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Wednesday 31 August 2016

Wok In The Box | Wokking Is Fun | Food Review | Restaurant Review

Chinese Food is perhaps the most popular in India, primarily propelled forward by all the insane sauces combination we can play with. My sister is crazy about Indian Chinese food and thanks to her, I have been to way too many noodles and sauces places and yet myself never been crazy about it. Have never been to China so I don't really know about 'authentic' Chinese cuisine but one thing I have developed a taste for in recent times is the concept of Wok!  
 
Best Delicious Chinese Wok India
Fresh Veggies Chinese Cuisine
Delicious Vegetarian Chinese Cuisine

Choose your favorite noodles, sauces, vegetables and Voila! A perfect personalized Chinese feast is ready! Somehow I prefer a Wok box over any other option in Chinese cuisine as available in India. It's purely a personal preference though, as somehow I feel this is a bit healthier than just having bowl full of oily noodles or sauce full of veggies. Lucky enough to have had some amazing Wok at Five Fat Monks, Wok This Way and Loco Chino, it was time to try out the same at Wok In The Box Fort outlet :)
 
   Vegetarian Chinese Cuisine India
 
My sister had been to their outlet at R City Ghatkopar some time last year and loved it mainly because (a)-There is no limit to the amount of veggies, sauces one can choose and (b) They let you taste the wok once it is finished so you can add something else if you want to make it spicier/mild :)  
 
 Strawberry BlackCurrant Iced Teas
 
We walked in on a rainy Friday evening to pretty roomy 2-floor outlet of Wok In The Box with upper dining area and ground LIVE kitchen welcoming us warmly. There are books and board games here to pass the time folks! Bright and vibrant with staff quick to assist us when it came to choosing our Woks + accompaniments and nobody to bother us when we decided to spend the next hour just lazying around :)  
 
Authentic Vegetarian Tibetan Momo
 
Authentic Chinese Cuisine India
Delicious Chinese Momo
 
Started with Blackcurrant and Strawberry Iced Teas, pretty decent, refreshing enough, the strawberry one was on the too sweeter side though. Spinach and Cheese Momos were very good, a bit thicker on the outside but still flavorful and soft inside. Veg Spicy Momos were extremely spicy, I mean, fire truck level spicy, so be careful :D  
 
Eat Fresh Delicious Healthy Wok
 Healthy Food Recipe India
 
We had fun choosing bowl full of veggies like Corn, Carrots, Bell Peppers, Red Cabbage, Sprouts, Mushrooms and while I like my food a bit on the blander/sweetish side, I chose Hakka Noodles + Flat Noodles with Paneer in Kung Pao + Hunan sauce, my sister just asked them to make Flat Noodles with Paneer really spicy and tangy,they took care of it. Both Woks turned out perfectly like we wanted, flavorful, saucy, crunchy, fresh. In fact, we are really impressed how they made my sister's wok so perfect,I liked it even more than my own choices of sauces :D Trust the staff here, they know all the flavors inside out! They also lay out Fried Noodles, Garlic & Onions as garnishes as well as a plethora of sauces (tomato ketchup, mustard sauce) to be used as per personal preference. 
 
  Chinese Cuisine in India
 
It doesn't get any better than this, make food the way you want, enjoy it as you like!  If they had some dessert options on the menu,it would be perfect :D But then again, their core strength is making fresh & flavorful Woks which they are excelling in, so no complaints on any front :) We shall be keeping an eye out for Wok In The Box everywhere we go now for sure!

Sunday 28 August 2016

Genuine Broaster Chicken Mumbai | #GetBroasted | Food Review | Restaurant Review

Why would a vegetarian even enter a place featuring the word 'Chicken' predominantly in the name? Maybe when they get an invite to review the food, like our bloggers group did! Even though we are all vegetarians, we all had some work in Andheri so we decided to drop in, thinking that maybe we would get some fries and 1 or 2 burger options to taste, then we would have to go home for dinner anyway.
 
Oh, how wrong we were :D
 
Genuine Broaster Chicken Review

Baseball Helmets

Genuine Broaster Chicken derives its name from a special cooking technique (Broasting) for chicken and this is where my technical knowledge ends. All I know is it is already a huge name worldwide. From my understanding, it is in direct competition with places like KFC, McD, Burger King and the likes. But I would prefer GBC over all of them, YES, despite being vegetarian, purely because it truly has an American soul with Indian heart.
 
Masterchef India Food Food Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi
 
The ambiance, service and food aims to bring the best of America + India and largely succeeds on all fronts. Quirky chicken comic joke strips, American paraphernalia, funky seating options, a complete Texan saloon vibe all around. I should know, I am hooked to Supernatural series which has a slideshow of such places. This one is monster-less though and brightened with clasic pop hits by Michael Jackson, Backstreet Boys and the like :D
 
American Bar Saloon Ambiance
 
Service is polite,efficient and not intrusive though they are always ready to suggest their best dishes. AND they take feedback from every customer. Niiiice :) Oh, we were in for a surprise when we saw Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi buried deep in a discussion in a corner, a pleasant coincidence. Let me tell you right now, close your eyes and order anything with 'Chef's Special' written in the menu, it is gonna be fantastic!
 
