Insatiable Instincts

Kamps-The German Backerei

2016-07-29T12:15:00.001+03:00

I have been driving past the Kamps-The German Backerei here in Riyadh for the last few months, keeping it on my wish list and finally managed to tick it this morning.

It opens literally at the crack of dawn, at 6:30 am on Friday mornings. As an early riser, it suits me just fine.

As you enter the bakery, what you will love is the contemporary and chic decor. The visual assault leave you breathless, particularly if you are a gourmand. The aroma of freshly baked bread and croissants, add to it the whiff of some coffee- sheer nirvaana.

While the choice is really wide- from flatbreads, cheese platter, gourmet platter, sandwiches, rolls to fresh fruits with yoghurt,

I ordered the Triple Hot Toast Chicken with Brie. Not many can resist a perfectly toasted crisp fresh bread, the melting Brie cheese with Chicken. It was an absolute delight. Just a small dash of freshly made berry jam in this sandwich added a sweet, colorful twist to it. I enjoyed it with the Tabasco sauce - it was a riotous feast.

Now to the coffee, I ordered my usual Double Espresso Macchiato shot and I must say that this was the best that I had in Riyadh. The aroma and temperature just perfect, I almost ordered one more and had a tough time resisting this urge.

While I would have loved to eat one of their tempting sweet offerings, I kept it for my next visit. I did pick up some German Bread variety.

Chocolates, Coffee and Dessert Cravings

2016-05-20T17:22:00.000+03:00

"There's nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend with a chocolate",

Dates Chocolate Brownie with Ice cream @ Tao's- Riyadh

Drool, dribble, salivate -now isn’t that what most people do when they see chocolates and coffee in its various avatar’s. Love for both these transcends all parameters like age and size.

Usually one falls in love first with chocolate in the childhood and then slowly with maturity the love for coffee seeps in, almost surreptitiously.

Way back when we were kids, chocolates meant Cadbury in its simple form of Dairy Milk or Eclairs. The word Cadbury was used interchangeably and synonymous for chocolates. In fact, when Amul launched its chocolates much later, I recall kids walking to the corner store and asking for an Amul Cadbury! Well that was the beginning of the love story with chocolates which slowly graduated into Cadbury’s Fruit and Nut when launched. Kit Kat, Toblerone and its imported ilk, the more elite Mackintosh Quality Street were like windfall dreams when a kind relative or friend from overseas would get it. The uber elite Godiva, Teuscher were as alien as Greek and Latin then. Off course, then the heavens opened and with liberalization the best brands started flowing into India and many of them are now manufactured in India itself. Chocolate based desserts be it in the form of cakes, brownies or other forms of culinary art have since then stormed the world of gastronomy and have many addicts like me in its club.

Whilst I walk you down my memory lane and experience across various restaurants and continents, please do grab a bar of your favorite chocolate; if not, a steaming hot cappuccino. If you still are not tempted, the pictures will hopefully make you drool. Oh, just forget the calories and indulge occasionally.

In 2007, when we were in Bangkok, I had my first tryst with Molten Lava! The steaming hot chocolate flowing out from the freshly baked cake when eaten with vanilla ice cream is something to be only experienced. Hot and cold, lethal on the taste buds! After eating the spicy Som Tam Salad, Panang Gai and Pad Thai Noodles the desserts seemed even more heavenly. Well, unfortunately I did not click the photograph of the Molten Lava in Bangkok but here is the one that I just had a few weeks back in Theobrama, Riyadh.

Molten Lava, Theobrama- Riyadh

I also was introduced to the Sacher Torte for the first time in Bangkok although it traces its roots to Austria. It was introduced to the world by an Austrian called Franz Sacher in the 1800's and today this is a legend not just in Austria but across the world. Sacher Torte is basically a chocolate sponge cake or torte made with apricot filling/jam and a dark chocolate icing which is served with whipped cream, If you visit either Vienna or Salzburg, don't miss visiting the legendary Cafe Sacher, Their desserts and coffees are worth dying for. Their guest list includes the likes of Queen Elizabeth, John Lennon and President John F Kennedy to name a few. We did visit the Cafe Sacher in Salzburg with our dear friends from Germany -Gunthard and Meena,The experience remains indelible in my mind.

Sacher Torte@ Cafe Sacher, Salzburg, Austria.

Irresistible combination@ Cafe Sacher

There is a lot of history to the Sacher Torte saga, where there is history, there is controversy often, isn't it? Demel Bakery where Sacher's son started working, is credited with bringing the Sacher Torte to its current form and hence there is on record a long fought legal case on this between Cafe Demel & Hotel Sacher. We took a walk in the Hotel Sacher. Very luxuriously done up, with lots of history to its credit, this is certainly a 'must visit' when in Austria.To date, both these institutions exist and in my next visit, would love to go to Cafe Demel .

Cappuccino

The varieties of coffee based beverages served can sometimes be mind boggling, the presentation is so good that not only does it satisfy the taste buds but also its a sight to behold forever. From Salzburg, we drove down one day to Lake Fuschl and Sankt Gilgen which are both quaint, idyllic villages. Dotted by cafes on the lakeside, they seem to have been just clipped from paradise!

@ Lake Fuschl, Austria

@ Sankt Gilgen, Austria

While we are on Austria, let me share a few more pictures of our experiences there. We experienced a lot of love from the rain gods when we were in Vienna. Sauntering around Naschmarkt one rainy afternoon, we stopped by for a steaming hot cuppas at Segafredo. Naschmarkt is a gourmet paradise, sights and fragrances of food from across the world welcome you as you step into this area. The color, variety and displays leave you spellbound. I have lots of pictures but those are not coffee and desserts so hence not included in this one dedicated solely.

Caffee Moccha@ Segafredo, Vienna

Macchiato @ Segafredo- Vienna

If there is one fragrance that clears all my senses, it is the fragrance of coffee being freshly ground. The sight of coffee beans,the sound of the grinding is music to the ears and then followed by the aroma of coffee. Nectar and Nirvana indeed !! If you ever get a Cafe, where you can chose your beans and get them freshly ground for your favorite brew. Don't miss that opportunity.

Cafe Le Wien @ Riyadh

Very rarely does one get a steaming hot cappuccino or a macchiato in most places. There are two main reasons to this. First, the cups are not warmed first. The cups need to be hot before the beverage is poured into it. Secondly, the machine churns out luke warm beverages. Hence it is very important to buy a good machine. They dont come cheap but for coffee buffs I would strongly recommend the Jura. The Swiss manufacturer is the best! Perfect in every way, the blend, the temperature and if you choose the right beans, only the cup stays between you and nirvana. Some of the most amazing beverages and mind blowing desserts we had, were in France. Paris, Giverny and Versailles have their share to the wall of fame. Some photographs enclosed below. Giverny is home to the famous French impressionist Claude Monet. The Chateau of Claude Monet is famous for its lilies, gardens and inspired more than 250 paintings. In Giverny, we had one of the best chocolate brownies in a small Inn (Hotel Baudy)Cafe just en route to the Chateau. We rented some bicycles and cycled down the banks of the River Seine to reach Giverny. The desserts and coffee were more than welcome...

Chocolate Brownie @Hotel Baudy, Giverny, France.

You taste the chocolate flakes before your nose dives in!

Hotel Baud @ Giverny, France.

Irish Coffee in full glory- Near Louvre, Paris

The Charles De Gaulle Airport, Paris -much to my pleasant surprise houses a whole lot of indulgences. From the most famous Ladurée to Fauchons and some exquisite chocolates are on display to tantalize the taste buds to no end. While I love Macarons, the price one pays for a Ladurée macaroon somehow just doesn't appeal to me. Since we dont get Fauchon in Riyadh, I did buy them finally and boarded the flight with a heavy bag and a light wallet. My heart however goes to the simple cashew macarons of good old City Bakery in Mangalore. Not great to look at but great in taste.

Vox Populi but not mine!

Laduree display their goodies.

As I come close to ending this piece, I cannot not include the dessert that I had at The Glasshouse- Deli Bistro, Lavelle Road, Bangalore and a coffee at Dubai, The photographs speak for themselves. Artistry at its best...

@ The Glass House- Deli & Bistro, Bangalore

@ Bur Juman - Dubai

Life is like a chocolate box where each chocolate is like a portion of life. Some are crunchy, some nutty, some are soft. Take them as they come and enjoy.

Au Revoir !

Los Angeles

2015-04-23T02:37:00.000+03:00

For most of us Los Angeles is what we see on television isn't it? NCIS, CSI and wailing LAPD sirens - it rings a bell, doesn't it? Well, that is true for most cities in the US...

In our earlier holiday to the US a few years back, we had done the East Coast and come up to Las Vegas but we had left out the state of California and boy, am I glad! It gave me a reason to come back again.

Some of you would have by now guessed that I have a soft corner for Europe since my last few holidays have all been to Europe. However we had to visit California and that we did finally.

In the past I had never updated my blog when we were travelling and invariably could not write as much as I wanted to on return , one can always find many excuses. This time, I decided to do the uncoventional and that is blog while we travelled. Postponing it meant that I will never get down to writing. As you read my updates and experiences you will get a lot of insights and tips that will help you plan your holiday.

We almost missed our connecting Saudia flight from Jeddah due to a delay in our flight from Riyadh and just about made it when boarding commenced. The 16+ hour flight from Jeddah to LA was good. Comfortable seats, good legroom, quiet co-passengers and good service. Ordering a Hindu vegetarian meal really helped me, a fellow Indian passenger in the adjacent row had to be content with fruits, bread and some butter for the journey. No, I am not a vegetarian but prefer eating that especially when I am travelling. My family who don't enjoy flying, surprisingly had a seamless flight as well.

Arrival and Day ONE:

The Saudia flight landed 50 minutes earlier than its scheduled time.

The LAX airport immigration was a smooth process as we got fast tracked, had we been in the queue we would be there for at least an hour. We took a cab to the Hotel and paid around USD 65 to get to Hollywood Orchid Suites. If you are single or a couple than book a shuttle instead of a cab. Super Shuttles is a good service provider.

The location of the hotel is brilliant, 2 minutes from the Metro, Hollywood Drive/Boulevard where you have the Dolby Theatre, Walk of Fame, Madam Tussauds et al. The room or rather the apartment
sized room had an open kitchen and a bedroom. Two king beds and two televisions! For me a hotel

has to be in a great location and also provide a laundromat. This one fitted my requirements.

Remaining connected is so important these days , the first thing I did after a quiet nap was that I walked down to the Verizon Shop @ Vine Street and picked up 2 mobiles with unlimited talk and text plan for a month for USD 150. The monthly plan is for just USD 35 per phone and the rest was the instrument cost. So folks, when you travel to the US choose a plan that suits you, like I did. Remember to get them to set up the phone for you and you are good to go. From your local mobile operator try to subscribe to a roaming internet package so that your regular mobile remains connected to the net as you go. I use google maps to help me get to any destination and having it alongside is a blessing. I also walked down past Madam Tussauds to Fresh and Easy Grocery, picked up some water and fresh fruits.

