Reviews by saurabhnanda
Jun 28, 2008
Rustom Building, GK Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai
Average
Nice Oriental Cuisine
Had Cantonese Pepper Chicken and Rice Puffed Crusted Fish Fingers for starters and didn't quite like the latter.
Had a Chicken Mongolian Stir Fry in Black Bean Sauce and liked the refreshingly different taste. I'm pretty bored of having oriental preparations heavy on a manchurian or schezwan base with loads of ginger + garlic. The stir fry in black bean sauce, in such a large portion, was a nice change.
The ambiance is nothing to talk home about. More like a small pizza delivery outlet. And these guys switch on the A/C on demand - only when a customer steps in!
The damage was Rs 400 for a dinner for two. Not a bad place to eat if you're around Lower Parel.
Mar 30, 2008
145, Mahatma Gandhi Road, Fort, Mumbai
Poor
Give it a miss
Khyber was pretty empty for a Saturday night. Given the experience I had there, I'm not surprised now. We were made to wait for 5-10 minutes while the chaps prepared a dirty looking table. The white bedsheet they spread out on the table was not particularly clean.
The ambience was not spectacular either. When you can hear loud club music playing from Red Light next door you pretty much forget about the ambience. So, here we were eating overpriced Mughlai food, sitting amidst faux fountains and stone structures listening to "... I wanna fuck you, you already know!" Seriously!
The vegetarian starters were decent. We ordered Honey Mustard Paneer Tikka and Pudina Gobhi. The Virgin Colada Mocktail was particularly good. I ended up having two of them. (After my recent trip to Goa, I had promised myself to stay away from booze for the next fifteen days!) That's where the good part ended. The main course was atrocious. We ordered Paneer Korma and Murg Makhani - both bad. The Pudina Parathas were soaked in oil.
Four of us ended up footing a bill of three grand. And we had to remind the chap to bring us some saunf-cheeni. Khyber was pretty sad actually.
Mar 02, 2008
Hotel Pali Hills, 14 Union Park, Off Carter Rd, Khar (W), Mumbai
Excellent
Sizzlers rock
Every time I go to Out of the Blue I make it a point to try out a new sizzler, and they've got a complete spread of them. The grilled stuff is also good. I remember having a portion of grilled chicken in rosemary sauce (or something like that). Then there was this grilled chicken in sweetish orange sauce - very different and very nice.
And I'm off again today. Love sitting out in the open courtyard, sipping away some wine, and listening to the guy crooning away one popular number after the other (and he's good at it).
Go there, but make reservations in advance.
Nov 28, 2007
ITC Grand Central Sheraton & Towers, Dr. Ambedkar Road, Parel, Mumbai
Good
Amazing Lasagna
There's something about buffets that has started turning me off. You plan for them - almost fast for an entire day ahead of it. You drool at the sight of food once you get there. You heap up your plate for the first helping. And after the first few bites, you suddenly lose your appetite. And then you're simply gorging either for paisa vasool or peer pressure ("Abe tu to itne mein hi khatam ho gaya!") In the end you've paid a very high premium (sometimes a thousand or so per head) for a meal you didn't quite enjoy and which is going to be on your conscience for the next two days (calories!!)
So, the other day, while going home, when we stopped at the ITC Grand Central on an impulse for dinner, I was pretty sure I didn't want to go in for the Rs 875 + taxes dinner buffet.
Instead we ordered for a jalapeņo, capsicum, olives, bell peppers 12" pizza (Rs 395) and a vegetarian lasagna (Rs 425). The pizza, although not bad, was nothing to talk home about. It was decent. But the lasagna, was tops! It had Mediterranean vegetables, layers of soft pasta, interspersed with spinach and mozzarella. Now don't ask me what Mediterranean veggies are - that's what the menu said - I saw pieces of pumpkin there too! The taste was awesome. The spinach and med-veggies were giving it a lovely flavour. Just the right amount of cheese, tomatoes, and oregano as well. Most Italian fares that I've had, have an overdose of one of these three ingredients.
I had a look at the dessert buffet, but priced at Rs 600 + taxes, I didn't find it appealing enough.
The food was good, but for a five star hotel, I found the service slightly bad. The place was too crowded, and probably they were not equipped to handle the load.
Whatever said, all in all, a thousand bucks well spent.
Read more foodie stuff at http://foodieforlife.blogspot.com
Sep 25, 2007
Ground Floor, 7 Chateau Marine, opp Natraj Hotel, Marine Drive, Mumbai
Good
Mini Meals
I discovered two more dishes at Mocha, which make the visit all the more worthwhile. Next time you're there do have the Maggi Arabiatta (Rs 95) or the Scrambled egg on toast (Rs 65). Complete mini-meals in under a hundred bucks each. Both yummy!
Read more foodie stuff at http://foodieforlife.blogspot.com