To Eat Or Not To Eat; At ESCA , Aundh, Pune

Name: Esca

Location: Aundh, Pune

Date of Visit: 5^th March, 2012

 Be honest, do you love your younger sister? She borrows or shall I say steals your clothes without asking. She will tell on you when you sneak around. And just like everybody else’s, my sister too is like a piece of chicken stuck in my teeth since 5^th March, 1991. Esca was a perfect to ruin her birthday. Although, I have to admit, I hadn’t planned it that way.

5 Reasons To Eat:

1)   Esca is owned by Arthur’s Theme, Punekars’ all-time favourite restaurant located in Koregaon Park. The brand brings with it trusted flavours and loyal foodies from around the city. Although, the last time I visited Arthur’s Theme, the service was not satisfactory.

2)   Esca is a contemporary fine-dining restaurant with an elegant setting. The dark wood furniture and mood lighting brings a sense of sophistication to the place. It looks more classy than comfortable.

3)   The selection of items on the menu includes European as well as Indian cuisine. However, oriental dishes are not a part of the selection. Arthur’s Theme is known for unique names given to the dishes. The menu at Esca also includes an interesting and unique selection of items. Dishes, which will be hard to find elsewhere. Having said that there were a few regular items in the Indian selection but what got my attention were recipes that came from the various dynasties in India, as described in the menu.

4)   Their starters selection had always met my expectation. I have tried a few European starters prawns wrapped in a salami, if I remember correctly. This time we tried their Indian selection, Alu Ke Gutke, Mushrooms and Tandoori Chicken, delicious! I compare restaurants based on their talent in making tandoori chicken. Succulent, well-flavoured and juicy. The starters were awesome.

5)   The Nawabi Paneer , creamy and lightly flavoured with fennel with melt in the mouth paneer makes you drown in its flavours. It is a very unique flavor, a recipe you will not come across in every other ‘Multi-Cuisine Restaurant’. The subtle flavours and silken mouth feel is one of a kind.

5 Reasons Not To Eat

1)   Bad Ambience. The music was too loud for a place like that. The restaurateurs need to realize that they are running a fine-dining restaurant not a club. It is impossible to have a conversation with your family and friends when the music is so loud and atrocious. Even when we asked them to turn it down, it still sounded unpleasant. Don’t get me wrong, the choice of music wasn’t bad, it was bad for a restaurant like that.

2)   Bad Service. There are two ways to go with a corner table. Either you don’t set a table in manner that the guest is out of reach for the server. Although, this was not the case, as I was seated on the corner seat it seemed to me like I set my table, served myself and even cleared my table on my own. I would might as well have stayed back home and done it myself.

3)   Clumsy Service. When the server brought my Chicken Matka to the table, the curry was poured all over the sides of the curry bowl. It seemed as though the chef had clearly it spilled over the counter while serving it. The chef did not notice it, the server was just about to place it on our table when all of us exclaimed at the time. ‘Yeh Ganda Hai!’

4)   FYI, Esca Restaurant, just describing a dish well on the menu is not sufficient. The recipe should be as good as it is described. Chicken Matka, recommended by the server, described as belonging to some dynasty and being one of the most interesting items in the Indian selection was highly disappointing. Not only was the chicken dry and overcooked but also, the flavours of the curry were average and not unique. Also, it was not served in a Matka!

5)   The worst part was that the ESCA seems complacent with its standards. The staff seems untrained and disinterested in serving the guests. I have been to this place soon after its opening and a couple of times after that and had never expected the standard to deteriorate so much. I read about some bad experiences in Esca and I chose to revisit the place, only to find that they were right!

A very disappointing experience, I hope that Esca will improve its standards. That thing about this place is its unique selection of items on the menu.

