burrp! Stats
- 20 Reviews
- 1 First to review
- 4 Places Added
- Been to 100 Places
- Yet to try 17 Places
- Burrping since Mar 26, 2007
- Burrping fromJuhu, Mumbai
Personal Stuff
- Favourite Foods
- Italian, Mediterranean (Lebanese), Moroccan besides traditional Tambram food Check http://saffrontrail.blogspot.com to see what I cook!
saffrontrail's Lists
Reviews by saffrontrail
May 04, 2008
Royal Plaza, New Link Road, Next to Citi Mall, Andheri (W), Mumbai
Rated: Poor
Soapy noodles and gooey vegetables
After watching a great movie at Fun Republic, we decided to hit the China Gate nearby for a quick Sunday lunch. We decided on steamed veg suimai, veg talumein soup and a veg clear soup. The clear soup was excellent with some chinese greens and celery. The talumein was high on vinegar and a sweetish taste that didn't score with me.
The steamed suimai, while they were delicate and filled with veggies, the raw corn flour that the vegetables were coated with, were sticking to the mouth, spoiling the experience. I find it quite funny that every so called Chinese restaurant in Bombay finds its own versions of 'Chinese' sauces to go with the starters. This one had finely chopped coriander in sugar syrup - and a bhel kind of tamarind chutney which would be enough to throw a real Chinese chef into fits.
The main course consisted of coriander pot noodles, which looked highly appetizing and green, with lots of green vegetables, but one fork down and i realized that something was just not right with them. The noodles were overdone and gloopy, plus tons of baking soda added to the dish to retain the green -ness of the coriander sauce and the green vegetables. We all know the secret of a pinch of soda to retain the colour of greens, but please don't use soda as the main ingredient! I came here for food not for cleansing my stomach with soap! The mixed vegetables were in another corn-starchy red sauce that the server highly recommended, leading me to think it would be one of their specialties. Sadly, it was just another sauce that i wrote about earlier....lots of red chilli powder, minced garlic and cornstarch.
This along with a couple of fresh limes came to 1000 bucks. It has been a while that i felt so ripped off for eating poor quality food and thought of all the fresh ingredients I could have bought for that sum.
Anyway, lesson learnt, we wont be going back.
Service was ok and another negative is that the non smokers have no choice, the whole restaurant is open to smokers, so be ready to inhale the smoke if you go here.
I would have given this place one star but the extra star is for the good clear soup.
Apr 14, 2008
7, Mithila Shopping Centre, V Mehta Road, J.V.P.D. Scheme, Vile Parle (W), Mumbai
Rated: Good
the locals' favourite
On Toes is the VileParle / Juhu's equivalent of the Totos type pub in Bandra, where you can walk-in in your flip flops and no one will bat an eyelid.
On the main road, which is full of shopping and designer stores, this one is a gem that the locals will swear by. Excellent music - retro /disco / rock with a DJ who doesn't think it is below him to take requests. The serving staff is extremely friendly. If you reach in before 9 pm there are chances you'll find a table, after that it gets crowded very quickly, yet not as crowded as Totos or Hawaian Shack that you'll be smelling the deo of the person standing next to you.
It is full even on weeknights, so you can imagine how popular it is among the locals. Crowd is a good mix of people in their late 20s and beyond. You'll even find some people in their 50s and 60s :)
They have a restaurant by the same name on the ground floor which caters to the food in the bar as well. The food is excellent, we always order the crispy bhindi which is everyone's favourite. Also, this is one place where you wont feel like a fool for ordering khichdi (yeah thats right) with your drinks, the palak version is deadly. Nothing like steaming hot khichdi to dig into when you are hungry after some drinks. We also ordered the paneer tikka and a vegetarian biryani, and both tasted perfect!
I'm usually not a mocktail person, but order the Lion Zion drink with ginger-ale and honey, was quite potent stuff! Our friend ordered the cranberry based Ontoes special cocktail called Sex on OT, which tasted zingy! The rest ordered regular drinks like Bacardi, bottle of Sula wine and the damages came to 3200 for 6 of us, which is not bad for some superb music and dedicated service.
There is nothing much to write about in terms of ambience, regular pub decor.
If you are in this area, give this a chance and you wont regret it.
Apr 13, 2008
248 Karai Estate, Tardeo Road, Opposite Bhatia Hospital, Tardeo, Mumbai
Rated: Good
Homestyle food in a utilitarian ambience
I've eaten here some 5-6 years ago, but a place that I keep hearing only good about, surely deserves another visit. A month ago, we tried eating here after getting some work done in Worli. 2 .15 pm and 45 minutes waiting! Our growling stomachs did not agree to that kind of wait and we drove off to the nearby Sardar Pav Bhaji.
Today, we decided during our morning walk, that we wanted to visit Swati Snacks for lunch! Ironical that we think of where to add up the calories while we are burning some...Considering that it is a good hour's drive from our place, going all the way for lunch was a gamble, we decided to take anyway.
