The Egg Factory

"A true friend is one who thinks you are a good egg even if you are half-cracked!"

A lazy Sunday afternoon, Bangalore' s weather at its best, your best friend by your side, and of course food. What else does one need to lead a happy life?

The experience of eating good food becomes all the more enjoyable and memorable when you have a person as special and wonderful as your BFF to share it with. Mridula and I have been friends since the fifth semester of college and like every healthy relationship; our friendship has only grown stronger with time. Of course, there have been times when we have had our disagreements mostly because of the difference in our temperaments (she is way more forgiving and modest than I am). But at the end of the day when I need someone to just talk to, she s the person who comes first to my mind. I hope it’s the same with her too. It better be!

This is my third visit to The Egg Factory in the past one year. Wow, time just flies. It is located in one of the by lanes of St Marks road. I still vividly remember what a hard time I had locating it the first time around, given how inconspicuous it is. The minute you enter The Egg Factory, you will be taken aback by the sheer simplicity of this place- wooden flooring, wooden chairs and tables and a few colourful cushions strewn around. The ambience is subtle in its appearance and lovely to look at. Considering the fact that both, Mridu and I were born and live to eat, we started ordering almost instantly. The menu is very wittily designed with words such as "Eggsamplers”,"Eggxilarative”,”Eggspectations”… used to categorise the menu.

Drinks: All you cocktail and liquor lovers may be a tad disappointed because this place doesn’t serve alcoholic drinks. Most of the drinks are fruit based such as – fresh fruit juices( which weren’t available) , a host of smoothies and of course the usual cold coffee. We choose the “I love Apple” smoothie.I know, what a name! It was fresh, not too sugary and served in just the right amount without any ice.

Main course: The Egg Factory provides a gamut of options to choose from for the main course. After flipping through pages and pages of the menu, Mridu zeroed in on the Frittata A la Mexicana and I choose my all-time favourite French toast with Maple syrup. The very aroma of the syrup with the toast just sprung my taste buds back to life. It’s warm, comforting and an absolute must-try. And the Frittata, Mridu just loved it. It’s a combination of two omelettes, cooked with beans, olives and capsicum and topped with cheddar cheese, and served with garlic bread. It looks like a mini garden on the plate.

Dessert: Mridu choose the Caramel Custard. It’s a cup sized dessert with a tiny cherry on top. Unfortunately for me and fortunately for her, I have ultra-sensitive teeth that prohibit me from eating any kind of custard based dish. However, I did eat just a teaspoon of it. It melts in your mouth and makes you realise that the most delicious of dishes are sometimes the simplest.

Now, it’s time for my verdict. To put in one word- Eggsemplery. I still can’t make up my mind as to what I like the most about The Egg Factory, the ambience or the food; each one is better than the other. Places such as this are the ones that make Bangalore a foodie’s delight. The bill came up to just 450 Rupees. As you can see, it’s completely cost effective. I give this restaurant a 4.5/5. If you haven’t yet paid it a visit, then you are definitely missing out on something.

Weighty Issues..

         Let’s just admit it, at some or the other point in our lives we have faced one common issue: our weight. We all have wanted to lose or put on weight, fit into those pair of skinny jeans or yearned for that 10/10 body. For the uninitiated, I too was once a teenage girl who so badly wanted to lose weight. I was 18, weighed close to 65 kilos, stood 5’4’’ tall, and was at my tubbiest, chubbiest and flabbiest. I knew nothing about exercising and diet at that time, but had to start somewhere. Thus, began my battle against the bulge. Close to a year and a half later, and after copious amounts of sweat coupled with perseverance, I managed to knock off 10 kilos. I went from being overweight to medium to skinny to super skinny and I’m back to medium now.

