Showing posts with label Biryani. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Biryani. Show all posts

Tuesday 24 February 2015

Over the years Chennai has been seeing a host of Food Festivals being organized by the numerous Food & Beverages outlets located here. Some of these festivals have been very unique while the remaining were often the regular Biryani, Kebabs or Regional cuisines. However, there is one chain of luxury hotels that does things differently, way different than all others. Yes, Park Hyatt part of the Hyatt group of hotels conducts a culinary festival across all their locations globally. Chefs across different Hyatt hotels will take their expertise and culinary wisdom to showcase it other Park Hyatt locations. This culinary festival is aptly titled “Masters of Food and Wine” and is a perfect showcase of brilliance in culinary and beverage experiences.
The Grand Opening of the 2015 edition of the “Masters of Food and Wine” at Park Hyatt Chennai was on the 21st of February with the theme for the current edition being ‘Korean Cuisine’. The participating hotel for the current edition is the Grand Hyatt Incheon in South Korea with Chefs Eunseok Yang and Kyuchon Lee leading the way. Throughout the week they will be serving amazing Korean specialities at the Park Hyatt Chennai’s signature restaurant, “The Flying Elephant”. In addition to the culinary experience, one can also participate on a hands on Masterclass with the Master Chefs themselves.
(Chef Introductions)
The Grand Opening started off with the introduction of the all Chefs who were to take us on this culinary adventure. With the bonhomies done, we were now being geared to face the barrage of exquisite foods that was to be presented. Being the grand opening, the menu for the evening comprised completely of live counters. As there was so much to explore, I kept on hopping from one station to the other wondering where to start and where to end.
(Cured Fish along with some Antipasti)
As I made my way across the room, the first thing that struck me was the enormous variety of food being showcased. I started the evening with some Antipasti comprising of Tomato, Mozzarella along with Basil Pesto. This was followed by ‘Cured Fish’ comprising of a cured Indian Basa wrapped over some orange flesh with acidic green apple and topped with micro greens. The basa was cured to perfection and the marriage of orange made it a lovely pair. Being an ardent fan of cheese, I moved on to make a small cheese platter for myself with some Parmesan, Goat Cheese (Similar to Feta but difference being the composition of goat milk being higher in goat cheese) and some Emmental. Apricots, Figs and some nuts made the perfect accompaniments.
(Kimchi Salad)
(Kimchi Pancake)
(Cinnamon Punch and Bibim Bab)
With the Cold counter done, I next moved on to the Korean speciality counter where a ‘Sweet Pumpkin Porridge’ awaited. I would rate it to be one of the finest porridges to be tasted in a restaurant. This was followed by a ‘Korean Pancake’ made using Kimchi. The next up I was told was a staple road side dish in Korea called the Bibim Bab. A fellow foodie who accompanied me was raving about the same and decided to have a go. The rice along with the veggies and the Chilli sauce made it amazing such that I had a second serving of the same. To soothen our throats, the Korean section had an uber cool drink called the ‘Cinnamon Punch’. It seemed to be a combination of Cinnamon, Sugar and water but the drink was too good that within a span of few minutes I had myself take down a couple of glasses of the same.
