopeds, taxis, small shops, eateries, and simple people, with a huge language barrier. You would think that English would be their first language, however apart from being left hand drive, and a coffee drinking nation: there are no traces of being ruled by an English speaking country, or they have consciously eliminated any traces of ghoulish American invasion.

However, despite the chaos, and communication barrier, the city makes you feel at home!

My food journey in this capital city of Vietnam, left my taste buds ever so refreshed, and wanting more. Here's a very quick tour of where we ate and what we ate. But before we begin let me tell you that Ban Minh, and the Bun are not the only things this country has to offer. Before I went I read a lot of blogs, and all they mentioned were the buns. To tell you the truth, we didn't even have the Bun as our first meal, as there are loads of other better, healthier, options, if you don't mind spending a few extra $$.

After we checked into our lavish hotel suite, we were famished and headed straight to the streets in search of some local food. TripAdvisor, and Google Maps were our goto guides for restaurant ratings, and they did not disappoint.

First stop was this place a block or two away from the absolutely amazing Sherwood Suites Hotel, where we stayed.

Here we tried some local beer, vegetarian fried rice, and egg fried rice. This is when we noticed, Vietnamese cuisine uses a lot of fresh herbs, veggies, with simple dressings and, very little spices. This allows each vegetable and herb, to standout with the spice overpowering it.

Another thing which you notice straight away is the dominance of plastic bags, straws, and cups. There is really no consciousness of how much plastic is used throughout the city, and its quite alarming, how oblivious they are to its impact on the environment. The people here live in their own peaceful world, still recovering from the damages of World War II.

There is art everywhere you look, on the streets, at restaurants, cafes, spas. The paintings are done by locals you can tell, as each one tells a story about the place or what it used to look like, or will look like in the future. It's a perfect blend of retro, and contemporary, making it interesting for everyone (even if you are not an art lover), and a great marketing strategy as one can't help but stop and pose in front of them to take some Instagram worthy pictures.

As we continued to explore the city walking, taking a cab at times, we ended up in: what I would like to call the party district! Its lined with pubs, and discos; man these Asians know how to party!! Food and beer was flowing, party girls and boys were setting the stage on fire, and I enjoyed a cold beer with some chips and prawns fried rice, which was delicious.

Next day we set out to explore the city some more. the plan was to have breaky at this garden cafe, which doubles as a bird cafe, a concept similar to dog/pet friendly cafes, we now have in the cities. I knew about this place as I had watched the documentary by the king of places unknown the late Anthony Bourdain. I was so happy to be there, as it was just what I had imagined it to be. A friendly, inviting place, surrounded by a well manicured garden, it's the Hyde park of Saigon.

The cafe however was nothing more than a lot of plastic tables and chairs, scattered under the shadow fo the trees, a two food carts, one for the coffee, and one for their standard menu of egg dishes, with noodles and their famous, locally baked bread or bun as they call it.

It was a real delight to watch this lady make individual drip coffees, with our without the condensed milk, and a variety of cold coffee. A jug of flavoured water is placed on all tables, along with an assortment of sauces and a basket full of bread.

The very cheap, and effective coffee maker I've ever seen. I had mine with a dash of condensed milk and it does taste good.

Moving onto the egg making station, first look at it and you wouldn't think they would serve anything more than an omelette but they have mastered the art of making a variety of dishes with a handful of ingredients. Being a vegetarian, I had to point at each ingredient that I wanted in my noodle bowl, which she happily prepared for me.

There's absolutely no way to communicate with the locals, unless they know English, which is rare, yet you manage to get around the city no problem; using nothing but sign language, eye contact, smiles, and a few hand gestures. That's the beauty of a place like Saigon, their strength lies in them preserving their culture, their language, and unlike China; they are not forced to do that, but because it brings them brings them happiness; and well deserved peace.

I was so intrigued by this Pappdum like thing, and turns our it was similar to the Indian papadum which is made with different pulses, rice, and flour varieties, and served roasted or fried.

We went to the local market which is jam packed with coffee sellers, high end brand dupes; from Gucci, to Louis Vuitton, Chanel to Prada and everything in between. Then there are stalls of bamboo and plastic products, clothes, food, dried fruits, fish, etc. I would not recommend buying local coffee from here, as I didn't really enjoy its flavour, however the packet comes with their aluminium coffee apparatus, which I use all the time.

After spending the day exploring street, and local food, it was time for a proper sit down dinner, and why not, the city is full of gourmet restaurants, and the menus are exotic, full of fresh ingredients, vey little spice, and packed with flavours.

We ordered some sangria, and although it wasn't authentic, it had the right amount of buzz to get us going.

Best and cheapest way to explore and travel in Saigon, is to hire a two wheeler. It comes with helmets and is pretty safe to ride around, as people rarely honk, have no road rage, but drive haphazardly as is common in most of the asian countries.

Di Mai- we ate here twice, the second time they were out of the Banh, which was a bit disappointing, but it gave me a chance to explore some other items on the menu.

For all you chocolate lovers, you must visit the world famous Maison Marou chocolate cafe. They use cocoa beans sourced from the Southern belt, roast, and extract chocolate at the cafe, and if that wasn't enough; they serve all their desserts, as if it was a piece of art, and they are to die for.

As much as this place is a tourist attraction, it was a very popular local hangout, one could tell, by the youngsters flocking the tables, clicking selfies and giggling away.

They do have a wide variety of chocolates to sell, along with cocoa powder, and some merchandise, which makes it a chocolate lovers paradise.

Easy Stir Fry Recipe

2016-11-20T01:50:00.000+10:00

Ingredients:

Bag of frozen stir fry veggies of your choice
Seaseme oil
Seasme seeds
Oil for cooking
Siracha or any hot sauce
Ginger-Garlic paste
2-3 Fresh Garlic Cloves

Method:

In the pan add regular oil and the sesame oil. Once hot, add the veggies and let them get some color. Remove and keep aside.
In the same pan add the chicken pieces and brown them as well.
Now mix both the veggies and chicken and stir fry for 2 mins.
Add the siracha and oyser sauce, along with a little bit of salt if needed. Taste first as these sauces have salt in it.
Cook for 5-10 mins, stirring continously so nothing burns. Cook on high flame.
Along side roast the seasme seeds in a pan.
Chop the spring oinions or scallions.
Garnish with roasted seaseme seeds and scallions. I also like to add some roasted peanuts for extra crunch.

Serve hot as is or with some steamed plain or coconut rice.

Pohe or Flat Rice Snack

2016-11-20T01:49:00.002+10:00

Pohe or populary known as kanda-pohe, meaning onion flavoured flat rice flakes, is a breakfast dish that is popular in the state of Maharashtra in India. Its probably the second most staple breakfast item after vada pav. This is a gluten free option for those who care, and honestly the best snack to have in the morning, with some ginger chai.

Ingredients: Serves 2-3 people

3 Cups Medium sized pohe or flat rice (available in indian grocery store, take 1 cup per person)
1/2 tbsp. Mustard seeds or Mohri
1 Large onion chopped
2-3 Green Chillies
8-10 Green Curry leaves - (wash & dry them well using paper towel)
1/2 tsp. Hing or Asafoetida
1/2 tsp. Turmeric powder
1 tsp. Sugar
2-3 tbsp. Oil
Few roasted peanuts for garnishing - optional
Fresh coriander leaves for garnishing
Salt to taste

Method:

Place the pohe in a colander and rinse thoroughly under running water. Add salt and sugar to the drained wet flat rice or pohe. Keep it aside.
Heat oil in a pan.
Add mustard seeds, curry leaves and hing.
When the seeds start popping, add the chopped onion, along with turmeric powder.
Mix well, cook till onions turn translucent. Add the peanuts at this stage. This is completely optional, but I like to add peanuts for the extra crunch.
Now add the pohe mixture. if you feel the mixture has gone dry, sprinkle some water before adding to the hot pan.
Cook and coat the pohe evenly till they are yellow in colour.
Cook covered for 5-17 mins. Check if the rice flakes are properly cooked and adjust salt if needed.
Garnish with fresh chopped coriander leaves.

Serve hot with a lemon wedge and some farsan or pappadum and pipping hot cup of chai.

Like us on Facebook

NeVs KiTcheN

Fat Labrador Cafe - A unique find in a bustling city like Pune!

Ho Chi Minh Vietnam Food Journey

Easy Stir Fry Recipe

Pohe or Flat Rice Snack

Lasuni Methi or Fenugreek leaves cooked with garlic

Paneer with Peanut Sauce

Easy Paneer Butter Masala Recipe

Prawns/ Shrimp Curry

Egg curry or Anda curry or Baida curry

Exotic Date Vinegar & Sweet Potato Salad

Valentines day special- Easy Chocolate Coffee Trifle

Masala Pappadum

Quick Spinach (Palak) Soup

Simple Chicken Tikka - Grilled or Oven Bbq recipe

Methi Murg- Chicken with Fenugreek leaves curry

Chicken Nilgiri or Green Chicken Curry

Easy Sesame (Til) Fudge- Til Gul

Leave a little Sparkle....

Nankhatai Biscuits- Indian Shortbread Cookies

Love, Food & Healing!!

Paneer Nilgiri- Cottage cheese cooked with Coriander leaves

Paneer Curry

Simple Chicken Curry

Tiramisu - Lift me Up!! Valentines Special

Fish Curry - Simple & Easy for Beginners