I had a Burmese classmate Stateside. I taught him to drive (youre dead without a car! ) and he cooked me a high end meal. I suppose it would have wowed a Westerner, but I'm Indian: you can't beat us for exotic spicing!

Anyhoo, let's look forward to some cross pollination:

India-Myanmar Tamu- Kalewa friendship Road

http://www.mizzima.com/business/7206-...

The military junta's isolationist policy meant that Myanmar was out of the loop for quite a while. Now with the new democratic government, hopefully they will catch up soon.

Yangon's opening up to plenty of new business:

http://www.orientexpat.com/forum/2426...

Fine dining in India poses certain problems which I will list and expand on.

Familiarity: we can cook Indian food so its attraction to us is not as great as to a non Indian.

Indian food preserves well: the danger of being served stale food is high, and old hands can spot death warmed over pretty easily, so the likelihood of disappointment is high. Restaurants are tempted to serve stale food as the general public finds it hard to discern.

This is a price sensitive market, so the restaurant will make it almost impossible to do solo dining. The meal is not plated, but consists of a staple (rice or breads) and an assortment of dips or gravies. I noticed this is the same problem face in East Asian dining: you need at least four persons to be able to enjoy some variety, which solves the establishment's profitability problem, (a situation not faced by Western dining as the cachet ensures a premium pricing) else you end up with a large single dish. Or you over order and pack the leftovers. Which I have done on several occasions. I remember going to Serengeti when its Lucknawi cuisine was still authentic and ordered for four and took advantage of the accepted practice of doggy bagging! Entire racks of lamb traveled home like this!

Makes sense when when you are in a different neighborhood and suddenly stumble across a spot that has been receiving good reviews.

That's what happened when my wife and I stumbled across Punjab Grill. We had been out shopping and wandered over to Edo, the new Japanese restaurant at the Gardenia, only to find out that they only did dinners, except Sunday.Headed over to Sahib Sultan and while parking, saw the Grill, part of Jiggs Kalra's chain.

As usual, we put our plan into action, educating the waiter of our requirement of fresh preparation, need for creative twists on old favorites, all the while holding him responsible for the results! This works as it requires him to put professionalism on display, and also pride requires that he performs adequately!

He recommended the Tandoori Chicken, Rack of Lamb, Paneer Lababdar with a side of kulcha. I am ready to order more, but since I have time on my hand and the service is fast, I decide to wait and checkout the size of the servings. While the food is being prepared he recommends the masala papad, a pepper encrusted papad, topped with chopped tomato and onions with a chat seasoning .

As we digg into the papas and sip on our fresh lime sodas (Vir Sangvhi has admitted as much that no wine can accompany Indian food, but a selection of wine is available! No harm trying to push product I suppose!) we notice that the decor is toned down to suit the average Indian family. The same cuisine is available in five star hotels but they are forced to slap on a luxury tax (30%). It makes a lot of sense for the hotels to open stand alone branches of their restaurants and I understand that Dum Pukth in Delhi is a manifestation of this strategy.

The tandoori chicken arrives and is a version different from that normally served. Rather than being crisp on the outside and semi dry inside, this tandoori is almost like a semi gravied kabab, with a moist marinade dripping over it. The spicing is not overpowering and definitely not the hated metallic assault some establishments are wont to torture you with. Highly appreciated!

The rack of lamb arrives and is equally well spiced, if a little over salted. Warning sign. This trick encourages the over ordering of beverages , so make your displeasure known to the chef, if you plan to be a regular. I also notice that the servings are humongous, so they are aiming for the client to bring larger groups. I am mentally thinking of whom I can commandeer for my next visit, the food is that good! So their strategy is working!

Enough meat, the next course is the paneer lababdar, supposed to provide a smooth velvety gravy with the addition of almond paste. I think its not as good as others I've had, but its partly our fault. We asked for a less fiery version, which is something you should never do. Interviewed, Jiggs insists on sticking to a recipe , down to exact measurements and weight. Which is as it should be. These are dishes that have been perfected over centuries, and it's a travesty to ask for modification. This is the reason for the invention of abominations like butter chicken, chicken tikka masala, which are nothing but tomato curry with kababs chucked in. If you can't stand the heat stay out of the dining hall!