(Mexican Counter)
(Taco and Corn Tamales)
(Spiced Plantain and Green Onion Enchiladas)
After trying out the Korean specialities, I ventured into the land of Latin America. We were greeted with some fresh crispy taco filled with the traditional guacamole, red salsa, cheese and sour cream. Also part of the Mexican fare was the ‘Corn Meal and Cheese Tamales’ served with a choice of refried beans or chicken stew. As always the last dish was the best for we got to savour some ravishing ‘Spiced Plantain and Green Onion Enchiladas’.
(Indian Counter)
From Latin America my gaze took me to our very own subcontinent, yes I moved on to check the menu at the Indian counter. From first looks, I could make out an array of different Biryani pots accompanied with equivalent number of clay pots filled with aromatic gravies. The different biryani’s presented were ‘Banajar Biryani’, a take on Hyderabadi biryani made using lamb followed by ‘Kattal Biryani’, comprising of Baby Jackfruit and culminating with ‘Malabar Prawn Biryani’ made using prawns cooked in coconut milk to infuse the Malabar flavours. The starters counter had a very unique tikka being dished out. The ‘Bhatak aur Anjeer ki Tikki’ was a succulent cutlet made using Turkey and dry figs that was served on top of a huge saffron bread topped with some Brown Onion and Tomato curry. 
(Baked Brie)
(Baked Brie)
(Beef Bourguignon)
With the tummy already going on a gastronomical world tour, it was decided to try the French counter before calling it a night. The French counter was manned or rather wo-manned by Chef Megha, the frivolous and outspoken Chef de Cuisine of The Flying Elephant. On platter for us here was the ‘Baked Brie’ which is an all-time personal favourite and a ‘Nicoise salad’ platted with some seared tuna, quail eggs and an anchovy dressing. However, the hero of the evening was this next dish, as it was the softest piece of beef I’ve ever savoured. This was so soft that I definitely didn’t need a fork leave alone a knife. The ‘Beef Bourguignon’ was truly outstanding. It had a piece of beef accompanied with some Jerusalem artichoke foam along with Mandarin zest and confit pearl onions. 
(Park Hyatt Signature Chocolate Cake)
(French Macaroon)
(Chocolate Decadence)
(Bounty Cake)
(Mango Cremeux Coconut Parfait)
(Coffee Pavlova with Seasonal Fruits)
(Mandarin Tart)
With all the savouries sampled, it was time to hit the dessert counter. Having desserts spread across an entire room can make any dessert lover a kid. I was just too excited to try them all and had planned for this right from the beginning of my food adventure that evening. The first up on the platter was the ‘Chocolate Decadence’ followed by a cake which Chef Dinesh and Chef Prabhu revealed was a version of the famous chocolate ‘Bounty’. In between I sneaked a few French Macaroons while heading to the counter stacked with some ‘Mandarin Tart’. This was followed by the ‘Mango Cremeux Coconut Parfait’ which stood out as the best dessert of the evening and a close second by the ‘Coffee Pavlova’ adorned with seasonal fruits.

