BM Review: Aioli

In the month of December, VP had told me that there's a new place called Aioli that's opened up close to where he lives, and a few days when he was home alone, he'd visited the place for dinner and absolutely loved the place. So one day when I had journeyed to his place (trust me, when you travel from BTM layout to that halli of his called Kamanahalli, that IS a journey!), we went to Aioli for lunch, and I liked the place myself and thought it was a fit case for a review. So the review given here will be a combined review of sorts - dishes from both visits will be under the spotlight.

The first time we went there, and since it was just the two of us, we ordered a plate of chicken wings, and for the main course he had the prawns with rosemary dunked in olive oil served in a terracotta dish while I had the Moroccan lamb chops. For desserts, we had a pot of happiness (made from hung yogurt), and grilled pineapples with chocolate sauce.

The chicken wings tasted really nice, and the smoky taste from grilling them over a charcoal fire was superb. However, the usual levels of spiciness that of these wings was enough to get my nose running, so you'd do well to tell them to serve them to you a notch or two lower with respect to spiciness - 'medium spicy' as we so eloquently say in Bangalore (probably India).

Chicken wings

For the mains, VP decided to go in for the prawns with rosemary in olive oil. Olive oil is the only oil VP can have without his stomach going for a toss. Now the thing with rosemary is that it's one of those herbs that either you like it or you don't, and if you do happen to like it, then it's very easy to start disliking it. Too little of it and you'll wonder what the big deal if, and too much of it overwhelms the dish to the point where you'll wanna push the plate away and rinse your mouth with water or something. So the time when Prash had visited alone, I think they'd got the amount of rosemary right coz he loved the dish, but his time around, he said it was 'OK', and both of us felt the rosemary was a touch higher than what we'd have liked. Also, I'm not sure, but some of the prawns didn't seem the best in terms of taste, although I couldn't be certain if this can directly be attributed to the rosemary, or something in the prawns themselves.

I had the Moroccan lamb chops. Though the snap isn't the best I could've taken as it doesn't show sufficient amount of flesh on the chops, suffice to say that they tasted good - well flavoured with herbs, and accompanied by some herbed rice. You can ask for pita bread, fries, or rice for the carbs, although the herbed rice was more Indian-esque than Moroccan, but it served its purpose well.

Grilled prawns with rosemary in olive oil

Moroccan lamb chops

For dessert, the pot of happiness made from hung yogurt seemed a good one, and along with that we decided to have a plate of grilled pineapples with chocolate sauce. The pot of happiness was nice, but a lil too sweet for my liking, while the grilled pineapples were quite good, save for the tutti-frutti that's added to the top.

Grilled pineapple with chocolate sauce

Pot of happiness

The review that I wrote for the Bangalore Mirror can be read here. During the review, we started off with a plate of chicken wings, and this time around, I made sure I asked them to make a little less spicy, and it turned out to be a good thing. Along with the wings, we also ordered a plate of hot dogs with salsa rossa (and later we ordered another plate of the same). The hot dogs came on skewers with a few grilled veggies - the standard lot of peppers, onions, tomatoes, and the likes. These turned out to be quite a hit at the table, hence the repeat order. The final starter was a baba ghanoush, a creamy, flavourful mush of brinjal served with one of the softest baked breads I've ever eaten. Order this dish just for the sake of the bread that's served with it - bliss!

Baba ghanoush

Hot dogs with salsa rossa

With the starters out of the way, we worked our way through the menu for the mains. We ordered the Moroccan lamb chops (again), the Jamaican jerk chicken, two fish preparations - sear fish in lime aioli, and another one with a red-chili marinade, and a vegetarian dish comprising of stuffed peppers and tomatoes.

The lamb chops were just as good as they were the first time I came - well cooked, sufficient meat, well flavoured, and a good number of chops. The jerk chicken tasted good and was nicely cooked, although I thought the jerk flavouring could've used a little more of the Scotch bonnet pepper (a key ingredient in jerk seasoning) - or whatever pepper they were using in their jerk seasoning. The stuffed peppers was just plain insipid and boring, and I don't think we got to see,hear, taste or smell any of it after it came to the table.