I just read the review of the Singapore unit (excellent thread on Pakistani and Punjabi food also just read, saw chapalli kebab on lonely planet program, slurp!), viewing with great envy the range of desserts available. Sadly the same choices don't appear on the Bangalore menu. The usual suspects of carrot halwa don't appeal, and we settle for the complimentary paan shot : a betel leaf mouth freshener liquified and served in a shot glass. It would have succeeded as an interesting avatar if it had been served more chilled: traditionally this is sold OUTSIDE the restaurant and served with a flourish, on top of a bed of Ice.

Since this was an impromptu visit, no piccies. But I have a nice new low light camera just itching for an outing, and as everything is coming together nicely in my head, expect a sequel to this report! Keyboard is playing havoc (swype) , so ciao!

Cuisine: North Indian

Bill: Rs 3300/=

Timings: 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM, 7:00 PM to 11:00 PM

Phone: 40902161, 40902162

SJR Primus, Ground Floor, 7th Block, Opposite Forum Mall, Koramangala, Bangalore

Landmark: Near Shopper's Stop , Forum Mall.

1 cup chilled plain fresh yogurt.
1 cup cold water.
Salt to taste.
Ice cubes.
Chopped coriander.
Chaat masala.

Blend water, salt and curd.
Add ice cubes.
Sprinkle chaat masala and chopped coriander on top.

Not rocket science and just great now, with the sweltering heat!

PS In our family, a straw would float , its that thick!

I'm a chaat lover, and laugh away warnings about health risks, but after seeing some close acquaintances down with trichinosis, I'd advise against breaking the rules:

Avoid cut fruit, uncooked food, raw salads.

Water sources are stretched and contaminated water has been detected being used for vegetable farming.

Not being alarmist, but this is a recco board...

Thank you, for the gracious reply, and for the offer of information for my next trip. Will definitely take it up.

The dish which was memorable at the Anson Road branch was the Hong Kong chee cheong fan (very rare in KL). I tracked down three locations (I got a spreadsheet on my smartphone, sortable for time, location and cuisine!). Sadly, I never got the KL public transport system worked out, and the cabs gave me the heebie-jeebies (hope no cabbies on chowhound get offended).

http://ugwug.blogspot.com/2008/04/chee-cheong-fun-yap-hup-kee-pudu.html

http://hgvc.blogspot.com/2009/03/chee-cheong-fun-in-kuala-lumpur.html

http://thamjiak.blogspot.com/2006/04/...

I remember the Chee cheong fan at Food Republic in Singapore was super, with the proper mince pork, burnt garlic and spring onions. Slurrp!

Next year in Foshan Restaurant, IPOH!

Ooo-er that landed too close to home, didn't it! Sorry for the careless broadside, I didn't know you were Malaccan! I do enjoy your Singapore reviews and appreciate the willingness to put life and limb (and belly!) on line in order to give us first hand reports from the frontlines of the Singapore food scene!

I was determined to get the best Nyonya cuisine under my belt this time round, in a proper Nyonya setting, and did all my homework. Unfortunately, I never expected to see a very Mediterranean trait surface here in Malacca, the equivalent of the Spanish siesta, when no one is interested in doing business (is there an equivalent in Portugal?). I reached the restaurant at 1:45, and didn't know 2 was an acceptable closing time! I did get up late and had a late breakfast (I'm on holiday, right?!!!).

Shouldn't have been surprised, considering the Portuguese influence in the region. Saw the same thing in Goa, also a Portuguese colony. I was quite happy to see dodol, and a type of bibinca being sold in Malacca! Love the stuff!

I did not leave empty handed, though. There's a new startup, Cottage Spice Nyonya which delivered quite capable Nyonya food, although I could not see what I had planned to order on the menu.

My sister arrived a few days later (Sunday) and had a fantastic meal, opposite the hotel at Seri Nyonya (She loves Nyonya food, and she's the expert. I'm just the wannabe, having only tasted a few rendang, in mixed buffets).

I have shown my children the photos of the food in Malacca, and they are already planning their next sortie. They love Portuguese desserts, and have so far experienced it only in Goa and Macao!