With the desserts coming to a close, we called end to the sumptuous conclusion of the Grand Opening of the “Masters of Food and Wine” at the Park Hyatt Chennai. For those who are intrigued by this magnanimous experience and are awaiting to taste some fine Korean specialities, head straight to ‘The Flying Elephant’ to have an experience of a lifetime.


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Saturday 23 August 2014

One of the iconic landmarks in Chennai is undoubtedly the tall triangle shaped building located in the heart of the arterial Anna Salai. Even from the air, this building is quite easily identifiable. Having been under construction for quite some time, it was great news for Chennaities when in 2011 it was announced that the iconic building was to be the Launchpad for Hyatt chain of hotels in Chennai. The ‘Hyatt Regency Chennai’ was opening its doors to Chennaities bringing with it some amazing restaurants. Being centrally located, it was an added advantage.

Over the years, Hyatt Regency has been a hotel that has been frequented by the family and myself as we share a lot of fond memories of family gatherings and functions. The food used to always make us feel better and never was there a complaint. Their all-day dining restaurant ‘Spice Haat’ is a regular fare for late night cravings. Recently, at a random discussion a friend told me that their Italian restaurant ‘Focaccia’ serves one of the best Tiramisu’s in Chennai. True to his words, it was divine when I got the opportunity to savour it.
Recently, the culinary department at Hyatt Regency has undergone a change of guard. The new executive chef at the helm of operations is Chef Subrata Debnath, who comes with a vast experience across Hyatt properties in India & South-East Asia. His best man who incidentally also joined recently is Chef Manvinder Singh. Coming from the food lover’s favourite city of Lucknow, this evening he wowed us with his arsenal. 
As part of the three year anniversary celebrations, Spice Haat recently had a ‘Northern Frontier Food Festival’. Banking on the expertise of Chef Manvinder, this food festival was all about culinary specialities from the regions of Punjab, Peshawar, Multan, Baluchistan and Kashmir. This region is also collectively known as the Indus region named after the famous river that flows through them. This food festival was also part of Chef Subrata’s ideology of incorporating culinary delicacies from this region onto their regular fare at Spice Haat.
The first dish to be served to us that evening was the vegetarian kebab platter comprising of ‘Bhatti da Paneer’, ‘Methi te Bhutte di Seekh’ and ‘Tandori Phaldari Chaat’. The paneer was soft and succulent while the tandoori fruit chat bought old memories back as this is something that many restaurants now do not have on their menu. The Seekh was crispy and had the right amount of flavourings to balance the kebabs on the platter. This was followed up with ‘Patiyala Shahi Machi’ and ‘Surkh Murg Tikka’. Not being a big fan of fish, the ‘Patiyala Shahi Machi’ on the contrary was perfectly cooked with the fish still being wet delivering on the flavours of the crispiness of its marinade. The Murg on the other hand delivered on all the flavours that one can associate with a Tikka. It was one of the best Chicken Tikka’s I’ve savoured till date.
(Veg Starter Platter)
(Non Veg Starter Platter)
With the starters done, the Main Courses started with an array of curries. The first to make its way was the ‘Thabe wala Kukkar’. It was a slow cooked Chicken curry with deep aroma of tandoor infused. This was followed by the ‘Keema Matar’ and ‘Masaledar Karele’. The Keema Matar was very delicate with juicy minced lamb while the Karele which is bitter gourd was creatively cooked and wrapped with veggies. The bitterness of the Karele was tantalizingly hidden with the flavoursome veggies that accompanied it. When its Indus cuisine, how can we miss out on the lentils. The ‘Maa Choliye di Daal’ is again a slow cooked dal. Chef Manvinder revealed that it is a common offering during Langars at the Gurudwaras. Just like the name says, it definitely had the feeling of mother’s touch in that it tasted absolutely like home food. The accompaniments for the curries were ‘Makke di Roti’ and ‘Meat wale Chawal’. The chawal was similar to the biryani but was different in that it did not have the usual spices rather was cooked in the stock of the lamb itself. The final gravy that made its appearance was the traditional ‘Sarson da Saag’. One difference here was that it was accompanied with Palm Sugar. Apparently in Punjab during the harvest festival, Sarson is served with palm sugar as Sugar cane is harvested at that time. I was puzzled on how the combination would work but it completely surprised me. The addition of the Jaggery gave it an extra dimension and elevated the dish in its entirety.
(Thabe wala Kukkar)
(Maa Choliye di Daal & Masaledar Karele)
(Meat wale Chawal)
(Sarson da Saag)
To bring a closure to this amazing North Western culinary experience, we were served with ‘Jalebi’ and a ‘Teele wali Kulfi’. The Kulfi was phenomenal with actual rose petals in it while the Jalebi was distinctive in its sweetness with a subtle and balance note to it. The highlight of this Northern Frontier Food Festival was also to identify the taste of Chennai in comparison to cuisine from this region as the dishes that have been accepted well will find its way on their regular buffer dishes. 
(Jalebi)
(Jalebi)
(Teele wali Kulfi)
For a price of ₹1450 plus taxes, one can savour a wide variety of International cuisines at the all-day dining restaurant ‘Spice Haat’ in Hyatt Regency Chennai located on Anna Salai.

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Monday 14 July 2014

With the advent of Ramadhan month, most Chennai restaurants are engaged in dishing out yummylicious kebabs. But the only setback is that the kebabs at these restaurants include only the basic such as Tikka, Tandoori, Sheek or Malai. With people getting tired of savouring these over and over again, now seemed the perfect time to find a place that brought in some unique kebabs.

