Desi Klub - As desi as it gets!

There is a lovely buzz feed about Desi Klub. The place screams loud of the full on larger than life culture of Bollywood and there is a lot of colour and spice associated with it. The food is predominantly good ol Indian food mostly from the Northern side including the most loved street goodies infused with a native flavour and local touch.

The ambiance is bright and replete with colours, wall arts and sign boards depicting the glory of Bombay. It isn't a very big place but there is enough seating arrangement made available for large gatherings. The kitschy scooter placed at the entrance is a give away of what to expect with the decor and set up which is bindaas in every way.

The menu runs into a number of sub sections and it's their starter and short eats fare which is not only catchy to the eye on presentation but also great for the taste buds. First up, gulped the Bubble Gum shake which entices child hood memories. This one gets the flavour spot on and this pinky drink which is placed with a piece of gum on the top was a flashy way to begin proceedings.

The starters virtually all that we tried hit the bulls eye but however there was one clear man of the match which outshone everyone else. That was the roller coaster panneer. Presented in immaculate fashion in a rotating ferris wheel with a dip placed in between, the layered rectangular panneer rolls consisting of a non spicy pasty mix with essential ingredients was just arresting to taste. The cheese corn masala balls had a jaw dropping spread inside those soft pressy breaded balls and was lovely to consume with the tartar based dip. The Chennai se China Tak wasn't bad either. This was idli in a redefined avatar. Fried and tossed with capsicum and green chillies this was more in the line of a manchurian.

In the main course section titled Bhara belly, we had the Pasta Desi Ishtyle. These macaroni conch shells were bathed in a lip smacking delectable makhni gravy making this Italian wonder undergo a brief makeshift change to an Indian style curry delight. Dressed up with oodles of cheese and accompanied by a maska slathered bun, this one was melted to make you drool. And the finale was grand with the Chole Te Bhature. You would just love the way this one is presented in a cycle carrier with the seating space containing the bhatoore's and the holder in the form of a local large sized tea glass consisting the brown chole gravy. The Bhatoore's were soft and it was great to munch them with a generous spread of the chole which was so flavourful. This Chole Bhatoora was easily one of the better one's I've had anywhere in the city.

The service was speedy with hardly any waiting time in between the dishes. The prices turn out to be slightly expensive more so with all the taxes added around. I enjoy local Indian street food and Desi Klub is a nice little place to feast yourself to the best of delicacies that the city of Mumbai has to offer with a drum beat abashed atmosphere with feel good Hindi music playing in the background.

Chai Galli - Eminently Desi with a twist!

'Chai Galli' plays it simple and yields the desired results. It capitalises on age old traditions, masala and flavours to bring about a glorified confluence celebrating the vintage in a modern redefined avatar. It brings to light popular street food from various regions across India with a cutting edge. The best part is you would find that local essence intact giving it a lovely old school feel. They have also innovated to varying degrees by blending Indian with Indian as also other cuisines to add a diverse portfolio.

From the moniker, it's pretty clear that tea is the most prominent factor. Tea is the most consumed beverage across India and it has a history to the way it's made, viewed and drank in different parts of the country. The beverage epitomises a local element and it's in petty shops that it's most popular with loud dance music playing at the background. They've captured this beautifully by serving them in those small glass shots retaining the flavour with the presence of loud epoch Bollywood music playing from yesteryear. Movies play a major role in the ambiance setup and you would find wall arts depicting posters of popular movies from down the years.

Food, music and movies are perhaps the 3 most loved things in the country and kudos that they've been able to make justice to it and in fact with the setup and ambiance, pay quite a homage to these ever loved delights. I admired the fact that they could put this across rather well without sounding too obtrusive and on your face. It's been carved out artistically and you wouldn't call it as being over the top with the interiors. It appears larger than life but yet within limits and not too garish. The colour combinations have been used very well and you'll surely associate with the bright spots paying tribute to the colour and retro era from around the 60's onwards.