We reached there some 10 minutes before 1pm, and needless to say, I rushed to queue up our name while my husband waited to deal with the valet. Imagine our glee when we were told '10 minutes waiting'~ I nearly exclaimed "Only that much??" to the guy with the 'waiting list'.
The next ten minutes were spent studying the other waiting people under the awning and the people who were alighting from running cars to make sure they are better placed on the waiting list :)
We were ushered inside in 15 minutes..and we spent some time studying the one page laminated menu, split into specialties, snacks, beverages and desserts. To cool off we ordered a glass of kacha kairy pano and a salted lassi. The former made from cooked raw mangoes lacked the tangy edge and had plenty of saffron strands. While I do like the fragrance of saffron, the raw mango drink was totally dominated by the saffron taste, which was overpowering any mango taste! (Drinks around Rs.50 each)
A plate of dahi batata puri downed and we were ready to order the main course. My partner had the thalipeeth with a thick besan curry. The thalipeeth was sizzling hot and the besan curry really yummy with tomatoes, onions and garlic. I do suspect it had a lot of ghee that gave it a great taste.
My order was the satpadi roti with gatte ki sabzi...another thick multigrain traditional bread cooked with lots of oil and the Rajasthani curry with tiny besan dumplings. While the roti was in many layers and high on flavour, the gatta curry was ok, not extraordinary in any way. (Main dishes Rs.100 each)
Since they serve just one piece of bread in any main course, you can order an extra thalipeeth or roti at Rs.60.
Almost every table was ordering the panki (delicate rice crepes cooked between banana leaves on a hot skillet), and we decided to order the minty version served with a green chutney and some pickled green chillies. This was indeed the best dish for me after the besan curry that came with the thalipeeth. The panki was melt-in-the-mouth delicious and very light too. They serve a plain and a dill version of this too. (Rs.60)
Not finding any great choices for dessert, we went with the Gujarati Puran Poli (Rs.85), which took a good 10 minutes to make an appearance on the table, delicate, fluffy, coated with melted ghee and the filling oozing out. It was the best puran poli i'd had in a long time, as I am not much in love with the thinner maharashtrian version, that has a maida cover. Just one odd thing about this, i have never heard or seen puran poli being served with raita, especially when you call it a dessert. Anyway, may be one of their ideas which their patrons seem to enjoy.
Service was quick and efficient. Most dishes took atleast ten minutes, but considering that each item we ordered was piping hot, I understand they make everything FRESH, once they get an order, which is a HUGE positive for me. The ambience is nothing to write about. It's quite clean and utilitarian. not much space wasted around the place, no flowers and nothing fancy! But when the food is good, the ambience is secondary.
All in all, the meal came to 600 Rs. excluding the tip.
If you are one of those who has never made it to eating here because of the waiting, try reaching earlier than 1pm and you may just about get in without too much of a hassle.
Worth a visit for some of the authentic dishes they serve! Do try Mint Panki and the Thalipeeth!
Apr 10, 2008
Windermere, Oshiwara, Andheri (W), Mumbai
Rated: Good
Old is gold!
Dinshaw's is our homegrown ice cream brand, starting in the 1930s or so...I remember eating their dolly sticks and cup icecreams as a child. After a good meal at Yoko's in Oshiwara, our friend suggested ice cream at this place.
This is their company outlet and is bursting with flavours if i may say so. Over 25 flavours plus 6-7 combinations made with sauces, nuts etc. They have some old fashioned flavours like Tutti-Frutti which I don't think too many brands carry!
We tried the Fruit Burst, Chocolate Chips and a Golden Crunch, which was a double scoop of butterscotch ice cream with golden syrup, candied nuts and a piping of fresh cream.
The fruit burst had chunks of fresh fruit and the choco-chip tasted fresh too, as per our friend. The butterscotch in the Golden Crunch (Rs.55) was the tastiest - tasted quite close to a natural butterscotch flavour, and much better than some other brands which taste overly synthetic.
The service was very professional, and the guy behind the counter did a good job of helping us with the tastings and also with the cream icing etc. Pricing is very reasonable too - around 25-35 bucks a scoop and around 55 for the special double scoop items.
Although I swear by Naturals, among the other brands, I think Dinshaw's does go to prove that old is gold. If you are dining anywhere around Link Road, skip your dessert in the restaurant, forget the new age gelatos and drop by here for ice cream from the 1930s :)
Note: The shop is shifting to Mira society across the road, near Bread n' more etc.
Apr 07, 2008
1/320 Norwood Co-Op Housing Society, Lokhandwala Complex, Next to Hallmark Cards, Lokhandwala, Andheri (W), Mumbai
Rated: Average
Place has shut down
Our friend decided to check out this place to collect the menu for take-away and it has pulled down its shutters.