Just as this thought was running on, I was informed that ‘Paprika’ at ‘Courtyard by Marriott’ was running an “Awadhi” food festival. For those who might be wondering what Awadhi is, it is known better by its other famous name, the “Lucknowi Cuisine”. Awadhi is perhaps the cuisine that very closely resembles what we call the Nawabi khaana. Their spread not only includes mouth-watering kebabs like the Galouti & Shami but also the traditional Nawabi Biryani and delicious Kormas. Having savoured an amazing Galouti Kebab recently at one of the outings, a group of passionate foodies decided to check out the “Awadhi” food festival and deluge on some authentic kebabs. When we were further told that they had flown in their Awadhi cuisine specialist, Chef Yunus Khan, there was no turning back.

As we entered ‘Paprika’, the first thing that came to our notice was that the restaurant was very lively even though it was only a weekday. The décor along with a live Kathak performance resonated well with the food festival. The Awadhi cuisine is part of their regular buffet spread and started off with 2 Veg & 2 Non Veg starters brought to our table.

The first starter that was brought to our table was the majestic ‘Galouti Kebab’. Yet again the Galouti ticked the right boxes in terms of texture and softness. However, I personally felt that there was a tinge of one spice that had a more dominant taste on my palate which made it slightly unbalanced. Also the Roti was a bit soft which when enquired with the Chef was as I imagined intentionally done so to create a different texture between the melt-in-your-mouth kebab and the roti. This was followed by the ‘Malai Prawn’ which was a first for me. The prawns well delicately cooked to perfection and carried the right balance of flavour to make it truly the best dish of the evening. As they have an alternating menu, we were told that the other starter on the festival menu was a mutton chops.
(Mutton Chops)
(Galouti Kebab)
(Malai Prawns)
Coming to the vegetarian fare, we were served with another amazing starter that can rightly be called as the vegetarian’s Galouti. It was called ‘Khoya kas Galouti’ and was made using Paneer and Khoya. The kebabs were outright fantastic and is the best veg started I’ve savoured till date. I just couldn’t resist eating more and more. This was followed up with the traditional paneer starters, namely the ‘Malai Paneer’ and ‘Awadhi Paneer Tikka’, which were amazingly soft and loaded with flavours but nothing to beat the Khoya Galouti.
(Khoya kas Galouti)
(Malai Paneer & Paneer Awadhi Tikka)
By the time the starters were all done, we were so filled with amazing kebabs that a few of us decided to head straight to the desserts because there was one very unique dessert that kept intriguing us. But not wanting to miss savouring the speciality mains, I ventured on to the spread to savour some of them. The highlights amongst the mains was the ‘Nawabi Biryani’ which was very light on the palate and had loads of fabulous flavours bursting on every mouthful and was a raisin riot. The way the raising blended was truly outstanding. The other dish that picked my mark was the ‘Paneer Pista Hariyali’ as I’ve always had hariyali as a starter and never as a mains. The curry dish delivered at par to the standards set by the starters. The pista enhanced the flavours and made for a rich curry. The curry from the non-veg section that stood out was the ‘Mutton Korma’. The mutton was cooked to amazing perfection as you could still see the pink from the meat but could reassure yourself that the mutton was well cooked. Together with the naans, it made for a great combination.

(Mutton Korma)
Now coming to the desserts, like I’d said earlier, there was this particular dish which we’ve never heard before nor could we imagine as to how it would be. This dish of intense interest was the ‘Mirchi ki Halwa’. Yes, a dessert made of Chilli but not like the chilli chocolates that you must be thinking about. This was a proper halwa that was made using Bell Peppers. True to the expectation, the dish delivered hands on, a very palate friendly dessert with strong tinge of hotness. This alone should probably be your biggest motivation to indulge in some exquisite Awadhi cuisine and convince you to try them.
(Dessert Platter)
The Awadhi food festival is available at Paprika in Courtyard by Marriott till the 20th of July, 2014 and is priced at ₹ 1,250 including taxes.