Rockstar Ambiance Genuine Broaster Chicken USA
 
Genuine Broaster Chicken Menu India USA Mumbai
 
Genuine Broaster Chicken American Tradition History Review
 
The menu has ample options for vegetarians which made us happy. It is not exactly value for money but looking at the location and quality of food, understandable. The questions was, will it be worth it? Answers came in affirmative with each dish we tasted :)
 

Chulbul Soda Mumbai
 
Starting with drinks, my personal favorites are Cold Coffee, Raspberry Milkshake and ChulBul Soda (tastes just like Masala Soda). All other options in beverages are good too, some of them might be too milky or watery for some palates, that is subjective.
 
BBQ Nachos Fries Genuine Broaster Chicken
 
Star in starters would be Smoked BBQ Franchos i.e. crispy fries deliciously mixed with BBQ glaze, onions, jalapenos. This dish can make people hop across borders just to have it (mind you,not that I am condoning it :P)
 
Gourmet Vegetarian Starter
 

Vegetarian Gourmet Starter Genuine Broaster Chicken
 
Thai Paneer Cigars were delicate rolls with minced spicy Paneer while Veggie BBQ Pit-zaa i.e. flavorful veggies on crunchy pita bread were like mini pizza slices, just a bit crunchier than what most people would prefer.
 
Even more than the starters, Burger, Pasta and Indie selections stole my heart :) Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi's Punjabi touch and innovation in planning the menu even for vegetarians comes to fore here.
 
Vegetarian Gourmet Burger India Genuine Broaster Chicken
 
Best Spicy Pasta Mumbai India
 
Go for Palak Paneer Burger, intense flavors of Palak, Cheese, Veggies served alongside crispiest fries amalgamate into a cheery option for any veggie foodie. Penne Makhani is what one would get if Punjabi Grandmas started making pasta alongside Chole Bhature :D Delicious Makhani gravy oozing out of every pasta tube! Splendid.
 
North Indian Punjabi Delicious Indian Cuisine
 
Paneer Maskedar (sort of Paneer Butter Masala, mildly spicy), Maa Ki Daal (hearty Black Daal made the Punjabi way) with Lachcha Paratha is one must-have combination for those wanting something spicy or a full-fledged meal (without counting calories of course!)
 
Vegetarian Gourmet Masterchef Indian Dessert
 
Gulkand Muffin is Chef's gift to humankind. Moist Mawa Cake with Gulkand bang in the middle, the aroma enveloping us all before we even cut the first piece, this is a dessert even for those who are naturally not attracted to sweet dishes.
 
Vegetarian Gourmet Dessert India Mango Ice Cream Chocolate
 
Finally, Chocolate Samosa (those lovely peanuts inside!Yum!) served with Mango Ice-cream (this feels like a frozen slice of Alphonso itself!) almost led to a war a we all wanted to polish off the plate till the last drop of chocolate sauce :P (I won :D)
 
Genuine Broaster Chicken Review
 
It is nice when expectations are fulfilled, it is even better when a situation of no expectations is surpassed :) Innovative & Delicious food, keeping in mind Indian palate, serving American fare with little twists, now this is going to bring us back. And for that alone, here is a hearty thumbs up to Genuine Broaster Chicken, even by a group of hardcore vegetarians.
 
All Pictures Credit: Prachi Shailendra :)

Friday 26 August 2016

Relishus Powai | Authentic Food By Home Chefs | Food Review

We are living in midst of a food revolution,harbinger of good times for foodies and chefs alike. So why should Chefs' talent be limited to restaurants alone?
 
Relishus Mumbai Food Delivery

This was something I was thinking about some years ago too-if there could be a service to ensure that home chefs could present their talent directly to foodies without opening a restaurant. Well, one way is by producing products like Jams, Jellies, Cookies, Bread etc. and tie up with local grocery chains or brands like Godrej Nature's Basket to market them. Other way is to prepare fresh,authentic, home cooked food and get it delivered for lunch or dinner to hungry foodies via a service like Relishus :)

I had the honor of tasting some offerings by some passionate home chefs for lunch. Food came freshly prepared in secure, microwavable containers with stickers proclaiming which chef prepared what. Multi-cuisine dishes prepared by chefs with decades of experience, passion and traditional kitchen secrets is what we get.
 