Jamaican jerk chicken

Stuffed peppers and tomatoes

The two fish dishes were instant hits and were the highlights of the meal that evening (in the main course). The fish were fresh, the marinades perfect, the cooking done just right and the taste was quite superb. A point to note was that the red marinade didn't seem to be very Mediterranean, although I could be wrong since I don't remember everything that went into it. Midway through the meal I realised I wouldn't be satisfied with what I'd eaten (quantity - I have a deep stomach) and so I ordered a Turkish doner as well. Click the link to see what it actually is, and for the lazy, it's very similar to the Arab shawarma, where meat is sliced off a vertical spit and filled into a bread pocket/made into a roll. This was nice, but could've be better in terms of adding a mayo-based sauce or something since the meat was getting drier by the minute.

Sear fish with lime aioli

Sear fish with red marinade

Turkish doner

For dessert, we had three dishes, of which, sadly, only one was good, while the other two were, quite frankly, bad. So let's start with the bad - the chocolate somethings, made from powdered chocolate and set in the shape of hearts. Taste and texture wise, this just didn't do the trick for any of us. The other dish that could've been good but ended up being not so great was the crème brûlée. The top wasn't fired crisp, while although the inside did try to make up for it, it was falling short of the mark in terms of texture. The one saviour for the desserts was the panna cotta, which was neither too sweet nor too hard and did manage to salvage a little for us after the meal.

Panna cotta

Hazelnut creme brulee

Chocolate something

All in all, a very nice place, good concept, and although it actually isn't a near smoke house, the grill house part of it does make it seem a viable option for a good meal once in a while.

Food: Very good
$$$: Rs 500 - 600 per head for a full meal
Service: Good, but could use a few more hands on weekends
Verdict: Must visit if in the area

Aioli Bbq and Grill Smoke house, #409, 1^st Floor, 5^th Main, 2^nd Block, Kalyannagar, HRBR Layout, Bangalore. Phone: 42984259

BM Review: Chamomile

Wow, it's been a full month since the last post. Sorry for the delay, but after shifting to a new house, there are soooo many tasks that crop up every now and then, at times I've even wondered if it was worth it. Well, just so that I don't leave that dangling, it is. So a while back, I visited Chamomile again, this time to review the place for Bangalore Mirror. The review that was published can be read here. As I had already visited the place during Christmas, I knew what to expect from the place, but since we were in a group, and it was essentially going to be a collective opinion, I didn't see any points of potential conflict. Moreover, when P, VP and I had visited during Christmas, we ordered from the special Christmas menu, while this time around we were ordering from the regular menu.

There aren't any snaps of the starters that we had, so apologies for the same. For starters, we selected dishes from the regular menu as well as the bar menu. So the dishes we had from the regular menu were shrimp and avocado salad, honey mustard chicken, herb marinated prawns, and chicken wings and mushroom & Parmesan cigars from the bar menu. The only disappointment here was the salad, with the avocado being old and soft, 'sagging' being a word used at the table by someone. It surely could've use a shot or two of botox. The wings and the honey mustard chicken were nice, both with suitable amount of seasoning and flavours. The hits at the table that evening were the herb marinated prawns - large, chunky prawns marinated in a mixture of coriander, basil and perhaps mint (green stuff), and the mushroom cigars - these were phyllo stuffed with mushrooms and Parmesan cheese. The mushroom cigars were a pleasant surprise and were actually quite delightful and we couldn't seem to have enough of these.

For the mains, we selected one dish from each 'section' that we were able to form after looking at the menu. So Italian saw us ordering the aubergine lasagna (also doubled up as the vegetarian option) and the seafood cappelletti (cappelletti is a stuffed pasta, and means 'little hat' because that's what it kinda resembles), proteins were going to be the T-bone steak and the rosemary flavoured leg of lamb, and then there was grilled salmon in an orange sauce with a whole lot of other things.

