Jack's Pizza

         

              Jack's Pizza is at Grant Road in Mumbai. It's one of my go-to places for pizza home delivery. After ordering the first time, I started receiving regular coupons which were total VFM deals. I've had the Al Funghi, the Abruzzo, Bellasai, Pesto Chicken and Marinara. The Al Funghi as the name suggests is more of a Mushroom based pizza namely using wild mushrooms, shiitake, and something called black fungus. This is definitely a pizza you acquire a taste for, and in spite of being a mushroom lover, I've never ordered this pizza a second time. The Abruzzo had olives, broccoli, artichoke, and sun dried tomatoes and for some reason, these toppings just didn't go well together.

Bellasai and Marinara

The Pesto Chicken was nice and simple: pesto, chicken and cherry tomatoes. The Marinara is not related to the tomato sauce itself, but is basically prawns, herbs and parsley. Prawns on a pizza and it worked! The best thing I've tasted here is the Bellasai. Olives, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and extra cheese. Delish!
            Today when I called on their main number, the first time my call was cut without picking up and on my first ever delivery, the delivery boy acted like he did not have change, when I clearly saw he did, so as to get a tip out of me. These are just two minor setbacks in an otherwise faultless service and considering how good their pizzas are, these can be overlooked.

Pesto Chicken

Bellasai

             The prices are similar to what we would ideally spend on a pizza from Dominos, Pizza Hut, etc. But the coupons of buy 1 get 1 free they keep sending me are what make it truly worth it. I think, after using those coupons, it's just not satisfying to order without them. Just broke foodie things, I guess. So what makes this place so different that you go out of your way of ordering from your regular pizza places? For one, there's no place like it in the area. They may take a while for delivery, but what's delivered is truly worth it. They use a variety of ingredients that your regular pizza delivery service wouldn't use: Black fungi, prawns, shiitake, cherry and sun-dried tomatoes and the like. Another thing I love about the place, Tax included! Two words I love hearing. So you're assured the price you see on their menu is the price you're going to pay, nothing more, nothing less.
              Apart from being a place I resort to for good pizza when I'm broke, their menu comprises pizzas with unique flavour combinations that somehow seem to work, and for an experimentalist like me, that's awesome! 

Shabu Shabu

The Laksa broth with condiments

Well, it's a dish, Japanese at that too apparently, but the one I had wasn't authentic. The original is a beef broth with thinly sliced beef, but for obvious reasons ( the beef ban, for those still living under a rock) this was just another of those classic Asian soup type broths like tom yum, but we chose the Laksa and boy did we choose right. It's made in the way of a hotpot at this particular restaurant. Comprising basically of a broth, protein, veg and some starch.

Lobster, Crab, Scallops, Pomfret, Bak Choy, Mushrooms, Broccoli, Radish, Carrots, Spinach, Tofu

The protein: Pomfret, prawns, mussels, clam, scallops and chicken were pretty much delicious. The lamb or mutton slice should have just been kept in the bowl with hot broth poured over it and thus keeping it tender. On discovering it in the pot 20 minutes into the meal, the thin slice of meat was chewy and overcooked. The lobster wasn't fresh as pointed out by my friend and neither was it quite delicious. The crab was the biggest disappointment here, as again was pointed out to me, it was not only old but also was one of those packaged precooked types. Sushi was spot on. The boiled eggs were left untouched.

Fish balls, Dumplings, Prawns, Chicken, Fish, Lamb

Veg: Mushrooms (shiitake and button), bak choy, tofu, carrots, radish, broccoli and spinach all pretty much average. The shiitake with its meaty goodness stood out.

Starch: Noodles which I never ate much of; dumplings which were just simple prawn dumplings with a thick delicate layer of the dough around it were awesome and the fish balls were just not appetising.

Condiments: The usual Asian sauces, the sushi accompaniments and a few more to accompany the broth. 

                With 3 helpings of the soup for myself and 2 for my friend, there were still a few to go around. The protein was finished off. A single serving of sushi remained because the rice was just too heavy and the vegetables remained. The tofu here I pretty much enjoyed though the broth had become too fish infused at the end to really savour the tofu. It was soft and delicious nonetheless.

The Sushi

A complaint goes out to the staff to be more attentive and come help us out when we were clearly struggling at times to find a prawn or mussel. Also, whichever broth one takes, the dish does get monotonous after a few servings, and I think we left more full of the taste than the food itself. We did choose to go for the Shabu Shabu combo meal which included everything, should you choose to try only selected stuff, your bill might come a whole lot cheaper with a more tailored experience to suit your palate.
                       Don't get me wrong, in spite of a list of complaints, this is the first of its kind in Mumbai as hotpots go and it was a wonderful meal. Trending as it is on Zomato, it didn't live up to my expectations. Albeit there were many condiments to alter flavours, there was just a sense of love missing in my experience and maybe had we split the hotpot with more people, thereby having a restrained amount of it, we may have appreciated it better.

