Kala Ghoda ke picche- The Pantry

My love for food has taken me many places big and small but seldom has it taken me to a place that is a complete treat not just culinary but for the eyes as well. In one of my previous blogs ‘Food show addiction’ I had spoken about how there is a promise of a dreamy, fairy lights decorated Nigella’s  kitchen that transcends the food to another level of goodness as it fulfills the senses at many levels. So even if you cant taste the food she makes you would love to be right by her side when she makes those recipes in a magical pot in that equally magical setup. 

Uff! Enough said about Nigella and her kitchen. However there is a reason behind all that chatter; my recent visit to a new eatery in town that has me and the in-laws swooning about not just the food but its looks. Set in the heart of the city,at the posh-arty location of Kala Ghoda, THE PANTRY gives us a little piece of England in its looks but a brilliant assortment of organic food from all over India.

First the decor! The moment I lay my eyes on this place it clearly looked like a white drop of snow in the cluttered, back (read black)ally of town. We went there because the place came with serious recommendations for my brother in law who takes his food very seriously as well. According to him, the place reminded him of Rene’s cafe in the good old comedy ‘Allo Allo’. Being a Parsi I am sure he has love for everything Victorian :-). And that gets me back to the Victorian windows that add to the cosy interiors of this place. The ‘semi curtains’ in white made it even more angrezz!  Inside, the fairy lights and some intelligent paper collages makes  for a place that is unpresumptuous, and super cozy!almost nothing like any place else in the city. The very unprofessional pictures taken from my Iphone may just give you a bit of an idea about what I am talking about.

The husband and I landed up there on the first evening of the new year with his brother and fiancé in tow for a ‘light cafe meal’. This was in order keeping in mind a very sober New Year’s Eve thanks to our new and precious member of the family, our son Jehan. It was one of those very few pleasantly cold Mumbai evenings. The Pantry’s ambiance quickly got us in the mood to try on almost everything on the menu. That brings me to the food.

No matter how great the ambiance of a place, very clearly food connoisseurs need their reasons to be happy. True to its name, this place stores the best ingredients from all their specialist states. The sugar and honey come from Punjab, the dairy from Parsi dairy farm and many other food basics that I cease to remember. It is a start up of a few food lovers who are making the effort of cutting the middle man and bringing organic food from the farmers, straight on the table.

So there, we looked at the menu. Although they have a tempting selection of coffees, tea  and hot chocolate on offer, we chose to try out their all organic savory selection first (trust me, we have many a times started with desserts :-)). Their fresh salads included a variety of salad leaves, pears and various kinds of cheeses. Brilliantly refreshing and ample! Next on order, a pulled pork sandwich and sausage roll. Fantastic!. The size of both was just perfect from cafe meal perspective but if you are 'geedadd' hungry then it would be sensible to call for a lot more of those sausage rolls! dukh ki baat yeh hai  that their stuff usually is very limited in number. So doing pehle aap,pehle aap while ordering may see the sandwich train leave the food station super fast!!.Up next, the ham stand sandwich which had basic ham and cheese but filled with great English mayo and mustard in a super fresh bread. Moving to the sweet section, I had to try the bread & butter pudding, a childhood favorite which was pretty sadly pretty dry than how I remembered it last but it somehow made up for the flavour with the magical sprinkling of cinnamon. i think cinnamon brilliantly works at making anything saada into something exclusive. the chunks of gooey bread looked better than they tasted :-) yet. The husband on the other hand is the guinea pig for all desserts ‘banana’ at everyplace. He tried the bannoffee tart which was given a thumbs up. Next on the 'try-al' was the hot chocolate. hmmmm! it was richly Belgian and could give the sinful counterpart at 'la pain quotodien' a run for its money. the accompanying chocolate chip cookie with melting chocolate chips in the middle toh dil le gayi!!. There is another one on the menu! oatmeal butterscotch cookie which was the poor step sister to the chocolate one; it was an unimpressive version of ‘Cookie Man’s Brandy snaps’. Along with this the chocolate twisty was also quite some what neither here nor there!.  The damage was pretty reasonable of 450 rupees per person.

The Pantry also provides free wifi, so your I-pad, laptop,kindle can give you company over a cuppa. I prefer the real thing- books over a nice kahwah

Beginning early at 8 in the morning the lights are out by 11.30pm. All in all, this cafe is indeed like a breath of fresh air or shall I say aroma of freshly roasted coffee beans that takes over the moment you enter the gully right next to Fab India.
Try it out for the love of everything that makes you happy!   

Of flowing river and brilliant musings: Coorg!

Jan 26, 2012 6.45 pm Place: COORG, Amanvana


So here we are at the Scotland of India- COORG after a small flight and long cab journey via Mysore! Despite being up since 5am and except for catching small snoozes during the drive, my dear Anvita and I are still chirpy, giggly, cracking jokes and absolutely fresh. The legs hurt but not like they would after a presentation for hours. Eyes are dry as well but I still don’t mind gazing at the stars in our private courtyard (ahem..! ) that houses a lotus pond as well. The bungalow is absolutely beautiful with patio lighting for honeymooners (hyuk!!).Amanvana, the place we are staying in the ever so beautiful Coorg is almost like a ‘jack in the box’ kind’a place. While entering this property both anvita and I were wondering if its location in the city would really be any good for our ‘chaen’ and ‘Aman’ but surprisingly it’s not just incredibly beautiful with manicured landscapes but supremely serene as well. There’s a lot of promise for a quaint picnic alongside river Kaveri with our respective books and chutney sandwiches. The chocolate scrub at the spa sure would be super relaxing too J however that is still a promise as of now.


Meanwhile, am awaiting the ‘Blue Banyan’ wine (a a new brand of wine) & cheese crackers to ease off any remaining tensions of physical and the emotional journey of life.


ANU


P.S. it is amazing that when we are in a clutter free, clean lemongrassy environ all the writing flows brilliantly! Happy republic day alsoooo!