Our hotel is right next to the Hollywood Highland meal so we ended the first evening with a lovely
dinner at the California Pizza Kitchen. We ordered the following:

- White Corn Guacamole + Chips- Small Plate- Hughly recommended, just the right portions.

- Sedona Tortilla Soup which is made of vine ripened tomatoes with corn, mild chillies with tortilla

garnish. Great way to start a good meal.

- Thai Crunch salad - our all time favorite

- Roasted Veggie salad- good for a change

- Chilled Platinum Margarita.

Great service, served with free country bread and spiced olive oil...We went there again...the CPK chain is visible across the state so don't miss eating there.

Day TWO:

Had a wonderful breakfast at the hotel. The lady managing the breakfast introduced me to toasted croissants, loved the melting butter and the preserves on it. I also took a liking for some raisin bran cereal. Post the breakfast got picked up for Starline Grand Tour of LA. This tour gives a 6 hour drive across all major sights including Beverly Hills, Rodeo Drive etc. We ended paying a higher price since the hotel called to reserve this tour for us. So beware, book it yourself, the Starline office is a minute walk from the hotel. I paid dearly for the inertia. We had some interesting company for the tour. The Hollywood Bowl is a amphitheater that we enjoyed visiting, can imagine how it would be

when there was a concert. Wish we had such theaters in India. We had an Asian lunch at Farmers Market. We fell in love with this concept when we visited some of these in Europe. A treat to the eyes and off course the taste buds too. More about that in my next post. I am struggling with the formatting on the iPad and miss my laptop.

An Oil Free and Guilt Free Delight for this winter.

2015-01-16T11:05:00.000+03:00

" Battle of the Bulge " lasted for exactly a year for the Germans, for some people like me it has literally lasted a lifetime. It is a battle of the mind v/s the tastebuds where the tastebuds usually emerge victorious. Isn't it so easy to succumb in your moment of weakness to some delicious food? These 'moments of weakness' are often for blokes like me!

There is a unison of opinion that food is most tasty when it is deep fried or made with a generous helping of oil. The problem is that we end up eating more to our heart's content than our poor and hardworking stomach. We have recently seen a lot of people buying ' air fryers' so as to reduce or eliminate the oil content from the food.I have read varied opinions on how good it is and hence have yet to consider buying it.

I have been fortunate to try some food at a friend's place which was cooked without oil recently, it almost tastes the same and one can eat it without any guilt of the inclement calories. While I have been taking a self imposed sabbatical from cooking for the last few months, I could feel the impact of eating out on myself.

When I read a Roasted Sabudana Vada recipe in a Food Group that I am a member of , I decided to give it a go and also shake myself out of this laziness and was absolutely delighted with the outcome. So go ahead and try making these, it is simple and tasty ! Warm the cockles of your heart with this lovely delight! Enjoy it with a blast of green chutney or sauce.

Roasted Sabudana Vada

ROASTED SABUDANA VADA. (Recipe courtesy: Roma Patil @ Sikandalous Cuisine)

Ingredients:
1. 2 cups soaked Sabudana.
2. 2 medium Potatoes boiled and mashed....
3. Red Chillie powder, Haldi, Salt, Sugar, according to taste.
4. 1 tsp grated Ginger.
5. 1 tsp Saboot Jeera.
6. Chopped green Chillies to taste and lots of chopped fresh Coriander.
7. 1/2 cup Roasted Peanuts ground fine.

Method:
1. Mix in all the above ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
2. Ensure that the mixture is stiff.
3. If not, add some Sabudana flour, popped Amaranth flour, or roasted Rice flour.

(I did not use any of the above as luckily the mixture was stiff and held together nicely.)
4. Apply Oil to Palms and pat into FLAT round Vadas.

(I realised that is important that the vadas be as flat as possible so that the inner contents get well roasted. )

Sabudana vadas ready to be roasted!

5. Roast on non stick pan till well done.

Being roasted in ZERO Oil on a Non Stick Pan

Longhorn Steakhouse- A Review

2014-11-13T19:09:00.003+03:00

Somehow I have never been very enthusiastic about visiting Steakhouses anywhere as I don’t eat steaks per se. Just over a fortnight back, my dear friend and his wife suggested that we visit Longhorn Steakhouse, they had good things to say about it. While they are Europeans (Dutch & British) and enjoy steaks, I was skeptical but my zeal for trying out a new restaurant was overwhelming and I agreed.

When we had visited Orlando in Florida some years back I had driven past Longhorn and a few months back came across this one in Riyadh when we had gone for dinner to Red Lobster another American Chain which is right next to it.

Longhorn Steakhouse was a pleasant surprise and loved it so much that I visited yet again with a separate set of friends the following weekend. They loved it too! I did not eat any steaks on both visits as I don’t eat beef but everything else that we ordered was a dream.

Well, you must begin your meal with their House Chips & Dips. They are freshly made and served hot, with a lovely dip. The chips are sprinkled with some dried herbs which give it a distinct taste and aroma. This coupled with their signature barbeque dip just disappear in the rumbling tummy before you bat your eyelids. They serve hot, crisp country bread with some butter which is complimentary. The problem with us hungry souls is that we are unable to resist anything served hot especially when we are famished.

House chips & yum dip served hot!

To quench our thirst in my first visit I did order the iced lemon tea and in my 2^ndvisit we ordered 2 kinds of margaritas. The Strawberry margarita won hands down. Mammoth glass, fresh strawberries used and great to taste.

Strawberry Margarita- refreshing !

Other margarita ! Did not meet my desire...

Literally mouth-watering isn't it?

For the mains, we ordered trout fish which is served with your choice of a salad (we chose the Caesars) and sides- we ordered some jacket steamed potato served with cream. You could also choose the regular veg salad instead of Caesars and for sides there is a choice of french fries, grilled vegetables etc.

Trout with jacket potato

They serve 2 fillets of trout both of good size in one portion and can be shared by people. Trout is a fresh water fish and usually found in cool (10–16 °C), clear streams and lakes. The fish does not smell and I love it. I had my share of it when we were visiting Cyprus a few years back. The herbs that are used are subtle and leave a delicate lingering taste on your taste buds, do squeeze some lime generously.

We also ordered some chicken with portabella mushrooms, the portion again was generous, the fillets perhaps tad thicker than desired but the accompanying sauce was superb. We had ordered some mashed herbed potatoes as sides with this dish.

Portabello Mushroom with Chicken and mashed potato

Two of my friends ordered a steak -well done. Their verdict was also similar. Good portion and high on taste.

Foodies like us cannot stay away from sugar and desserts isn't it? So we ordered the dessert sampler, which the four of us could not polish off although it was delicious. The apple was pie served with icecream, strawberry cheese cake, molten lave cake with cream. Paradiso ! Ambrosia..

Dessert sampler

Now, finally to the price. For the ambience, portions and quality, I would rate it a great value for money restaurant. We were not disappointed.

Yes, we will go again...

(Photo Credits : Kappiarath Muralidharan)

A cruise on River Seine, Paris..

2014-10-23T18:43:00.000+03:00

Love sunsets? Love cruising on azure waters? I do!! If you could enjoy both these combined with the sights and sounds of Paris, why will you not take it?

Sunset -not on the Seine though!

On our first evening in Paris, after visiting the Notre Dame and enjoying some superb gelato and crepes in Amorino (which I have covered in my earlier posts), we decided to just walk down the banks of Seine to head for our evening cruise and discover the monuments of Paris by sunset.

To my mind, there is no better way to start your holiday in Paris than an evening cruise on the River Seine. After due research on the net, I decided on the -http://www.vedettesdupontneuf.com/home/ .

The Cost per person for the evening cruise is 10 Euros for adults and 5 Euros for children when booked online. I strongly recommend buying the tickets online as they come cheaper.

The cruise departs from Paris’ oldest bridge, the Pont-Neuf and lasts for an hour or so. Metro Stop – Pont Neuf is just on the opposite side of the bridge to the dock. 2 minutes away. Easy to get there and easy to go back when the cruise is done. The tip is to get there early and get seats right up in the front of the boat.

The cruise takes you past the glorious Paris monuments from the Louvre to the Eiffel Tower and you get to enjoy the wonderfully lit sights of this city at dusk. Paris is also a city of bridges which you will cruise past and enjoy the sounds of the gushing water of the River Seine. The photography opportunity of the lit monuments is something which one has to experience. There is English commentary on the cruise.

We really had a terrific time on the cruise and clicked some wonderful pictures. Once done we got out and walked towards the Louvre Rivoli Metro which is 600 m/ 8 minute walk and boarded the Metro Line 1 towards La Defense Grand Arche and got down at Franklin D Roosevelt Station from where the apartment is under 5 minute walk.

We ended the day with dinner at a restaurant just off Champs Elysee...

Eiffel Tower you will, Amorino you MUST...

2014-10-20T19:56:00.000+03:00

While travel is one passion, food is another fetish that I have. While on this journey in Europe I will be taking you through some lip smacking, visual treats, enough to make you feel famished and yearn for more.

After we spent some wonderful time basking in the glory of the Notre Dame and clicking pictures we decided to walk across the Seine over the bridge to some cul-de-sacs.

We had some time before getting on board the evening cruise on the Seine and hence thought it would be a great way to initiate ourselves into the Parisien culture. We found some nice memoirs and curio shops where we picked a few things as we kept walking down the cobbled streets in this area.

There were some Asian restaurants serving Indian cuisine, some Greek, some Middle Eastern restaurants serving the usual ‘doner’ and ‘shawermas’.

We then stumbled across this shop where there was a long queue for buying gelatos and I immediately wanted to get in there and my family was also equally delighted to go in.

IF YOU ARE IN PARIS, you MUST and I INSIST you MUST visit the ‘Amorino- Gelato Al Naturelle’. With over 50 shops in France and 20 of them in Paris you will find it difficult to miss one. We visited the one on 16, Rue De la Huchette, across the Seine and a 5 minute walk from the Notre Dame. Especially on days when you have been walking around and tired, this is one place where you can just spend a good 30 minutes and get those batteries re-charged

Can you see the people in a queue behind the door?

Well, let us begin with their renowned gelatos. Served in cups and waffle cones, they are a sheer treat to the tired senses! Absolutely delicious ice-cream, presented like a pretty flower in the waffle cone with a center round scoop and then 'petals' made from a spade-like scoop. Each petal can be a different flavour, if you so wish.

