Appe-Thai-Sing

A restaurant that has been around for most of my life and one that I have visited over the years with family and friends alike is, Thai Pavilion. It’s one of the most popular restaurants situated in the Taj President hotel (now Vivanta by Taj) in the very south of the city, Cuffe Parade and infact, it is one of the only consistently good Thai restaurants in the city.

I remember when you had to walk through the small passage into the restaurant that had little Thai-looking ladies sitting in traditional costume carving intricate art out of fruits and vegetables. It was truly fascinating. After the refurb a few fears ago the place has seen a modern turn which still has a touch of Thai in the decorative motifs that adorn the walls.

The restaurant is spacious and comfortable with two distinct sections. Racks of worldly wines separate the main dining area to a smaller, semi-private area that can be given out to larger groups or parties. A large open-style kitchen sits in the middle of the restaurant with bar seating around it so patrons sipping on a delicious kafir lime infused cocktails can watch the skilled chefs busy cooking up a storm while they wait for their table to get ready.

Have you ever had those moments where you just want to leave Bombay and go for a quick holiday? Often you think of a place that’s close and accessible, like Thailand maybe. But then you realise that it’s just not going to happen the way you imagined. No? Well I definitely do…atleast once everyday. And post such moments of desperation, you’ll find me dining at Thai Pavilion with friends that have a similar series of thoughts. This night was no different. 

After enjoying a cocktail and platter of sushi at Wink, the bar next door, we worked up a bit of an appetite (yes, by not doing much except waiting and chatting) and quickly made our way to a cozy table at the Pav.

We were warmly welcomed by Joe, a staff member that I was told is synonymous with Thai Pavilion, and now I know why. A happy, smiling gent that told us that he has worked in the establishment for, get this, 32 years! Amazing! He knew everything and everyone and gave us a little history lesson about all the restaurants that stood where Thai Pavilion was today. One of my friends that was with us that night really summed up Joe in one line, “What Thai Pavilion lost in the way of fruit carvers, they made up with Joe” he said. It was a real pleasure to hear him share his memories and at the end of our little chinwag he was as happy to get his picture taken as I was to take it. So with a stride in his step and a flick of his hair I clicked a picture of smiling, happy Joe.

Now, to the best part. The restaurant sports a sizeable menu that is not overwhelming and yet has enough choices to keep you wondering as to what you should order and all you vegetarians, that goes out for you too. Lots of veggie options to choose from.

So we sent in our orders and got a bunch of dishes to share. Here is what we enjoyed;

kai haw baitoey; a serve of juicy chicken pieces marinated with a thick tangy but sweet sauce, perfectly parcelled in pandanus leaves and stir fried to perfection.

phad pak bung tao jiew; wilted crunchy stalks of morning glory leaves stir fried with a flavourful yellow bean paste.

pad thai vegetarian; broad flat rice noodles flavoured with tofu, green veggies and sprouts, stir fried in a beautiful spicy sweet and sour sauce and topped with crunchy peanuts. Yum!

gaeng kiew warn je; popular as ever vegetable Thai green curry. An aromatic coconut curry flavoured with a mix of fresh flavours like green chillies, coriander, lemon grass and kafir limes. A happy burst of flavours on your tongue. We ate this with a serve of fluffy steamed rice.

I truly believe that the secret of really good Thai food is the artful intermingling of flavours; sour, hot, sweet, salty. If you get that right, and Thai Pavilion surely has, then you’re in for a real treat, every time!

Thai-rific! ;)

Address:
Thai Pavilion,
Vivanta by Taj President,
90, Cuffe Parade,
Colaba,
Mumbai- 400005.

Facebook:
Thai Pavilion

Heat and Eat

For those of you that don’t know about Gits, research told me that the Gits food company has successfully been around for the last 50 years. That’s a long time in the industry so they know what they’re talking about. They started off with pre-packaged mixes like dosai mix, idli mix and gulab jamun mix that quickly became a staple packet across not just Indian kitchens but also for travellers and college students that wanted to take a little flavour of home with them. Today the Gits mixes, dairy products and ready meals are available not only in India but across popular supermarkets in US, UK and Australia to name a few.

With a name like Gits how could I say no? It’s a common pet name for a long name like Gitanjali so, when FBAI (Food Bloggers Association of India) contacted me I sent in my details. I love getting packages. It’s so exciting to get one in the mail and make your way through the layers of wrapping to reveal what’s inside.  A few weeks later I was thrilled to receive my very own Gits heat and eat meals review box. A navy blue box with a light shine that contained 2 boxes of ready meals; Veg Biryani and Dal Makhani.

Both meal boxes had attractive packaging that definitely made you want to eat the contents. Once opened, it was as easy as tipping out the contents of each silver foil packet into bowls and into the microwave for 2 minutes. Yep dinner all ready in just 2 minutes. So if you've had a long day and need a quick fix, go Gits!