The salmon was the only disappointment - almost no seasoning, bland, and the fish actually seemed old. The rest of the dishes though, we quite superb. The T-bone steak was a lovely cut of meat, and I'd for it to be done medium-rare, and it was done to near perfection there, well seasoned, and the mashed potatoes served with it were also very nicely done. The only grouse - they gave us a stainless steel table knife instead of a proper knife knife, and cutting a medium rare steam with such a knife is quite an effort. The cappelletti was a pleasant surprise - didn't have a fishy smell to it, tasted good, and although the texture of the stuffing inside wasn't very 'firm', it tasted good nonetheless, and so got the thumbs up.

Grilled salmon with an orange sauce

T-bone steak

Seafood cappelletti

Usually, whenever someone uses rosemary, they tend to screw up the flavour by using too much. If you ask me, adding too much rosemary often kills the dish, but these guys had managed to get the amount just right for the leg of lamb. What's more, the meat was cooked well and it wasn't chewy, making it a good selection, and a better dish to eat. The aubergine lasagna was a smashing hit at the dinner table that night. Who'd have thought a bunch of carnivores would be raving about a vegetarian dish, but that's exactly what happened. Although the lasagna looked a little disheveled, when it came to taste, it was quite exquisite.

Rosemary leg of baby lamb

Aubergine lasagna

Desserts were a bit of a mixed bag, tending more towards bad than good. The strawberry cheesecake was the same as the last time, good to taste, but hard and not creamy and soft (however, I've been reliably informed that they have now changed the cream cheese they use for the cheesecakes, and so it's supposed to be better now), the hazelnut brûlée had a nice crust, but what lay beneath was nowhere near the custard-like texture that a brûlée is supposed to have. The vanilla pannacotta was just waaaay too plain and insipid, and I'd have liked to see a little less gelatin used so that it is a little more 'creamy' when spooned out. The saviour of the night was the triple layered chocolate mousse, rich and chocolaty and not disappointing us any further.

Strawberry cheesecake

Vanilla pannacotta

Triple layered chocolate mousse

Hazelnut brulee

Food: Good. Need to work a little on the desserts and this place can be a winner.
$$$: Slightly expensive. Approx Rs 1000 per head for a full meal.
Service: Good
Verdict: Can visit for a select few dishes.

Chamomile, #4031, 1^st Floor, Above Bombay Store, Next to Domlur Flyover, 100 Feet Road, Indiranagar, Bangalore. Phone: 42156000, 42167000

Peppa Zzing

Before going on my long leave to attend a classmates wedding in Lucknow, I'd visited a new burger joint on Infantry road called Peppa Zzing. Now actually I'd visited the place with the intention of reviewing it, but there was some mix up at the BM office and eventually Manuscrypts also ended up going and reviewing the place a few days back, and his review seems to be the one that's going to appear. So here's my 2 cents on the place since it's not going to appear on print.

It's run by Mark Rego. For those of you unfamiliar with Mark, he's an MC, voiceover artist, and also the host of the famous 'booze & brains' event that used to be conducted at The Opus. Apparently, Mark was diagnosed with cancer a few years back, and the docs gave him only 6 months to live. He said bollocks, went into radiation therapy, and finally decided to open a restaurant (which was a dream of his). And so Peppa Zzing was born.

Essentially a burger joint, this place also serves hot dogs, wings, and a smattering of pastas. But I think it's the burgers you should be visiting for. Now since Thulp has set the bench mark for burgers in Bangalore, I'll have to compare Peppa Zzing with it.

I visited the restaurant with Kappelmeisterin and a couple of her (ya)hooligan friends. It was going to be burgers all the way. What I hadn't factored in was the whammy. Remember the Mother of all moos from Thulp? Well, this is it's twin. I wouldn't go all the way to say evil twin, because both were big and tasted great. And as usual, I was the sacrificial lamb who was offered to this monster called the whammy.