Hope all my sweet talk has earned absolution from you of my faux pas!

Image *47

Arrived in Malacca for the famous market night event (Fri-Sunday, every week) and entered the restaurant at 6. Having been burnt by the indifferent attitudes of the Nyona restaurants, (Ole Sayang will not serve you if you arrive 15 min before closing time, and Nyonya Suan is only open for Lunch: not mentioned on the web-listing), we decided to eat before the door was shut in our face again. Bad call, because the stall food in the market offered more variety and better taste!

Anyhoo, the famous chicken rice balls were nowhere near as good as the normal hainanese chicken rice, although the chicken was quite tasty.

The street food was excellent: chicken gizzard (my favourite), neck, wings and feet, slow braised in star aniseed and soya till tender.

The yau char kwei is slightly different shaped (img*47 is Jalan Alor, like a loop; img*39 is Malacca, like a fork!), but tasted the same.

Famosa Chicken Rice Ball
No. 28-30, Jalan Hang Kasturi,
Off Jonker Street, 75200 Melaka.

Jonkers Street Food Stalls
Jonkers Street
Melaka
6-12 pm
Fri-Sunday

I think the meat sauce has some crisp pork lard mixed in it. It's what Hakka do. I love the spongey meat balls, but judge them on texture and taste. Soong Kee was good for texture, but I have had better tasting elsewhere. The trick is to add more meat (and less MSG). There was a Kylie episode where they showed preparation outside a Shanghai restaurant: done with a mortar and pestle. That's why it's called Tsui Yan (hammer ball). Nowadays, I use a food processor.

Agree on all points! Bad service, bad sauce, unrealistic pricing.

I'm in the middle of a discussion on steak on another website, where the contention is that Japanese (and Australian) wagyu and American Angus are the best types of steak. Having never had wagyu, I must say that they are right. I have cooked steak at restaurants in Europe, and the meat there does fall short, even the best cuts. But they do a good sauce: my bearnaise is rich and thick, and fills the mouth with a warm infusion of taste and flavour!

http://www.lingzie.com/2009/03/04/dim...

The branch is at Jalan Anson, and is huge!

I remember seeing bicycles and mopeds weaving amongst the tables, with packed doggy bags full 'a dim sum.

Excellent dim sum!

I never did get to have dim sum in Malaysia this time because of the crazy timings (London Chinatown and Hong Kong yum cha joints serve dim sum all day long) and the stuff you get in Petaling Street is so stale!

Went at 4pm and they had four types of yu-char-kueh: got to see the sweet glutinous rice centre thingies for the first time and they were great! In Malaka, I say the sesame seed variant twisted into a y-loop: good taste.

I trawl cyberspace for local reviews as they know the neighbourhood. But they often don't have experience of the original dish to compare against, and this has a detrimental effect on the conclusions they reach. Here it was just a bad palate:

http://food.malaysiamostwanted.com/venues/thai-somtam-seafood-changkat-bukit-bintang

The food was stale: the prawns seemed to have been stored in the freezer (without de-veining) and the duck was fried in stale oil!

Maybe this is a case of the lesser popularity of Thai food in this Chinese locality, with consequently slower turnover?

http://aftergiovanni.blogspot.com/200...

The coconut nectar drink was good though: kept getting refills.

Yes, made up by taking her to El Cerdo, and then Grand Imperial again. BTW, my rellies sorted out their ticketing problem and made it to the re-union. Finally managed a full course Cantonese dinner with fish prawn, poultry, veggies and dessert! Report and piccies to follow

My wife hates offal. I on the other hand, love it. I'm not allowed to bring it home, so I indulge when I eat out. Sham siu po was heaven. She almost puked! Never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined entire streets devoted to organs!

Last night, I ambushed her with Soong kee: Told her we were going to a nice fine dining place and "accidentally" bumped into the latter. She never saw the tripe till it was too late! Muahaha!

Jalan tun tan siew link branch of Soong kee was excellent! I worked my way through the menu of ball, sliver and only stopped when my wife's face started turning green(tripe!). Thanks for the heads up, fellas.

Last photo

Dodgy hotel wifi!