Some of the favourites that I could assess from the people in the queue were Pistachio, Chocolate Orange, Caramel 'au beurre et sel', Tahitian Vanilla and Equatorial Dark Chocolate. The gelato doesn’t come cheap however one just can’t have enough of it.

They also offer some amazing waffles; we had ordered for a Waffle with chocolate but were served with crepes. No regrets though, every bite a sheer delight. They serve Crepes with Caramel, Crepe with Chocolate and Crepe with Ice cream and I am sure each one outdoing the other.

What caught my fancy were macaroons with ice-cream. It was rather late and I just did not feel like ordering one as I had my fill. Macaroons with Ice cream- Mango sorbet, Pistachio in between the macaroons was something I had never tasted although I had tasted Laduree and Fauchon macaroons, I thought I would keep it for my next visit to Amorino, which eventually never happened. I had a learning here, if you yearn for something, go for it. Don’t keep it for later, who knows, you may never get there again. Don’t deny yourself of this DIVINE experience.

They serve some delicious Latte Macchiato, Cappuccino and Americano Espresso here as well. My only regret is that we visited it JUST once…As they say, keep pining and some day we shall get there...

6 dreamy days in Paris !

2014-10-19T19:24:00.001+03:00

Our first port of landing was Paris. It doesn’t take much to fall in love with this city. In fact, it is usually love at first sight. For me, this happened in 1999 when we first visited Paris. It is indeed one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Whether it's a riverside vista that takes in the Seine, the countless bridges, the Notre-Dame Cathedral, and the Eiffel Tower, or the view of elegant buildings and mansard roofs from your room window, one cannot be but smitten.

It is my endeavour my readers to have a seamless holiday and hence I have tried to give all the information in this blog while trying to keep it interesting to read as well. So here goes…

Arrival into Paris & Day 1:

CDG Airport to Paris: (This section is very useful & a recommended read once you finalize your trip or else you can go to the next section i.e. Rest of Day 1)

We landed at the crack of dawn at the Terminal 2C, Charles De Gaulle (CDG) Airport. Immigration was a breeze and took us just a few minutes. CDG airport is in Roissy, about 28 kms from Paris city.

The CDG airport is one of the busiest airports in Europe and if you are not going through an organized tour it will be useful for your onward commute to your hotel in Paris. CDG has 3 terminals; Terminal 2 consists of seven sub-terminals: 2A to 2G. This can sound intimidating but no worries; all you need to do is follow directions at the airport and tips in this blog.

If you know the airline that you are travelling, you can click on the below link to find out which terminal you will be landing.

http://www.easycdg.com/1/airport-guide/which-terminal/which-terminal-information-paris-cdg-airport-charlesdegaulle/.

There are several ways to reach the charming city of Paris from the airport.

Ways to reach Paris city from CDG Airport

For more information you may click on

http://www.easycdg.com/1/ground-transportation/ground-transportation-access-paris-cdg-airport/

The quickest and most convenient way is to take the RER train and we did exactly that. However if you have too much luggage and are arriving during peak rush hours you may want to consider an alternative form of transport.

Follow the signs "Gare SNCF"/"Railway Station" to make your way to the train station.

Commuting between terminals (T1, T2 & T3) is also well marked and either on foot or CDVAL the inter-terminal airport train.

If your arrival is in one of the sub-terminals of Terminal 2. The below will be useful to you.

Charles de Gaulle railway station is underneath terminal 2, between terminals 2C/2E and 2D/2F, it consists of a 5-storey building.

Buying tickets:

There are 2 ways in which you can buy a RER ticket:-

Ticket-vending machines: Credit cards with an embedded microchip and PIN will work in these. Mine luckily had one so we ended up using the machine.

Ticket counter: Where you can pay with cash or a credit card. However these may be shut down late nights and early morning.

This ticket is good enough for you to reach your destination using both RER and Metro lines, keep inserting it in the turnstiles. I bought 2 Carnets (kar-nay) of tickets. Each Carnet has 10 tickets and can be used in the Metro.

Typically you would be getting down in one of the first 3 stations mentioned below, depending on where you have chosen your hotel/apartment and then take the connecting Metro Line to reach your hotel. We did just that….

The connecting Metro Lines are mentioned alongside the station for example: From ‘Gare Du Nord’ you could take the Metro Line 2, 4 or 5 OR you could also connect to RER D & E. The Metro is super convenient and again cost effective. We got down at the ‘Chatelet Les Halles’ station and took the Connecting Metro Line 1 to finally alight at Franklin D Roosevelt Metro station on Champs Elysee. Our rental apartment was a 4 minute walk from this metro station.

While using the transportation just remember “Correspondence" in French means roughly "transfer point" to connect with a different Metro Line & "Sortie" means "exit”.

I strongly recommend going through the enclosed link before using the metro. You will enjoy using the metro once you familiarize yourself with it.

http://parisbytrain.com/tag/paris-metro/

Rest of Day 1: I had taken printouts of directions using google maps to go from the Roosevelt Metro station to the apartment at Rue Du Colisée. The directions, distance and time taken are precise so please do use google maps.

The apartment was located on Level 2 of the building and after an overnight flight it was quite tiring heaving the bags up but we managed to do that, had coffee with some brioche and slept for a few hours. The weather in Paris was just fabulous, the sun playing hide and seek with the clouds and an occasional light drizzle. We were famished by the time (2 pm) we were ready to hit the streets of Paris.

We got down and just outside the apartment building was a restaurant ‘Mezzo Di Pasta ‘serving pastas and salads, just the right things for us. With hungry rumbling tummy’s we polished the pastas and some salad with ‘still aqua’. The restaurant was functional and served the office goers and not a fine dining venue. We were a happy trio with the stomach’s becoming content. We then set of to visit the Notre Dame. We used the Metro and got there very comfortably.

Whether you opt to explore the historic, fashion-conscious, bourgeois, or bohemian and arty sides of Paris, one thing is certain, the City of Light will always enthrall.

Notre Dame

So au revoir until my next...

Our Itinerary and maybe yours as well !!

2014-06-06T12:25:00.000+03:00

Are we ready to start off on our voyage today? While we enjoy the sights and tastes on this journey, I will also be giving you various links, tips and information that will be very useful whenever you plan a holiday. Holidays can be wonderful, if well planned. I personally enjoy planning holidays myself and dont prefer going on organised tours confined in a bus & with no flexibility to the schedule.

You can actually plan your holiday by blindly following this itinerary and going through my blog. I will also be more than delighted to be of any help in planning your itinerary and stay as I LOVE doing it.

You could write to me at prashantrao@hotmail.com with the Subject : ITINERARY HELP.

Our 18 day itinerary of Europe covering 5 countries was as follows:

Paris, France - 6 days (including French countryside & day trip to Keukenhof, NL)

Wengen , Switzerland - 4 days

Salzburg, Austria - 3 days

Vienna, Austria - 2 days

Prague, Czech Rep - 2 days ( We should have kept this for at least 3 days)

Paris, France - 1 day

A sneak peak of things to come !

We have covered Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, Germany in our earlier visits. In fact we loved Wengen in Switzerland so much that we included the same again our itinerary. Similarly we loved the Tulips in our earlier visit to Keukenhof in Netherlands so this was also included as a part of the itinerary. Paris was also added for the same reason.

Before we get into our first destination, a few things that I would like to share:

Travel /Transportation :

The best way to travel in Europe is by road or rail so that one can enjoy the countryside and hence we did use air travel only to fly into Paris from Riyadh and then to get back. Within Europe all travel was by the fabulous train network and by air only from Prague to Paris as the train journey is really a long one.

For international air travel bookings, you should review www.expedia.com and www.kayak.com, they give you a great choice of connections, airlines, fares and are both reliable. I have not had problems on refunds or changing travel dates thus far.

If you are sure that you will not change dates of travel or will not cancel your holiday then you can get sweet deals . Such tickets are inflexible and have zero refunds. I wasnt sure of travel dates and ended up paying more. Once you identify the airline/connections then go to the relevant airline website and check if they are offering something better in terms of costs. If so, book on the airline website only. If not, book through the website which gives you a better deal and is reliable or trustworthy.If you are in India, www.makemytrip.com is a good travel aggregator to consider. We booked our tickets on Saudia Airlines website directly for the entry and exit into Europe. The rest were all booked on the individual rail websites.

Within each city in Europe, we travelled like the locals. We walked, took the trams, metros and the train network. These give you a wonderful flavor of the city and are really efficient. We also saved a lot of time and money as well. Switzerland particularly is exemplary in all respects. Every form of transport is simply superb, timing, safety et al.

It looks daunting and challenging, isnt it? I assure you, it just isnt. ! Continue reading the blog over the next few weeks and you will believe me.

Stay/ Accomodation :

Whenever we plan holidays which are more than a week, we prefer to stay in serviced hotel apartments or apartments available on rent or hotels which offer a laundry room as we can travel light and have our clothes washed frequently. Hotel rooms in Europe are rather small and in some places almost cramped so my suggestion in to go for apartments as they offer space in addition to the amenities of a home. Hotel bookings can also be done on www.booking.com

Some hotels offer a laundry room with coin operated washers and dryers. Very often hotels like the Mercure, Ibis, Marriot have this but not always. During this trip I booked apartments offered on rent by the apartment owners using www.tripadvisor.com . The website is just a medium to identify, review and contact the apartment owner for availability and pricing. Booking is confirmed by the apartment owner on email usually after a token advance or deposit is wire transferred to them. I used Paypal to transfer the money to some of them. All the apartments we booked had a washing machine/dryer, a kitchen or kitchenette and a wifi. Morst importantly, their locations were prime, close to metro stations, major attractions so that travelling around is convenient. We were lucky as all the apartments we chose were simply fabulous in all respects. The other website which is also very good is www.airbnb.com . You will get a great choice of apartments on this website as well.

.Get ready for the first destination.....Paris.

I love to travel, but hate to arrive...

2014-05-30T10:11:00.001+03:00

While I have been working in the banking industry for almost 24 years now and enjoyed the journey, did I ever tell you that I have been nursing a hidden desire.?

A desire to be on the move always, travel, click, write and if I am lucky get paid for it as well.! No harm in dreaming, isn't it ? After all, life is all about pursuing dreams.

Albert Einstein's adage " I love to travel but hate to arrive " is perhaps apt for a day dreamer like me.

I admire these guys working for National Geographic and other travel channels as they can travel all around the world. and also get paid for it

Life is not however that easy, life is all about priorities and if you love to travel, make travel a priority. Just add it to some of your key priorities in life and then work towards it and you will soon find out that you can execute it with consummate ease.

I remember St Augustine's quote here " The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page"

When we are young, it is easier to travel. You don’t need big bucks; all you need is a camera, a backpack and some detailed planning. There are so many pristine locations both in India as well as overseas many of them undiscovered and cheap. Budget travel or frugal travel is now a reality with the Internet throwing options at the click of the mouse.Well, for those who want to splurge, then the options are unlimited.