 Enough has been said, written and discussed about weight loss. Dieticians, nutritionists, health books, TV programmes…have all gone gung- ho about it like it were some earth shattering phenomena. They say the same thing over and over again, and make weight loss sound like a complicated, insurmountable task. If u ask me, then I’d tell you that weight loss is simply a result of applying your common sense. If you are taking too many advices from people or researching too much about it, then stop. Listen to your body, not to the people around you. Considering the fact that this blog focuses on food, I’d like to share, rather simplify the correlation between food and our body.

Here are a few tips that have been inspired from my own weight loss saga. If they have worked on me, I can safely say that they have a good chance of working on you too. (And all this, at the risk of sounding a little preachy of course)

You must eat to lose weight:  Eating sets your stomach into action by urging it to secrete digestive juices to break down the food. Food keeps the stomach active and maintains your metabolism. People who want to lose weight, often begin to see food as a culprit, little do they realise that eating right is the simplest and most powerful weapon for a successful weight loss. How many of you knew that the stomach is approximately the same size of your two palms put together? Yes, it’s just that much. At any given point in time, we need to fill only three fourth of the stomach with food. Now, that is something we hardly follow. And for god’s sake, a burp after a meal is not indicative of a full stomach. It only means you have swallowed air while eating or drinking.

Meals: Even if you are in a tearing hurry in the morning, please make sure you eat your breakfast, even if it is just a banana. The body breaks its fast after nearly 8 hours in the morning, and is in desperate need of food to wake its cells up. So just give it what it needs, and at a time it needs it most. Instead of having three big meals a day, distribute your meals over the entire day, starting from the time you wake up and ending two hours before going to bed.

Binging: It’s absolutely OK to binge once in a while without having to feel guilty about it later. Do not make this a regular activity though.

Diet foods:  All the products that are available in the market today, that claim to be health foods are nothing but trash. Low fat sugar, low fat biscuits, low fat ice creams, low fat laddus, low fat chips…ufff, the list is endless. These products are completely robbed of their nutrients and are loaded with dangerously high quantities of preservatives. Keep them at bay. When in a mood to have something sweet or khaara- khaara, just indulge in the actual items, not in their so called low fat substitutes.

Fad diets: Blood group diet, Mediterranean diet, baby food diet, sleeping beauty diet (where one simply  has to sleep to lose weight, don’t ask me how it works), parasitic worm diet ( ewwwwww!), and here is the most scandalous one – only man-juice diet ( let’s not even get there) are just some of them . Most of these diets have caught on like wild fire because they are endorsed by celebrities, primarily in the West. These are the people who are apparently paid to look good and who have more plastic than flesh in their body. These diets do give startling results but at the cost of ruining your system. Once you are off the diet, all the weight comes back with a vengeance.

Exercise: Too much is too bad. I have seen a lot of my friends go completely overboard in the gym to get quick results. Well, it doesn’t work that way. The more slowly and steadily you lose weight, the longer will the results remain. Doing 100 ab crunches a day is a waste if you don’t do it the right way. Neither can the body handle it. Instead, do 20 crunches properly, with the right breathing technique o course and most importantly, in the presence of an instructor.

Lastly, accept your body the way it is. There are two things about the human psyche that baffle me. One is the tendency to judge and categorise our body into shapes that resemble fruits – apple, pear, cucumber…what not. Second is our obsession with numbers- body weight, body mass index, size 0, 2, 4, 6…Our body types are more or less pre decided by our genes. There isn’t much that one can do to change it, neither should we even try. What we can do is to only make it fitter and more agile. If you are naturally lean, then be that way. If you are naturally broad boned, remain that way. Why go against the laws of nature and heredity and try so hard to be something that you are not?

Losing weight and looking good are not as important as feeling fit, both physically and mentally. Eating right and exercising should be lifelong commitments. They make absolutely no sense if they are restricted to just three months of your life or the four walls of your gym. Do not equate your self-esteem to your weight. After all, you are only as sexy, beautiful and charming as you think you are!

Fireflies : Sono Affamata!