Apart from the fact that the patties had bread crumbs in them, I didn't find too many faults with any of them. The only bummer for all of us was the chicken wings. Good sized wings just smothered in sauce, hardly any spices or seasoning, so essentially we could taste only the sauce.

Close-up of one of the whammy burger

The whammy burger

Cheese burst burger

Chicken wings

The burgers come in chicken/lamb/beef. And according to Mark, the kitchen follows strict rules when it comes to using knives. The knives are all colour coded, and the knives from one section are not used for another section - a habit from his stint at The Oberoi and The Taj group of hotels. So I guess people who might be offended otherwise can also breathe a slight sigh of relief.

Kappelmeisterin and her pals aren't heavy eaters, something I learnt during the meal. Once burger and they seemed to be done! Hmppf, imagine that. I finished my whammy and then walking back towards the car, I was heard mooing like a cow all the way till Manipal center (where I''d parked). Truth be told, I continued mooing till the next day.

Food: Burgers are really good. Wish they didn't use bread crumbs though.
$$$: Decently priced
Service: Prompt
Verdict: If Thulp is too far, then this is your other alternative for good beef burgers.

Peppa Zzing, G18, Kedia Arcade, 92, Infantry Road, Bangalore. Phone: 41232843.

Mani's Dum Biryani

I was supposed to visit this place and review it for Bangalore Mirror. So along with my guests, Manu Prasad and Nikhil, I visited the place last evening. We parked our bottoms on the chairs, and take a look around, and suddenly Manu points to the notice board - horror, oh horror! "Priya Bala has reviewed this place for Bangalore Times" said Manu. "Dye-am" I thought to myself. I should have been a little more thorough with my research of the place. For those of you who don't know, we make it a point to try not to review places reviewed by Bangalore Times.

I was crestfallen - that's one more place down the drain in terms of officially reviewing it for the paper. Nevertheless, we got down to business - eating. On the notice board, we saw a few 'specials' of the day, and so decided to order one of them, the crispy fried wings. Along with that, we placed an order for a chili chicken and a plate of chicken lollipops.

While waiting for our orders to arrive, we were involved in animated conversations about Twitter, the recent Sashi Tharoor + IPL incident, and a lot more. Turns out Manu and Nikhil and regulars Twitter users (since a message from Twitter is a twee, is a Twitter user called a twit?) and were filling me on the details about what happens in the Twitter world.

The chili chicken came first, and was very good, although, I did feel it ought to have been a little more spicy, given the fact that it's called 'chili' chicken, but maybe it's just me being fussy, you decide. The chicken was nicely cooked, and we liked it. Nice start.

Chili Chicken

The crispy fried wings turned out to be a standard fair, and it would have been better if there would've been a little more 'meat' in these wings. Taste wise though, it was good, and you can notice a little bit of their masala sprinkled on the plate that added to the taste.

Crispy Fried Chicken Wings

The lollipops were much like the wings when it came to taste, but luckily had a bit more meat in 'em. Given the location and quantity served, I think the prices charged are reasonable here.

Chicken Lollipop

Finally, we got to the main course, and decided to have the 'half' biryanis, and so two chicken biryanis and a mutton biryani were ordered and devoured in no time. The rice was cooked superbly, and even a look at the length of the grains in the snap below won't make you fully realise how long they were (similar to the ones we had at Saffron), and from what I've heard, you need a really high level of skill to get them that way. As far as the taste goes, I know where I'm going to be packing biryani from the next time :)

Mutton Dum Biryani

To wind things up, we ordered a 'matka' kulfi each. The menu also has mishti dahi, and we wanted to try that but it wasn't available on that day. Too bad, maybe some other time.

