Bistro Claytopia

There’s no dearth of good places to eat in Bangalore. Bistro Claytopia is my new favourite. With their successful hangout at Indiranagar, they have now started a place closer home in Koramangala. And for long we were looking for a place where we could sit for hours and not be disturbed and Claytopia seemed like the answer.

We headed there for a weekend dinner. The place was not crowded considering it had opened about 10 days ago. As I entered the place, everything reminded me of Goa. They have a part indoor and part outdoor seating. Set in the front yard of a house, this place looks like any Goan restaurant with trees lit up and bences to sit on. What’s more they even played Goan Konkani music for a while.

The name Claytopia comes from the fact that guests here can paint items made of clay. You can pick (read buy) the item of your choice and paint it, the team will then process this and call you when its ready to be picked up, which generally is about 7 days.

We were meeting our friends Neha and Abhi after long and chose not to ‘clay’ around. We went straight for the food. The menu is that of a coffee shop with no specific dinner options. But if you’re not fussy about what to eat for lunch or dinner, this is just the place. Mark, one of the persons incharge here was sweet and very considerate about our needs.

The milkshakes looked extremely tempting and we had to order them that very minute. So the Creamy Oreo shake and Brownie shake it was! Both of them were extremely thick and were generous on the oreo and brownie. Guys, good job done…but I hope you retain the same quality each time unlike other places that are inconsistent. We even ordered  another Crazy Nutty Hazelnut which was espresso with cream, double scoop ice cream, torani hazel nut topped with whipped cream and nuts. Sounds exciting na? Well they forgot to serve us this and we too forgot about it until I returned home and checked the bill where we were charged for a coffee we never had. Well, we should have been more careful.

The Creamy Oreo Milkshake

Brownie shake

Irish Coffee

 First on order were the Barbecues Chicken wings followed by Spicy Chicken Strips and Cheesy Jalapeno Poppers. The wings were soft with the bbq sauce while the strips were tangy and flavourful. The cheesy poppers are anyway an all-time favourite and had to be good. For more reasons that one this place reminded me Jamie’s Place in Goa which is still my ‘favouritest’ restaurant in the ‘world’. Phew! That reminds me of school!

Chicken Wings

Spicy Chicken Strips

For the main course, all of us picked burgers with no prior planning. Neha enjoyed her Double Delight Chicken Burger combo which was a delicious combo of crispy chicken, minced chicken and chicken salami with egg, mushhrooms and cheese. Vinod went in for The Ultimate Sausage which was a chicken mortadella (cold cut sausage)  and a chicken patty with cheese, mushrooms, egg and gherkins. Both these were combos and were to come with fries and coke. Well, they forgot the coke. I remembered it while I was writing this review. We were too busy chit chatting that day. Well, a sure shot lesson learnt now.

Cheesy Jalapeno Poppers

Double Delight Chicken Burger

Bbq Chicken Burger

The Ultimate Sausage

Abhi chose a simple Barbecued chicken burger while I took a Street Side Cheesy Double Dog. The menu read that this dish had sausage with minced chicken, jalapeno, olive and cheese. But mine had barbecues chicken cocktail sausage with grilled onions, olive and cheese, which means they swapped my order with another.  Claytopia has another dish called The Lick-a-licious Dog which has the same ingredients. And how did I know this? I brought home a take-away menu and read through the descriptions.

Supposedly The Street Side Cheesy Double Dog

Double Chocolate Mousse

All the burgers were good, though I would not say they were extraordinary. For dessert we coaxed ourselves to a Double chocolate mousse (I hope I got the name right) which was very good and didn’t seem less though shared by four.

Despite all the goof-ups I think the ambience and company did it for me. I still would go back there, only to be careful the next time around.

Pay by : Cash and cards (the line will be up shortly)

Restroom : Very neat with potted plants

Average meal for two : Rs 800

Mel's overal rating : 3 out of 5 (I could have rated this place better had i not realized the numerous goof-ups)

Location : Next to SBI, Diagonally opposite to Koramangala Wipro Park, Koramangala I Block, Bangalore 560095. Phone No. 080 64350526

Smoked Out Barbecue

So it was 6pm on a weekday, Vinod and me were still in office barely done with our day’s work. With a lot of work done that day, we thought we deserved a good meal rather than cook it ourselves. With this thought we were deciding on which place to try out. That’s when we came across ‘Smoked Out Barbecue’. I had read about this place a while ago and the location and the type of food seemed perfect for us.