I do not exactly remember the first time I had pasta. It was probably when I was in the eleventh standard when a classmate brought it in her lunch box; beige structures in some weird white sauce and having a near-bland taste. The pasta didn’t create a good first impression on me at all. And I’m guessing ( with no offence intended what so ever) that one of the reasons it was so was because it was prepared by an Indian home maker whom I’m sure is a pro in making Rice Sāmbhar and in my opinion, should stick to it only.

          What further substantiated my reasoning is the fact that ever since that day, whenever I have savoured this Italian dish, it has made me fall in love with it even more. Thanks to my foodie friends, throughout my four years of engineering, I have dined in almost every other Italian restaurant across the length and breadth of the city. Hence, I would like to believe that I have a sufficient level of expertise to comment or criticize or compliment it.

          Bangalore has absolutely no dearth of continental restaurants. After some research (as usual) I decided to make Fireflies my next target. It is located on the second floor of a modest building on Lavelle Road, apparently one of the posh-est roads in Bangalore and thanks to Vijay Mallya and his flamboyance for making it even posh-er.

          I arrived at Fireflies at just the right time for lunch hoping to see it brimming with customers but alas, it wasn’t, barring just one table. We found a comfortable couch – table in one corner and started ordering in no time.

          I presume it’s my observant nature that compels me to notice even the most miniscule of details about a restaurant. For example, the pages of the menu were all crumpled and some even dog eared. No, it wasn’t made from hand- made paper, if that’s what you are thinking.

Starters and drinks: None of the drinks on the menu caught my eye. Same old name, same old drink. So, I summoned the bartender to shake up my personal favourite customized drink- strawberry and vodka. Just a sip of the drink and I knew something was wrong. After a couple of sips more, and with the intention of saving myself and my family from any kind of alcohol induced embarrassment, I had to call the bartender. “It has 60 ml of vodka madam”, he said.” I wanted to make it special for you”. Really? Special? You should have simply given me a rose instead! Thankfully, he re shook it to reduce the vodka content to 30 ml. At almost the same time, I placed the order for starters- Risotto and Mozzarella fritters and Mushroom caps. The risotto and mozzarella fritters are an amalgamation of rice and vegetables, deep fried and served with balsamic glaze and glass noodles. Somehow, my taste buds just couldn’t register the taste or rather the lack of it. So it’s best I leave no comments on it. The mushroom caps are nothing but mozzarella, mushroom and spinach. It’s a  no-nonsense dish and like most things simple, it was simply wonderful. You can actually cut upon the cap and see the spinach and mozzarella arranged in perfect symmetry. Wow!

Main course – I stuck to the staple Italian dishes – Penne Lombardy and Veg Risotto. The Penne Lombardy is nothing but penne pasta in white sauce, topped with some chili flakes and Grana Padano (a famous Italian hard cheese). The risotto was arranged like a miniature mountain on the plate. According to the manager it was prepared al- Dante, which in Italian  means “sticks to your teeth” and quite literally it did. We left half of it uneaten.

Desserts – Fireflies did reserve the best for the last. The cinnamon apple strudel with vanilla ice cream was not only served so aesthetically but also managed to leave an indelible impression. The apple strudel is actually an oblong pastry with a filling of shredded apples, cinnamon, raisins and bread crumbs within. I strongly recommend it.

       

            Honestly, Fireflies could do a lot better. It left me tad disappointed. In case why you are wondering it is called Fireflies, it probably has to do with the lighting used in the restaurant, that consists of lantern sized glass bulb which I’m sure would give it a romantic feel at night. Not to forget, the manager needs to also direct some attention to the kind of music played because I got to listen to MJs “Beat it” every quarter of an hour or so”.

          My verdict – 2/5. They are numerous other restaurants that serve way better for a princely sum of 2500 rupees. Fireflies needs to buckle up!

Home is where the heart is...