While the Japanese and Chinese ( difficult to correctly identify between them) are found in big groups travelling all over Europe, one notices that Indians are tough contenders for the number one slot. In our recent holiday in Europe, we not only found the usual travel groups from Cox & Kings, Kesari travels etc but lots of families travelling on their own. We bumped into one such family from Hyderabad at the Wien Meidling (Vienna ) station who were on their own and not with any tour group. They were travelling into Vienna from Rome by train.

Westerners on the other hand work hard all their lives and start their travel only once they retire. One can find hordes of Americans, Europeans and perhaps Australians from Down Under.

Over the next few weeks, I shall get down to sharing our holiday to Europe including culinary delights as well.

Pain Au Chocolate @ Paul's, Paris.

So fasten your seat belts and get set and ready...

Schipol Airport, Amsterdam

Cooking escapades

2013-11-23T21:41:00.001+03:00

The easiest way to lose weight is to 'throw your weight around' ! I don't seem to be good at it and my perennial battle against weight continues. Ever since my family has relocated back to India, my eating habits have been in a disarray. While I have been regimental about the timing of my meals, the discipline that I had enforced on my dinner has been somewhat slack and my sweet tooth has been working overtime. I have now decided to slowly get back into that discipline again.

One of the things that I have decided to do is cut out all the carbs in the evening, try my hand at cooking thereby reducing my meals outside. I have been browsing numerous food blogs and trying my hand at cooking. While the task of chopping veges seems onerous, once that is done, the rest is not as arduous.

My cooking skills are limited to Jeera Aloo, Anda Burji, Laal Maas, some salads and pastas.Just a couple of days back I tried out this recipe using a Butternut Squash which is easily available in this part of the world.

Butternut Squash

This is very easy to cook, What I loved about this recipe that I came across is the mild sweetness of the butternut juxtaposed with the strong taste of ginger and cumin seeds.

If you don't have a butternut, you can use any other equivalent vegetable from the pumpkin family.

- Cut butternut squash into small cubes (approx 2 cups)- Take a pan or wok, pour some 2 tbps of olive oil.
- Once the oil gets heated up add 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds, 1 tsp of finely chopped ginger
slivers and 1tbsp of brown sugar.
- Stir fry for 5 minutes on medium high flame then turn heat to medium and cover the pan.
- Let cook about 15 minutes until tender. Lift cover occasionally to stir.
- Sprinkle some rock salt to taste last (after cooking).

Give it a shot and eat it hot....

Weekend sojourns

2013-11-15T18:45:00.000+03:00

Weekends! Oh la la la, something which every member of the family eagerly looks forward to. Many of us will remember our childhood when weekends meant visiting relatives, our mother's cooking something special for lunch and watching that evening movie on Doordarshan. Life was simpler then and our needs basic and simple, isnt it?.

While we continue to eagerly look forward to weekends even today, it now means visiting malls, going out to restaurants, grocery shopping and watching soap operas on TV. TV has remained steadfast in our weekend plans and will continue to rule the roost.

Something that I oft dream of is packing a picnic hamper, a camera and just get out of the congestion. To me sitting besides a gurgling brook, a riverside, the sea or even amidst thick green foliage is something irresistable. To be away from the din and noise and being one with nature us helps us recharge our batteries. Doesnt take much to do this but somehow rarely does one do it on weekends. One of the deterrents for us is the time taken to drive out of the larger metropolitan cities itself.Time to break the shackles and just do what your heart yearns...

I remember going off on weekend trips with friends to Lonavala/Khandala, Alibaug, Kihim, Harihareshwar and Bordi from Mumbai. We used to board a train or a State Transport (ST)bus and get back the same night or stay overnight,

Some of the places that I have on my mind are Belur, Halebid, Chikmaglur, Gokarna and Madikeri in Karnataka and Nileshwar, Bekal in Kerala and some of the temples in both states. While these remain as desinations, I would love to stop on the road en route and spend some time off road. Earlier this year, we went to Nileshwar in Kerala. It is a 2-1/2 hour drive from Mangalore. I found a small resort built by 4 French nationals in Nileshwar. The property was on the beach, every room of the villa was facing the sea and one could actually lie down on the bed and watch the sea and hear the sound of waves. There was hardly a soul on the beach and it was sheer bliss. The quality time one gets with the family on such outings is invaluable. Walks on the beach, playing with the kids, clicking sunsets, reading books and off course no televisions.

So whichever part of the country one is in, just use the internet, find out a few places closeby and take the family out to be one with nature...

Mangalore

2013-04-18T17:15:00.000+03:00

Mangalore, Kudla, Kodial - call it by any name it conjures fond memories of swaying palms, gushing seas, glowing sand, the narrow, winding cul-de-sac’s and the numerous summer holidays spent in my childhood.

Visiting Mangalore in my summer holidays was a high point of my life in school. I would wait for the final exams to get over with bated breath as it would mean going back to my birthplace Mangalore. Going to Mangalore from Mumbai in those days meant an arduous 24 hour bus journey sometimes or by air on some lucky occasions. However Mangalore is now well connected by road and the journey is around 15 hours from Mumbai, an hour's flight from Mumbai with almost every airline flying into the city and off course the wonderful journey on the Konkan railway through the numerous tunnels and waterfalls. The Mangalore Airport is an international airport and the seaport is now a destination for many cruise liners which get tourists from the European countries.

Mangalore derives its name from the local Hindu Goddess Mangaladevi. Located on the backwaters of the Netravati and Gurupura rivers, the landscape of Mangalore comprises of rolling hills, coconut palms, freshwater streams, and hard red-clay tiled-roof buildings. The lush greenery is ambrosia to the soul especially after the monsoon season when one is landing at the Bajpe Airport, Mangalore.

Clicked from the aircraft, minutes before landing at M'lore airport

It is a city which is slowly experiencing the impact of urbanisation i.e. high rises, shoppping malls, cineplexes and fast food chains but still retains the old world charm. As a coastal city, the best time to visit Mangalore is immediately after the monsoons in end August or in December when the weather is cool and bracing. The summers tend to be humid & torrid.

The four main languages in Mangalore are Tulu, Konkani, Kannada, and Beary. Tulu being the mother tongue of the 'Bunt' community, Konkani being the mother tongue of the Saraswat & Goud Saraswat Brahmin community, Kannada being the official language of Karnataka and Beary 'Bhasha' being the language of the Beary Muslim community. Tulu and Kannada are widely spoken along with Konkani. However as a tourist, you will face no problems as most locals do understand Hindi and English.

View of the Nethravati River from the Mangalore Club

Mangalore has been the cradle of banking with many banks like Syndicate Bank, Vijaya Bank, Corporation Bank, Karnataka Bank, Canara Bank having been originally started here and K. V.Kamath of ICICI Bank fame is also from Mangalore. Some of the other famous personailities with origins in Mangalore being film stars like Aishwarya Rai, Shilpa Shetty, Sunil Shetty, late film star Guru Dutt, Dr Girish Karnad, Dr Devi Shetty, Oscar Fernandes etc to name a few.

Let me briefly broach on the cultural aspect. While many classical dance forms and folk art are practised in the city. The Yakshagana, a night-long dance and drama performance is the most popular one, while Pilivesha (tiger dance), a folk dance unique to the city, is performed during Dasara and Krishna Janmashtami. Mangalore is a city of some beautiful temples and churches, some of them being very ancient. The Milagres & St Aloysius Churches, Car Street Venkatraman Temple, Kadri, Gokarnatheswar and Sharavu Mahaganapati Temples are really worth visiting for the sheer experience of some inner peace. The 'Car Festival" or 'Rath Utsova' of the GSB community in Car Street Venkatraman temple is so well attended that one can see a sea of humanity to witness this wonderful festival.

I cannot, not mention about the 'Kite Festival' held on the Panambur Beach where kite flying enthusiasts come with such unique kites from within as well as outside India.

The Panambur Beach is on the outskirts of the city and is now a a great place for spending your weekend or an outing with family and friends. There are boats, jet skis, eco friendly airconditioned tents etc for those who want some adventure as well. You can get more information on http://www.panamburbeach.com/.

There is much more to write about including some other tourist spots and off course the cuisine in Mangalore, which I will cover in the next update....

Delicious Dish

2013-04-12T09:20:00.000+03:00

Almost 8 years in Riyadh and I had not heard of this restaurant called "Delicious Dishes" serving some fantastic North Indian food. A ' true hole in the wall' Indian restaurant located in the predominantly Asian area of Riyadh, called Hara. This was referred to me by some friends here who also heard of it recently while the restaurant has been there for many years.

I stepped in for the first time one Friday morning some months back for breakfast. The restaurant has a breakfast menu serving 'puri aaloo', 'aaloo parathas' and some non-vegetarian dishes as well. I have always maintained this, one has to figure out the best dishes in each restaurant and then enjoy them, one should never assume that every dish in any restaurant is good. Same goes for this restaurant as well.

The puri aaloo is served with some raita and 'sheera' in Maharashtra also called 'sooji halwa' in Northern India. The aaloo subzi is worth dying for, truly divine. The gravy is tempered with cumin seeds, lightly spiced and garnished with coriander leaves. I can recall eating this quality in parts of Uttar Pradesh like Kanpur. All you need to do is squeeze some lime juice and dip the puris in this heavenly concoction and experience the sheer ambrosia. The other accompaniments like sheera and raita are nothing to write home about. The aaloo parathas are also great but keep that for another session as once you finish eating the puri aaloo, your may not be able to do justice to both dishes.

We also tried their luncheon menu and the items that I recommend are the 'Kadai Chicken' amongst the non-veg items, on the weekends they make some fantastic ' kadi pakoda'. The best that I have eaten in recent times. Their 'gulab jamuns' are also highly recommended.

Great value for money, superb taste and no frills, a great place to take the food home and enjoy it with the family.. Bon appetit.!!

Do write back to me if you want specific directions to the place...

UP Restaurant & Executive Suites Hotel

2013-04-05T07:57:00.000+03:00

With a passion for trying out restaurants, sometimes I end up finding some restaurants which offer some lip smacking food in small corners of the cities which I live in or travel to.

Upto about a year back, I used to set out on Friday early mornings with my son for company and drive around the city of Riyadh trying to find out either new restaurants or those which I had not identified earlier. Similarly I also do like trying out any restaurant which a friend or an acquaintance may talk or recommend. Sometimes we also discover some great eateries when we go along with friends for dinner.