The Biryani didn't quite turn out like the image on the cover but definitely tasted the part. Flavourful loose long grains of aromatic Basmati rice mixed into lightly curried vegetables with a distinct hint of saffron.

The Dal Makhani was equally tasty. A restaurant-worthy black dal (rightly so as it does contain 5% of cream and 3% of butter), with a smoky full-bodied flavour. Although it says mild on the pack it’s packed with strong spices and you can feel the heat of the garam masala.

Both dishes were fairly spicy so for the light-spiced folks like me, make sure you include a creamy yoghurt raita to calm those taste buds and cool your insides. I would also recommend a salad to add that extra bit of nutritious roughage to your diet and finish it off with an ice cold, home made limbu paani. Burrrp! ;)

Website: 

Gits Foods

Facebook:

Gits Food Facebook

Dough Re Mi…

Fa So La Ti Dough :)

This one’s been a long time coming. A couple of months ago on my long way home from work, I drove past an attractive black and white sign that read, ‘The Bakers Dozen’ and I thought wow, there’s a new bakery in town and so, the next day I decided to pay this trendy signed shop a visit.

I walked in expecting to buy me a chocolate croissant or a cheesy puff but instead all they had was a selection of beautifully baked breads. At first I was a little surprised but then I took a minute and thought hey! where in this city can you find yourself a really good, authentic, gourmet loaf of bread? Ok, the five star hotels maybe, but that’s about it. So along came The Bakers Dozen who had the exact same thought before they started up.

Aditi Handa, her husband Sneh and her brother Siddhart left their respective corporate jobs to partner together and pursue their own business. They wanted to translate their common passion for food into reality. They wondered what it was that would work and after sifting through a number of ideas and options thought about opening a bakery. Initially, the idea was to open a generic bakery that served up a selection of breads, cakes and pastries. One that we are all familiar with but as the concept took form, it made them stick to the promise of offering their customers quality bread at convenient prices.

Aditi, the face behind the kitchen, who I had the pleasure of catching up with, told me that three days into her bread making course at the International Culinary Centre in New York, she realised that she’d found her life’s calling. Her passion while narrating the story itself said it all. She loved every minute of her course and made some great friends along the way that she gets tips and pointers from to date. When she tried her hand at pastry making it didn’t seem to excite her as much as baking bread. “It’s a totally different experience” she said. “Making bread requires a special skill and patience in a hot and humid environment. It’s not impossible to learn and if you enjoy it, the rewards are plenty.”  And so they were. After days of endless trials and errors, Aditi and her team of young bakers that have been trained by her, have put together a lovely selection of fresh stone-baked, natural, artisan breads in a number of interesting varieties.

I had the pleasure of sampling a few:

Pain de Complet Multigrain; a multigrain sandwich bread that is a little hard in nature compared to your average packaged breads.  Aditi explained to me that the reason for this is, that contrary to other processed breads, The Bakers Dozen breads are baked in a stone oven as compared to a regular oven resulting in a slightly crunchier texture. The other reason is, that all the breads at The Bakers Dozen are hand-made and have no preservatives. No bread improvers have been used to soften the dough which gives the bread a more wholesome and rustic feel. The pain de complet multigrain is excellent for toast and you can taste the goodness of the grains throughout the bread which gives it that extra crunch.

Four Grain; this delicious German bread was by far my favourite! A rich, hearty bread that has a mix of pumpkin, sesame, flax and sunflower seeds incorporated throughout the perfectly crusty top and soft doughy inside. Makes lovely, wholesome sandwiches and beautifully crunchy toast.

Challah; a deliciously decadent Jewish bread that is made with egg, sugar or honey and oil. A dense but fluffy bread that is similar to brioche in that it is slightly sweet in taste and goes excellently well with jam, peanut butter or nutella. I did a little research and also found out that Challah is the best bread to make french toast and bread & butter pudding and my Bombay brethrens, it is now available at your local bakery for the taking.

Ragi Crackers; little brown triangles of nutritious, crunchy crackers that are yummy just plain and even better when dunked into a pot of creamy homemade yoghurt dip. A healthy all day snack and something different to add to your chips and dips platter at parties.

Currently, The Bakers Dozen has set up shop in the suburb of Prabhadevi but fear not South Mumbai, there’s going to be one due to open its doors around the first week of August in your neighbourhood as well, Kemps Corner. YAY!

Before I leave you, another amazing fact that I learned about these speciality breads that I just must share. Every slice of bread from The Bakers Dozen menu, will give the same amount of protein as a bowl of dal (lentils).  Amazing! a couple of slices keep you feeling full and very satisfied.

I absolutely can’t wait to go back for more and make my way through their selection of other traditional European breads like; the sweet French Brioche and the Pain Au Levin with walnuts and raisins, the olive laden Italian Focaccia and the assortment of mini Dinner Rolls.