What they have in their attic to consume is quite a lot. Apart from the traditional fare, innovation is the name of the game here. Tea occupied almost a third of the menu with variants of classic, capturing borders - from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, western touch with imported flavours, green tea, black tea, white tea and even handcrafted ones. They also have iced versions and for that tete a tete, a few coffee varieties also along with oolong tea and those classic drinks ranging from Shikanji, kokam, masala soda etc. There was too much to try but I would suggest you give a shot at one of the authentic classical ones. We had the Adrak chai with parle G biscuit and it was quite an effect drinking it held up in small glass containers. The hibiscus tea which a mild majanta colour to it was invigorating and in the iced kind, the Bulldozer which is a chilled drink drawing upon the combination of ice tea and red bull was kick ass and killer, just about ideal for the scorching heat.

They have a section "Chai ke murmur dost" which underlines the accompaniments that go along with your tea. They had further sub sections highlighting on the shandaar (popular), chatpata (crispy), samosa/vada pav alternatives, puchka shots and pakhoda and Baaki sab (everything else). We tried two of the pani puri shots viz Namkeen and a Corn based one which was enjoyable. It was served with a twist as the puri's in the former were ballooned up with a sweet/salt mixture and the latter had a gregarious coating of cheese with tartlets of corn inside. The absolute stunner from the chai's company side, well and truly happened to be the Dal pakwaan. It was absolutely delectable with flavourful lentils on top of a papad base and soaked with a sweet as well as savoury tinge and topped with salad veggies. The poha layered on a papad base somehow didn't appease me much.

The main course section is categorised as "Khana Shuru" which loosely translates as start the food. We had an aloo paratha which was well made with nice stuffings of potato inside that comes with a tomato & chilli dip. The Tadke wali maggi with zing of fried onions was quite lovely to slurp. In pizza's, the Italian flag which is the usual expectant pizza was quite nice but what took the cake was the concocted one in the form of the 'Veggies on a Khakra' which in the sense is the marrying of pizza and khakra infusing italian pizza ingredients over a quintessential Indian crisp khakra base. This Gujarati classic corks up a feast with a melange of sauces, spices and veggies generously spread along making the eating experience both crispy and crunchy. The pink sauce panther pasta was another winner as it had all the ammunition to rise to the top being creamy with just the right amount of herbs and spices to go along with exotic ingredients like broccoli, mushrooms, zucchini and garlic.

The final finale was no less. The watermelon juice was of the usual kind. I took a liking to the dry fruit falooda which was bunched with a pleasing degree of assortments and also being creamy on the bottom layer. The chikku cream had that sappota twang right on the button and you could feel the flavour hitting on every spoon. However the outright starlet in the dessert section was the "Chai Galli special falooda". It had a perfect motley of fruit, sweet and nuts with the texture and thickness being bang on. It was a delectation decorated to devour. Easily would say, one of the best falooda's I've ever had.

On the whole, Chai Galli turned out to be really pleasing and engaging. It wouldn't be much of a surprise if you fall in love with the place. I had a personal connect with the decorations and the music playing in the background which had a lot to do with the 90's which is in sync to my growing up childhood phase. The service was quick witted and they were more than willing to help us with our choices. The prices won't worry you much as they are all rated within the normal border range.

This place would surely ignite a tinge of nostalgia within you. Your love for Bollywood and happy loud good ol music will be satiated here. It's lovely the way they have captured and brought in all these quirky elements within the minimalistic surrounding environment. It definitely felt nice visiting this outlet and if you're the one looking for some shiz in a local langoti set-up, 'Chai Galli' is your direction forward.

VB Signature - Fusion Redefined!

Vasantha Bhavan is a well known chain known largely for their south indian cuisine and have plenty of outlets scattered over the south of Vindhyas. VB signature is also part of the same tutelage but with a redefined twist. With VB's, they look to completely change the definition of dining by syncing fusion with food and the result is quite spectacular. It paints a completely different picture from what you would usually associate of Vasantha Bhavan. The place is all chic and uber cool and gives an upmarket broadway kind of feel. Except for the surveit leaflets and smidgeons of appearances of the Vasantha Bhavan brand, you would feel like there has been a revolutionary makeover.