UP Restaurant in the Hara area of Riyadh, is one such 'hole in the wall' restaurant that serves food like simple, home made, North Indian Food. Clean, functional, no nonsense, no frills but a gem that has been satisfying pangs of hunger of bachelors living in Riyadh for decades. Unfortunately there is no family section here and hence you need to take a parcel home if you want the family to eat their fare. It is a favorite haunt for us from our office and we descend there in a group usually.While they serve both Veg and Non-Veg food, I guess their Veg food is more popular amongst us friends here. Their menu changes daily. You will not find some of the vegetables they use in restaurants elsewhere. Some of the dishes that are truly our favorites are Arbi (Colocasia) Masala, Pyaaz Patta (Spring Onion Leaves) Sabzi , Alu Palak, Turai/Lauki Ki Sabzi etc to name a few. They serve steaming hot rotis, soft and fresh out of the tandoor, we usually dip the roti in steaming hot bowls of butter infused dal fry and the sabzis. They also serve the 'Tahiri' which is a UP style masala rice which is also simple and nice. A meal for 4 hungry souls, with 3 varieties of sabzi/curries, daal fry and rotis costs us less than SAR 50 for all of us together. Sometimes we think that the restaurant is doing social service with this pricing and quality. You will find people from all walks of life eating here including us bankers. For anyone interested in knowing precise directions, do write back to me and I will glad to share the same.

Just last week, we were invited for dinner by some friends at the Executive Hotel Suites at Olaya Street in Riyadh which is opposite the iconic landmark, Kingdom Tower in Riyadh. The restaurant is on the mezzanine floor of this pretty, quaint hotel. The ambience is great, service is excellent and impeccably clean. We decided to go for the buffet as the salads looked fresh and we are salad fans!.

The salad spread was fantastic - variety of fresh Middle Eastern & Western salads. The Hummous, Fattoush, Tabbouleh, Muhammara, Baba Ghanoush, Muttabal, stuffed vine leaves, fresh golden yellow corn nibblets, baby corn, Caesar's salad, olives etc etc. They had 2 Soups on the buffet table, the Clear Sea Food Soup and Cream of Chicken Soup. I tried the Clear Seafood Soup which had the right amount of salt, fish and shrimps. Clear soups are easy to make but easy to also mess up as the taste needs to be subtle and there must be a ballad of harmony between the ingredients. This one was perfect.!

The main course spread was limited but that suits us fine as we tend to go low on the main course as we usually stuff ourselves with the salads. The fish in lemon sauce was great and worth mentioning. There was a seafood meddley dish with calamari which was also nice. The desserts were decent too. I guess, the cost per person here is just under SAR 100 and hence great value for money. Will go again.!!

There are many more to write about and across different cities so watch out for more in the future...

Bateel Cafe

2013-03-29T10:35:00.001+03:00

'Bateel' a name synonymous with delectable Dates, Date chocolates and desserts in the Middle East has also ventured into the restaurant/cafe business under the 'Cafe Bateel' brand. Cafe Bateel has branches in Dubai, Riyadh and some other cities of the GCC.

Located on the Tahlia Street of Riyadh, Bateel Cafe is spread over 2 levels. The ground level has a 'Singles'Section to your right and there are counters displaying a wide array of dates, desserts, chocolates and condiments to choose from. The display is tempting, so is the variety. We would have loved to take home the 'Dates Balsamic Vinegar' but unfortunately the same was out of stock. The Lime Relish looked good but did not try it.

We sat on the upper level of the Cafe which was the seating for families.The section was open and the ambience, pleasing. Being a weekday the cafe was fairly full, mainly with womenfolk with their friends.This is one of the few places where the family seating does not have any partitions or compartments and hence not claustrophobic.

We were offered both the breakfast and lunch menus but preferred to order from the lunch menu as it was past 1 pm. The choice was mainly Italian. We ordered for their Mushroom Soup which was recommended by the waiter. One of our friends had highly recommended the Chilean Sea Bass for the main course and I ordered that for myself, a Penne Arrabiata for my wife and another pasta dish for my son. Unfortunately there is no kids menu in the restaurant. I also overheard one of the staff saying that today the restaurant looks like a Mcdonalds, presumably because there were some kids accompanying their parents for a meal. If this is any indication, looks like kids are not welcome here.!!

While we waited, a basket of bread was placed on our table. We waited for a few minutes assuming that we will be served some butter but when we realised that the waiter seemed to have forgotten, I asked for some. The waiter informed us that we could eat it with the olive oil and the balsamic vinegar as well. I was surprised by the response and told him that I am aware of that but would like some butter too. Finally he brought the butter which was in a cute ceramic dish, made specially for Cafe Bateel perhaps from France or Italy and really yummy. The bread would have been better if served warm. We enjoyed it with the dates balsmic vinegar and olive oil fusion. The Dates Balsmic Vinegar is something truly worth dying for, awesome to say the least.

The Mushroom Soup had a oriental tinge in it, we could get the taste of some pureed chickpeas. It was nice, nothing to rave about. Servings were good and filling.

Coming to the main courses, the Chilean Sea Bass was highly priced at SAR 115 per plate, I thought that the quality was not worth the price. The Penne Arrabiata was at best average, we have eaten better than what they served at half the price in other restaurants in the city. When I glanced around in the restaurant, I saw other guests enjoying some snacks and coffees, desserts but very few people enjoying a full meal.

Would I visit Cafe Bateel again, yes I would but I would try their desserts and beverages rather than their lunch menu.

We did not try their desserts as the main course had left us tad disappointed especially since they are highly priced but the dishes were not lip smacking per se. We dont have an issue with highly priced dishes but they should be well worth the price.

Back again...

2013-03-25T07:48:00.000+03:00

Here I am back again to writing my blog after so many months. We have been bracing ourselves up for some changes in life. My wife and son will be re-locating back to India in May'13 while I plan to be here for some more time. This is a big change as we have always lived together as a family. My son who has never lived in India and hitherto only been there on vacations will now need to be ready for a completely different lifestyle once back home. For my better half, moving to India brings its own set of challenges after over 13 years in the Gulf. She will have to play the dual roles of a father and mother to our 8 year old. For me, the challenge to live here alone and perhaps moving out from the comforts of our villa to an apartment will also be daunting too. We have been spoilt, time to get back to reality. Well, change always is difficult for all of us, isnt it ? I believe where there is a will there is a way and sooner the better.

In the last few months, we did travel to India and had one short but memorable stay in Bekal at the Vivanta by Taj. Bekal is in God's Own Country, Kerala and is just an hour's journey by train from the lush green coastal city of Mangalore. December is a great time to be in India as the weather is at its best.

While we could have hired a car and driven to Bekal visa Kasargod, the roads are bumpy and off course the costs would be approximately Rs 2000 v/s the train tickets which cost us under Rs 300. The train journey also is smooth and very comfortable.

I had booked our seats on the Mangalore-Chennai Express which left Mangalore station at sharp 7 am. The Mangalore station is small, quaint and busy mainly in the mornings. We boarded our compartment amidst the hustle bustle and got ourselves a steaming cuppa. As the train pulled out of the station and crossed the bridge on the river Sharavathi, we could see and capture the beauty of the rising orb.

We alighted at a station called Kotikulam at 8 am and walked out to find some autos parked. We hired one for a princely Rs 30 fare and were dropped at the Vivanta byTaj property at Bekal. We were greeted at the resort by a awesome looking Ganesha statue. Since we had reached really early and there were some hours left for the check-in we settled down in their library area overlooking a pond of water with lotuses. I always enjoy being close to a water body, gives me some kind of peace and a soothing effect, the feeling of serenity. Top it up with some chirping birds and swaying leaves, it is sheer paradise. My Utopia.

We had booked their top end suite and while we had seen the photos on the net, when we entered the suite, we were blown away. The sheer space, the lovely court yard with our own plunge pool, beach chairs and a day bed mounted on a swing. The bathroom had a steam bath et al. While we could have visited the Bekal Fort, we decided to just be on the property, enjoy the beach and off course indulge at the world class Jiva Spa. We could always visit the Bekal Fort later. Bekal Fort, a place of historic importance is also well known as the fort where one of the songs of Mani Ratnam's hit film "Bombay" was filmed with Manisha Koirala.

A little more about this heavenly Taj resort. Set amidst the backdrop of the backwaters and the Kappil Beach, this resort is spread across over 50 acres. My son gladly accompanied me one morning on their bicycles to explore this awesome property. The Jiva Spa is set on one end of the resort. The resort has a play area for kids and a fantastic bar adjacent to the restaurant. There are plenty of things to keep the kids busy and happy. We spent one full morning at the Jiva Spa. The best ever experience, no words can do justice, only experience can. PLEASE do not miss this. It is expensive but you should pamper yourself once a year at least, isnt it?

We spent three heavenly days at the property, just relaxing, reading books, taking walks on the beach, treatments at the Spa, in our own plunge pool and enjoying the true Mallu cuisine. Time just flew by in a jiffy. It was time to say good bye, their Front Office Manager and the General Manager were there to say good bye to us. We were pleasantly surprised when one of the Jiva staff came to present us a bottle of the fragrant oil that we had loved. This is the difference that the Taj is known for..small gestures, great service, they all add up to great hospitality.

I must also share with you that Tripadvisor has sent me a congratulatory email last week that my reviews are amongst the top 3 % read and liked by its reviewers across the world. I am touched and also encouraged to keep writing and contributing...

Summer time, Salad time...

2012-07-20T16:37:00.000+03:00

It is peak summer here in Riyadh with temperatures touching 50 C. With the family holidaying in India and lots of time on hand, thought of making a nice cool salad with a fruit dressing. I got some fresh rocket/arugula leaves from the Supermarket and decided to rustle up some salad for my lunch this afternoon. The salad was ready in exactly 10 minutes.

Rocket is a dark green leaf with a rich, intense peppery flavor and when tossed with some interesting dressing, it is so very refreshing.

This one is very easy to make and the dressing can be stored in a refrigerator for future use.

Arugula /Rocket Salad with Orange Vinaigrette Dressing

Ingredients:-
½ bunch rocket leaves
2 Tbsps-Pine nuts
5-6 Pecan Nuts
1 Orange/Navel
1 Tbsp- Balsamic Vinegar (Modena, if available)
1 Tbsp – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tsp – Honey
½ garlic pod finely cut
1/8th Tsp- cracked pepper or pepper powder

Method:-
1) Lightly toast the pecan and pine nuts in a pan on low fire for a few minutes constantly tossing them. Keep them aside to cool down and be crisp.

Toasted Pine and Pecan Nuts.

2) Segment the Navel/orange and keep 5-6 segments aside. You will use half the orange for this. The other half can be used for squeezing the juice out. You will need about ¼ th of a cup for the dressing. Keep the juice aside. Ensure that there are no seeds or skin / membrane of the orange in the juice.