Delicious Indian Cuisine
 
Mumbai Get Home Cooked Food Delivered

We started with Matar Mangodi with Roti by Chef Nikita Agarwal = Peas and Badi in lipsmacking gravy with plain Rotis, went wonderfully together and made me remember my nani's cooking. Gravy was a bit spicier than I like, but it is because naturally I tend towards sweeter things, not because of any shortcoming in the gravy itself :)

Delicious Vegetarian Indian Food
 
Get Soft Appam Home Delivered

Delicious Vegetarian South Indian Food
 
Vegetarian Coconut Chutney by Home Chef

Vegetable Stew with Appam and Coconut Chutney + Rasa Vada by Chef Malini Balkrishnan = Stew was coconut based and it could be a bit thicker, Appams could have been softer but still somehow this worked nicely together. The chutney was amazing, my office colleagues sort of jumped on it :D I loved the soft and fluffy Rasa Vada!

Relish Delicious Indian Desserts Mumbai

Best Indian Sweets Desserts in Mumbai

Delicious Best Mysore Pak in Mumbai



Moong Dal Halwa, Kala Jamun and Mysore Pak by Chef Rajesh Kumar Daga = Delicious desserts tasting just the way they are supposed to. My boss is a big fan of Moong Dal Halwa and she actually finished it off, I got barely a spoon and it was fantastic. So dense, also overflowing with oil, calorie counters stay away :P Mysore Pak was outstanding, I have had some versions where it is too sweet or dripping with ghee, thankfully this one was restrained. Kala Jamun, again soul satisfying :)

The desserts here are so good all us office colleagues ordered for them again the very next day to take home and will be doing so at least once a week now on!

Relishus is a beautiful link between talented chefs and eager foodies, I am looking forward to trying more from their rotating menu at their Website or Zomato :)

 

Thursday 25 August 2016

The Bayview Restaurant | Marine Plaza Mumbai | Pizza Fantastica | Review

Having already been to the amazing Mediterranean Food Festival here some months ago, it was a delight to be back to taste some fantastic pizzas in the company of stellar foodies. Ambiance remains as lovely as ever, stunning views of Marine Drive beckon. Staff is polite and efficient and mood is relaxed instantaneously. And prices when compared to the quality is quite reasonable too. Nothing to complain about on any front :)
 
Marine Plaza Mumbai Five Star Hotel
 
Marine Drive Mumbai

The Bayview Restaurant

Five Star Lunch Buffet Mumbai
 
Art & Architecture Mumbai
 
Refreshing BeveragesRefreshing Beverages

Most Refreshing Strawberry Milkshake in Mumbai
Eat At Marine Drive Mumbai
 
Best Lunch Buffet in Mumbai

Delicious Vegetarian Gourmet Lunch Buffet

Best Mumbai Desserts

We also ended up relishing some dishes from their generous lunch buffet spread which was fantastic as always with delicious salads and main course providing health + taste on a plate, with desserts providing the perfect finish. I love how well planned their menu is, it has usual comforting dishes like Paneer, Pulao, Indian breads as well as something unique like Thai Curries, Lasagna, Koftas, Ratatouille and so on, so literally something for everyone :)

Thanks to Chef Kshitiz Shekhar for generously creating a hearty mix of Pizzas for our bloggers team. The Pizzas are thin crust, with a distinct crackle and snap that thin crust lovers adore. I tend to yo-yo when it comes to pizza crusts. Years of exposure to Domino's and Pizza Hut made me loathe thick/pan crusts, but now I find them comforting. Thin crusts have their own magic too :)

 
Where to have best Pizza in Mumbai

The flavors we had the honor of tasting were Margherita, Provencal Verdure and Piri Piri, each one exquisite.

Where to have best pizzas in mumbai

When it comes to Margherita, I always thought how can a simple spread of Tomato Sauce, Cheese & Basil be delicious? This is perhaps the first place where I have loved Margherita Pizza so much, I guess the magic is in the flavor of the sauce & cheese as well as their proportions, it is absolutely spot on. I don't remember asking for a second slice of Margherita before in my life, but I did here :D


Best Vegetarian Pizza
 
Where to have best vegetarian pizzas

Provencal Verdure is my personal favorite with Asparagus,Zucchini and Spring Onions providing it with crunch while Olives, Tomatoes, Cheese make it dense & juicy. My pizzas need to be huge on flavors without being too spicy or bland and this is the one that makes me go WOW on the parameters :)

Have best pizzas here
 
Spicy Vegetarian Gourmet Pizza

Piri Piri is the love of life for spice lovers, each slice endowed with a smoking fiery amount of Spicy Tomato Sauce, Capsicum, Tomato, Spring Onion, Olives & Chili. My sister adored this, being the perennial spice lover of the family :D

I haven't been to Italy,so no idea how authentic pizzas are made. But a fellow blogger remarked that these pizzas are quite close to the ones she had in New York in terms of flavors and textures. They certainly tasted awesome and we can see us going back here with friends/family, relishing each slice while staring at the Arabian Sea. Pizza Fantastico indeed :)

The Bayview Restaurant - Marine Plaza Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato