Shivaji Military Hotel

At the place I work, the food courts are filled beyond capacity during the lunch hours. You have to make a couple of rounds staring into plates to see who is about to finish. Then you quietly stand behind them to politely remind them that it is time they vacated the place. And as they are almost done, you begin to make your way into their chair ensuring nobody gets there before you.

Well, that was the scene at Shivaji Military Hotel when we went there for lunch one Sunday. Our fault, we picked the busiest day and the busiest time (1 PM). But no complaints on that because we expected the rush.

The restaurant is in a narrow lane very close to the Banashankari Bus stand. Ask for directions if needed. This humble eatery has won several coveted awards and you have to visit it in case you are in Bangalore. Like Koshy's, this one is a big checklist item in the 'must-dos' while in Bangalore.

The humble entrance

With our 3-month old baby, we stepped foot into this legendary place known for its biryani. We waited a bit and strategically placed ourselves in such a way that we got to sit as soon as a table was emptied.

Amidst the huge crowds there is not much of the ambiance that could be seen. Maintaining hygiene could be a constant challenge here but it did not bother us much.

While there was a menu, at peak hour, you have to go with what is available. So Chicken Biryani and Mutton Dry was the only thing available and we went with that. The food is served on Eco-friendly leaf plates and the service is fast. While the place can seat about 150 people, the same number were standing around waiting for their 'parcels'.

Chicken Biryani

Mutton Dry

The biryani is great, unique in taste and perfectly spiced. The green masala was evident in this one. I personally like biryanis where the rice and meat is cooked together as compared to the 'assembled' ones. With tender pieces of chicken thrown in, this biryani scored high with raitha and a spicy gravy to go with it.

The mutton was a pepper fry. The right amount of pepper and well cooked meat qualifies itself to a  second helping. The quantity was a little below average but the taste of the biryani left no space for complains.

Vinod particularly mentioned that he liked the food. A big win in itself. We'd love to go back there again on a day when its less crowded.

The pricing is average. However please note that the place is open only from 8 AM to 3 PM and closed on Mondays. Parking could be an issue.

Address: 780, 1st C Main, 45th Cross, 8th Block, Jayanagar, Bangalore

Ph no : +91 9845149217

Rating : 4 out of 5

Pay : By cash. Could not check for credit card

Meal for 2 : Rs 450                        

Zaika

The craving to have biryani is always there. But that special ‘Muslim’ biryani is just irresistible. So over the weekend, we were heading for late lunch and picked Zaika on MM Road for our fill of biryani.

The shirt stairs led to a spacious hall with basic seating. Fancy wall posters of biryani coupled with the enticing aroma make you order almost immediately. Though I gave a customary look at the menu, I anyway knew what I wanted.

A chicken biryani for me and a mutton biryani for Vinod. Aaaahhhh! Awesomeness. The gentle spices, the fragrant rice, the soft meat all cooked under ‘dum’ to create the perfect biryani. I loved this and I am definitely going back to this place. The masalas in both biryanis were the same. Sometimes chicken in the rice tends to be tough but the softness of this one completely surprised us. The mutton was tender as always.

Chicken Biryani

 I could have ordered another plate had it not been for this whole ‘watch your weight’ thingy. What’s more the biryani came with the famous tomato-brinjal gravy that is to die-for and the yummy phirni. Vinod stays away from the brinjal gravy making me a twice-as-happy person so I can have the share of two.

Raitha

Tomato and Brinjal Gravy

Phirni

Malai Kabab was our choice to accompany the heavenly biryani. Though it reached us after we had finished our rice, this was a good after snack. The chicken again was marinated in cream and light spices and was cooked to perfection in the tandoor.

Malai Kebab

This meal was one of the most satisfying meals of recent times. For those of you who wish to try other items, there are various options of tandoor and Chinese.

Pay by : Cash or Credit Cards

Average meal for two : Rs 450

Mel’s overall rating : 4 out of 5

Location: MM Road, Mosque Road, Frazer Town, Bangalore 560005. 

Kismis

Of the many eating joints that have sprung up in Mangalore, Kismis is a decent addition. Situated in Bijai Hills near Circuit house, this place offers south Indian, north Indian, International, Oriental and Arabic cuisines.

Walking in what strikes you first are the pink interiors hinting that this place must have hired a woman to do up the interiors. I am not biased but yes, we do love our ‘Pinks’.  The custom-made tall back chairs are a genuine attempt to give the place a modern chic look. From the extensive menu, we wanted to begin with a soup and ordered a Beijing Thong. Not a great name for a soup, but tasty nonetheless.

