Veggie Nook: Rajdhani

This 10 Janpath serves good food

SUBHA VARANASI


PHOTO: NAGARA GOPAL

The thali It will satiate your hunger 10 Janpath, Rajdhani Hotel
Plus: Cordiality of the staff
Minus: Poorly-maintained washroom
Food: 3/5
Ambience: 3.5/5
Located close to Masjid, Main Road, Siddiamber Bazar
Inside Hotel Rajadhani in Siddiamber Bazar is 10 Janpath–– a restaurant. This 75-seater AC restaurant, which began in 1977, serves pure vegetarian food and is counted amongst the oldest restaurants in the twin cities. The well-spaced wooden tables and chairs and the accent lighting add to the aesthetics.

 
The menu consists of a tiffin section which runs from 7.30 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. and from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. The tiffins range from Rs. 25 for a plate of idli to Rs. 48 for a paper dosa. Amongst the beverages and juices, the selection varies from tea at Rs.16 to the milkshakes at Rs. 55. Blue Crusco must be tasted here. Prepared from a cocktail of litchis, Sprite and sugar syrup, this is slightly over-sweetened drink tastes mostly like a litchi drink. There is the fruit punch too, prepared with orange and pineapple juices with mango ice-cream, which has a slightly sour taste.
All the soups are priced at Rs. 55. Amongst these, the lemon coriander soup is quite delectable. The soup in this restaurant is made in a corn flour base unlike the conventionally prepared clear soup base. Two unusual but tasty combinations here are the Amiritsari chole paneer and the corn 65. Amritsari chole paneer though unusual in combination isn't unusual in taste. It has the usual red onion and tomato paste gravy. The corn 65 is crisply fried and served with pudina (mint) chutney. The pudina chutney is yummy and the combination of the starter with the chutney tickles one's taste buds to no end. The curries are priced between Rs.75 and Rs.120. Amongst them, methi chaman hariyali is highly recommendable. Made of fenugreek leaves and spinach paste, it has an onion-tomato paste, spices and is garnished with grated panneer. The fenugreek and chopped garlic makes the dish slightly pungent but the experience is enjoyable.
The dal makhani too is a specialty here. Thick in consistency and cooked in a good amount of butter, this dish has almost a home-made touch with sparingly-used Indian spices. Amongst the rotis, priced between Rs. 15 for a roti to Rs. 30 for the masala kulcha, the masala kulcha is quite tasty because it is rolled out very thin and stuffed with boiled vegetables like carrots, beans, potato and grated paneer. The South Indian thaali with about 12 items is priced at Rs. 74 and is served both for lunch and dinner.
A meal of soup-starter-roti-curries-rice-dessert comes to around Rs. 600. Ample parking space is available.

This article was published HERE.

Veggie Nook: Shyam's

Started 3 years back, Shyam enjoys the status of being the sole caterer of pure vegetarian fare in the vicinity of Lingampally. The entrance to the hotel is not too inviting. Yet, once you step into the restaurant situated on the first floor, the ambience is quite pleasant with neatly laid out tables and chairs. The absence of an air-conditioned environment might be annoying in the summer though.
The restaurant claims to serve a multicuisine fare but actually specializes in North Indian food. Most in demand is the North Indian Thaali. Priced at Rs 50, it offers a range of dishes consisting of two curries, dal, chutney, curd, papad, six phulkas and rice. Every section of the menu has a wide range to choose from.
The soups ranging from Rs 35-40 have amongst them a forgettable taste in the tomato soup. Abundant use of color deters you from trying more. After the rather tame beginning, the tasty paneer Tikka comes as a pleasant surprise. There are just about 8 pieces to a plate. The paneer cut into one- inch square pieces are cooked in very little oil. Though not much masala is used to spice it up, it does carry its own distinctive taste—slightly sour, slightly pungent.
Amongst the main dishes ranging from Rs. 40 to Rs.100, the restaurant claims the Marwadi Veg as its specialization. It consists of very finely chopped carrots, cabbage, spinach and cauliflower cooked in gravy of cashew, watermelon seeds and poppy seeds. The gravy used in the preparation of all curries seems to carry the same taste.
The dum aloo kashmiri is quite enjoyable. The potato scooped out and stuffed with paneer is not cooked too soft and only one potato is served in a dish. The capsicum also served one to a dish, is stuffed with potato and masalas. Not using the normally used paneer to stuff it, lends it a quite a discernible taste
The rotis are priced as cheap as Rs 4 for a Phulka to Rs 25 for a Gobi paratha. Shyam is one of the few restaurants in the twin cities which offer you a phulka made of wheat flour and cooked on the coals. The puffed- up hot phulka is then offered to you after having it smeared with ghee. A must try!
Amongst the cool beverages, the lassi is quite filling as it has an abundance of lightly crushed dry fruits within. Shyam also offers Rajasthani fare of dal-bhati-churma on Sundays. To one’s surprise, the ubiquitous biryani is offered only on Saturdays and Sundays. Shyam draws its clientele mostly from the business class people around Lingampally
The restaurant timings are 11 am to 4 pm and again 7 pm to 11 pm. A meal for two is Rs 200. Ample parking space is available.