One could always argue the fact that why you want to try something drastically different when things ars already smooth. In VB's it's about innovation in food and they've made quite a daring attempt at that. It's just not about trying to be different but they have dug down deep rooted and explored various possibilities and combinations. The menu also is being revamped again to add new items to the fray and from our visit to try a sample of the latest varieties, it must be said the food was resoundingly good.

Listed below is a brief take on the stuff we tried on the night.
Soup : Here we got to try 2 types viz the Broccoli&cheddar as well as the Sutta Makka cholam soup. The former had a lovely frothy aroma to it and condensed with rich flavours and garam masala. The latter was a corn based soup and a surprise with pop corn added along with corn kernels and curry leafs. Both of the soups were immensely enjoyable and set the tone for things to follow.

Appetizer and Salad : We were served 6 different varieties of papad's with 5 unique kinds of chutneys. There forte was very much visible here and it was great to have bites of the papad's dipped with the chutneys. In salad we got a watermelon and feta cheese based one. This was a pretty standard fare and not really the kind where one would be raving about.

Starters : On this front VB's showed their acumen and how. This is an area open for experimentation and they lorded this area big time. My single biggest prize winner was the pesto bharwan panneer tikka. Designed in the form of a portmanteau with pesto drizzled in the interval, these chunks of cottage cheese when dipped and eaten with green chutney & white cream sauce makes you feel the nirvana biting in the tongue. The sweet vada pav was another win. Panko crusted with perfect crispiness, this street food favourite in a redefined avatar was great to bite into. Then adding a radical twist were the Hyderabadi potato and water chestnut 65. This was quite a spicy and crunchy combination in the Indo-chinese genre. The szcheuan momo's were also well played with a light tanginess with the momo's being rather different than usual in look and feel.

Main course : We got to have soft fluffy idiappams with the soaky yellow sodhi made of coconut milk and a traditional favorite of Ceylon. I loved making my idiappam all soggy by pouring adequate portions of sodhi and customised the style according to my taste by garnishing with varied toppings to give the zip. The chur chur paratha again was different from the usual being crispy and flaky in texture being flavoured with ghee and ajwain. Naan also got a face-lift and came dressed up in the form of sun dried tomato and a cheddar mix. The essence stuck on in fine fashion with the aroma lingering heavily. And for the side dishes, we had the ever favourite dal makhni. This is VB's signature black dal and they lived upto expectations by being very good. The lentils simmering in a bowl with the right mix of butter, cream and spices. And the other one we had was the spice oriented Panneer Taka tak. These were stir fried juicy elongated pieces of panneer cooked in tawa style inspired from the streets of Old Delhi. With onions and capsicums added along and garnished with the requisite spices, this is a kick ass side dish perfect to have along with rice or roti.

Desserts & Drinks : Another section which hit the jackpot. The Boost ice cream was one of a kind and the kind you would like to dig into. The chocolate job version 2.0 was another scorcher with loads and loads of chocolate in alliance with oreo and the result was magnificent on the mouth. And last but not the least, the oreo peanut butter cheesecake. Oreo biscuits crushed and crumbed in collaboration with peanut brittle in a creamy layered base of peanut butter cheesecake. A totally delectable and droolicious dessert. For drinks tried the Bovonto Mojito which was a wonderful chilled out drink and the oreo cream shake which was to devour.

The service was very hospitable. They were always willing to help us with the orders and more than ready to divulge minute details about the dishes served which was very engaging and interesting. As the visit was over an 'on the house', I'm refraining from commenting about the pricing. Would just add a one liner saying they are competitively priced. The ambiance and decor paint a rosy picture and gives a trendy feel in consonance with the kind of vittle provided.