Beijing Thong Soup

A thick soup with shredded chicken and lots of red chilli paste, this awakened all my senses. With a dash of vinegar, I enjoyed (read slurped) it all the way. For starters we asked for the Al – Faham chicken. This dish was made of chicken breasts flattened out flavoured with ginger garlic paste and tomato and barbequed in Arabian style. The spices and the masala have the meat the needed zing. 

Al-Faham Chicken

Kismis offered choices in salads as well and we chose the Kismis special seafood salad. Salad veggies and chunks of assorted seafood tossed together in a cocktail dressing formed a meal in itself. But it was not much to my liking since I did not find the shrimps fresh. 

Kismis Special Seafood Salad

For main course, we picked Dijai Mandi from the Arabian food section. This was nothing but Arabian white rice with chicken. the rice was flavoured well with many spices but the chicken was extremely bland. The dish was accompanied by a sauce of tomato, ginger and garlic which did not  go well with the rice.

Dijai Mandi



Caramel Custard



To end our meal, we ordered for a Caramel Custard. A thin slice is what we got. Since I enjoy eating custard, the portion at Kismis was too little.  In all, our meal cost us a little over Rs 400. The service was good, ambience was decent and the food was just average. They would definitely have to work on their food to retain their customers.

Pay by : Cash and cards

Restroom : Did not visit

Average meal for two : Rs 450

Mel’s overall rating : 1 out of 5

Location: Bejai Hills, Circuit House Down Road, Bejai, Mangalore 575004. Ph: 0824 4279438

Saanjhi Dopahar

Saanjhi Dopahar, a small eatery with a catchy black and red board caught my attention each time I passed the place. Over the weekend, going by the recommendation of a friend who was new to Bangalore, I decided to have lunch at SD.

The restaurant is situated in a lane near the Airtel Showroom in Koramangala, almost next to Furtados music store (if you’re familiar with the area). It's located at the corner of a building and has an entrance from two sides. As soon as I entered I realized it could hardly accommodate about 15 people. The ambience was very basic with a few tables and chairs with tall back rests. Being a very small place, there is not much place to move around.

We were handed the menu as soon as we were seated – two of them. One had a multi cuisine selection of food items while the other had a array of combo meals. My first impression – this place reminds you of home food. Especially for those from up north, the Rajma curry and Rice can be quite inviting. The menu ran into about four sides of a card and we chose to order some chicken tikkas and kebabs from the tandoori section and some butter naan with Chicken masala. It was a lunch we had to hurry through and quickly called for the waiter. As we listed our preferences, we were told that none of them were available. Not a nice thing I must say, considering we did not order anything exotic.

Of the 8-10 sections of the menu, the waiter told us to choose what we wanted only form about 3 sections. And with the limited choice, we placed our order a second time. Chicken 65 , Chicken Dum Biryani and Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani after confirming all were available. After a few minutes, the waiter returned to tell us that Chicken Dum Biryani and Hyderabadi Chicken Biryani were the same. Did we have a choice now? But why mention two names in a menu if both meant the same?

Chicken 65

Chicken Biryani

The Chicken 65 was a shade of bright red and had a generous amount of lime juice sprinkled on it. I like it that way. Spicy and tangy. The quantity was a too little for the price. The chicken was not dry as in other restaurants but the taste was not bad.

Soon followed the biryani. My friend liked it but having tasted some great biryanis, this did not live up to its name. It possibly had every ingredient off the kitchen shelf into it, the biryani was laden with spice. Very amateur to say the least. This simple dish could have been made much better. The quantity was good with a good helping of chicken pieces. But again, it failed to impress.

What was worse was that the kitchen did not have a proper exhaust/ chimney facility and all the fumes were out in the dining area. The pedestral fan obstructed the smoke from going out. For the rest of our meal, we had our eyes burning. The ‘not-so-clean’ wash basin near our table was a put-off as well.

Saanjhi Dopahar is probably a restaurant you would like to try for daily lunch if you were studying or working near-by. I would like to believe the Rajma and rice was far better than what we ordered. This place is a complete no for a leisure lunch.

Pay by : Cash. Not sure of Credit Cards

Restroom : Looking at the wash basin, I avoided using the loo. Could not see one either!

Average meal for two : Rs 350 (including soft drinks)

Mel’s overall rating : NA

Location: Next to Furtados Music Store, near the Airtel Showroom Koramangala. The first right turn after HDFC bank junction, if you are coming from the Forum.