Ooops. photos:

This fella seems to know what he's talking about:
Quote
I think there is a big difference in Malaysian taste for dim sum compared to Hongkies or Cantonese people. In the above list, only Li Yen will just make it into authentic dim sum. The rest are just so-so with some at the end of the list even considered unpalatable. If authentic dim sum is what you crave, then head over to Grand Imperial at Plaza Damas. On par with normal Cantonese restaurants in HK or Guangzhou.

http://themalaysianlife.blogspot.com/...

We are in KL for a mini reunion, but when the group from Melbourne couldn't make it, we were in deep trouble. How to enjoy Cantonese food without a big group? I have developed seafood allergies, and my wife avoids red meat. The set menu at the Ming room was mainly seafood.
Hopped over to the Grand Imperial and was well cared for by Jeffrie, our head waiter. He recommended the charsiu and roast duck platter (the siu yuk was sold out), the braised tofu with straw and shitake mushoom, a vegetable fried noodle, choisum stirfried with garlic. The roast duck was excellent, the skin glazed to a crispy perfection. First taste of the tofu in KL, good stuff! Very silky, custard like in the centre. Would have liked to have had the siu yuk and compare it with the Hong Kee version.
As you can see, the meal was mostly vegetarian! looks like we have to stick with Continental food, where we order individually. Usually I have steak and my wife a light grilled fish with a nice tartare sauce. Had a hard time ordering at Prime, where the main courses were all steak! Looking to check out the foie gras at Cilantro or Frangipani. Pigging out because we don't get this stuff at home. It will be rice porridge (chouk) for a month after this binge! Returning to Grand Imperial for the Sunday Dimsum. Dimsum normally keeps both my wife and I happy!

Photos:

The sauces were terrible, truffle, bearnaise and a type of saffron based sauce. Kept it aside. I enjoyed the skirt without embellishment.

Wagyu is supposed to be cooked on low flame? Even a candle does the job. The steak was super tender, melting in the mouth.

The starter was the foie gras experience: served three ways. 1) Pate, with a brulee-d crust, 2) seared with butter and 3)in a terrine. I've had better.

The bread, made in house was excellent, accompanied with herb , plain and paprika butter. The last is the angry looking petri dish at the bottom! Good stuff, providing a palate cleansing for the different foie gras.

I relished the steak the most!

edit: Sorry, the photo I took was the oyster blade.

My wife had the skirt. She's not too much into beef, but she agrees the oyster blade was better.

BTW, the recco is from another thread listing the best of KL, best Thai, best Japanese, etc.

http://jasonmumbles.com/2010/04/mouth-watering-malacca-sunday-metro-april-11/

What Jason does not mention is that they've added ten more flavours! This is mango. I think I died and woke up in Heaven...

Alternate site for Prime photo:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbi...

G'night...

Houston we have a problem!

Photo from Prime stuck in Camera!

Have a gander at the mille crepe, meanwhile

Thank you. Flight arrived early morning and I got my carbohydrate fix at 8 in the morning!

Read this article:

http://cumidanciki.com/2010/05/prime-...

Steeling myself to order the prime rib, but bailed out at the last minute!

The idea of spending 200USD on a steak is a bit rich for me, so ordered the skirt.

Mind blowing!

And after working through the wonderful street reccos on this board and malaysiasmostwanted (!), adifferent experience.

Tried Wong Kee, Soon fat (goose), Yut kee, etc.

Now in Malacca:

Nadjes Patisserie alone is worth the visit, for the mille crepe, a bit like the Goan Bibinca. Photos to follow.

The butterfly shaped fried dough twists were new to me, and excellent. Have been avoiding the hotel breakfast and hitting Alor the past few mornings in spite of its reputation of being too touristy. The fried dough stall has been opening late though. I waited from 8 am to 9, but he did not turn up.

You can see parts of Thailand if you do a boat ride. This augurs well for the thai cuisine, and we tried the fried duck:

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant...

They will upsell the drunken prawn: be pushed over!

Penang is just a ferry ride away. The Thai (and Italian, and Mediterranean and dimsum) food is even better, and cheaper. Hotels too: 200 MR vs the 800 MR in Langkawi.

