The Best Comfort Food - Soups

There are been days when you are unwell, down with a bad cold or fever or its a rainy day outside and the weather is damp, cold and grey or on the contrary its a hot and humid sunday afternoon, the mercury promising to burst out or a fight has brought you down or the stock market has crashed leaving you poorer by a few lakhs. It happens to all of us. How do you get out of this. Turn to food, comfort food ....... especially soups. 

The versatility of soups is awesome. On a cold day or a rainy wet day it warms you up, on a hot summery day it chills you down, when you are feeling down and out it perks you up, when you are feeling fat and frumpy it fills you up without adding calories. The soup such a versatile dish and yet such an underdog it is. Most feel, lets skip the soup it will fill you up. But if its a good soup, it will satisfy your senses as well ! Think about it.

Just the other day, I was back from a tiring day at work, nothing had gone my way - right from the driver not coming to work, the police catching me, to meetings getting cancelled and the works! I came home, hungry as a horse and conjured up a corn tomato cheese soup. Thick, hot and really delicious! Easy to make, take a cup of sweet corn boiled and churn it with one diced tomato, till it becomes a thick consistency. Put this on a slow flame and add to this a cup of boiled corn, a cup of blanched tomatoes de-seeded and chopped, half a red pepper finely diced, two jalapenos chopped, 1 teaspoon white vinegar, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce, salt & pepper to taste till it becomes nice and warm, garnish with grated cheese. Ladle it into bowls and devour, the corn and tomatoes will fill you up instantly and the cheese will make you feel nice and rich. 

The summers in Mumbai can be a killer, hot, humid, muggy and unbearable. How does one consume a hot soup on a hot day, just not happening. Well the spaniards in the Andalusia region invented the Gazpacho to beat off the hot Mediterranean summers! Every region, every household in spain has its own secret Gazpacho recipe and is highly guarded. But the speciality of this soup is that it is served CHILLED. Yes a cold soup!!! 
There are plenty versions of the humble Gazpacho - the watermelon gazpacho, the strawberry Gazpacho, The Cucumber Gazpacho , Radish Gazpacho , Avocado Gazpacho and so on. Its easy to make the Tomato Gazpacho - chopped ripe tomatoes, chopped cucumber, chopped onion, chopped red pepper, wine vinegar, olive oil & Worcestershire Sauce, all blended to form a puree, if you like it chunky leave the pulp if you dont then drain the liquid from the pulp a few times. Chill for about 3 hours and serve garnished with mint sprigs, diced tomatoes, crutons. Trust me this will get the soaring temperatures down. 

If the Tomato is a bit boring and you are the gastronomically adventurous type try the Avocado Gazpacho - take the flesh of about 3 ripe avocados, 2 cups buttermilk, 1/2 onion, 3 tsp wine vinegar, olive oil , salt and pepper to taste , blend in a mixer to get a nice creamy think soup. If you like it thinner add more buttermilk. Also poplar is the Vichyssoise a creamy cold soup of potatoes or Asparagus Cold Soup. Some adventurous types may also like the Sparkling Pineapple or the Pureed Carrot & Orange. Lovely on a hot summer Sunday Brunch.

Another favorite soup is the Spring Vegetable & Pesto soup. Made with Leeks, Courgette, French beans, white beans in a vegetarian stock garnished with a dollop of fresh basil pesto. Super for a diet and great to fill the stomach up! Fry the chopped leeks in olive oil till they become translucent, add the stock and let it simmer for 5 mins and once the leeks are soft add the courgette, french beans and once again let it simmer for about 5 mins till all the vegetables are tender and soft. Lastly add the cooked white beans , season with salt, pepper and some red wine vinegar for a bit of flavour. Just before serving garnish with a big dollop of fresh basil pesto. Super delicious!

So lets give the humble soup its much deserved due, share with me your other innovative soup recipies & photos!!!

Restaurant Review - The Pantry

Restaurant Review - The Pantry

Kalaghoda, Mumbai

First Impressions                                                              8/10

The Pantry

Nestled in one of the many bylanes of Kala Ghoda, The Pantry looks like a neat clean & hip deli. When you enter it, you are assured it is a neat, clean & hip deli. The white exterieors in an otherwise old dilapilated fountain area is re-assuring and once inside, you feel you are in soho or just about any international cafes or delis worldwide. Nice bright interiors with quirky wall hangings, paper murals and pots and pans line up the walls of this tiny eatery, aimed to please the young hip lawyers, bankers, the arty-farties & the day shoppers frequenting the Kala Ghoda area. So you can expect a quick bite or a laid back meal. Both are available. 