Place: Haibao, bang opposite Juhu Beach

Rating: 3.5/5

Price: 2400 All Inclusive

Enough for: Easily 3 people, and a massive monotonous buffet for 2

Will I Return?: No. Its a once in a lifetime dish to try, and I would've still died a happy man not having experienced it. Also, this being the unsaid USP of this place, doesn't give me a reason to return.

Taste: 4/5 :The spiciness of the broth did delay the monotony till the end

Value For Money: 3.5/5 : Could have scored it better had I not been a broke foodie. 

                 Again, this is a review pertaining to the Shabu Shabu of Haibao and the place itself. The Shabu Shabu at other places will differ and I bet the beef one will be truly over the top. 

There's something however, charming, about having a delicious spicy broth simmering in front of you. This experience was definitely much better than many other hotpots in the city so if you're around I suggest you try a different variation with this dish and spice things up a little. Then, maybe, you can decide for yourself. :)

Red Everywhere!

I do mean Red Velvet, of course.

Red Velvet started out as the Red Velvet cake or Devil's cake as some called it. One may wonder why, in the course of history, patisseries suddenly decided to colour a cake red (mostly with beetroot but now sadly food colouring), and why particularly red! Had the course of events been any different we could've possibly had maybe a blue, yellow or even green velvet but somehow, now having been spoilt, anything but red doesn't go down as appetising. So, in my wonder of how Red Velvet took the world by storm, I researched further and found, probably, the reason for its name. 

                The answer is as nerdy as it can get but for those really keen to know, It's ideally the reaction of buttermilk and acid that brings out the anthocyanin in cocoa giving the iconic red colour and making it moist, hence velvet. The ideal toppings for these, that I have personally tasted, would be buttercream and cream cheese and both go really well, though cream cheese definitely rocks the boat and tradition states there was a Roux Icing too but I can see why that wouldn't have worked. The main question one asks, is what is so extra-ordinary in red velvet, unlike the Cronut, the Pizza Cone, Cinnabon and many others like it that took this city by storm and then suddenly just disappeared while Red Velvet remained to haunt us. I mean haunt in the literal sense of the word, Red Velvet has diversified into cakes, cupcakes, shakes, ice creams and many more. It's freakishly everywhere I go and I'm frankly done with it. Last night, as I glanced over the menu of Byblos, the restaurant I last reviewed, I did notice a particular dish that caught my eye: The Red Velvet Gnocchi, a detail I reserved for this article solely. 

                I've spent many hours indecisive whether this was truly worthy of writing about, whether maybe, I was wrong about how mainstream this is. But that dish on the menu confirmed my beliefs that night and hence the article. So it was basically Gnocchi with a few flavourings and beetroot predominant for the colour. Red Velvet now in savoury? Great. Well it wasn't Red Velvet in the true sense of the word but it had beetroot which lent it an authenticity most dishes using that title don't possess these days. Red Velvet Milkshake has always tasted like shit to me. Red shit with milk and red cake powder sprinkled on top. Red velvet cupcakes and cakes all come down to the frosting. Cookies on the other hand, another fad likely to stay, just don't go with red velvet while those cake jars definitely do. And ladies, anything that's red velvet isn't fucking cute or always delicious so please just shutup till you taste it. 

                Coming back to the everlasting question in my mind, well it'll last till red velvet stays at least, which seems like a long time; is why red velvet got so famous in the first place? Was it the colour? The name? The Cream cheese maybe? Or was it just bloody-well timed! 

Whatever the goddamn answer, it looks like Red Velvet is here to stay and I'm just gonna have to deal with it.

Byblos Kitchen + Bar

Drunken Brie

So the name itself suggests the Mediterranean city and hence the cuisine should follow, but in fact its a much broader scope of cuisine ranging from the Middle East and the countries we associate Mediterranean food to, to the less known countries surrounding the Mediterranean such as those of the African subcontinent. I'm also sure I saw the word 'Kimchi' on that menu somewhere which didn't make sense but I'm just going to look past it. Located in Phoenix at Lower Parel, they could have definitely chosen a better location for their restaurant, nevertheless, once you enter and the doors close behind you, the world gets zoned out and you take your seat.