Orange Segments with the juice

3) You are now ready to prepare the salad dressing. Mix the balsamic vinegar, orange juice, olive oil, honey, garlic and pepper in small dish and whisk them together.

4) Keep the salad dressing in the fridge for a few minutes so that it becomes nice and cold.

5) Fill your salad bowl with the rocket leaves and pour the dressing on it. Toss the salad lightly.

6) Add the orange segments along with the toasted pine and pecan nuts.

Rocket Salad with toasted nuts in an orange vinaigrette dressing ready to eat!!

Bon appetit....ENJOY...

Food and travel musings..

2012-05-17T11:14:00.002+03:00

A couple of weeks back I came across this interesting 'Taste Map of India' which I would like to share on this blog.

I have hardly tried the cuisine from Eastern States of India, leaving aside the Bengali food and the momos from Nagaland.

I sometimes wonder why is Indian Cuisine overseas associated mainly with Tikka Masalas, Tandoori Chicken when there is so much more to it. Be it London, Dubai, Amsterdam or even Australia for that matter, one can hardly get to see restaurants serving Maharashtrian, Himachali or Bengali food. Perhaps entrepreneurs need to think about this...food for thought...

I have been reading about some wonderful resorts and places that are off the beaten track and have got me excited.

One is the Hornbill Camp, Thattekad in Kerala.The camp is located in the jungle, with a spectacular view of the river Periyar and a great place for bird watching enthusiasts. I am enclosing the link and I am sure you may want to put this in your travel wish list as well.

http://www.thehornbillcamp.com/

If you would like to be 'one with nature' and enjoy the tranquility in the jungles of Karnataka, I came across this website http://junglelodges.com/ which should be interesting for you. Some of the resorts highlighted are :

Kabini River Lodge, Karapur, H.D.Kote Taluk, Mysore District.
B.R.Hills Wildlife Adventure Resort, K.Gudi, Chamarajnagar.
Cauvery Fishing Camp, Bheemeshwar, Malavalli Taluk, Mandya District.
Cauvery Fishing Camp, Doddmakali, Malavalli, Taluk, Mandya District.
Cauvery Fishing Camp, Galibore, Kanakapura Taluk, Bangalore Rural District.
Kali River Lodge, Kogil Ban, Dandeli Uttara Kannada District.
Devbagh Beach Resorts, Karwar, Uttara Kannada District.
Bannerghatta Nature Camp, Bannerghatta, Bangalore.
Bandipur Safari Lodge, Melakamanahalli, Bandipur.
River Tern Lodge, Lakavalli, Chickmagalur District.
Old Magazine House, Ganeshgudi, Uttara Kannada District
Dubare Elephant Camp, Kodagu District
Pilikula Nisarghadhama, Mangalore
Sloth Bear Resort, Hampi
Blackbuck Resort, Bidar

These resorts are not plush and luxurious like five star resorts in the cities but offer some good value for money. If you want to go for luxury with the wildlife then you may want to look at The Oberoi Vanyavilas, Ranthambore. Rates per night start from INR Rs 40, 000 or almost $ 800.

http://www.oberoihotels.com/oberoi_vanyavilas/index.asp

Coffee Cravings !

2012-04-19T08:52:00.000+03:00

Coffee....ummmm, doesn't it bring to your mind the aroma of freshly brewed coffee back home in your childhood? The freshly powdered coffee beans would be put to work in a traditional percolator or filter in the night to give you some steaming hot coffee in the morning.

While I enjoyed my cuppa, I was never a raving fan of either coffee or tea. A couple of years back, I ended up with gout and somehow based on some advice I refrained from coffee for more than 6 years.

Last year when we were invited by a friend for dinner, I was offered a choice between espresso or cappuccino post dinner and I refused it politely, as usual. Our host, casually enquired the reason for my refusal, when I told him so, he was surprised! He said that there is no need to refrain from coffee at all for gout. Well, he being a very senior and experienced doctor, I realised my folly and immediately decided to have a cappuccino. The cappuccino that he made at home was out of this world, which I will cover later in this article.This was the turning point, ever since that day, I have really started enjoying coffee particularly an espresso and now get an occasional craving.

When we ere living in Dubai, I had bought a 'De Longhi' cappuccino maker. A couple of days later I ended returning it back to the dealer as the quality of cappuccino left a lot desired. When our friend offered me that memorable cappuccino which was freshly made at home, I was smitten. The froth was just perfect, temperature just right. I was eager to know the name of the machine and hence I was taken into the kitchen. None other than the famed Jura ! I should have guessed it, Jura makes the best coffee (all kinds) that one usually haves in restaurants at home. It does not come cheap but if you are besotted by it, you have to go for it. I almost bought one last year but had some sudden unexpected expenses and hence had to postpone it. It is still on wish list though.

In the interim, I have settled down for Davidoff Espresso (Dark Roast), which I believe is the best espresso powder available at the supermarkets. The Dark Roast implies a longer roasting process, thus giving the beans a darker tone and an unmistakably intense, full-bodied aroma. I have tried the Espresso available at cafes like Dunkin's, Java, Starbucks, Crispy Creme etc but somehow I enjoy the espresso made by Arabica the most.

For those of you who are either existing or aspiring coffee addicts, enclosed is a link which will give you an excellent understanding on coffee and also some recipes as well.

http://www.talkaboutcoffee.com/how-to-make-cappuccinos.html

I am yet to taste the world's most expensive coffee yet, called the civet coffee. This is made from the beans of coffee which have been eaten by the Civet cats.After passing through its digestive tract the beans are then defecated, keeping their shape. After it is gathered, it is apparently washed, sun dried and roasted lightly. These beans yield an aromatic coffee with much less bitterness and is said to be the most expensive in the world. I am however not aspiring to taste this though!

Have I been able to create a craving for coffee in you yet?

Been quite a while..

2012-04-12T09:45:00.000+03:00

The last 2-3 months were really hectic, more so on the weekends and hence I was unable to update my blog. We just got back after a wonderful trip to India. We were able to successfully perform an important religious commitment, planning and organising this event is what kept us busy for the first few months of this year.

Doesn't going back home invoke a feeling of nostalgia always? I enjoy the walk down memory lane, perhaps I may be a wee bit more sentimental. Flash backs, potboilers- sit back and enjoy them...

During this trip to India, we landed in Mumbai, flew down to Goa and then took the wonderful train journey on Konkan Railway from Goa to Kumta and then on the way back we drove on the lush green stretch from Kumta to Goa airport.

Mumbai, the city I grew up in, still is very close to my heart but I yearn for the Bombay of the 70's and 80's. You get to see the Bombay of the past only in films like 'Choti Si Baat' and 'Rajnigandha' and one can only get nostalgic about this now. The city was always bustling but now there are people bursting out of every inch, cars and autos trying to outpace each other and the ever spiralling costs of living. However the spirit is still the same and the energy levels of this city remain an inspiration.

While we were in Mumbai only for 2 days on arrival into India and 2 days for departure from India, amidst frenetic chores, I made it a point to enjoy some street treats like the ubiquitous 'Paani Puri' (known in North India as 'Gol Guppas' or the East as 'Pucchkas'), 'Kutchi Dabeli'- a very popular snack which originates from Gujarat and we ended up our stay with a luncheon buffet at the Lotus Cafe, JW Marriott, Juhu.For those who are not from India, I thought of writing a few lines introducing both these dishes.

Pani Puri : is a round, hollow puri, fried crisp and filled with a mixture of water made with pani puri masala, tamarind sauce, boiled potato sprinkled with chaat masala and either sprouted moong or ragda/cholay.

Kutchi Dabeli : This snack originates from the Kutch region of Gujarat and hence Kutchi and 'Daabeli' means pressed. This is made by mixing boiled potatoes with a Dabeli Masala which is stuffed between pressed Pav (Burger bun) and served with chutneys made from dates, tamarind, garlic & red-chillies. This is garnished with pomegranate and spicy roasted pea-nuts. The seller displays the mixture on a huge thaal or a plate, is visually appetizing as well and warms up the pav with butter and served. For those who are keen to try making this at home, I found a video on you tube, I have personally yet to try out this recipe nor do I know the people who made it.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuY39fSNn_I

Since it was my dear father's birthday, I wanted to take the family out for a nice buffet. Both he and my son wanted to go to the Lotus Cafe. We love the whole feel of this place, the view is mind boggling and the spread, good. Priced at almost Rs 2000 ($40) per person, the buffet isn't cheap but the overall experience remains excellent. However if I was to add my two bits, the restaurant should try and embellish their dessert and salad tables.The main courses were out of this world and the choice of fresh hand tossed pizzas and pasta remains an attraction as well. As a die-hard fan of Mojito and Margarita, I ordered for some Mojito's ( on the maître d's recommendations) and by the time I started off on lunch, I was truly famished and hence was not able to click what I really wanted to. In our past visit to Lotus Cafe, we have always bumpred into some Bollywood stars, so did we this time as well. We saw Poonam Dhillon and also a TV serial star (Pooja Ghai) enjoying their lunch as well.

Lotus Cafe, JW Mariott, Juhu , Mumbai

On landing in Goa, the next morning we visited the Shantadurga and Mangueshi temples as always and sought their blessings for the family. On the way back we stopped by at Martin's in Betalbetim to enjoy their truly outstanding Goan food. It indeed was a pleasant surprise to meet Karen Anand, the pioneer of gourmet food in India and Kunal Vijaykar, an actor, television personality and above all a great foodie ! They had perhaps just wrapped up after shooting for a show and they were nice enough to speak to me when I went and introduced myself. I was also fortunate to get a photograph with them.

With Karen Anand and Kunal Vijaykar

For those of you who would like to read about Martin's, there is a separate write-up in this blog on Goa and Martin's. All that I will add here is, no visit to Goa is complete without a meal at Martin's Corner.

For almost one week that we were in Mallapur/Kumta, we were strict vegetarians and were amidst the religious festivities. I enjoyed visiting the weekly market in Kumta, where the farmers come with their fresh produce and sell it directly to the people. Prices are a good 40 % lower and the veges and fruits are really farm fresh. While I did not visit the fish market this time, I must say that it is right next to where the fishermen come with their fresh catch and you cant ask for more.

While we did not visit Mangalore this time, I would like to mention here about an article that I read in the newspaper' The Hindu". I am amazed that they wrote about an restaurant called Indra Bhavan, which has been in Balmatta, Mangalore since 1952. You can read all about this by clicking the link below. What amazes me is this newspaper has the uncanny ability to find out and publish some hidden gems from a city where it is not based in.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Mangalore/article3300038.ece

Until my next, have a great time....Ciao

BREAD

2012-01-06T12:08:00.001+03:00

Bread is one thing that I really love since my childhood and I still am very fond of it. In my early years, I distinctly remember eating the softest bread not in Mumbai, where I lived then but in my native place, Mangalore. I could never figure out why the giants like Brittania, Wibs or Modern could not bake such soft breads like the local bakeries in Mangalore. A fresh loaf of bread from Ganesh or Vrinda Bakery in Mangalore would be like sponge literally. The irony is that Brittania bread continues to be on the store shelves but the local bakery bread has almost become extinct. Sometimes makes me wonder why a better and cheaper product became extinct while something which was more expensive and not so good continues to be available almost in every store.

