Veggies 365 | Restaurant Review

Place: Veggies 365 
Location: Madhapur Main Road 
Cuisine: Indian 
Meal: Dinner (with a friend)

Having heard good things about this place in the recent past, decided to go give it a try, and was here with a friend on a weekday. The place was very bright, and had nice interiors. It was pretty empty, but for one other table occupied and we seated ourself in a corner.

The staff seemed pretty courteous and nice. They gave us our time to choose from their small yet vast menu. I was tempted to have a go at almost everything in there, but finally decided to go try the Delhi Belly Thali and Rajma Chawal (together). We also ordered a Lassi.

In about ten minutes, a huge thali with Paneer Sabji, Mixed Vegtable, Dal Makhani, a butter Naan, Roti, a bowl of white rice, Raitha, Salad and Gulab Jamoon was served. It looked quite a meal. The Paneer Subji was good (the paneer wasn’t fresh), Mixed Vegetable was excellent, and the Dal was too thin, but alright. The Roti was little hard, the Naan was soft and very good. The Jamoon was yum.

For Rajma Chawal, I expected it to be pre-mixed, but it wasn’t. The Rajma was a little too thin, but otherwise excellent. The rice could have been of better quality though.

The Lassi was served in a small glass, not chilled, and was very sour.

Overall, except for the Lassi, the rest of the meal was very good. I was very impressed with the price and the quantity of the food served. The service was very good, and so was the ambiance. This is one place I am definitely coming back to. Give it a shot!!

Food: 8.5/10
Service: 8.5/10
Ambiance: 8.5/10
Meal for 2: Rs. 230/-

Verdict: 8.5/10

Shanghai Chef | Restaurant Review

Place: Shanghai Chef 
Location: Madhapur Main Road, Next to Hyderabad House 
Cuisine: Chinese, Thai 
Meal: Dinner

Last weekend, met some guys from couchsurfing and we then decided to eat Chinese at Mainland China. On the way, we changed plans and instead dropped in at Shanghai Chef in Madhapur. The place had nice interiors, and the ambiance was pretty neat. It was quite crowded, but we (a group of five), found a table without having to wait.

Once seated, it took forever for the waiter to attend to us. After a long wait, he was ready to take our order. We were doing individual orders; I had a Virgin Pina Colada (coconut milk and Pineapple juice) to drink and Vegetable Dim sums to start with. I wanted to have their Basil Fried rice, but after 15 minutes of placing the order, the guy comes out and tells me that they had no Basil. So went for the Pad Thai Noodles.

The Pina Colada was good, but very sweet for my taste.

The Dim Sums were boring. They were well cooked (steamed), but tasted bland. We asked for some Chilly Garlic sauce, but all we got was Coconut Mint chutney.

After another long wait, the Noodles were served. Thankfully, they tasted good. The noodles were well cooked and the veggies had nice flavor to them, a bit spicy, yet perfect. The quantity served was also good.

Overall, it was a decent meal, but the service was horrible. Initially, it was understandable for the place was full, but even after it got empty, it was the same. The pricing was decent, and so was the quantity, but for the horrendous service, I might not be coming back to this place for a long time.

Food: 8/10
Service: 4/10
Ambiance: 7.5/10
Meal for 5: Rs.  1540/-

Verdict: 6.5/10

Arena – Taj Deccan | Restaurant Review

Place: Arena 
Location: Taj Deccan, Rd. No. 1, Banjara Hills 
Cuisine: Multi-cuisine 
Meal: Dinner (with amma)

When I got a Taj voucher from Zomato, decided to go take amma out for dinner. So here we were on a Thursday evening. We could choose from any restaurant at Taj Deccan, and we zeroed on the 24 hour cafe, Arena.

The moment we entered, we were given the choice of either going for the lavish buffet or a-la-carte. Neither of us were really hungry, so we decided to order from the menu. I had gone through their menu online before hand, and so it was easy to order. Ordered a Tandoori Malai Aloo for starter, Veg Club Sandwich for amma, and Fungi e Panna (mushroom and cheese) pasta for myself.

It took forever and I mean forever for the food to be served, not that we had an issue, but it was kinda getting annoying after a while. Finally, instead of getting the starters alone, he brought all the food at once.

I was kinda disappointed with the quantity of Aloo served. It was supposed to be potatos stuffed with dry fruits and nuts cooked in clay oven, but all I found were roasted baby potatoes. No nuts, no dry fruits. Thankfully, they were well cooked, and tasted good with the Mint chutney served along. But still, a let down!