We called the restaurant for directions. It was not difficult to find at all. What welcomed us was this little place adjacent to a service apartment. With a basic seating that can accommodate a maximum of 30 people, this place is neatly done up. No plush interiors here, it’s a semi outdoor seating.

The menu is not vast but boasts of their signature dishes. With a home style grill, this place promises a good American home BBQ experience. Once the meat is on the grill, the place is actually smoked out. For starters, everything on the menu looked inviting and so we asked for a Barbeque Platter. A dish that took about 30 mins or more to arrive but was totally worth the wait. Four very large wings, two drumsticks and a really large chicken thigh. I am so glad we were just the two of us. While the quantity was great, the taste was too good to share. The marinade was a predominantly ready to use bbq sauce with added spices. With a sweetish tinge, that how I like my sauce. This one was perfect.



BBQ Platter

The accompaniments

Tendeloin Steak

At the end of the platter we had little space left for main course and so opted to share a Tendeloin steak. We asked for it to be very well done. This one was extremely juicy and a little tangy too making it a great meal. The meal was not tough and hence we didn’t have to fight with the cutlery.

With, no space for desserts, we decided to call it a day. And we’re definitely going back there again!

Pay by : Cash or Credit Card

Restroom : Decent and manageable

Average meal for two : Rs 750

Mel’s overall rating : 3.5 out of 5

Location  : No. 426, 8th Main Road, 4th Block, Koramangala, Bangalore 560095. Ph : 080 40921023

Mangala Bar & Restaurant

If you an old timer in Mangalore, you’re definitely familiar with Mangala. For years, this restaurant has dished out several delicacies for the Mangalorean palate. Situated near Fathima Retreat House in Jeppu, this place has come a long way from being just a bar and restaurant to a hip and happening hang-out. Thanks to the next generation that took over the management, Mangala has become a much sought after place for great food.

I had been to this place a few years ago with my uncle who has to pay his customary visit each time he comes down to India. Such was the restaurant’s reputation. But somehow having seen fancy restaurants around, a dark and dingy place didn’t go well with me.

Vinod convinced me that the place has changed and I decided to try it. I am sssoooo glad I did it. To begin with, the place has been strategically divided into various sections- pub, family seating area, smoking zone and the old dark section. These are not the names given by the owner, but that’s what I figured by looking around at the seating.

We seated ourselves in the family area, which was filled with a lot of youngsters intrestingly. I am guessing it was the spill-over crowd as the pub was jam packed on that Saturday night. Some things never change- like the old waiters who are right now going through a culture shock watching babes in short skirts as against middle aged aunties walking around in saris.

As the place was packed, we had to wait to place an order as well as to receive it. Mangala has long been famous for its bar and now in their new avatar, they serve some amazing cocktails too at throw-away prices. Vinod ordered a cocktail (missed writing the name) and me a Bloody Mary - classic cocktails that never fail to impress.

Bloody Mary

The menu offers a multi cuisine fare. The famous Freddies (burgers) are a recent super-hit addition amongst other great choices. To go with the drinks, We ordered a Fried Chicken which were diced chicken fried in Indian spices.

Fried Chicken

We also ordered Roast Pork Chops. What a  delight! Succulent, juicy pork chops in a dark sauce which tasted like a Teriyaki sauce. The meat was so soft, it came off the bone with absolutely no effort. Because of the long wait, the waiter himself suggested that we go onto the main course. So, we skipped our second round of cocktails and took Breezers instead.

Roast Pork Chops

For main course, Vinod ordered a Kori Rotti for himself. This is a Mangalorean delicacy of red-chili based chicken curry and crisp dry wafers (the thickness of a Khakra or even thinner) made from boiled rice. The wafers (rotti) are broken to pieces and soaked in the gravy. The gravy was truly delectable and was soon swept clean off the dish.

I was told never to miss the Freddie and chose a Phat Freddie. The look of this burger can add on a 1000 calories to your weight. The posters around the place make it absolutely irresistible. My Phat Freddie had a beef patty with bacon, sour cream, lettuce and cheese. This had heaven in every bite. The patty was done to perfection and gave  KFC and McD a run for their money. Phat Freddie comes in choices of chicken, beef and pork. 

Phat Freddie

We would have loved to eat more, but for the rush. Mangala is surely going to be added to my list must-visit places in Mangalore. 

Pay by : Cash and cards

Restroom : Did not try

Average meal for two : Rs 800 with cocktails

Mel’s overall rating : 3.5 out of 5

Location: Silva Cross, Jeppu, Mangalore. Ph: 0824 2436726.