In the early years of life, bread was eaten mainly in the form of sandwiches in India. The varieties of bread available in Mumbai were the brun (eaten with 'maska' or butter), kadak (crisp outer crust) pau and the small local bread or 'pau' eaten with the 'vada' and 'bhaji'.

Some old Irani restaurants in Mumbai still offer the brun maska and chai. They are slowly becoming a part of the history of the city of Mumbai and will be soon only found in history books.

Mumbai city gets the credit for presenting two extremely popular creations the 'vada pau' and the 'pau bhaji' to the world. Vada pau is also called the Bombay Burger or common man's burger.

Over the last few years, one has been fortunate to stay in cities where one is spoilt for choice. The supermarkets now have a full menu of bread in all major cities in India for the last few years. From the ubiquitous brown bread to multi-grain, kraft corn ( a dark malt bread consisting of cereals and oil seeds like: malt, wheat, rye, oats etc) , norlander (a rye bread with sunflower seeds and nuts), ciabatta ( Italian yeast bread with moist crumb and a crisp crust dusted with flour) to the baguettes (a long thin loaf of French bread distinguishable by its length and crisp crust). There are so many other varieties available now that it is not possible to cover them all here in the blog.

I wanted to share some simple delights that one can rustle up with some basic ingredients which are usually at home.

Extra Virgin Oil & Balsamic Vinegar dip..

Olive oil and balsamic vinegar dip: This is something common which most good Italian restaurants will usually serve.This dip goes best with the focaccia bread but not to worry, you can also enjoy it with any other easily available bread like the ciabatta or the french baguette. Please do not use the sliced sandwich bread though -as you will not get the same pleasures. You need a good Extra Virgin Olive oil to begin with and some good balsamic vinegar. Balsamic Vinegar originates from Italy and if you get it, the balsamic vinegar from Modena is the best. Recipe :- Mix 2 parts extra virgin olive oil to 1 part balsamic vinegar ( in fact, balsamic vinegar can be just a small drizzle of a few drops). Adding too much of balsamic vinegar will make the dip sour.

Your dip is ready in a jiffy, isn't it?

2. Now that you had the basic done, we can go to the next variation which is a build up

from the above without the balsamic vinegar. You can make your own flavored oils for

the dipping, simply add some fresh herbs and spices to the extra virgin olive oil.

Dried red chili flakes or oven roasted garlic or sun dried tomato’s or rosemary go well.

Simply allow the flavors to blend in the oil for at least 12-15 minutes before you serve.

If you need to serve immediately, place the dipping dish in the micro-wave and heat

for 8-10 seconds.

Both are best served in porcelain dishes. Bread dipping is a healthy alternative due to

the use of olive oil.

3. Chili Garlic Toast with Cheese (my version) : Take a french baguette and cut it into

thin slices. Take some butter (quantity depends on the number of slices), add a pinch

of salt and some pepper. Mix all these well together with the help of a small spatula.

Use a grater to grate 2-3 fresh garlic cloves, use the same grater to grate one green

chili. Mix the grated chili and the garlic in the butter. Let this mixture remain for 10

minutes and then apply it on the baguette slices. Pre-heat the oven for around 10

minutes so that it is ready to welcome the bread into its warm fold. If you do like

cheese on it, add some grated cheese on it before putting it in the oven. A couple of

minutes in the oven and you should get crisp, yummy slices.

4. Bruschetta :is an antipasto or appetizer from Italy.It is basically a roasted bread topped

with garlic and extra-virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. The most popular topping with this

is the basil and tomato. It is easy to make and is bursting with flavours.

Recipe :- In a bowl, mix together 4-5 diced tomatoes, 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, 2 cloves minced garlic, 1/2 t-spoon lemon juice, fist full of basil leaves, salt and pepper; set aside. Slice the baguette bread into 1-inch slices. Pre-heat the oven for 10 minutes on about 450 degrees F. Brush one side of each slice with extra virgin olive oil. Place the slices oil-side down on a cooking sheet, and toast them in the oven until golden brown.

You can serve the tomato mixture in a bowl with a spoon with toasted bread slices or top each bruschetta with the tomato mixture and place on a large serving plate. Beware if you do the topping too early, the bread will become soft and soggy.

Bon appetit and enjoy with a hot bowl of soup this winter....

Never too late...

2011-12-29T11:11:00.000+03:00

As we bid adieu to 2011, I take this opportunity to share a few thoughts , a few photographs and a travel concept that I am eager to explore. The thoughts that keep coming to my mind are :

NEVER TOO LATE to START
NEVER TOO LATE to TRAVEL.

Let me begin by dwelling on the first thought. As someone who is really fond of good food, I never thought I could bring in any discipline in this aspect, which was so close to my heart (not the stomach)!.

For many years, I had fought a constant 'battle of the bulge' and had always given up after innumerable trysts with destiny. Now, after many such unsuccessful attempts and being in my 40's, I had almost given up the thought of losing weight through dietary discipline.

In the past, diets for me meant abstinence and then invariably I would return back to normal(indulgence)with a vengeance. I realised what I needed is a change in approach and a change in lifestyle. I decided to give this changed approach a shot and I was delighted with the results. For the first time, I could see signs of victory and that was good enough for me to get charged up. The 11 kgs that I lost in the first few months ( of which I gained back 3 kgs) has spurred me to enter the coming year with renewed vigour. So, if there is something which you have always wanted to do, have either never tried it or not been successful, try it again with a fresh outlook. Never too late to start, isn't it.? If you need an excuse to start it, make that excuse a new year's resolution.

In the last decade of our travel, the one thing that is very apparent is that us, Indians have taken up to travelling as a passion. You can see Indian tourists in every nook and cranny of the world. The global tourism industry has recognised this potential and what more do you want as evidence to that, you can get Indian Masala Chai and an Indian buffet at freezing Jungfrau, Switzerland or chaat at Niagara Falls, Buffalo.! Coincidentally, both restaurants had 'Bollywood' in their names!!

Menu @ Bollywood Bistro - Niagara Falls, Buffalo.

Niagara Falls, don't need to say more !

While one sees Indians in all age groups travelling with their families, one also notices a lot of Europeans and Americans who are senior citizens who have set out to explore the world after working for 40 odd years. They are a source of inspiration for me as I would love to continue travelling even when we get old or should we say older.! Never too late to travel.!

Very often, while all of us want to travel, some of us cannot, due to circumstances not in our control. Some of us keep re-prioritising travel for some other commitments. We constantly keep juggling our priorities and remain so engrossed in the daily struggles that we don't realise that time flies by with such amazing alacrity. The best reward for all the juggling in life is to you give yourself and your family is a holiday, isn't it? So pause, take a deep breath and include travel as a MUST DO in your things to do in 2012 and beyond. There is a so much to see and so little time....

Jefferson Memorial, Washington DC

In Las Vegas...Rao's - a restaurant, a wish come true for another Rao!

En route to Bellagio Island, Italy

Travel does not only mean travelling overseas, it also means exploring the country where one lives in. We have had some wonderful holidays within India itself. There are so many unpublicised and pristine locations within India itself, if you are willing to rough it out a bit, travel within India by trains is really cheap. We usually take the Konkan railway passenger train to travel from Mangalore to Kumta near Karwar. The four hour journey through the lush green Konkan landscapes, are visual ambrosia and all for a princely sum of around Rs 100 per ticket.

Konkan visual ambrosia-clicked on board Konkan railway train

On the way to Kumta, North Canara (Karnataka)

This gets me down finally to sharing with you a travel concept that I would love to try out in the next few years. Frugal Travel. While we all try to get the best deals for the tickets, best deals from hotels etc by looking out for some good bargains, we usually restrict our search to those which suit our lifestyles.

The best deals are usually in getting air tickets, within that maybe cheaper business class tickets or getting a room much lower than the usual at the Holiday Inn or the Marriott's and why not, after slogging your backside you deserve to pamper yourself isn't it.?

However there is an emerging segment of travellers who want to take longer holidays, spend lesser if not the same amount that you would spend for a week's holiday and soak in the sights and sounds of the places that they holiday in. This is something I would really want to explore. Service apartments, home stays, travel as the locals do, avoid air travel, use trains and buses where possible, stretch your dollar or rupee to the most. Bang for the buck!

Thailand is a country which offers great value for money options and I would love to start off testing this concept in this country. I am familiar with the local transport there, love Thai food but hitherto been always staying at 4* hotels for short 7 days holidays. I would love to go there for may be a fortnight and spend the same amount that I would have spent in a week. As a creature of comfort myself, I know it will be a challenge but if you are going to so by compromising on the brands but not the quality, why not? I will keep you posted on this concept in my forthcoming updates as well.

On this note, would like to wish all of you and your families A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR with good health and lots of travelling! Remember -never too late to start and never too late to travel....

Sea Food in Riyadh

2011-12-23T08:00:00.000+03:00

While the city of Riyadh is in the centre of Saudi Arabia with no sea or ocean around it, we get an amazing choice of sea-food here, thanks to the advanced high tech temperature controlled transport & logistics. The Carrefour, Geant, Panda and Lulu Hyper markets spoil us with so much choice that one often wonders whether we are in the midst of a desert? There are also some sea food markets in the city which gets fresh catch daily and great places to buy.

Over the last 6-1/2 years that we have been living here, whenever we go out to eat sea- food, it is at sea food restaurants offering Middle Eastern sea food i.e. Grilled.

Grilled seafood is healthy, fresh and coupled with the Middle Eastern appetizers it leaves us content without feeling stuffed. The Indian restaurants offer the regular choice of fried and curried fish/crab options. The North Indian restaurants offer the tandoori sea food option but one is hesitant to try it out as we don't know how fresh the sea food would be.

The best sea-food restaurant that we have been to is called Al-Nafoura Seafood, where the buffet was mind blowing to say the least. Priced over 100 SAR, it does not come cheap but worth every riyal as there is fish, shrimps, lobsters, squids, crabs in so many varieties that it gets difficult to choose. The last time we visited it was a year back and hence I would want to cover this restaurant on my blog sometime when we visit there again.