The Menu

Service                                                                   6/10

Smart, attentive and knowledgeable, the service did not fail. Sauces brought to the table in little aluminium buckets, spoons kept in tin mugs , food served in platters, the entire feel was modern, contemporary and warm. The food came quickly - a bit too qucik for our liking (we are not office-going executives!!! ) the mains arrived before the soups and that was a bit disappointing. The food was way to hot to be eaten and we dont like to wait to take a bite if the food is kept right in front of you! A friend landed up burning her palette. Not good. 

The Delicious Deli Section

The Swirl Tart - Deli Section

The Food                                                                4/10

Now this is where the eatery was a complete let down. Looks ARE deceptible. Unfortunately the food did not match up to the look and feel of the place. We started with a bean salad, rather insipid and borring. Very rarely can you go wrong with a salad, these guys did! A spiral tart was amazing and lets say the saving grace of the evening, very attractive to look at , it was, like its name says a tart with spirally arranged strips of zucchini, onion, carrots , tomatoes, best enjoyed nice and warm, this was delicious and serviced with a tomato coulis and mustard. Attractively delicious - a feast to the eyes and the palette! But then everything just went spiraling downwards. The leek, zucchini and sweet lime soup was just alright and it split us dinners into fifty-fifty, I quite liked it as every spoon left me with a sweet and tangy taste of sweet lime - clever. 

The rest found the soup boring and unimpressive. My main was a ginger soya steak with beet and burghul wheat base. Now soy is a very tricky product if not handled correctly, this was done well but was left flavorless, so it gave a nice crispy crunch but had no flavor what so every. The burghul was also insipid with the beet adding a wee bit of its flavor, else zilch. I had to add additional tomato coulis and mustard to be able to eat it. Not good, not good at all. Although the deli stuff on the counters looked far better and more inviting, should be a better bet than the main food. Maybe try that the next time. Decently priced so that was a saving grace. Mains at about 350 on an average and deli-food at about 140-200. Not bad. 

Meringue Tart

The Verdict                                                                         5/10

The Pantry, well what do I say, a bit of a waste of a lovely concept and deli. I do hope the management realizes this and brings about some changes. Guys, its never about the decor or the ambience its ALWAYS ABOUT THE FOOD! 

FIND THE PANTRY

Ground Floor, Yeshwant Chambers, 

Military Square Lane, Kala Ghoda, MUMBAI.

MAP TO THE PANTRY

A RESTAURANT REVIEW - WOODSIDE INN CAFE

Woodside Inn 

(Colaba , Mumbai)

First Impressions

This place has changed so many avataars in the past so many years, I had forgotten about its existence, expecting it to be a dark, dingy, stuffy, smoke filled pub filled with beer guzzling, office executives from the near by business district. But when we stopped by for a beer last Saturday, I was pleasantly surprised by the airy ambience and the absence of beer guzzling bozos chain smoking into the dark. Woodside Inn has gone through a revamp and I was impressed.

Service

The staff is pleasant , friendly and very knowledgable, especially the guys at the bar, they know their beers from their beers for sure!

The Food

Once again expecting it to be typical beer bar with nothing more than potato chips and sandwiches I was shocked at the very smart, appropriate and innovative menu. Smart because they took care of people who wished to be healthy with a variety of salads, egg preparations , appropriate because there was food which goes well with beer like beer battered potato skins (heavenly!) with a wasabi mayo, jalapeno poppers which oozed cheese and bits of corn and jalapenos the moment you bit into them and innovative bexause of the various combinations of flavours they had on offer. On the first occasion I tried the healthy Egg White Omelet with Goats cheese and caramalized onions which was absolutely fantastic and a superb combination for sure. The melted salty goat cheese mingled beautifully with the sweet and sharp caramelized onions. Even the Portobello Mushroom salad was crisp and warm but had fewer mushrooms that what I would have liked. With more people the second time around we could try a lot of their offerings starting with a Tomato Lemon Grass broth with mozzarella bread, just light for a broth with the refreshing taste of lemon grass, super healthy and super delicious. 

The mains included a Blackened Carrot and Beetroot burger which was amazing, sodifferent with a beautiful blend of carrots and beetroot, one charred and the other naturally sweet, Their Pappardelle or thick ribbon pasta with caramelized veggies was also fantastic, with the pasta smooth enough to melt in your mouth, and different flavors with every bite. 

The Spinach and Asparagus Risotto was just perfect, ( our combination) but it went down very well, textures just perfect, not too creamy nor too starchy! All of this guzzled down with chilled bottles of Schneider Wisse German Beer.A Sunday Lunch couldn't get better. The meal ended with a Spicy Hazelnut Ganache which was the only average dish in the entire otherwise fantastic meal. I can see this becoming a regular hangout !!!