Aditi assured me that their menu is only going to get better and they will soon be adding croissants, muffins and possibly even ready sandwiches to their collection.

Oh and watch out, Aditi also plans to open her own gourmet school someday and I for one am sure she will and it will be just as great as her freshly baked crusty loaves of bread :) 

Ratatouille

Address:

The Bakers Dozen,

9, Jayant Apartments,

Near Century Bazaar,

Appasaheb Marathe Marg,

Prabhadevi,

Mumbai- 400025.

Facebook:

The Bakers Dozen

Farmville

Sorry all you budding e-farmers out there but Farmville is a game I never really got into at all. What I do love though are Farmers Markets. Walking through isles and carts of fresh, earthy wares. Taking in the different stories and ideas of upcoming local brands and products and of course, sampling. Oh I love the sampling! And the best part is that even when I'm scoffing down gooey brownies and chips & dip I feel good about myself. Like I'm participating in the fight for all things good and healthy.

So, when I got word of the Farmers Market that was happening in Pune, on my weekend there, it was the first place I went to bright and early on Sunday morning. Hey! 10:30am on a Sunday is bright and early don’t you think?

So off I went, to market to market, cloth bag in tow, hippie at heart, ready to meet and greet the people of Pune. The market took place at the grounds of the Westin Hotel which is a little fancy for a Farmers Market but nonetheless, I loved it.  It was a small area, not as large and widespread as I had imagined but cute and cozy and best of all we got to be out-doors but still under cover from the rain.

As I walked through stalls promoting products like organic grains, home-made sauces and chemical free produce, these are the people that I met who made all the difference to my rainy Sunday morning…

Pride Of Cows; a Bombay-Pune based operation that delivers fresh bottles of milk to your doorstep just 7 hours after the happy cow has been milked. I say happy because the company ‘prides’ itself on the philosophy that ‘Pedigree, Perfect, Proud and Pampered’ cows that are fed high quality, healthy meals, produce the best quality milk. And so it was. Rich, creamy, wholesome milk and guess what?! Just 3% Fat content. You cannot put a price on an operation like this. It’s humane, well-run and offers a quality product. So what are you waiting for? Get moo-ving and order now.

The Good Juicery; who doesn’t love a glass of bubbly….I'm talking about fruit bubbly. Goodness that the whole family can enjoy. And for us alcoholics, a great way to create your own little cocktail ;) It’s simple, fresh ingredients, no artificial flavours, colours or preservatives and the benefit of upto 2 portions of fruit in a can. Available in 3 delicious flavours; apple, guava and passion fruit. My favourite is the guava; perfectly pink and lightly fizzed to add that little bit of sparkle to every sip. Mmmm.

Cheeni; happy, smiling Anushka Aurora had a table of the most delish looking baked goods that just looked too good to pass up. Cupcakes, tarts, brownies and cookies, laid out with the cutest packaging, ready for people to pack away. So I shimmied my way over and helped myself to some of the collection and wowww…I’ve got my order ready for next weekend! Soft, gooey, melting moments of brownie. Spongy cupcakes with the perfect swirl of frosting. Crunchy tart shells with creamy lemon or chocolate filling. Heaven! Oh and your not going to believe what I’m about to tell you. This young, budding baker has picked up all her skills from the age of 10 from You tube. Say whaaaat?! Uhh huuhhh! You tube! That was really just the icing on the cake! One that I can’t wait to trial very soon.

Only Priya’z; a small counter that was serving up fresh, home-made breads in all shapes and sizes. Priya, the girl behind this bakery did not let the fact that she’s hearing impaired stop her from talking to us about her selection of whole wheat, multi-grain, focaccia and other delicious breads. She supplies bread on order to those that want their daily bread to be from a fresh loaf. Contact her on 9822306360.

Last but not least we ended the market at theindianbean.com; an online operation that runs out of Mysore by a pair of budding brothers that source coffee beans directly from small local farmers across popular locations like Coorg, Kodaikanal and Mysore. What they offer is the flavour of single beaned coffee that is fresh, fair trade and preferably organic in the form of whole beans, coarse ground or fine ground packs with interesting names. The process is simple; go to their website, choose your favourite coffee from their selection and order away. I sampled the Frowners coffee; a rich, whole-bodied coffee that went down smooth. It was just the kick start I needed to get me through the rest of my day.

At the end of the morning, it felt good to support these passionate entrepreneurs that have the courage to start new businesses that basically cater to providing us with better options. My new resolution is that I'm going to try and eat healthier, wholesome food as far as possible and I really would urge you to try and do the same.

With that done and a bag full of goodies later I made my way to the exit and left the market a happier me. Can't wait for the next one!

Facebook:

Pune Farmers Market

Pride Of Cows

Good Juicery

Cheeni

theindianbean.com