The Sandwich looked good, and the french fries tasted yum. I asked for some mayonnaise and ketchup (which again took a while to be served), and with a mix of both, amma enjoyed the sandwich with grilled vegetables.

I asked for my pasta to be cheesy, but forgot to mention that I wanted spaghetti. It didn’t look cheesy, but was yum. The penne was perfectly cooked, the sauce was kinda dry, but still tasty. The bread served along though was very very hard though.

Overall, the food wasn’t anything great, but me and amma had a very good time thanks to the perfect ambiance. It was quite and peaceful and we sat there almost for 3 hours. The service was very slow, and you definitely expect better stuff at Taj. The food was over-priced as expected and the quantity was not that great either. Nevertheless, for the ambiance, I’d give it what I give. 🙂

Food: 7.5/10
Service: 6/10
Ambiance: 9/10
Meal for 2: Rs. 1240/-

Verdict: 7.5/10

PS: Thanks Zomato for the voucher!! 🙂

Chutneys | Restaurant Review

Place: Chutneys 
Location: Nagarjuna Circle 
Cuisine: South-Indian 
Meal: Brunch 

First review of Chutneys!

On a Sunday afternoon, decided to go hog at Chutneys with a friend. She couldn’t make it for some reason, so here I was alone, ready to dig in. I sat on the ground floor this time around. For a Sunday morning, the place was quite full.

As always, was tempted to have everything off their menu, but finally decided on Poori-Upma. In about 10 minutes, the usual four Chutneys – Coconut, Ginger, Groundnut and Roasted Chickpea were served, and then came my Poori-Upma.

I had the same thing last time around, but couldn’t resist having it again for I remember it being yummy. The Poori’s were a little oily, but very good, and the Upma was delicious. Again, ghee was oozing out with every bite. Of the two curries served along, the dry Aloo curry was too bland, while the wet Aloo curry with Besan was good.

Of the Chutneys, Roasted Chickpea and Ginger were my favorite.

Last time, I complained that I did not like their Sambar, for which I got quite a bit of slack. So this time around, I tried it patiently, and found it to be delicious. I realized that I never really appreciated it so much for it’s always served piping hot, and so burnt my tongue every single time. I don’t remember having such good Sambar anywhere else other than the good-old Shanbhag. Yumm.

Unable to resist my temptation to eat more, I next ordered a Mushroom Masala Dosa.

Another 10 minutes, and here it was. The dosa wasn’t as crispy as I expected it to be, and I found that it was not cooked properly. The masala inside was good, but I was kinda unhappy with the dosa itself.

Overall, a good meal with a slightly disappointing end. A perfect Dosa would have made it an excellent brunch, but it was not to be so. But no matter how the Dosa was, I shall be returning back to this place again. It is on the expensive side, but worth it once in a while. Have you tried it yet??

Food: 8/10
Service: 8.5/10
Ambiance: 8.5/10
Meal for 1: Rs. 237/- (This could in fact be counted as a meal for 2 :P)

Verdict: 8.5/10

Santosh Banjara | Restaurant Review

Place: Santosh Banjara 
Location: Rd. No. 12, Next to Pizza Hut, Banjara Hills 
Cuisine: Indian 
Meal: Dinner

First review of Santosh Banjara!

After my last review of this place, I’ve come here quite often. Though there is nothing new about the food or the place, this is more of a re-review.

Was here for dinner a couple of days ago with a friend. Having tried their Chilly Paneer for starters the last time around, wanted to try something different. So went for the Vegetable Gold Coin. For the main course, it was pretty much the usual, Malai Kofta and Stuffed Kulcha.

We were informed that it would take a while for the Goldcoins and they were served after about 15 minutes. They looked good, but when I took a bite, they were too oily and the batter inside was kinda uncooked. They were actually so oily that I had an after taste of it till the end of the meal. Disappointment!

In the next 4 minutes, the main course was served. The Malai Kofta was creamy and yumm. The kofta was a lil on the harder side, but the gravy made it up for it.

Their Stuffed Kulcha, as usual, was amazingly good; sttuffed with tons of cashew nuts, perfectly baked.

Overall, the meal was alright. But something I found disheartening this time around was the maintenance of the place; there were a couple of cockroaches on the table. This was really really disappointing for Santoshi has been one of my favorite restaurants in town. I don’t think I’l ever be comfortable walking into this place ever again. They serve good food, but with no proper maintenance, I don’t think they will be able to get customers.

Next time, I’m opting for take-away!

Food: 8/10
Service: 8/10
Ambiance: 4/10
Meal for 2: Rs. 322/-

Verdict: 7/10