Chicken Roll-up

            For a Saturday night, it was quite empty at 9 pm but by 10 it was pretty much full. The décor is elegant and yet the ambience forces the occasion to a much more chilled out experience. Its not a place one goes to hush and eat decently but a place one goes to eat well and make a lot of noise doing so. The garlic butter accompanying the complimentary breads( served in a half cut Sula wine bottle) was delicious. We ordered the Drunken Brie for starters. It came baked and yet not runny, just the perfect amount of gooey with a whiskey reduction and caramelized onions and more bread accompanying it. It was just to die for. For mains we ordered Jamaican curry dip + Shawarma stuffed Tafnoon ( Iranian Naan), Chicken Roll-up, and the Fish Fifelchuma. The Shawarma stuffed Tafnoon didn't really make me reminisce any Shawarma I've had in my life and without the Jamaican dip it was subtle bordering on bland. The dip was a rich and thick curry, as delicious as curries get. The fish was flaky and cooked to beautiful perfection. No spice rub detected on the fish but the lemon accompanying it had it all. One little squeeze and it was perfect. This coming from a person whose not a huge fan of fish. The Chicken Roll-up was easily the highlight of the meal. It uses the concept of a roulade but I think each little piece was rolled individually rather than cut from a single roll and cheese oozed delicately from the top and bottom openings of each pretty roll. It was absolutely stunning and the combination of well cooked chicken, mint and cheese went brilliantly. The mains were served like starters, but it only made it easy for us to share and the plate presentation was spot-on. There was a lot of bread and cheese throughout the meal though and portions were more than expected so a little food went waste. Dessert was 'Oops I dropped the lemon pie' and was ideally a de-constructed lemon tart with a tiny jar sleeping with lemon curd made to look like it spilled out of it, little meringues and a short-crust spoon. I personally would go back just to try out their remaining desserts because they all sounded delicious as was the one we ordered. The bill with service charge and service tax was around 2800 for 3 people and we found it totally worth the money.

Am I going back? Soon. 

Kala Ghoda Cafe

Pesto Cheese sandwich

Mochachino

Quite a name the cafe has made for itself in the south of Mumbai, but the most asked question is how does one find it? And, even with Google maps its quite a task to find it in those narrow bylanes of Kala Ghoda. Its in the Trishna and Mamagoto lane but if you don't know that either, nevermind. just go down the lane running to the left of the iconic Rythm House and take the first left. Its a small quaint place right opposite La Folie Patissierie and its probably the smallest cafe in town and maybe even the most reasonable in the area for the food it offers.

Dark chocolate waffles

                I think the most heart-warming product here is the dark chocolate. Be it the Mochachino or the waffles with dark chocolate or even the small dark chocolate accompanying the coffees, its all decadent and delicious. Do try their sandwiches especially the ones with cheese in them because that's always stringy and amazing. If you're town side you should choose to visit this place over all the others mainly because its VFM is high. Definitely a bang on the buck place.

Crashing a Wedding

What? Have you never done it?

I haven't. I do intend to soon and then probably write about that too. I'm a shameless little bastard when it comes to free food. I admit it. At some point of time in your life, passing by a glorious wedding, you too must've thought of just getting into one, randomly posing for all their family photographs, hogging on the glamour and especially the food and disappearing while the crowd's still dense. We all get invited to weddings so it's not as much the free food as the excitement of allegedly getting into a wedding you weren't invited for. It is frowned upon though. I wonder why. Does it say I can't afford my own food and I'm from a backward family who didn't teach me the mannerism necessary to avoid such things? So far, I have avoided it. But it doesn't make any sense. To someone as food driven as I am, it doesn't matter to me and to most people nowadays, what other people think of them. So what's to stop hogs like me from gate crashing a wedding? Most places don't check invitations. Wear the right attire, avoid the bride and groom's family and if the crowd's big enough, which it is for most of our big fat Indian weddings, then one blends right in. Then, there's the satisfaction of eating so much free food and the comfort to the conscience that a lot of this food, as it happens at most weddings, is going to go waste so we rather stuff ourselves with it while its still warm. Hmm... so the only reason for me to abstain from such actions is moral values and the despising eyes of society? Ha! Be prepared wedding planners, the invasion begins now. 

Chicken Maryland

Chicken breasts and legs made boneless (leaving one bone attached at the tip to hold and identify breast from leg), flattened, marinated, and then deep fried to a crispy golden brown while still juicy on the inside.
Served with a side of bacon rolls (rolled and baked in the oven), grilled tomato, creamed corn fritters, banana fritters and croquette potatoes.