Food:Very good
$$$: Not expensive. Our meal, including 3 'matka' kulfis, came to around 570 (3 people).
Service: They take your orders, and bring them to your table(s).
Verdict: Must visit if in the area, or if in the mood for cheap and amazing biryanis.

Mani's Dum Biryani, Jyothi Nivas College Road, Above Cuppa, Koramangala, Bangalore.

TGIF

Finally I get to go to the famed TGIF, and it didn't matter at all that I happened to be there on a Monday. And surprisingly enough, there was a pretty decent sized crowd even for a Monday evening. Ms BakeAcake had asked us to be there for her birthday dinner (her birthday was on the 31^st), and as usual I was there first, and soon was joined by Ms WeightConscious and her boyfriend...well, let's just call him Saucy :) Soon everyone but Mr P were there, and so we dove in for what seemed to be an interesting night ahead.

Now the interiors of TGIF are more or less similar to another restaurant here called Indi Joe, with an almost retro American look and feel inside, and the loud music and the look of the bar gives you the impression that they're also trying to make it look and feel like a pub where the patrons would have to speak in higher decibels to be heard over the music being played.

Since the happy hours were still going on and we would get a free drink with every ordered drink, we started off with orders for a White Russian,

an ultimate Long Island Ice Tea,

and a Blue Martini.

Since Mr P said he'd be late, we started off with our appetizers. A plate of chicken wings was ordered

along with a plate of Fried Mac & Cheese.

And since I'm still on my quest to make a list of the ten best burgers available in Bangalore, I ordered the Bacon Cheeseburger.

Everything was good, from the drinks to the food ordered to the speed at which our food and drinks were served to us. My ultimate Long Island Ice Tea was served in a glass the size of a cauldron, and it's the most potent Long Island Ice tea I've ever had. I mean this baby was mean! Not even halfway through my drink I could feel the room starting to spin a little, and standing up was something I did not want to even think of. However, of the three drinks ordered, the martini was the strongest, but since it didn't measure to even half the quantity of the Ice tea, it was a no contest. We later ordered a Manhattan, which is a Jack Daniel's whiskey with Vermouth and Angostura bitters with ice, and a Pina Colada.

For dinner, I continued on the burger trail (which turned out to be a mistake). I ordered a Jack Daniel's burger, which has a 7 ounce patty (and I said mistake because it turned out to be the exact same as the Bacon Cheeseburger, only difference being this one was served with the JD sauce and the patty was bigger. Sigh!),

Mr VP and Ms BakeAcake ordered a Jack Daniel's Chicken which they were going to share,

Saucy ordered a Sirloin steak,

and Ms WeightConscious ordered a broken noodles pasta (penne) with tomatoes, basil, olives, mushrooms and cheese.

Well, everything was good, and I don't think anyone was disappointed (except for me a tad). Since both my burgers were more or less the same, and the bacon cheeseburger had only 2 strips of bacon, unlike the bacon burger I had at Millers 46 during Mr P's birthday, I felt the guy making the burger got it wrong. It was good, but since there was so little bacon, and the JD burger was a larger replica of the bacon burger, I was a lil disappointed. What's more, the bacon was really salty! I mean, maybe if it was eaten with the bun and the patty and all the stuffing it would have been ok, but I love to take a bite of my bacon before I tuck into it and this thing was salty to the core, like it came out of the dead sea or something.

That apart, the other dishes were fabulous and the JD sauce was simply phenomenal. The service was quick and we never felt like we were let down on any front, and I'm willing to let the burger incident pass (I may still have some of the alcohol swimming inside my head). This place is a little heavy on your wallet, but if you enjoy American comfort food and booze, then once in a while, it certainly is worth it.

Food: Pretty good
$$$: Expensive
Service: Decent, prompt
Verdict: If you like American food, and alcohol, pay a visit once a couple of months or so
Extra Info: Happy hours are till 2015 hrs - buy a drink and get another glass of the same one free

TGIF, Carlton Towers, Old Airport Road, Bangalore. Phone: 25210570, 25210571