On a holistic picture, VB pressed the buttons right at every hook. The level of detailing was remarkable and the taste of the food is ample testimony to show the efforts involved in experimentation and innovation. This was not some random job to bring newness to the table. The sincerity and homework definitely shows and I have to commend them on the work undertaken. They have stood out from the crowd and created a niche for themselves. This is perhaps one of the best restaurant's indulging in fusion based cuisine in the city.

Cappuccino @ Crowne Plaza - Coffee never goes out of favour!

'Cappucino', the all day dining restaurant at the 'Crowne Plaza' is up and about with it's newly launched menu titled 'Unconventionally Conventional'. It's basically a twist to their existing menu along with adding selective special dishes from across the globe. Some of the stuff fall under the radar of 21 dishes to try during your lifetime. It's pretty exotic and curated to bring the best of the Western world right in front of you.

We were here on an invite to sample some of the items from the new menu. We began our journey with an immensely refreshing litchi cooler. The tall glass had a lovely frothy layer and a gulp of that sweet drink was energising. Then our tryst with food began with the super food salad in the mode of a waldorf based one with plenty of apples, berry tomatoes, strawberries, cabbage, lettuce and roasted flax seeds. It was dressed up with honey and mustard which had a subtle essence to it. The tanginess and flavour of apple diluted the spread but the taste of the salad made it's presence felt. Then we moved on to the Asian summer rolls comprising of a unique mix of crisp vegetables, ragi, vermicelli, sprouts and being covered in thin rice sheets. This seemed pretty opaque with a glassy layer and for company was the sweet chilli sauce. It felt a tad different from the regular spring rolls and lacked the usual crispiness but had a hint of sweetness to it. It's hard to classify if this will be lapped up and I personally found it pretty nice but not extraordinary by any means. Then came one of the show stealers of the day in the form of the Pesto and Garlic toast with a cup full of cheese fondue as condiment. This three cheese fondue was totally drool worthy and possessed the ammunition to melt waftly in the mouth. The breads were superlative and it was a delight squishing those crusts in that melting layer of fondue and crunching it over. Just as we were relishing our breads dipped with fondue, came the roasted garlic tomato soup which was well delivered having a lovely smoky aroma to it.

One of the highlights in the main course section was the gargantuan one metre pizza being made in a length of over 3 feet and comprising of 5 variegated toppings of both veg and non veg. It was massive in size and a major star attraction on the night. And further on main course, we tried the Orcheeti Al dente pasta. These are pocket sized pasta sheets with a saucy layer inside those conch shells and the interesting thing about them is that the sauce never remains on your plate when you eat these thumb pressed delicacies. We also had a crack at the eggplant zucchini which had a tantalising layer of cheese bottled up over a bunch of veggies with a strong odour of the egg plant.

Desserts section we literally had a ball and got to savour one after the other bombshell. The presentation was immaculate and especially the Hazelnut creme brulee and chocolate cheese cake were the silver linings and stood out from the rest of the pack. The blueberry muffin like cake was also fantabulous but the Tiramisu missed a little of the zing.

The ambiance is very coffee book style. It characterises a free open style ambiant giving it a very laid back and breezy feel. The decor is cozy and comfortable and overall it's designed in a very inviting manner. The open kitchen also adds to the mix. The service tended to be a little slow but it was because they wanted to take extra care of the proceedings and I must say we felt really hospitable dining at Cappuccino.

Taking the full ensemble into equation, Cappuccino works on a number of fronts and I can confidently say having had a fair share of the sample from their new menu that the outlook points towards the right direction. As a vegetarian, my choices were a wee bit limited but still I loved most of what I had. For the meat lovers this menu is gregarious and an absolute largesse with exquisite stuff such as Shepherd's pie, Cichetti and many more as part of the deal.

Cappuccino is a nice little restaurant to dine and can be categorised as an ideal place to have a relaxed and whole hearted meal over some easy confabulation.