Poulet sauté Marengo

Chicken breasts and legs cooked in a brown sauce made from brown stock using chicken bones as a base, with the addition of shallots and mushrooms after straining the sauce.
Robert potatoes: Potatoes mashed, with chives mixed in, shaped and grilled.
Runny fried egg on a circular croûton
Prawns cooked in a court bouillon garnished with parsley
A delicious plate of food that came together quite well. 

Vada Pav

Ashok Vada Pav

The native Maharashtrian snack

Dried red chillies and salted green chillies

There's been the everlasting debate among Mumbaikars and between us and the Puneris as to what exactly a vada pav should be and which city serves the best. Well the vada is basically softened or mashed potatoes dipped in a batter usually made from besan (gram flour), deep-fried and then stuffed into the sliced centres of soft squarish buns we call 'Pav'. Hence, the name Vada Pav. Yep, that spells calories all the way. Native to Maharashtra, every place has its own set of condiments, chutneys and powders which they lather the inside of the pav with before placing the vada in it. They usually are one or more of the following: mint chutney (usually spicy), tangy tamarind chutney, a dry garlic chutney, dried and salted chillies and the like.
          Vada Pav is not a gourmet dish, its served hot from carts on the road and its probably the most filling, easy to eat street food at that price( Rs 10,12 or 14). Some innovative minds are now coming out with ideas to transform the classic and serve it in their restaurant like Masala Library by Jiggs Kalra with the inside out vada pav. Being born and brought up by Mumbai, I discovered its best vada pav stall only last year. Yes the rumours are true... Its Ashok Vada Pav at Kirti College, or commonly called the Kirti college vada pav guy. Having enquired around with all the Puneri friends, the last time I visitied Pune, a friend and I made a special trip to 'Garden Vada Pav' at JJ Garden, not very far from Pune station. They do serve nice, hot vada pavs but I think its way too hyped. It being piping hot was the only noticeable characteristic we could draw from it, and the fact that it was served with a chutney or two, the same you get at every stall in Mumbai. Its definitely the ideal place for those who don't prefer spice and chillies, unlike Ashok Vada Pav. The masala tak being served by the same stall, was worth it though. This really chilled thin buttermilk with fried boondi floating on top. Truly yum. Either way, its definitely no comparison to the Ashok Vada Pav in Mumbai, and having been to both, I can assertively compare the two. Ashok Vada Pav serves their vada pav with all the above mentioned condiments, not just one or two as seen in the picture above; they almost always serve it piping hot, and what's more, they include those crispy fried bits of batter that are just oh so delicious! Priced a little higher at 20 rs, its definitely worth it. I know most Puneris won't agree with me on this, just like most Mumbaikars will. Visit the place though, and trust me, you won't stop at just one.

Ketchup.

Can you imagine a world without it?

I think all of us can safely say we have, at some point witnessed in our lives, the inadvertent use of ketchup in excess, as an accompaniment to a dish. I don't think anyone really knows how ketchup got to India, If you do, please do share. But my guess is, it came along with the crispy deep-fried French fries that we devour today. Its amazing how, the idea of ketchup was originated from the Chinese, and yet developed further by America, a development that changed our lives. Today, a handful of people can't eat their food without having some ketchup on the side. Some people just have entire sachets by themselves. The first noticeable incident of this in my life, was when my sister ordered a Penne Arrabiata and doused it in ketchup and seemed to love the flavour. That's when major ketchup brands realised we like our ketchup mixed with a bit of spice and flavour and they came out with onion, garlic, and sweet and spicy versions. As our palates evolved and preferences changed, ketchup was made to evolve with us. In ketchups too, you have the various categories: the really free flowing, the barely flowing and then those that come out like little blobs of concentrated tomato paste. I guess it happens due to refrigeration and the conversion of its gel state to sol and all that. Tomato sauce is what we Indians call it. So what's ''Tomato Saas'' then? Well, I'm afraid to say its the same thing. I've seen people eat it with rice, roti, vegetables, idlis, dosas, maggi, pizza, and practically everything fried from samosas and vadas to the continental croissants and puffs. In all fast food outlets, its completely justifiable to douse everything with ketchup because most of the food is very monotonous and starchy and ketchup is the only real flavour component there. It has other uses too. For example, living in India, we don't have the same sweet and delicious tomatoes the Italians get for their sauces, and so in the home cooked version my secret ingredient is a little bit of ketchup to provide it the zing it needs. I have to admit, we can't live without it. A little restraint is advisable though. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter to you, how you ate something as long as you enjoyed it. When dishes are created, they're made with the intention of being appreciated as they are. If you feel you want that little extra element to your plate of food, or there's a particular way you like it, which includes the addition of ketchup, there's no harm in that and most chefs don't mind the idea either as long as their customers leave happy.  Ketchup isn't an accompaniment like salt or pepper that may have been added too less and the addition of which will bring out just a tad bit more flavour. Its a product which completely alters the flavour of a plate of food, giving it new dimensions of sweetness and acidity. Ketchup is a ready-to-use proprietary sauce and like most proprietary sauces, it easily replaces intensive french and traditional sauces when you're in a hurry. In the middle of the night, I got my munchies and there was a little spaghetti left. I boiled it and tossed it in butter, salt and pepper and had it with ketchup on the side. Yes, I did that! At 2 am in the night I'm not going to contemplate whether I should make an arabiatta or bolognese, I just want to eat something so I can get to sleep. We all have had moments like these and whose been there to save our asses? Ketchup. Can you imagine fries without ketchup? No ketchup in the morning with your cheese toast? No ketchup with your samosas? Imagine walking into a Mcdonalds that doesn't serve ketchup. We don't truly realise the importance of a thing like ketchup in our lives, because its just always been there. But... Can you imagine a world without it?

