Tuesday, November 28, 2017

With 12 interesting dishes,One bowl winter menu at Monkey Bar, Indiranagar!



There is always something special about every season. Winter for me is all about chilly weather and hiding under a blanket on lazy mornings and how can I not mention the tasty and hot food on winter days. It could be a simple bowl of soup, stir-fry or even a hot cuppa with pakoras. When I came to know that Monkey Bar is having a special ‘One bowl winter menu’ – this gastropub was automatically added to my must visit restaurants-pubs this winter.


On a weekend afternoon, a bunch of us were invited to try the ongoing fest at Monkey Bar located at 12th Main, Indiranagar. Chef Manu Chandra’s brainchild -Monkey Bar needs no introduction as this is one of India’s favorite gastropubs and currently have their presence in cities like Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, and Kolkata. All these outlets are having ‘One bowl winter menu’ with 12 interesting one-bowl meals. The Chefs at Monkey Bar have a done a great job by carefully curating a menu which can win the hearts of people from all across the globe. These dishes are inspired by travel stories, mother’s kitchen recipes and much more. This will surely take you to some fond childhood winter memories.


The vegetarian menu includes Rajma bowl and Kadhi Chawal, which comes with accompaniments like spinach pakoda/ Karari bhindi, tawa aloo, rice, chili pickle, sirka onions etc, along with other interesting meals like Moroccan Veg Tagine and Wild Mushroom Khichdi. We left these options for few vegetarians to explore as we non-vegetarians were spoilt with choices.



Initially, I was a bit confused about my order as all my favorite dishes were there on the menu. The lovely lady, Radhika came to my rescue and suggested that I should try the Kashmiri Yakhni/Goan Xacuti/ Korean Bibimbap or if I like to try fish, then Kasundi Maach. I love spices and all these dishes had interesting flavors and that’s the whole point about this one bowl menu – different flavors, textures and combinations which are well balanced.


‘Kashmiri Yakhni’ made of chunks of boneless mutton cooked in yogurt and spices and served with saffron pulao topped with caramelized onions was one drool-worthy dish; rich flavors made it so heavenly.

My second favorite was the ‘Korean Bibimbap’; a must-try dish for beef lovers <3 Spicy Gochujang Steak served with sautéed veggies, pink sticky rice, and a fried egg. We just couldn’t get enough of this. The dish was extremely delightful and we, meat lovers had a quite heavy palate.


Another interesting dish was the ‘Panch Phoran and Kasundi Maach’ which I tried from my friend’s bowl. Most of the restaurants screw up the flavors when it comes to Bengali food. But Chef at Monkey Bar got all of it right. The sharp taste on the Kasundi Surmai went well with the Gobindobhog rice, Doi Begun, and Chutney they served. This is kind of comfort food for anyone who loves the East Indian flavors.


Sesame Teriyaki Chicken Bowl was loaded with the taste of perfectly cooked Teriyaki Chicken, Kimchi and broad beans. The oozing flavors of Teriyaki Chicken and veggies made the sticky rice delish.


My drink of the day was Vodka - Aam Panna (raw mango) drink named Maanga. The drink was just perfect for my meal.




Desserts and drinks were not part of the one bowl winter menu, but how can foodies end a meal without trying the desserts. One more reason I love this place is that all the desserts I tried was extremely foodgasmic.

As we were a small group, we ordered different dishes and got to try most of these dishes from the menu. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent at the Monkey Bar and would love to visit again for some of my favorite one-bowl meals. The fest is on until Dec 30th, 2017 (may extend). The Vegetarian One bowl meal starts from ₹280+ taxes and the price for a Non-Vegetarian One bowl meal starts from ₹380 + taxes. So what are you waiting for? Head to Monkey Bar for a bowl full of happiness.
Address:
Monkey Bar
#610, 12th Main, Indiranagar
Bangalore -560038
For table reservation, contact -  080 44114455


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Saturday, November 18, 2017

Check out the Old Classics Menu at Cafe Felix, Bangalore



This All-day dining Café serves some of the best burgers in town. This Café in a prime location has got the beautiful ambiance. Still confused? I am referring to Café Felix at 1MG, Bangalore. Located on Level 5 at 1MG Mall near MG Road, this Café is a must visit place for good food. My recent visit to Café Felix was more than just interesting as they decided to go retro and came up with an ‘Old Classics Menu’ which is going to be there until this month end.

Soup


Winter is here and most of us can’t skip a bowl of hot soup while dining in a restaurant. We started off with ‘Potato and Leek Soup’ topped with bacon and it was damn good. We were all happy for that extra dose of bacon along with flavors of Chives, and truffle oil in the soup.

Salad


Toasted Ham and Potato Salad -After a delicious soup, this was an absolute bliss. We, ham and potato lovers vouch for this salad.

Prawn Cocktail -No shot glasses, please! Prawn Cocktail salad presentation was totally different from the one we get nowadays. True to the theme, this was served on a salad platter and the dish was so-so.

Entrée







As were a small group we ordered different dishes and we ended up tasting some absolutely wonderful dishes. This includes Braised Lamb Shanks, Spanish Seafood Paella, Beer Battered Atlantic Cod and chips, and Crumb Fried Chicken. Star dish from the entire menu was the Lobster Thermidor with Gruyére and Crabcake Benedict. Who would expect a treasure (crabcake) while waiting for Lobster Thermidor? Though I am not sure about the quantity, Chef did a wonderful job by creating this dish.

Desserts



If you have a sweet tooth like me, then head to Café Felix. I love the desserts at Café Felix, they always have my favorite desserts on display. Happy souls will never say no to desserts even after a heavy main course. I tried Caramel Custard, Tiramisu, English Trifle and Baked Alaska. We polished off these desserts within seconds. Fresh and finest fruits used on Caramel Custard and English Trifle, took this dishes to a different level.

Drinks


I was not keen on trying any drinks from ‘The Classics’ menu, so settled with a glass of ‘Orange you glad you got this?’ which is nothing but a Vodka based drink with fresh Orange and basil.

Overall I had a great time checking out the Old fashioned menu and I would love to visit again for trying more dishes and some old favs. Chef Ritvik has done a wonderful job by creating this menu and it was so nice of him to take individual feedback from all the diners. A meal for two would be ₹1800/- (approximately). Check out some of my favorites from the previous visit to Cafe Felix :)


Address:  
Cafe Felix
Level 5, 1MG Mall
Trinity Circle, MG Road
Bangalore
For reservations, contact - 080 22086644

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