Plus: Judicious use of oil in preparation

Minus:  Small quantities per dish

Food: 3/5; Ambience: 3/5

Located near Balaji Jodhapur Sweet House, BHEL, Lingampally

Veggie Nook: Grabz

Grabz for a quick bite

SUBHA VARANASI

Grabz is a fast-food outlet that sells continental food. Grabz is a daring effort to bring affordable continental food, specifically Italian, to the discerning Hyderabadi palate. Started a year ago at Himayatnagar, it has now branched out to outlets at Sindhi Colony, Abids and Sainikpuri. The outlets offer only vegetarian fare and are designed on the lines of ‘eat-on-the move' . The outlets at Sainikpuri and Sindhi colony can seat 20 people at a time.
The menu card is concise and one go through it in about 3 minutes flat. In all, you have 6 segments to choose from: thebreads, the salads, the fries, pastas, wraps and sandwiches. Each segment offers 2-3 selections. The limited offer allows the restaurant to focus on quality. Another smart move is that for every dish on offer has a desiversion . Most of the dishes carry authentic Italian flavour. Only the ubiquitous olive oil is not as used generously.
The garlic bread is slightly over priced . The Grabz special is a 2-inch round grilled bread, lightly smeared with mayonnaise-garlic spread and sprinkled with very finely chopped bell-peppers and celery. The Caesar salad consisting of iceberg lettuce, chopped red and yellow bell pepper, mayonnaise, garlic and garted parmesan cheese is a delight.
Pasta tower salad is penne pasta tossed with mayonnaise cheese, corn, jalapenos red and yellow peppers and Italian herbs. The taste resembles that of Caesar Salad but isn't as rich and doesn't carry the pungent garlic flavour that the former does.
The pasta come in arabiatta sauce and the parmesan white sauce. Grabz has three varieties of wraps—the tortilla wrap, the katti roll and the Shawarma wrap. The katti roll with its Indian masalas is one that would appeal to the spicier palate and consists of onion, capsicum and paneer. The tortilla wrap carries a strong taste of beans along with other veggies like capsicum, corn, onion and jalapenos. But the king of the wraps is the Shawarma wrap stuffed with paneer, baby corn, capsicum, tomato, onion and lettuce.
Lastly, the sandwiches priced at Rs. 50 for two comes with a number of options : Spinach corn and Club sandwich of bread slices, raw or lightly toasted as per your choice. The Spinach Corn sandwich smothered with Italian white sauce, spinach, garlic, corn and chilly flakes tastes awesome.
Everything is prepared on live counters and served hygienically in disposable containers. The eateries are open from 11 am to 10:30 pm. The fare comes to about Rs. 250 to 300 for two people.

This article was published HERE.

In Dino

It is a very long time since I wrote in my blog. Lack of time has been the main reason.This seems to be the reason used by most of the world anyway.
Changed circle yet again to join the Times to serve in the Operations management team; I don’t even think about my bosses or work any more. It’s now simply become a means of earning money at the end of month. The hope that the bosses at satyam can do anything for me is gone. Last year when I was in projects, I was still hopeful that something would come out of this assignment. But slowly all those dreams died a slow death. I was attributing not getting a promotion to various reasons but finally realized that the boss never had an intention of giving a promotion. Left him and the circle to join in Times and have absolutely no hope of anything coming out of this too. I wonder if that is the reason that when I come back home I feel so listless…just watch some TV, eat and sleep. I don’t even cook whereas earlier I used to come home only at 9/9:30pm and still have enough energy to cook for the next day as well as that night. I am not able to do that now. Just cooking something on weekends and eating out of that almost the entire week. No zeal to eat either. If it is not for the fact that I need to eat home-made food, I would never have cooked at all…
On another note, a stupid bandh announced today is to be implemented on Sunday and Monday. City is turning violent over state's division issue and as usual the hooligans are out stoning and destroying properties. I was caught in the middle of that last week and was scared shitless. Escaped unhurt as I quickly took a U-turn on seeing the mob. Stocked on milk and Maggi for the fear of a possible bandh the next two days. Idiots have got the TV shut down too…no telecast as though mourning a dead. I obviously don’t want to watch the damage spree that these goons are on.
Rather, I caught up with “50 first dates” that I longed to see for quite some time. Two dialogues in the movie stand out “I wish I had met you before my accident”. Two: “you can never forget your first kiss” seemed very cute as the heroine keeps forgetting that she has been kissed before. And the hero counts saying that it is your first but 25th for me…..that make it 12 and a half for us:) Good that I didn’t lay sprawled out on the bean bag in front of the TV that I usually do but hauled my ass to plunk in front of a smaller monitor.