Value For Money

The sides being about 125 each and the main between 250 -325 I think the dishes were reasonably priced. We were 5 of us and the bill came to about 1050 a head including the beer. But every penny was worth every bite! 

PIZZA

The Verdict

The two visits to Woodside have brought this small, cheerful and cozy eatery right on the top of list of favorites. Woodside Inn turned out to be everything I imagnied it NOT to be! 

So guys at Woodside Inn- keep up the quality, the innovation and the service !

A Restaurant Review - Di Napoli

Di Napoli 

(Nariman Point , Mumbai)

First Impressions

Almost missable, tucked away into the sides of Dalamal Towers in the corporate and financial district of Nariamn Poitnt, Di Napoli can be overlooked unless you are sure the address. A small pizzeria, bright, warm and welcoming, Di Napoli the brainchild of banker turned restaurateur Jai Thakur, it gives you an almost New York cafe feel with its glazed red tiled walls, bright lights and ikea furniture, both modern, trendy and fun. The menu basic simple with its focus on only one thing - Pizza Napoli stile!

Service

Service was quick and friendly, with the waiters knowing their stuff, but it was Thakur’s presence which made a lot of difference. It was nice to see that the owner cares about his patrons. Molto Buono!

The Food

Pizza Margherita

Pizza Funghi

Di Napoli is a PIZZERIA, with its focus on Pizza, Napoli style. A bit of warning here if you go there expecting regular thin n crispy or deep pan options think again. These are TRULY Napoli style soft based, oven baked hand rolled pizzas with just the right amount of gravy to make each bite wet and juicy! We ordered the Funghi & the Quattro Fromaggi.  12’ Pizza, warmly out of the oven smelled absolutely delicious with bits of the crust charred adding more to that wonderful aroma of a brick oven. On the first bite, the freshness of the italian tomatoes oozes out with warmth of the base. Almost naan-like consistency easy to fold an bite a la calzone, the base melts in the mouth leaving with delicious flavors of juicy tomatoes, wild mushrooms and mozzarella cheese. The charred bits of the curst make the pizza  rustic and oh so light. The Quattro or the four cheese pizza was wonderful as well, devoid of tomato gravy and the base topped with gorgonzola, mozzarella , feta and parmesan. Every bite oozed out a fresh cheese flavour be it the sharp gorgonzola, the mild feta, the stringy mozzarella or the rich parmesan, every cheese complimented the other! Inspite of so much cheese, the pizza was extremely light on the stomach and delicious on the palette!

Thakur informed us that the dough and the gravy were imported from Italy and cheese from some of the finest cheese makers in north India. The open to see oven emanates various aromas of pizzas being cooked. In one word superbly delicious!

Value For Money

If the ingredients remain the same, the pizza as light to eat, light on the stomach and light on the pocket as well, with a price tag of about 350 for the veg pizzas, the italian feather light dough and the italian juicy tomatoey gravy... its benissimo!!!

The Verdict

A much required genuine pizzeria in south Mumbai, the warmth of the restaurant and the rich flavors are worth a visit to this small joint even it means a long drive to get here. Buono Appetito!

RECIPE - Tameta Per Eeda

TAMETA PER EEDA

No I am not a strict vegetarian , in fact I am a strict eggitarian, yes I love my eggs and I love them whichever way they can be cooked - boiled, bhurjee, florentine, omelet etc. 

But it was in circa 1998, when a Parsee nurse attending to my ailing father saw my affinity towards eggs and made me a popular Parsee dish called Tameta Per Eeda (lliterally translating into Eggs on Tomatoes!) . Now the Parsees love their eggs too, they can have them with just about with anything, Papeeta Per Eeda (Eggs on Potatoes), Bheeda per Eeda (Egg on Okra), Salli per Eeda (Eggs on fried potato strips), infact there is a joke that goes that they will even make Eeda Per Eeda (Eggs on Eggs)!!! 

 But my absolute favourite is the Tatmeta Per Eeda (Eggs on Tomatoes). Last made by my dear friend Nina Bhalla , a Paaki Bawi married to a burlusque Panju! 

I tried this at home today which made for a brilliant breakfast and very healthy as well. So here goes

3 Egg whites 

1 Whole Egg

2 Tomatoes Diced

1 Small Onion Diced

1/2 Cup Coriander chopped

1 Tsp Coriander Poweder

2 Tsp Olive Oil

Salt , Pepper & Chili Powder to taste

This is good for one or two people 

Heat oil in a small pan which is good for a two egg omelet. We want the dish to be nice and thick. Add to it the Coriander powder, Salt and Pepper till the juices are released in the oil. 