Ambience: 3/ 10 Poor

Value for Money: 6/ 10 Average

Menu: 8/ 10 Very Good

Food: 6/ 10 Average

Service: 4/ 10 Not Worth It

That Thing About This Place:  8/ 10 Very Good

Poor Ambience + Average VFM + Very Good Menu + Average Food + Service Not Worth It + Very Good That Thing About This Place = Average

Rating: 6/ 10

Having Fun With The Girls At A Shady Bar! Juiciest Chicken in Mumbai

Name: On The Rocks

Location: Juhu

Date of Visit: 12^th February, 2012 (Lunch Hour)

 The great part about hanging on a Sunday with your gang of girls is that there is no limit to the fun you can have. Don’t get me wrong! I am only calling this Multi-Cuisine Resto-Bar shady because it was dimly lit, nearly dingy and very cramped.

If the ‘men’ in our lives see this place, they may never let us girls eat here!

Anyway, it was just my bestie and I. Once in a while we like to explore the places that seem to be ‘forbidden’ for girls. I did see a family sitting there when I had entered but the place had groups of men seated at most of the tables. Ignoring that part and treating this meal as an adventure of sorts, Shreya and I ordered our pints of beer. At Rs 95/- a pint I have never seen this much ‘chakna’ with my beer. There was some salad with chaat masala, papad and chutney along with cheese lings served along with the beer as munchies! If I had known they would serve all that, I never would’ve have ordered a plate of French fries. Correction! I would called those Masala French fries.

We tried Indian. I trust Indian in new places! You can nearly always bank on Indian food.   A plate full of Tava mushrooms and Kolhapuri chicken along with rumalis and rotis was our pick. Both were spicy preparations although Kolhapuri chicken was nothing like it should be. It was a bright red with a thick gravy masala. Kolhapuri chicken is an onion and coconut based thin brown curry with pieces of chicken and lots of dried red chilli. Their cook has some real talent!

Although technically the Kolhapuri Chicken was not how it should be! The chicken was perfectly cooked. It is amazing how juicy and succulent yet moist it was. The texture of that chicken was so perfect, I have never had that melt in the mouth feeling with a piece of chicken without cheese! It really lingers on…

Ambience: Not Worth it 4/ 10

Value For Money: Good 7/ 10

Menu: Average 6/ 10

Food: Good 7/ 10

Service: Good 7/ 10

That Thing About This Place: Good 7/ 10

Not Worth It Ambience + Good Value For Money + Average Menu + Good Food + Good Service + Good That Thing About This Place = Average

Rating = 6/ 10

Sale! Sale! Sale! Flat 50% for the Belly: Binge, Hog and Enjoy!

Name: China Gate

Location: Near Infinity Mall, Andheri West

Date of Visit: 13^th February [Lunch]

You know that rush a woman gets when she sees a sale? It’s probably same as how a man would feel if India won the cricket match.  I loved the lunch buffet at China Gate. Actually, I wasn’t sure whether I enjoyed the eating more or paying that bill. Well, I should say I was pretty happy to pay the bill but I absolutely adored the eating part. Some Belly-filling and delectable food squeezed between work on a Monday is a delight. More so buffets are delightful because it is good value for your money, especially for big-eaters like me. A wide variety of good tasting food; this buffet did not compromise Quality for Quantity. For a woman, this meal would be like walking into a store with 70% sale.

It was a pre-valentine lunch on Monday afternoon, felt more romantic because it was unexpected and an adorable gesture by A. No, I didn’t pay that bill but I was still excited by how much food they fit in under 500 bucks per person with good service and good ambience. This Chinese fine-dining restaurant has an interesting wine list. The buffet included a complimentary glass of wine. We got our privacy and it was a quiet, pleasant lunch at China Gate. It was a quick yet extravagant meal. It was a buffet with Ala carte quality food.

The crispy vegetable starters and creamy corn cubes crispy on the outside were lip smacking. The vegetable thai curry was delicious and the pakchoy, tofu with corn and lightly seasoned greens gave a refreshing feel to the buffet.

The non-vegetarian buffet was extravagant with a wide selection seafood, poultry and red meat in all courses. The starters with crispy fried prawns, chicken and lemon grass fish were top quality and delicately flavored. The starters were followed by a juicy, moist and succulent mouthful of dumpling. There vegetarian, chicken as well as prawn steamed dumplings. 