                After having read my blog, my friends and family alike have been bombarding me with one common question – “which restaurant next “?  Well, this time around I thought I would make it a little off – beat. I choose a place that is way closer to my heart than any other restaurant – Home.

                I’m not particularly a home body, considering I spend close to 90% of my time outside home, sometimes coming back only to plunge into my cosy not-so-little bed. Nevertheless, when given an opportunity to savour some delectable home cooked food, I would chose no restaurant over my home. After all, what better way to start your day than having a wholesome breakfast prepared with patience and dedication, garnished with love and care, and served by the caring hands of your mother?

                Here are a few breakfast dishes that I love to kick-start my day with. They are healthy, easy to prepare and fill with you with that feeling of warmth and fullness like only home cooked food can.

Paddu - I call it the hybrid cousin of the dosa and idli. Made from (left – over) dosa batter and cooked in the Aebleskiver pan (traditionally used to make Danish pastry balls), the paddu will and always be my personal favourite.  Generally eaten with coconut or pudina chutney, you can easily devour 10 – 15 of these at one go. If you are someone who loves experimenting with food, then you could also add onions, cilantro or tomaotoes to the batter that give the Paddu a slight tweak to its taste.

Chapathi and egg burjhi- I once promised my mom that if and when I finally gear myself up to learn the art of cooking, then the burjhi would top  my  list of dishes that I would want to learn to cook.It is probably the easiest to prepare and is hence touted  the “ quick – fix” dish in my house. As the name suggests, the oh-so-nutritious egg is the main ingredient of this dish. Eggs are a reservoir of complex amino acids which serve as the building blocks of proteins. They are also rich in a whole lot of vitamins (such as Vitamin A) and minerals. So, if you are desirous of having lustrous hair, strong eyes and a good eye sight, you know what you should be making a part of your diet.

                  The egg burjhi is prepared in just one simple step- sauté coriander leaves, green chillies, tomatoes and a couple of eggs in low flame and within   minutes its ready!. To make it more filling, you could also add potatoes, capsicum, carrots and almost any other vegetable that you can think of.

          Puri and palya: Not exactly a healthy start to your day, but thankfully, since the metabolism of the body is way higher in the morning, weight- watchers needn’t feel guilty about eating them. However, Puri is one dish you could easily go wrong with. Frying it too deeply or preparing it from left over chapathi atta just kill this dish.         Generally eaten in accompaniment with saagu or palya, the puri has different variants all over the country. For eg, the puris made in West Bengal are deep fried in mustard oil ( not a personal fan of it at all), and if you believe in “size matters”  then you could opt for the bathura, the bloated –up version of the puri! Not to forget, my neighbour who is a Mangalorean once prepared puri that had banana mixed in it. Yes, you read that right, BANANA!

              Before I conclude, I must thank my Mom for giving her 100 % to everything she does; cooking is just one of them. Truthfully speaking, she deserves an award for bringing up and putting up with a difficult person like me at home. I couldn’t agree more with the adage “God couldn’t be everywhere, so he created mothers! “

Dolci :Stressed spelt backwards is Desserts!

Ever wondered why your hunger pangs suddenly increase in frequency and intensity when you are in a stressful situation such as, a day before your exams, the time when a release in the company that you are working for is round the corner, or when you have had a breakup with the love of your life? Do you find  yourself running to a piece of that sinful chocolate mousse or ice cream with the belief that it’s going to make you feel happy and complete? If yes, then welcome to my world. You are an emotional eater. Scientifically speaking, when the human body is under stress a hormone called cortisol is released. This is the culprit behind what is termed “emotional eating”. Comfort foods give you that momentary elation but in the long run they increase the size of the fat cells which in turn add kilos to your weight.

Well, I must confess that have the largest sweet tooth in the world and an insatiable appetite for anything sweet.  Whether I’m under stress or not, desserts are an indispensable part of my diet. This brings me to the place that I visited this weekend – Dolci, the desserts café, as they call it.