Add the chopped onions and fry till they are translucent but haven't started browning. 

Add the tomatoes and cook on a low flame for a few minutes till they turn limp and soggy. 

Add the chopped coriander and continue stirring till the tomatoes look soft. 

Pour the egg whites over the mixture and evenly spread it all over covering evenly with the whites. 

Break a whole egg in the middle of the setting frittata

Sprinkle some salt, pepper and chili powder and cover the pan till the yolk is completely cooked and is well done. 

Serve straight from the pan cutting it into large wedges.

Serve with some Brun paav - a hard bread roll popularly found in the Paree/Irani bakeries and you are set to start your day!

ENJOY DICKRA!

The Murder Of Gujarati Food

AGASHIYE 

(HOUSE OF MG , AHMEDABAD)

First Impressions

As you walk into the House of MG, you are immediately transferred to the days when Ahmedabad was a flourishing textile city, with mill-owners or better known as ‘seths’ with their buggies, servants and large havelis. The look as been kept intact with corridors lined with memorabilia and sepia toned pictures of an era gone by. Agashiye or At The Terrace in Gujarati , as its name suggests is located on the terrace of the haveli, which used to be one of the rooms of the erstwhile sethias of the house. Waiters dressed in the traditional gujrati kurta-pajama greet you warmly. You feel like one of the sethias in all their pomp and glory! Gurgling fountains greet you at the entrance and there are silent ponds with floating lotuses here and there, pictures, statues and paintings give this a warm, homely and posh feel.

Service

Service is almost impeccable. As you are warmly led to the table and explained about the menu, you are greeted with a rose as a gesture of welcome and you get hot water in a basin to wash your hands before you start the meal. Although the waiters weren't very good with english, they spoke traditional amdavadi Gujarati, but the over all warmth, the persuasion to eat more made you feel at home, as if being served by your own servant and maharaj!

The Food

This is where trouble started. Half of us wanted to eat the Thaali  and the rest of us opted for a-la carte. Both were pretty much disastrous and almost mundane. Now let me warn you, our own home standards of Gujarati food are very high since we are all caterers of some sort or the other, so we had already lowered our thresh holds. But the food didn't even live halfway to our expectations. 

The thaali was extravagant no doubt, starting with mini batatawadas with tamrind chutney, just about ok. The thick basundi was boring when so much excitement can surround it. The subzis  of masala parval, bataka, gatta-nu-shaak were just borderline where the gatta-nu-shaak  saved the day for the rest of the thaali. The daals were insipid and sweet. Two types of Rotis were served, methi roti - too thick, almost a bhaakri type dry feel and taste and the rotlis too thick and tough- now this is totally intolerable in a Gujarati meal, where the rotlis or phulkaas are as soft as a baby’s cheek. The second farsaan - Handvo was boring, dry and tasteless. Thankfully we did’nt bother eating the malpuas - saving of calories in a otherwise bas meal. Basically the food was over-all sweet thereby furthering the cliche that all Gujarati food is sweet (which is not so). 

The a-la carte was even worse. My sister in law ordered Utthapa (God alone knows why!) but they were aweful, tasteless and rubbery. We experimented with the bhakari pizza , (a melee of Gujarati Bhaakri with the Italian Pizza topping!) available on every nook and corner of Ahmedabad and generally super-delicious, but two bites were enough to leave the rest of the dish alone - inedible! I ordered a mini meal of methi thepla, dahi raita & sev-puri!!!  What a combination but nevertheless, the theplas never arrived, the raita was way too sweet but nicely chilled and a warm welcome to the Ahmedabad heat but the sev-puri was terrible, puris too hard, chutneys too sweet, now one generally cant go wrong with the basic sev-puri but alas Agashiye had! Lastly even the mukhwaas which no Guajrati meal is complete without, was half eaten, sticky and congealed in their respective bottles, refusing to come out. Phew!

Value For Money

At Rs. 600 a thaali in price sensitive Ahmedabad, this was a total waste, so what if you are being served in Silverware, its not like you get to take that home! Even the average mini meal was about Rs. 175 was just not worth it. The meal for 6 people came to Rs. 2300 which was a total rip-off!

The Verdict

A typical case of ‘looks can be deceptive” and so can reviews by khaadi clad goras writing for the Lonely Planet. Even they dont deserve such mundane and average food at sky high prices. The service, look and feel along with the beautiful atmosphere can bowl you over, but the high comes down like a deflated balloon with the food for sure. Agashiye does not deserve the trek to come to the old city. 

