Nibbles and Gobbles

passion for craft

2011-06-09T22:05:00.000-07:00

There is something about craft that appealed to me right from the SUPW classes in school to numerous visits to the handicraft melas each time one was in the town. And guess what stumbled upon a cool store that provides the perfect experience of buying handicrafts just like any physical mela thanks to multiple pictures of the product, a very apt description and great indexing.
I fell in love with the site and visit the site everyday to find out what is new! And I am sure there are many more like me. Why dont you try for yourself and visit http://www.craftsvilla.com/. For the ones more inclined towards the social network can link with them on facebook too at www.facebook.com/craftsvilla.
I am sure you would be pleasantly surprised by their prompt service and committment to quality.
Have a good time shopping and feel good about having done something good.

Ping!

2010-06-05T21:54:00.000-07:00

Koramangala has always been the mecca for foodies and this new place is definately the talk of the town.
We were pleasantly surprised with the variety of vegetarian fare available in this asian-food restaurant. They had a dim sum festival going on so it was the flavour of the season. We are not big dimsum fans though so did not check out the special dimsum menu.
On the regular menu we chose- Nasi Goreng (indonesian style rice- pic attached), Dragon Noodles (shanghai style noodles with spinach and chilly sauce..it did not find it very spicy though) and eight treasure tofu ( Tofu, Bamboo shoot, Bell Pepper, Shitake, Pokchoy, Water chestnuts, cherry tomatoes & spring onions are the eight treasures stir-fried in mild sesame-soya sauce. A P!ng signature).
We were spoilt for choice and everything we chose was excellent...specially nasi Goreng. The portions are good so we were stuffed till the neck and still had food left on the table.
The place is a little expensive as compared to other asian-food restaurants in vicinity but it wins on authenticity and service. A must visit for people looking for authentic taste and new varieties.

http://www.thepingrestaurant.com/
No 130, 1st Cross, 5th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore
Landmark: Behind Sukh Sagar
Phone: 41521773

Woodstalk!

2010-05-22T07:15:00.001-07:00

Amazing is the word..in terms of taste, experience, everything! We thought of giving this place a try after getting repeated good reviews from friends as well as internet in general.

We made reservations in advance since we were told that the place is small and very very busy. We found a corner table arranged for us with a baby chair ready.The ambience was great too...very creatively done with music as the background.

The menu is pretty interesting too..and offers decent options for veggies too.

We ordered a veg chimichanga for starters and also a woodstolk platter. The chimichanga was excellent and very very filling. The platter was ok ( our son loved the cheese stick like thing which had an interesting name that I have forgotten now).

As we enjoyed the starters, our toddler enjoyed the company of their freiendly staff, broke a plate and had fun with pebbles that were used for decoration. We loved the food and the service too. For main course we had a veg sizzler and calzone. The sizzler was totally out of the world..one of the best I have ever had. The calzone was good as well..though a little over on cheese and less of veggies.

The meal ended with a sizzling dessert which was the perfect end to a perfect meal.

The place is moderately priced and I would consider it to be great value of money considering the portions, service and taste. The sizzler is a must try!

Tunday Kababi

2010-05-16T10:55:00.000-07:00

A no frills place claiming to live up to the rich heritage associated with Tunday ke kabab from lucknow. The menu is short and has 3-4 options in chicken, mutton and veg.

Since it was raining hard and radio announced that trees were getting uprooted in many parts of the town we decided to take a take-away. We had a small order since were just taking it as snacks and not a full meal. We ordered mutton seekh kabab and half plate tunday kabab. The tunday kababs were ready in like 2 mins but the seekh kababs were no where in sight. The staff informed us that since everything was being made fresh it would take 15-20 minutes to get seekh kabab. Since we were in a hurry we settled for gelawati kababs instead, another mutton preparation. For those who have never heard of gelawati kababs , please google and get some insights. We did not order biryani or parathas but saw some other people being served parathas and they looked yummy and filling.

We got very hungry on the way back home and opened the pack of gelawati kababs in the car itself. They simply melted in the mouth and were very very rich in flavour a bit spicy though. The prices are a little high for a no frills joint but the gelawati kababs are worth a try!

Tunday kababi
Above lazeez restaurant
Kormangala 5th block, Koramangala, Bangalore
Landmark: Near Paramount hotel
Phone: 9731553030

Cakewalk-Koramangala

2010-05-16T10:54:00.000-07:00

It was one of those days when i am not really watching my weight so we walked into cakewalk at koramangala. we were regulars at the indiranagar joint and were pleasantly surprised to see a cakewalk outlet in koramangala.

They have been in the business for more than 20 years and all their stuff is simply superb. I am more a fan of their pies than of the pastries. they have some excellent snacks to go for in case u are not in mood of eating something sweet.