Veggie Nook: Santosh Banjara

VEGGIE NOOK
Cashew feast

SUBHA VARNASI

Photo: Nagara Gopal

For the love of khana Santosh Banjara's speciality dish, the vegetable biryani
Santosh Banjara, with its distinct disadvantage of being located in Banjara Hills where there is no dearth of star hotels, swanky restaurants and malls, still runs successfully because of the sheer quality of food it offers. This air-conditioned restaurant with a capacity of 160 offers only vegetarian food. Santosh Banjara also runs from Secunderabad and Abids and the eateries there are named Santosh Dhaba. The demand of the food in these dhabas led the restaurateur to open a branch in Banjara Hills recently.
Despite its elegant ambience, the restaurant is not able to shake off the image of a dhaba—right from the Bollywood numbers playing in the background to the erroneously-spelt names in the menu to the not very suave restaurant staff. Ignore the dhaba-like environment that exudes from the restaurant, and dig with gusto into the delightfully tantalizing taste offered in course after course.
Unlimited choices
It's a delight to open the menu card as you fight to choose from the mind-boggling range of varieties on offer—precisely 70 curries to choose from! The quality of food comes from the fact that the restaurant focuses only on Panjabi food— no frills like juices, beverages or sweets. Soups are priced between Rs.45 to 75 with the Talumein soup at Rs.75. It is a pleasure to sip on this scalding hot tomato-based soup served with shredded vegetables like capsicum, cabbage, carrots, cucumber and onion. It has a slight sour taste to it.
Do order the paneer sticks for starters. Paneer sticks, priced at Rs. 110, consist of thick pieces of paneer, capsicum, onion and tomato each cut into one inch squares. They are smeared with chaat masala, jeera powder and soya sauce, and shallow fried. These are then stacked with tooth picks running through and tossed together with lightly fried onions, sesame, chilli flakes and cashew. Cashew is something that you need to watch out for. Every dish has more than a generous offering of the ingredient. Only the soups seem to be spared from this calorie assault.
Amongst the main dishes, Santosh recommends Jil-Mil Paneer, a curry priced at Rs. 100 and consisting of onion, capsicum and paneer cooked in— hold-your breath—cashew paste! Added to this cashew gravy are chilli powder, chat masala and tomatoes. The Hyderabadi Biryani, at Rs.100 is a serving of aromatic rice cooked with spices and vegetables. The stuffed kulcha, priced at Rs. 40, is an offer of rotis of wheat flour stuffed with boiled potatoes, carrots and beans very finely chopped. And once the roti is rolled out—guess what— again studded with cashews, fried and served!
The restaurant also finds it advantage in running throughout the day from noon to 11.30 p.m. without a break. All portions served are ample and easily enough for two. The quality of food with its very reasonable pricing makes it a difficult proposition to resist. Set aside your calorie count and dig into this fare. Food for two is about Rs. 300-400. The restaurant also offers valet parking.

Santosh Banjara, Banjara Hills

Plus: value for money

Minus: loud atmosphere

Food: 4.5/5

Ambience: 2.5/5

Located close to Pizza Hut,

Road no. 12, Banjara Hills

This article was published HERE.

