Cafe Review – Le 15 Cafe, Colaba

June 13, 2016June 24, 2017Leave a comment

Poached Eggs With Tomato Sauce at Le 15 Cafe, Colaba

For past few days, we’ve been scrolling through Pooja Dhingra’s (of Le 15 Patisserie fame) Instagram timeline to get the glimpse of her new café in Colaba. Dhingra has brought in her Le Cordon Bleu classmate chef Pablo Naranjo Agular to head the kitchen. Designed by The Bus Ride Design Studio (who’ve also designed the Bombay Canteen and Tilt All Day among others), the Parisian interiors are colourful and flowery with huge windows letting in enough sunlight. The upholstery has been designed by fashion designer Masaba Gupta; we loved the bright pink and blue cushions. Continue reading →

Gastro Pub Review – One Street Over, Bandra West

June 6, 2016June 24, 2017Leave a comment

Chef KelC and Chef Boo are creating magic at a small kitchen in Bandra.

If you’re part of Mumbai’s hip crowd that’s tuned in to the restaurant scene, chances are you’ve already made a few rounds of One Street Over; if you aren’t one of those, what’s holding you up? Chef Kelvin Cheung – who made Mumbai celebrities go down on their knees to confess love for his food at Ellipsis – along with chef de cuisine Boo Kwang Kim is back in India to spin the magic again; this time in the burbs.

(L-R) Ol’Venezuela, The Southpaw and Aperol Spritz at One Street Over, Bandra

Coloured in teal and gold and bathed in dim light, the 60-seater gastro pub is fuss free with booths and round tables. The bar menu – designed by Arijit Bose – packs in quirky as well as old-fashioned drinks. The bartender Ashutosh was forthcoming with suggestions, which were spot on. The Southpaw (Rs 450) – jim beam, maraschino liqueur, martini rosso, bitters was strong and punchy and the Ol’ Venezuela (Rs 550) – Diplomatico Reserve, Demerara syrup, angostura bitters, chocolate bitters was smooth with a hint of bitterness. The Aperol Spritz (Rs 375) – aperol, lime fruits, white wine, soda was fruity but not sickeningly sweet. Continue reading →

High tea with Chef Anees Khan of Star Anise Patisserie, Bandra

May 27, 2016June 24, 2017Leave a comment

So far the most gratifying part of my work as a food blogger and writer – apart from all the amazing food of course – has been meeting interesting people and having lengthy conversations with them about food. The idea of such meetings has always been more inviting than restaurant reviews. One such invitation recently took me to Bandra’s Star Anise Patisserie which opened last year. The bakery and dessert shop is helmed by Chef Anees Khan who, apart from being an excellent chef, is extremely passionate about food.

Chef Anees hails from Orissa and has worked at The Leela Kempenski, The Leela Goa, Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise in Canada, Hyatt Regency, JW Marriott Cairo and many other hotels around the world as a pastry chef. In 2001 he joined hands with Chef Moshe Shek to create a dessert menu for his café Moshe’s.

Carrot Cake with Jamun Frosting at Star Anise Patisserie, Bandra West

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Baking Bread with Crumbs by Saee Koranne-Khandekar

May 14, 2016June 24, 20171 Comment

“One reason to bake bread is to fill up your kitchen with that aroma. Even if the bread turns out badly, the smell of it baking never fails to improve a house or a mood… freshly baked bread is the ultimate olfactory synecdoche for hominess. Which, when you think about it, is odd, since how many of us grew up in homes where bread was ever baked? Yet somehow that sense memory and its association with a happy domesticity endure.”
– Michael Pollan

Crumbs, written by Mumbai based food writer and baker Saee Koranne Khandekar, opens with the deeply profound words by Michael Pollan from his book Cooked. And if you pay attention to the smells that are most comforting, the smell of freshly baked bread or rotis being cooked on the flame will be one of them.

Crumbs by Saee Koranne Khandekar

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Turkish Pop-up – Ottoman Cafe at Four Seasons Worli, Mumbai

April 29, 2016June 24, 2017Leave a comment

I have discovered a new love for traveling or if i put it right, traveling for food. There’s no bigger way to explore a city or country than learning about its culture and food forms a huge part of it. While I have still to embark on my first International trip (yep, I am heading to Japan in September), I’ve already traveled to Ahmedabad, Himachal (read about my McLeodganj trip) and there’s still a lot of 2016 left.

When I am not traveling I make sure I try as many various cuisines in Mumbai as possible, this is a way I get to mentally travel to those cities/countries through the flavours. Two days ago, I took a quick trip to Istanbul via the Ottoman Cafe pop-up happening at Cafe Prato at Four Seasons Worli. Chef Yener Altunay and his team from Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul has put together a menu of mezze platter, eight hours slow cooked lamb shank, handmade manti – Turkish ravioli, yogurt kebabs and of course the traditional dessert baklava and kunefe – layeres of crunchy kadayyf filled with unsalted cheese.

The chefs have brought a few ingredients straight from Istanbul to keep the flavours intact. Here’s a blow-by-blow account of what I ate.