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Wednesday 9 July 2014

Continuing in line with the Ramadhan (Fasting) month, today’s post is again an Iftar special but with a huge difference. During my childhood days, when I used to be in the Middle East, every Ramadhan we usually head to a couple of restaurants located in luxury hotels for Iftar. Each of these restaurants used to have a lavish spread of dishes and was truly a feast for the palate after about 16 hours of fasting. Keeping in line with the grandeur that Arabs exhibit, the spread used to have exotic fruits to wide range of meat cuts and summing up with an extra-ordinary variety of desserts. Moving over to India, this was always a miss, the sheer opportunity to sample around 50 dishes in a single go. Remember, I said sample not devour. ;)

A key question that I kept asking myself all these years was why hasn’t luxurious hotels caught up to this market yet. If cost was the only excuse then I can definitely vouch that it shouldn’t be. Again this year the same thought was crossing my mind when I suddenly stumbled upon what I’ve been wanting for ages. ‘Anise’ at ‘Taj Coromandel’ have finally decided to distinguish themselves and raise one notch above their counterparts. Yes, finally an Iftar special from a restaurant in a luxury hotel.

The iftar special at ‘Anise’ is meticulously crafted by the Executive Chef of Taj Coromandel, Chef Alok Anand and the outcome has been a deliciously nutrient rich menu following the traditional Iftar route yet having an own personality of its own. The Iftar Special is a Set-Menu beginning with ‘Iranian Dates’ served along with ‘Jallab’. Jallab is the Middle Eastern take on Rooh Afza aka Rose Milk. It is a drink made up of Dates, Rose water and with a topping of Pine Nuts minus the milk. This was followed by a big fruit bowl that set a perfect tone for the rest of the evening.
(Iranian Dates)
(Lassi & Jallab)
(Fruit Bowl)
With the fruits dusted, we were asked for a choice of a ‘Shorba Laham’ and ‘Lebanese Style Lentil Soup’. The mutton shorba had a strong flavour but was a tad too spicy for being served during Iftar. The Lentil soup made up for the shorba in a big way. Perfectly tempered lentils that provided the soup a completely different dimension in terms of texture. With the soups done, next up was the ‘Garbanzo bean and mint salad with Grilled Chicken’. The vegetarian alternative to the chicken salad was the classic ‘Fattoush’ salad. The salad was perfect in terms of portion size and had a very unique lemon dressing to it that captured the mood of Mediterranean in the right spirit.
(Lebanese Style Lentil Soup)
(Garbanzo Bean & Mint Salad with Grilled Chicken)
For the mains, one has an option to select either Chicken, Mutton, Fish or Vegetarian. The mutton being the ‘Gosht Biryani’, I decided to opt for the ‘Dejaj Mashwi’ to carry on with the authentic experience. The Mashwi was a portion of lemon roasted chicken with a Dill butter and served with some Horse Gram rice along with a vegetable ragout. The highlight of the mains was the intricate way in how it was balanced. The rice was very unique and together with the combination of chicken and ragout, made for a wholesome experience. As I enjoyed savouring my chicken, my friend went in for the Gosht biryani. The aroma of the biryani was so strong that I couldn’t resist its temptation. How can you have an amazing biryani sitting in front of you and not devour the same, hence I decided to take a go at the Gosht Biryani too. Honestly, it was the best possible biryani I’ve ever had at a restaurant in a 5 star hotel. Tender and juicy mutton pieces with a strong flavoured rice helped it stand apart from the other very average rice aka biryani that is available elsewhere. While the mains were being served, a glass of sweet rich lassi was bought to the table.
(Dejaj Mashwi)
(Gosht Biryani)
To bring closure to the Iftar menu, a portion of ‘Oum Ali’ and ‘Basbousa’ were served for the desserts. Oum ali is a form of milk pudding baked using condensed milk, nuts and puff pastry. Coming to the Basbousa, it is my favourite Mediterranean dessert and one that I’ve mastered baking myself at home. So it was a pleasant surprise to be served one. Basbousa is a semolina and coconut dessert sweetened with rose water and orange blossom. To balance the overload of sweetness, a small array of fruit platter accompanied the desserts, the perfect way to end the gourmet Iftar.
(Dessert Platter)

(Basbousa)
The Iftar Special Menu is available at Anise in Taj Coromandel till the 28th of July, 2014 from 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm. The four course set menu will cost you ₹ 1,250 plus taxes.