             Tucked away in one of the by lanes of Cunningham road, this place is easy to miss. This is probably why I never noticed it, despite it being established about a year and a half back. This time around, the setting was perfect – a slight drizzle, gentle breeze and my solitude. I arrived at Dolci at about 4:30 in the evening and surprisingly , found this place empty except for one table.

Dolci gives you the feeling that you are at home. It’s small, yet impeccably clean. The ambience is simple yet classy.  Being a voracious reader, I simply loved the concept of having a book shelf with a couple of books thrown in. One was of them was Paulo Coelho’ s “ The winner stands alone”. If you want to go mad, then read it.

          Since the weather was so inviting, I choose to sit outside. I received curious looks by onlookers since I was sitting all alone but somehow I managed to feel comfortable. I ordered the Oreo cheese cake with a cup of cappuccino. Nothing in the whole, wide world can beat this killer combination. The order arrived in no time and I was all set to dig into a piece of heaven.

The cheese cake was almost perfect although I felt the base could have been a little less flaky and a liitle more sturdy. The texture of the cheese is light and leaves you wanting for more. This cake gets thumbs up from my side. And about the cappuccino, it’s fairly decent. Since I had had a late breakfast (considering I get up only at 12 noon in the weekends), I still had a lot of space left in my oversized stomach. After scrolling through the rest of the menu, which is written on a black board , I decided to try the Veg Grilled Panini.

I waited and waited and waited and after reminding the manager, it finally arrived close to half an hour later. Filled with bell peppers, capsicum, tomatoes baby corn and cheese, this is a vegetarian’s delight. It is served with French fries (which were way too salty) and is just right in terms of the portion size.

Apart from cakes, this place also sells muffins and various kinds of breads. Please do try the six layered cake and let me know how you find it. There are other interesting things on the menu, such as burnt lemon cheese cake. (Burnt, seriously?!) and the éclair cake.

All in all, the place is fine but left me a little disappointed. I just couldn’t fathom why a place as sophisticated as this would want to serve in paper plates? Being environment friendly, maybe?! I also wish that the staff be a little more enthusiastic in their dealings.Dolci also considers online bookings of cakes for special occasions but beware; it could leave a massive hole in your pocket.

The bill came up to 350 rupees for one person, quite reasonable if you ask me. It’s perfect for a cosy date with that special someone or for a lazy Sunday afternoon, with your friends. I give it a 3/5.I shall sign off in the words of Dolci- “We understand that good food has the power to inspire. The power to empower. We believe you deserve the best. Welcome to Dolci.” J

Samarkand:The reason why man discovered fire…so that he could make kebabs!

The reason why man discovered fire…so that he could make kebabs!

          I recently graduated from college as an Engineer and have already started working in a multinational IT firm, not surprising, since that is the most obvious step after graduation for many youngsters like me. Now, all  members of my nuclear family work at least 5 days a week which leaves us with very little time for any kind of familial bonding. Thank God for creating seven days a week, it is only during the weekends that Mom, Dad and I actually sit back and talk.

                This weekend, Dad and I decided to ditch the idea of lunching at home. Being the foodie that I am and given my love for experimenting with food, I hurried to my laptop to check out the “Top 10 best restaurants in Bangalore” and wola!, there, in front my eyes was  a list of restaurants that not only looked luxurious but also promised to titillate your taste buds. After skimming through the list, I zeroed in on Samarkand, a place that I had been to twice before. On both the occasions I was left spell bound, and that is exactly why I choose to re visit this place and try those food items that I hadn’t tried before.

          Dad and I arrived bang on time, 1 pm in the afternoon. Try reaching this place any time post 1 and I assure you that u might have a tough time finding a table. That explains why the manager of the restaurant first asks you if u have any reservation on your arrival. We found a comfortable 4 seater ( the 2 seaters seemed uncomfortable) overlooking the kitchen and and geared ourselves for a sumptuous lunch.