Veggie Nook: Bansuri

VEGGIE NOOK
A taste of tiranga dosa

SUBHA VARANASI

Photo:Nagara Gopal

Sumptuous fare The thali and ambience at Bansuri
Bansuri
(Rukmini Riviera)
Plus: South Indian fare
Minus: Crowded
Food: 3/5
Ambience: 2.5/5
Location: Beside Dwarka, Lakdi-ka-pul
A mongst the cluster of non-vegetarian joints found in and around Lakdi-ka-pul, Bansuri housed in Rukmini Riviera, finds a niche by catering a pure vegetarian fare. The 70-seater air-conditioned restaurant offers no music and makes no pretense of offering a great ambience. All that it offers is good food in a hygienic environment to its steady stream of customers.
The restaurant has a buffet breakfast offering a mix of South Indian and Continental. Idli, wada, cornflakes, fruits and fruit juices are the fixed items. In addition, you also find variants of dosas and upmas on offer everyday. Available from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m., the breakfast buffet is priced at Rs. 60. North Indian and South Indian thaalis are available from 11 am to 4 pm and 7 pm to 11 pm. South Indian tiffins and the inevitable Punjabi and Chinese dishes are available throughout the day.
The thali is a specialty here. The South Indian one priced at Rs. 83 has a dal mixed with a leafy vegetable, a vegetable fry, two wet curries, rasam, sambar, curd and a sweet. Rice items vary between lemon rice, pulihara and tomato rice on different days. Chapathi is also served. North Indian thali priced at Rs. 104 has rice, naan, three wet curries (of which one is a paneer item, the second is a pulse, and the third a vegetable), a dal, one flavored rice which varies everyday, curd and a sweet. The South Indian snacks, range from idlis priced at Rs. 20 for two to MLA dosas at Rs 45. Amongst these, Bansuri prides itself on its offer of the tiranga dosa. This dosa abides by it nomenclature by offering three colors (and flavours) in the same dosa. One-third of the dosa is smeared with spinach paste, a third has grated paneer and the third part has the distinct flavour of ginger. Served hot with an equally tasty sambar, coconut chutney and ginger chutney, this is a must try amongst the South Indian tiffins. This experience is incomplete if you come away without having the filter coffee here. Priced at Rs. 10, the hot brew carrying the aroma of freshly-ground coffee beans is heavenly!



Among the other items, rotis are priced between Rs. 12 to 25; rice items vary between Rs. 45- 90; curries Rs. 50-85; soups Rs. 35-45; starters Rs.75-80 and juice and milk shakes at around Rs.40. Tiffins and thali for two comes below Rs. 200; an order for the North Indian for two would come to about Rs. 400.
Despite the steady stream of customers, effort is made to ensure a clean restaurant and washroom. Seeing that the restaurant is situated just beside the road, one is apprehensive of parking space. Yet, it does offer a valet parking where the vehicles are parked in the ample space in the cellar.

This article was published HERE. 

Veggie Nook: Gayathripuram

VEGGIE NOOK
Dining in a rural experience

SUBHA VARANASI

Photos: Nagara Gopal

Food and more The ambience and food at Gayathripuram

The name leads to an erroneous belief that it is the name of some locality in Hyderabad. But Gayathripuram, a ‘vegetarian ethnic restaurant’, situated on the National Highway, has created a niche for itself with its village setting.
On the rangoli-decorated walls are displayed some of the rural games of yore. The tables are housed under tiled roofs with earthen lamps. Old Telugu film songs are played in the background. For that perfect village look, the restaurateur has transported the thick doors and small windows from his own house in his village. Gayathripuram draws a good crowd for its breakfast which is available between 7.00 a.m. and 10.30 a.m.
The items range from Rs. 18 for a plate of idli (two idlis) to Rs. 35 for a 70mm dosa.
Lunch is served between 11.30 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. Dinner time here starts at 7.00 p.m.and goes on upto 10.30 p.m. .
Everything served here is cooked in pure Telugu style.
The taste comes not from the spices but more from the onion, coconut, coriander and garlic. A good amount of chilli powder is used to spice up the dishes. Spice lovers will enjoy the food.
Though North Indian food is available here, what’s really in demand is the lunch buffet that offers South Indian food. Priced at Rs. 55, the buffet consists of dal, two curries, chutney, rice, sambar, rasam, curd, pickle, and a sweet.



The bitter gourd curry for example is cooked the way it is done at home. Boiled in tamarind and jaggery, it is lightly sautéed with fried onion, ginger and chilli powder. Lady’s finger fry has coconut and coriander powder. Sambar is prepared from homemade sambar powder which makes a world of difference.
The North Indian food has a good range of food on offer.
A must try is the Paneer Heaven — a starter, priced at Rs. 90. However, the biryani is quite bland. There really isn’t much choice in the dessert section.
The North Indian meal would come to Rs 250-300 for a meal for two. Visit this place for the variety of tiffin and the Andhra lunch.
Gayathripuram
Parking: Ample
Plus: Spicy authentic Andhra fare
Minus: Confined space within
Food: 3/5
Ambience: 3.5/5
Located in L.B. Nagar opposite Vijayalakshmi Theatre

This article was published HERE.