The crab on the main course was delicious. I loved it. If you are a seafood lover, this is paradise. The quality of their seafood was commendable. It was fresh, juicy and flavorful. The flavors were subtle and complimented the freshness of the ingredients. You could smell, taste and see freshness in the food. The green of the vegetables, the juiciness of the meat and the flavors woo you. I have worked and eaten in 5 Star hotels, very few times the quality of the Ala Carte dishes are maintained in its buffet spread.

There were some interesting and unique items on the dessert buffet. Apart from Ice Cream, brownie and honey noodles there were crispy pancakes stuffed with date mixture. It is the little rectangular piece at bottom of the plate. The best part was that the desserts weren’t too sweet.

Why China Gate has a buffet with a difference? It gives a Ala Carte quality food even in its buffet spread.

Ambience: Good 7/ 10

Value For Money: Very Good 8/ 10

Menu: Very Good 8/ 10

Food: Very Good 8/ 10

Service: Good 7/ 10

That Thing About This Place: Very Good 8/ 10

Good Ambience + Very Good Value For Money + Very Good Menu + Very Good Food + Good Service + Very Good That Thing About This Place = Very Good

Rating = 8/ 10

Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu Chicken Stew

Imran Khan loves green chillies and rice. What better accompaniment with stew than rice or rice Appams! I found out during an interview that like every other Indian man, for Imran, dal-chaaval is the best meal. He even loves biting into green chillies while having his meals. His mom’s side of the family eats very spicy food and that’s where his love for chillies comes from. I know it is hard to believe but Imran loves spicy food.

So, on the occasion of the release of his new movie with Kareena Kapoor Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu, I have made this spicy chicken Stew flavoured with lots of green chillies. I decided to make chicken stew with the coconut milk flavor since Imran has spent a large part of his young years in South India. This stew is also so called so because it is made of two main ingredients, Chicken and potato!

Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu Chicken Stew

This is a chicken stew made with chicken and potatoes flvaoured with mint, green chillies and coconut cream.

Ingredients

Mint Leaves 1 cup

Green Chilli 4-5

Coconut cream (freshly scraped) 1 cup

Chicken, boneless, cut into cubes  2 cups

Ghee 1 tablespoon

Rai 1 tspn.

Curry Leaves a few

Chana Dal 2 tspns.

Urad Dal 2 tspns.

Onion, chopped ¼ cup

Potato, cut into cubes 1 cup

Turmeric a pinch

Salt to taste

Chicken Stock (Optional) ½ cup

Method:

Grind mint leaves, green chillies, salt and coconut cream into a smooth paste.

Marinate the chicken with 4 tablespoons of this mixture.

Heat ghee in pan, add in rai, urad dal, chanadal, curry leaves allow it to splatter in the pan. Add in the chopped onions, once they are golden brown add in the potato and a pinch of turmeric. Cover with a fitted lid and cook the potatoes on medium heat for 2-3 minutes.

Add in the chicken and the remaining mint and coconut paste. Add in half cup of chicken stock or water. Simmer the chicken stew for 5-7 minutes.

Serve hot with appams, rice or bread. 

Get Me Through This Day! Chicken

It is only Tuesday! My boss is driving me crazy and I feel like punching my fist into a wall. I need some comfort food to get me through this day. For an awesome conclusion to a long day at work, I made this dish. I look forward to my dinner, sometimes it cheers me up and on other days it makes me sing!

Serves 2

Ingredients

Chicken Breasts 2

Mushroom, sliced 1 cup

Butter 2 tablespoons

Salt to taste

Pepper a pinch

Oregano 1 tspn.

Milk ¼ cup

Cheese Slice 1

Spring Onion Greens ¼ cup

Method:

Slice the chicken along the side parallel to the surface to open it out into a heart shape. Hammer the thick portions with a round spoon to thin them out.  Season with salt and pepper. Cook it slightly n both sides.

Saute the mushrooms and a little spring onion in butter with salt and oregano.  Stuff the cooked mushroom in the centre of the chicken.

Heat milk in a pan and add in a slice of cheese in it. Add spring onion greens.

Pour the sauce and serve with bread.

Enjoy comfort food on a weekday. Treat yourself!