I am sure the spirit of the grandmoms of the House of Mangaldas must be weeping seeing their recipes murdered so!

Sipping Cha with Yah!

A RESTAURANT REVIEW

YAUTCHA 

(Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai)

First Impressions

As you approach the rather upscale and very fancy Yatucha at Bandra Kurla complex, the array of cars parked right outside are enough to give you a complex, but this is Mumbai, where cars dont matter nor does where you stay or what designer clothes you wear-its what YOU are all about. And I know I am all about food, good vegetarian food. A gang of very courteous girls welcome you to this fine dine,east asian, dining experience. Once inside you could be anywhere in the world, New York’s Meat Packing District,London’s Soho or Singapore’s Orchid Road- very international look and feel. First impressions - very chic, very sleek and very modern. But whats that noise, the chattering of a million people and the constant clanging of the stir fry woks, a thoushand clanging pots and pans were deafening. Suddenly fine dining turned into local irani joint. Lighting was smooth and just enough. Seating was smart, basic and comfortable. I guess the attention was on food rather than the decor. But it were the high windows with lovely views of the trendy Bandra Kurla Complex which gave it the very international look.

Service

Very serious, courteous and extremely knowledgable staff helped us select our appetizers. Since we were celebrating, their in-house sommelier (yes a dedicated wine sommelier!) helped us through the wine selection, but considering we wanted Prosecco there was only one choice ! Service was prompt , quick and very smart, was surprised, as was expecting snobbish staff with a high-end attitude a-la Hakkasan. A bit of warmth, some smiles and a bit of chatting and inquiry would have helped patrons feel more relaxed and comfortable. Never once did the maiter d’ or the table waiters bother to find out about our experience so far. 

The Food

Veg Crystal Dumplings

Asaparagus Cheung Fun

Everything negative was about to be washed out with what was about to come next. Finally the restauranteurs (especially asian) have understood the importance of the vegetarian clientele and Gujrati high spenders and have an exclusive vegetarian menu. Whoopie! So no more getting reiterating the waiter that there should be no oyster sauce or fish in the food. What a relief. From a large selection of dim-sums we chose the Shitake Mushroom, the Vegetable Crystal, Asparagus Cheung Fun and Pan Fried Turnip Cake.  They need more selection on their wine list for sure. The dim sums were little pieces of heavenly clouds. The moment they touch the tongue the skin almost as if disappears filling the mouth with a fantastic array of flavors. Mushrooms mingling with delicate hints of ginger, asian vegetables minced with garlic , asparagus with french beans were an absolute delight. The very highly recommended Edamame Dim Sum was a bit of a let down for us. Avoidable for sure. But the delicious turnip cake topped with heaps of fried garlic which was the highlight of course one. Yes we were happy, very happy so far. The mains were a flat malaysian noodle, fried eggplant, french beans in a thick garlic sauce, mobo tofu and fried rice. The noodles were once again the best I have ever tasted in Mumbai, really flat pieces but soft as a babys bottom, would melt before you got to chew them. Fantastic. 

The eggplant  a bit of a bummer. But the french beans were outstanding, what did they do to them!! Crunchy, spicy, sweet , so many rich flavours playing with the palette. I couldn't get enough. Portions looked small, but yet there were leftovers, so for 4 eaters, single portions are just fine if you have had your share of appetizers, that is. The desserts - OH MY GOD, I could write a 1000 words on the desserts, ensuring what was eggless, we settled for Sorbet and the Hazlenut Ganache with Honeycomb Ice Cream. The Sorbet - Raspberry, Tropical Fruit & Pina Colada were superb. Especially Pina Colada - I could have had a tub filled of that stuff! Just perfectly soft, sweet and beautifully flavored. The Hazelnut Ganache was the lightest, fluffiest and most perfect mousse I have sunk my teeth into! Just superb. I was speechless. Perfectly combined with the honey-comb ice cream. There was no better way to end a perfect meal. 

Malaysian Flat Noodles

Mogo Tofu

The Verdict

Sorbet

Yatucha, looks very unapproachable, very up market but in fact its a warm, friendly and yet very up scale restaurant with a fabulous array of vegetarian selection, superb desserts and good service. Just that the noise was too much, especially from the open kitchen. I knew a couple sitting right behind me celebrating their 15 years of being married, who left post appetizers as the noise was way too much. So definitely not for a romantic cozy dinner. But great to entertain international guests, your family (not kids!) and to dine with friends. Beware the bill can set you back by as much as your drivers salary but what the heck once in a while its worth it.

Yatucha is hip , happening and very modern asian food. Hope it stays that way.