Agree about the fresh sea food delivery in front of every restaurant: very impressive!

Okay, long post.

I've eaten in Hong Kong, China, Europe, US, SIngapore, KL, Penang, Langkawi, Bangkok, Calcutta, Lucknow, Goa, Bombay and Bangalore.

Grew up in Calcutta with great food available at home and outside. Family split and my brother goes to HK, and I to Bangalore. After we grew up, he calls me for a reunion. Land up and find out that he is a dimsum chef, and that his brother in law a banquet chef. So we visit the good places and we eat food that is out of this world. Like we see the chef behind the glass screen and we are thinking, "Eeee! we want to have your babies", and he looks back, with that expression on his face, plainly conveying "Yeah, welcome to HK, join the growing ranks of HK food fans!"

HK food is food cooked with top world class ingredients, using Chinese technique. 'Course the former makes it a Mainland beater. So we take a trip into the hinterland, and every stop is like walking into a town with a fast gunnie, and he's aware that you want his notch on the butt of your Peacemaker. These guys can smell you a mile away and they know you are scoping out their food. I'm sweating, but my bro just gives them the Lee Van Cleef look and they melt back into the kitchen. Its very funny... in retrospect. We do the circuit, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Beijing.

Back in HK, my wife and I roll up our sleeves and we take over the kitchen. Brother plays hooky from work as his face is buried in the food piled on his plate. "This is food Momma used to make", he moans, in between mouthfuls. He is putty in my hands. And this is in '95, before "Ratatouille" (Digress: is gourmet food really only somebody else's comfort food?).

Brother visits India and we do the India circuit: Delh, Lucknow, Kolkatta. In Kolkatta, we pull out all stops. No cultured prawn or battery poultry besmirches our chopping boards. When he crawls on the plane, he is asking for food to be packed, but settles for a quick wolfing down of "obassum". Its the only place in the world where they know how to cook it.

Back to Bangalore, we find less and less time to cook. And our favourite haunts are closing down at an alarming rate, to be replaced by chi-chi standalones. We have to be pro-active, or we will be reduced to fishing for invites to the ex-chef's homes.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/268245#1413523

Or spending big bucks travelling to other cities or countries.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/653557?tag=boards;topic-653557#5102850

We entertain at these favored spots. And we line up catering gigs for them for weddings and parties. But some still close shop. Its a losing battle, but we are looking for new ways to keep them going.

Chez Mariannick was nice. Gave them the pizza recipe that I learned in Europe, while working summers during college breaks. Suggested they get listed here:

http://bangalore.burrp.com/listing/ol...

Hope they blossom and grow: nothing like getting French food cooked by those who grew up on it.

Thanks vanderb for the recco.

On googling, I found:

Quote
Chez Mariannick in Whitefield behind Sorbet, the Gourmet Store - Best kept secret. French woman who delivers fresh croissants, baguettes and a few other items to your door (Palm Meadows, Prestige Ozone)

Fri. and Sat. night the restaurant is open with an excellent variety of crepes for dinner and dessert. Reservation recommended.

http://nancysindiablog.blogspot.com/2010_03_01_archive.html

Looks like others have adopted the same route as my friend for serving good food to an appreciative clientele: door delivery!

A little digression, and not directly food related. The main reasons that talented cooks can't get their food to the public is because of the high rentals. Not an uncommon situation and certainly not specific to Bangalore. I had the duck breast pizza, foie gras, lamb on rack and dory here, in a Singapore Food Court :

http://ieatishootipost.sg/2008/06/cil...

And he used to be on Purvis Street near the Marina, untill the high rentals forced him out. Great experience using fine cutlery and crockery in an open stall!

This week the East Asian families of the Overseas Womens Club were treated to a nice dimsum treat delivered to their homes.

My friend is planning to cook some surplus which can be collected either at the club or at his residence. There were late requests for extra from the customers. Let's see.

As the dimsum launch was very successful, another section serviced by my artisanal chocolatier will now follow. Stay tuned.

So glad that Cafe Mariannick will now satisfy my croissant cravings more effectively than my usual wait for friends from Pondicherry and Goa to send food parcels!

Now for the torturous wait... till Saturday!