A few days back, a couple of colleagues decided to step out for lunch. After a quick run down of options available, we chose the AMO HAMZA. With my limited knowledge of Arabic, I think it stands for 'Uncle Hamza'.This restaurant offers sea food and is known for its grilled sea food and has quite a few branches across the city of Riyadh. We decided to go to the one closest to office, which was less than a 3 minutes drive. From what I have read elsewhere earlier, Amo Hamza has 5 branches in Riyadh. The branches that I know are at:-

- Khurais Road, en route to Geant after Carrefour ( Recommended to visit with family)

- Below the Batha Flyover when you turn in from King Fahd Road, to your right.

- Road going from the Old Airport roundabout towards King Abdullah Road

Entrance to the Amo Hamza

Most AMO HAMZA restaurants are really spacious and recently after some renovations, the 'Family Section' now seems worth visiting with the family.

In Saudi Arabia, all restaurants have a 'Singles" and " Family" section. If I were to go alone for a meal or with some colleagues, we need to go to the Singles Section of the restaurant and when visiting with family/ies one is entitled to go to the Family section.

Amo Hamza offers a variety of sea food including different varieties of fish, shrimps, squids either as grilled or as a clay pot dish with some gravy. I usually go only for the grilled fish. There are some chicken options available as well.

Riyadh has the best weather from November to March every year, December usually is the coldest month and hence a soup is mandatory to warm the insides! I usually go in for the fish soup but this time, I chose to go in for the Shrimp Soup at the behest of a colleague's choice. The Fish soup is a thick white soup, delicately flavoured and really nice. The shrimp soup is thick, red and perhaps some fresh tomato puree added to the preparation. It is delicately spiced and with my liking for spice, I added a generous portion of Tabasco to it. Both are nice, my choice remains the Fish Soup. The soup is priced at SAR 10.

Shrimp Soup

The Soup is served with steaming hot complimentary bread or roti's. We usually order a plate of Mixed Appetizers comprising of hummous ( a chick pea paste with olive oil), muttabal( made from aubergine) , tabbouleh ( made from fresh Parsley), muhammara (red spicy paste) and coleslaw( cabbage and mayonnaise). For those of you who are not familiar with these dishes, some of them have been referred to in my earlier post on Middle Eastern Breakfast in this blog.

This mixed appetizer plate is available in small, medium and large sizes. We chose the small plate as we were just 3 of us and costs SAR 15.

Mixed Appetizer Plate.

The hot bread and the appetizers helps us cool(!) down the appetite while the fish gets grilled. With the food, Amo Hamza also serves a variety of sauces. One is made from fresh squeezed garlic, one made with tahina and one is a spicy sauce. This is served with onions and green chillies and hence for those of us who like our food spiced up, this should be good enough isn't it?

Sauces and accompaniments.

The frilled fish fillet that I had ordered finally was served and was excellent. We just squeezed the lemon wedges on to it and tucked in. The grilled fish is usually served with french fries. While the menu card shows a grilled chilly along with the fish in its picture, the actual dish did not have it. We could not comprehend what the waiter was telling us as an explanation. The fish was fresh and done well, we had asked it to be spicy, by Indian standards it wasn't that spicy but good enough to relish it.The dish is priced at SAR 30

Grilled Fish Fillet Steak

While AMO HAMZA offers dessert, we have never tried it. They display some cheesecakes and pastries which do look good but we had to get back to work quickly and with desserts in our stomach, would have been difficult to keep our eyes open.!!

So the next time you want to try out some grilled sea food and if you are in Riyadh, this would be a good change isn't it?

Goa - The Ultimate Utopia ?

2011-12-16T19:23:00.001+03:00

Goa, for those who have been there before- don't you want to be there again and yet again?For those who are still making plans to visit Goa, you are missing visiting the ultimate utopia. Pack your bags and set out to the hedonist's haven.!

There is something in Goa that brings down the jumping adrenalin and the blood pressure every time we cross the borders of either Karnataka or Maharashtra to enter the state of Goa.

The swaying palms, the colourful Portuguese styled villas and the whiff of the sea just get into you as you drive by. You will see the local hoi polloi at ease with no sense of urgency, for them life is meant to be enjoyed, unlike us city dwellers who are just in a rush always. The sheer pace of life needs to be re-calibrated once you land in Goa and believe me it is effortless, the place does it for you.

Goa a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. The 3 main cities in Goa are Panaji or Panjim which is the capital and lies in North Goa, Vasco Da Gama where the Dabolim airport is located and the historic Margao or Madgaon which still exhibits the cultural influence of the Portuguese who landed in the 16th century as merchants and conquered it for almost 450 years until it was annexed by India in 1961. Madgaon and Vasco are a part of South Goa.The Dabolim Airport is an international airport and is very popular destination for chartered flights from Europe.

I have been visiting Goa from my childhood and over the years , is now place of annual pilgrimage. The temple of our kuldevi " Shantadurga" is in an area called Kavlem in Ponda, South Goa and going there is an absolute must every time we go to Goa. Goa has two distinct flavours based on its districts- North and Goa. In one district you can see the strong influence of Christianity with its ancient and famous churches, the other is a strong Hindu influence with famous temples like Shantadurga, Mangueshi and Mahalsa to name a few. The cuisine also has these influences though the common thread remains sea food!

North Goa has been historically more visited by tourists as the first few beach resorts were set up there. It is more commercial, has a lot of late night hangouts and perhaps a better choice who like some action or first time tourists. South Goa is absolutely relaxing, pristine beaches with hardly any night life and hence people like me prefer South Goa. My agenda in Goa after visiting the temple is just being at the beach side, enjoying the glorious sunset's, reading books and off course the great Goan food.

Glorious sunset's in South Goa

There are two distinct sight seeing bus tours available- one for North Goa and the other for South Goa. A lot of people also take the evening cruise with dinner on the river Mandovi. If you would love to stay in North Goa- The Taj Holiday Village and Fort Aguada which now is under their Vivanta category maybe considered, if you don't have budget constraints or plan to stay for 2 nights -3 days like most people do. I personally prefer staying in Goa for a longer time i.e. 4-5 nights at least if possible. If you do have plans to stay longer then perhaps the Ronil Resort in Calangute is a good place with value for money. We have also stayed at the Cavala Resort once for almost a week,some 9 years back. No razzmatazz, but functional rooms at reasonable prices which don't hurt your wallet. The beach is across the street and a 2 minute walk. If you want to enjoy the hotel property then you need to pay big money and stay at the resorts.

While there are some great restaurants in Goa, some of the shacks serve delicious food. St Anthony's at the Baga Beach, just ahead of Calangute is highly recommended. A great place for sun downers with their lip smacking food.

In South Goa, there are now a huge number of resorts available and you can choose the one that suits your budget. We have tried the Leela Palace, Majorda and Nanu Resorts to name a few. Leela Palace is all grandeur and opulence but comes to you at a great cost while the other 2 quoted are relatively cheaper.

Pristine beaches of South Goa, not crowded.

Let me now come down to the Goan cuisine. . Goan cuisine is for those who enjoy their sea food. Seafood, coconut milk, rice, kokum and vinegar are main ingredients of Goan cuisine.

Kokum is actually a plant in the mangosteen family and its outer cover is dried in the sun and is used as a preferred substitute for tamarind in curries mainly in the Konkan region. Kokum is also used for making the famous 'sol kadi' along with coconut milk, usually had after your spicy Goan meal to cool down the tummy and help digestion. Kokum sherbet is usually used in the summers as a coolant in Goa.

The Hindu food of Goa has its own place and the food of Goan Christians has a strong Portuguese influence i.e use of vinegar and spice. Goan Hindu food has its own distinct taste as they use asafoetida, curry leaves, mustard and urad dal. It is not very spicy and abundant garlic or onion is not used. Hindus in Goa eat fish and sea-food. Curry is called 'humman' or 'kadi'. 'Fish udad methi' is one popular dish along with fried fish and kismur. 'Khatkhate' is another popular Hindu Goan dish.

Some of the most popular Portuguese influenced Goan dishes are Vindaloo- a spicy curry usually made with pork, Balchao usually made with prawns or shrimps, Sorpotel- a curry made only with pork, Xacuti - a curry made with roasted grated coconut with pieces of chicken and Ambot Tik - a red spicy, tangy curry usually made with fish.

The two places that I never fail to visit in Goa are the Shantadurga temple and Martin's Corner in Betalbetim. Martin's Corner, to my mind serves the best Goan food in the whole of Goa especially South Goa. When I first visited this restaurant almost 15 years back, it was a small restaurant but very popular. Over the years, it has gained so much popularity that one can perhaps bump into celebrities dining there. Mrs Carafina, the person behind this restaurant has with her family recipes, hospitality and acumen made this place into what it is today. A divine mecca for foodies like me !! I INSIST that you have at least one meal there to truly enjoy Goan cuisine.

Their website is http://www.martinscornergoa.com/index.html

Martin's Corner, a MUST to try out Goan food.

While some people enjoy the local brew called 'Feni' made from cashew, I don't enjoy it due to the strong smell. I continue to stick to my favorite Mojito's and the bartender mixes them really well here with lemon wedges, mint and ice..

Mojito

To go with the drink, one has to enjoy the two best appetisers in Martin's the 'Prawn Stuffed Pappads' and the spicy 'Chilli Goan sausages' served with the Goan pau or bread. I don't think any further description is needed once you see the pictures below.

Chili Goan Sausages served with steam hot pau or bread

Prawn Stuffed Pappad's

The tangy and spicy prawn filling inside the pappad is sheer bliss and I sometimes wonder how they roll the pappads. You need to forget the calories once you get to Martin's ! In the last few visits to Martin's we have been concentrating more on the appetisers and usually take only a few main course items. By the time one is through with the appetisers, we are stuffed to the gills. The Fish Caldin or the Goan fish curry with steamed rice is a favorite very often. This time, we ordered for the King Fish Rechad Masala and the Shrimp Balchao. Both were just simply divine. The masalas, I believe are a family hand down and closely guarded here at Martin's. Every bite a sheer delight !!

King Fish Rechad Masala

Shrimp Balchao

The above dishes can be eaten with steamed rice or plain bread as an accompaniment or can be just enjoyed as it is.

Groan, if you still have some space the only Goan dessert worth trying is the 'Bebinca' which is is a type of pudding and a traditional Goan dessert. The ingredients include plain flour, sugar, ghee (clarified butter) and coconut milk. The dessert has to be baked in layers and traditionally has 16 layers. This again is an acquired taste and after a spicy meal, I usually prefer something cooling like an ice-cream. The other traditional Goan dessert is the 'Dodol' which is made of rice flour, coconut milk, jaggery and cashew nuts.

After a meal like this is Martin's, one just comes back to the hotel room for a nice afternoon nap and join the Goans who call it 'susegad'. Don't even think of dinner and take a 2 km walk on the beach in the evening, watching the sun go down and the golden glow in the azure Arabian Sea.

So until the next post, "Au revoir" or as they say in Portuguese "Até a vista ".