The Ban on Beef

So beef was banned recently, wasn't it? At least in the state of Maharashtra, in India, it was. People went crazy. There was chaos in everyone's mind. The act was passed ages ago but the law came in effect completely out of the blue, banning the consumption, possession and thereby sale of cow, bull, ox and buffalo products leaving aside water buffalo meat. We all know how tough water buffalo meat is but somehow, when the craving gets intense, that's the only thing we can run to now. Anyway, my point being, was it justified to ban it? Hell no. Everyone should be given an option to choose. I am a frequent red meat eater. However, there are people who would've eaten beef only once in a lifetime, loved it and yet never touched it since, who still mourn about this ban. There are people who even criticise this category of people. To the critics I say, they aren't mourning about it just because everyone is. They might not have eaten beef the way you and I used to. But they always knew that if they wanted, they could at any time because it was always there. Now, that security has been taken away from all of us and the thirst for medium rare bloody goodness grows. A handful of us now know the places which serve the real stuff off the menu and will die to keep it a secret. I suggest you start looking around too. For people who don't crave it as much, places like Salt Water Cafe, Smoke House Deli, Indigo, and the like are the ideal places you could visit to satisfy your meat appetite.You know how, whenever a new drug enters the city, word spreads fast, like the recent entry of meow meow. I'm waiting for the day it happens with beef and I shall be forced into walking down a creepy, dark alleyway or venture into a small village ( what we call jhopadpati) in the city, whisper the words 'beef. 2 steaks' , drop the money, pick up the stash and leave as quickly and quietly as I got in. I would go home and cook it medium rare, have one steak with creamy, buttery mashed potatoes and the other in a brioche bun with a fried egg on it and two slices of sharp cheddar, and yes, I would finish that entire meal by myself. Oh but that's all a dream for the future. The real question is how we will survive till that dream comes true. 

Sardar Pav Bhaji serves the best Pav Bhaji in Mumbai?

I don't think so...

Agreed. It did. At a point of time, in an unforgettable era, where every morning, the city of Mumbai would welcome the opening of a new stall or 'thelas' as we call them. Sardar may have been the only pav bhaji place at the time serving out of a concrete structure. However, over the years, most of the thelas have been shut down by the authorities of our city and what remained formed the 'khau gallis' or food streets that we frequent today for cheap,delicious and absolutely unhygienic foods. The profit margins grew due to the closing down of the remaining thelas in the city and many more concrete structures came up among these khau gallis that are mentioned later on. I think Sardar got famous for its generous portions of butter, not to mention its location, between Mumbai Central Station and the famous Haji Ali Mosque. In today's world, Sardar's pav bhaji has become an absolute flavourless affair with the lack of pav bhaji masala and enough quantities of salt. Its portions of butter which have now doubled in recent times could explain the exorbitant prices but I don't think people like paying so much any more just to consume mashed vegetables and fat. To the people of Mumbai, and the lovely tourists who visit our city, do be daring enough to venture out from the well known. The khau gallis, I'm sure are unhygienic but definitely not as much as consuming about a 100 grams of butter in one serving. If you do get the courage to venture to these places, the tastiest ones I suppose would be Cannon Pav Bhaji bang opposite CST station and Lenin Pav Bhaji between Marine Lines Station and Churchgate station. For a safer option you could even visit Badshaah opposite Crawford Market. These places are definitely worth a visit and chances are you will mostly survive. As for Sardar, however hard it is for me to admit this, having so many memories attached to this place, its the end of an era.