Till I see you soon with another Ramadhan post, If this article interested you, please share it so others may be interested and benefited too!!! Request you to also visit our Facebook page Food In Chennai - Facebook and share the page with a Like amongst your friends and also follow us on our twitter handle at @FoodInChennai. You can also follow us on Google Plus at Food in Chennai-Google Plus. Please also feel free to g+1 this post so others may be benefited too.

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Friday 12 April 2013


TGIF!!! End of another tiring week!!! Your party mood is at its highest. Well technically you have nothing that’ll prevent you from partying hard & safe. But what next after the great party. Does your stomach go grrrrrr and roars like the Chennai Super Kings? Your great after-party mood is being disturbed by the hunt for a place that is pocket friendly so that you can have a proper meal after all the liquids. Have no worries anymore. Why go for a meal when you can go in for a sumptuous buffet. Yes, party goers and midnight mongers, you now have a place to gorge of amazing food at late hours.

Our very own MainStreet restaurant located at Residency Towers has a Midnight Buffet special on Friday’s & Saturday’s. Starting only at 11PM, they have a complete spread from soups to desserts that is sure to keep you full till brunch next day. A few foodie friends and I decided to check it out and hence begun the midnight food trail for us at Residency Towers, T Nagar. 
(Welcome Drink)
Upon being seated at our table, we were provided with a welcome drink. It was a Pineapple juice aesthetically masked like a mocktail. Nevertheless as we weren’t on fluids prior to the buffet, all of us decided to attack it. Following the drink, we were served a refreshing Hot & Sour soup which although nothing special did feel nice at that point of time. The pack then decided to go check out the offerings on the main spread and boy were we not delighted. The salads started comprised of a Thai Mango Salad, Pasta Salad, Dutch Potato Salad and Mushroom & Broccoli Salad. The Pasta Salad was my favourite followed by the Thai salad.
(Assorted Salads)
(Pasta Salad)
The next on the main were the usual Veg. Pasta on Cream Sauce, a Fish gravy, a Chicken curry, Kadai Paneer, Mutton Biryani and Indian breads. Since the salads and non-veg made my tummy fill at that juncture of time, I did not venture out much into the vegetarian side of the spread. The biryani was mention worthy and at that point of time, one of the best that is available. I couldn’t just wait for the others to finish the mains as MainStreet is of the best places to gorge on desserts thanks to their usually wonderful and large spread of desserts. I was not let down this time either.
(Pasta on Cream Sauce)
(Mutton Biryani)
With a spread comprising of Gulab Jamun, Payasam, Caramel Custard, Orange cake and Lime Mousse, this should be heaven at this point of time. Being the dessert maniac, I did not leave a single dessert and had small servings of all that I was able to lay my hands on. The payasam was fabulous so was the gulab jamun. For caramel custard fans, you can just simply spend your full time on it. With the end of the desserts we were wondering what to do next as the time was close to 2 AM and we were all energetic after the amazing midnight food bash.
(Caramel Custard)
(Midnight Surprise)
MainStreet is located at Hotel Residency Towers, T. Nagar. Priced at Rs. 555/- inclusive of taxes, MainStreet is a perfect place to end up after some hard partying to satisfy your hunger pangs. Just a word of caution, the midnight buffet is available only on Friday and Saturday nights. So all those complaining of no fun at night in Chennai, now you know where your next weekend destination is.

Happy Partying. Most importantly safe Partying.

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