True to its name, this place serves authentic cuisine from the north western frontier- particularly Afghanistan and the surrounding mountainous areas such as Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. Samarkand is owned by the famous BJN group of hotels and translated to English means “the land of mountain peaks”. The most eye catching aspect about Samarkand is its ambience- dim lighting with swords and carpets on the walls, tables that almost touch the stone floor, and sufi music,all of which are intended at recreating  the life style of the frontiers.

The staff is extremely courteous and pleasant. Dressed in traditional attire, they can easily pass of as Afghan warriors. We were promptly handed over the food menu which is styled like a newspaper (The North-West Frontier Express), which apart from the food items also gives you tid -bits about the geography, climate and people of Samarkand. The drinks’ menu is actually a sheet of colourful paper around a plastic bottle. Trust me, no other restaurant can get as innovative as this. At almost the same time, four breadsticks along with a cheese dip are also served. So there you are, Samarkand tries its best to create a good first impression and boy ! they do it and in great style.

As is always the case, Dad allowed me to place the order. I choose the Chengezi Chai, which by the way, was the only cocktail name that I hadn’t heard of before. It consists of vodka, gin and rum and can easily succeed in giving you a heady feeling (The reaction can vary depending on your alcohol capacity though.). Being the paneer fan that I am, I ordered the Peshawari Paneer Tikka for starters.

The items arrived  approximately 15 minutes later( fair enough). The cocktail was served in a long glass and was enough to give me company for the rest of the lunch. The paneer starter is and will always be my favourite. It consists of four paneer cubes, each of which is about three fourth of the size of the Rubik’s cube. Marinated in yoghurt and flavoured with ajwain, the paneer has a creamy texture. It is rich and melts in your mouth and can be eaten in accompaniment with any of the four sauces that are served along with it. The portion size is huge and I bet you cannot finish it in one go without stopping to take a break in between.

Next, it was time for the main course. Since the starter was pretty heavy on our stomach, I decided to go light for the main course. I ordered Dal Afgani, which is black lentils cooked overnight and simmered with tomatoes, ginger, garlic, cream and butter on hot embers. It was served hot and with a dollop of white butter. Since Dad is a diet conscious person, I choose the Tandoori Roti, made of wheat to eat along with the dal. What I noticed in particular is the size of the roti, it is slightly larger than normal and cooked with very little oil. If you too are conscious of your diet then I suggest you opt for this. We finished the main course in no time and having eaten one and a half rotis each, we were almost full.

But there is always space for some yummy dessert, isn’t it? I was initially a little disappointed with  the dessert area. I have always been very keen on having the Bakhlava, a typical north- west frontier dessert. Despite being a part of the menu, the place doesn’t serve it. Not to forget, it wasn’t there during my previous visits too.  After a little bit of complaining and sulking I settled for the Khubhani Ka Meetha, which is a rich and creamy preparation of dried apricots stewed in flavoured milk and garnished with dry fruits and nuts. It was delicious and is served in just the right portion size. (It tastes somewhat like gulkhand).

We finished our meal with paan, which is served by an in house pan waala and the price of which you will have to pay separately. All in all, the experience was wonderful and worth every penny spent. However, I have a few issues with Samarkand. Firstly, the place insists that you eat your meal with your hands. As much as I sincerely applaud this idea, I strongly suggest that wet napkins be provided at the beginning of the meal. Secondly, as I previously mentioned, if the restaurant does not serve Bakhlava, then I suggest (with a heavy heart), that it be taken off the menu.

The bill came upto approximately 2000 rupees. This also included the Gosht Ki Dum Biriyani that we parcelled for Mom. She considers it her personal favourite.

Finally, my verdict- I give this place a 4.5/5. The restaurant truly epitomizes the essence of “the land of the rugged people”. So, next weekend if you are game for some good food, you know where you should be heading!