On this particular day we had the tried and tested apple pie and a date and walnut pie. The next order was for pineapple fantacy and oreo cheese cake. needless to say everything was excellent and the service was great too. Most pieces are priced around rs. 50 and are quite filling.

They have not started home delivery yet but should be operational in few weeks.

make sure you walk in for a quick bite when you are in koramangala next time.

http://cakewalk.co.in/
437, 8th Main, Koramangala, Bangalore 560 034
P : +91 80 41463329 / +91 80 41463169

Juice Junction

2010-05-15T05:47:00.000-07:00

This tiny place in koramangala has been a favourite amongst the health conscious as well as sandwich lovers. The service is fast and as courteous as you can expect in a street joint. The menu comprises of shakes, juices, sandwiches and fruit chaat. Everything is very modestly priced with thje costliest item costing around rs. 35. My favourite at this place is the fruit grilled sandwich which I have never heard of elsewhere. And there is always a arabian grape juice to go with it. They offer a variety of mushroom sandwiches as well which is again not so common at other places. Surely recommended for a quick bite!

Juice Junction

KHB Block, Koramangala

Outpost

2010-05-11T22:53:00.001-07:00

This place little ahead of marthalli junction is not a new place and has been a favourite from last 4 years. It offers Dosas, chaats and corner house stuff. It is a typical food court and expect it to be jam packed on weekends. The corner house needs no introduction and most foot falls at outpost are for ice creams, shakes and other innovations from corner house.
The dosas here are amazing though the wait after taking the token seems to be forever. There would be at least a dozen people peeping thru the window that shows the kitchen and waiting for their orders anxiously. It is a pleasure to see the cooks in action.
It is surely value for money and a good hang out for non-fancy eating out.

ORR's Aangan

2010-05-09T02:37:00.000-07:00

It was a simple punjabi lunch at Aangan on outer ring road to celebrate buying a new vehicle. Aangan has been known for its authentic punjabi food for years and as always it lived up to its reputation. We were very hungry and you can make that out for the huge order that we placed for three people. We had malai tikka and hara-bhara kabab for starter with jaljeera...all of that was just perfect. The main course comprised of dal tadka and palak kofta (too much of going green!) with variety of roti (lachcha paratha, khasta roti, missi roti and naan) and dahi vada. The food was great and since we were concentrating on it any else did not matter much. The prices are decent and quantities are ok. They are known for makke ki roti and sarson ka saag which we would try next time. worth a visit for punjabi food enthusiasts!

Drumsticks

2010-05-02T23:53:00.000-07:00

It was our 5th wedding anniversary and we wanted to celebrate it at some new fine dining place. A friend suggested Drumsticks Opp. Lifestyle. So there we were and were super excited by the first look..coz the ambience is great.

But that is where the good part ends. We opted for menus from Drumsticks as well as Calypso and did not find the menu very impressive. There were not many options for vegetarians. Anyways after we placed the order the starters took forever to arrive and the waiter served fish to my mom (who is pure vegetarian) without informing/ asking if she would take non-veg. The Amritsari machchi and sikka murgh were good though. The main course arrived good 40 minutes after the starters even when there were only 3 families in the entire restaurant. The main course sucked to say the least. We had opted for safe bets like dal makhani and methi matar malai but both were watery and tasteless and the naan was half cooked. We left most of the food and still paid Rs. 1500 which was certainly not worth it. Looking forward to make up for bad anniversary dinner next week.

Address: No.44, Richmond Road, Richmond Town, Bangalore

Landmark: Opp Sapphire Toys

Phone: 25554444, 25545555

Naturals-from Juhu to Koramangala!

2010-03-27T23:28:00.000-07:00

I never knew that my favourite ice cream makers from Mumbai and Pune have extended to Bangalore as well. I spotted a small outlet while driving thru Koramangala and just could not resist stepping in to check out! I just could not wait to grab the tender coconut ice-cream which is my favourite amongst the variety that naturals offers.

They had a list of evergreen flavours like chocolate and dry fruit ones which are available thru the year and then the more seasonal ones like jamoon, mango, etc.

Since there is parking problem in that area, I decided to go for takeaway and was impressed with the speed and care with which they packed our four scoops -chikoo, jackfruit (sounds odd as an ice cream flavour...but was not bad!), tender coconut and mango.

The ice cream is easy on pocket too as compared to some other popular ice cream joints in the city.

Ambrosia- Heavenly Cuisines!

2010-03-27T22:10:00.000-07:00

A pleasant fine-dining restaurant with friendly staff, excellent menu and finger licking food-what more can one ask for! Yes, we were blessed with a very satisfying lunch on our very first visit to Ambrosia, a relatively new joint in Koramangala.

Their website boasts that they have the finest and the most comprehensive representation of cuisines from Mexico to Texas, from Greece to the middle east, from Italy to Great Britain, and of course, from India to Malaysia. They could not have been more honest....their menu is a treat! If one goes back satisfied the first time there is enough in the menu to make them come back again and again and still get a new experience every time.

We tried a dish from Brazil called Xinxim (a chicken and shrimp stew with coconut and peanut sauce) and another wonder from Greece which was chicken breast filled with herbs, served with pasta and salad. The portions are big and the flavors are just out of this world!

The place was not very crowded so our son had lot of fun running around. The staff attended to him while we ate and overall it was a nice experience.

Differentiators for Ambrosia:
Ample choice for Non-vegetarians as well as vegetarians and also special dishes for the calorie conscious!
Flambé styled cooking with an Interactive Kitchen that comes right to your table!

A must visit for those with a taste for global food and those who are ready to experiment!

Ambrosia official website:
http://ambrosiadining.com/index.html

Taco Bell!

2010-03-21T21:11:00.000-07:00

Taco Bell is the latest sensation in Bangalore. We made an unplanned trip to malleshwaram to check out the latest mall (mantri square). Must say it is a huge mall and would be a great shopping place once fully operational. The Taco Bell on upper ground floor was a treat as well. We ordered a Potato volcano taco and paneer filled grilled burrito. Both were yum and felt healthy eating types to say the least. The staff is very good and full of energy. Somebody called "Roy" was the cheerleader for the new joint and kept the staff excited and customer happy. Overall a cool place, easy on pocket and a nice change from fast food burgers...true to the tag-line that says- "Think outside the bun!". Welcome to Bangalore, Taco Bell :-)

http://www.mantrisquare.com/?livserv_cs_id=4363708

Little Italy

2010-03-19T15:36:00.000-07:00

Little Italy- we first visited the Indira nagar branch almost 4 years back and became instant fans of food and service. Did not go back frequently because new restaurant keep opening in Bangalore and foodies like us try to sample all! Anyways, we decided to give the new branch at Koramangala a visit this weekend with our toddler. The place was a hit right from the first impression. It is a fine dining restaurant but did not have the odd feel that makes everyone whisper for any conversation. The place is very child friendly with the staff going out of the ways to keep our 14 month old entertained and not to forget the plastic plate with some grapes they offered as complimentary toddler food. We were very very hungry which explains the huge order comprising of Mexican delite (mashed potatoes with bean sauce), nachos with cheese sauce, onion rings (crisp yet tender!), Gnocco and pesto pizza. The service was quick and the food was toooooo good! I especially liked the Gnocco which was listed as their specialty in the menu. It was a homemade pasta preparation with the spinach and cheese filling that just melted in the mouth! The meal for two along with mock tails costed us Rs. 1200. Finally, a great place for weekend lunch with kids!

Mavalli Tiffin Room (MTR)

2010-03-18T00:19:00.001-07:00

This is an account of our visit to MTR restaurant at Forum value mall, Whitefield on 13/03.

For some background info we had a very light breakfast of cut fruits at home (since our cook was on leave) and were little little hungry when we reached the mall. We caught sight of MTR restaurant as we were doing some window shopping. We had heard a lot about MTR from some local friends and always wanted to visit it someday...but for some reason or other could never make it to their outlets as they were quite far from where we live.

So, sighting this MTR was a pleasure and we finally got to experience the much appreciated food. The restaurant has an indoor area as well as terrace-seating. Since we had a toddler with us who hates enclosed places we chose to sit on the terrace. The exteriors as well as the interiors are quite simple but true to the heritage of MTR. They have a South Indian thali for lunch which costs Rs. 200 but since it was only 11:30 am we decided to go for something light. They have a 1 page menu which listed various dosas, idlis and vadas...also some other items with local names so we could not make out what they meant and sadly the waiter could not help much in hindi/english. Finally, we learnt that they only had some typical dosas and rava idli available that day so we settled for masala dosa, plain dosa and rava idli for the toddler (BTW, MTR also claims to be the inventor of the popular South-Indian breakfast item, Rava idli).

Service was quick and our order arrived in 5 minutes. The Dosas looked fresh and the rava idli was super soft. And let me tell you they tasted out of this world...probably the best dosas I have ever had...they were like crisp and soft at the sametime and the accompanying chutney and sambhar was excellent too.

Finally it was an excellent meal which costed us just Rs. 150...which is really inexpensive from Bangalore standards.I highly recommend MTR as the taste is out of this world and easy on the pocket too!

D8ABSZYHZAQ3