Month: September 2022

Sagar – Leicester Square | Restaurant Review

Place: Sagar
Location: 37 Panton St, Leicester Square
Cuisine: Indian
Meal: Dinner (with family)
On: Saturday, 3 September 2022

After exploring the city with my brother and his partner, we decided to hog at Sagar located on Leicester Square. It was about 6:00 PM, so we were the only ones at the restaurant and settled down at a large table towards the end of the place. The ambience was alright, but the tables were placed too close to each other and made the restaurant look cramped.

After a long day, we were really hungry and ended up ordering a lot of food. We did a portion of Dahi Poori, a Gobi Manchurian, a portion of Mattar Paneer, Bhindi Bhaji, Fried Dal, a Batura, Stuffed Paratha, plain Paratha and a couple of Chapathi.

Dahi Puri - Sagar

The Dahi Poori was served in about ten minutes and tasted alright. I thought that the stuffing could have been better, and a little more tamarind chutney would have helped.

Gobi Manchurian - Sagar

The Gobi Manchurian was served next, and this was very good. The gobi was crispy, and the sauce was tangy. We were really impressed and hoping for a good meal.

The main course soon followed suit.

Mattar Paneer - Sagar

The Mutter Paneer was mild and tasted good, but I thought it was a little too tomatoey. Also, the paneer pieces were chewy.

Brinjal Bhaji - Sagar

While we had asked for Bhindi Bhaji, we were instead served Brinjal Bhajee because of some communication error. While they agreed to replace, we asked them to keep it, and this actually tasted good. The brinjal was well cooked and the masala was perfect. This turned out to be the best of the main course items.

Fried Dal - Sagar

The Fried Dal was good, nothing spectacular. 

Batura - Sagar

Stuffed Paratha - Sagar

Paratha - Sagar
Of the bread, the stuffed paratha was the best, the batura was a little too oily, and the paratha and chapati were decent. 

I was still craving more food, so ordered a portion of Chilly Paneer and Vegetable Fried rice, which were served soon.

Chilly Paneer - Sagar

Veg Fried Rice - Sagar

While the Fried rice was mild and palatable, the Chilly Paneer was a disappointment. The paneer was really chewy and the sauce too wasn’t great. Compared to the Gobi Manchurian, this was a big flop. 

Overall, a decent meal. But for the Gobi Manchurian, nothing made an impression. I also felt that the dishes were aimed more at the English audience rather than Indians, and this was one of the reasons why we didn’t relish everything. Also, while the prices seem reasonable, the 12% service charge doesn’t match the mediocre service. Given the options around, I don’t think I’ll be coming back to this place again soon.

Food: 7/10
Service: 7/10
Ambiance: 7.5/10
Meal for 6: £81.84

Verdict: 7/10

Little Italy – Leicester Square | Restaurant Review

Place: Little Italy 
Location: 6-7 Irving St, Leicester Square 
Cuisine: Italian 
Meal: Dinner (with a cousin, wifey, and our lil one) 
On: Friday, 26 August 2022

One of my cousins was in London for a day, and we decided to take her around the city. We covered Tower Bridge, Westminster, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, and Picadilly Circus in a couple of hours, and finally decided to dine at Little Italy at Leicester Square. While you’d hope that it is the same Little Italy chain from India and the Middle East, unfortunately it isn’t.

The restaurant is located on a street full of Italian joints, most of which packed for a Friday evening. I actually wanted to try Vespa Italian restaurant next door, but these guys had better vegetarian options. We decided to sit on the street for it was a lovely evening, and were offered a table right in the front. The place was abuzz and the vibe was great. Maybe a little loud, but still fine.

We decided to do a portion of Garlic Mozzarella Bread, a Vegetarian Pizza, Ravioli in white sauce, and a Vegetarian Lasagne. I also ordered a bottle of coke for myself. 

Garlic Bread - Little Italy

The Garlic Bread was served in about ten minutes and tasted delicious. The bread was super soft, and with enough garlic and cheese, this was a great start to our meal.

Vegetarian Pizza - Little Italy

The pizza was served soon and I was mighty impressed with its size. With tomatoes, mushrooms, olives, onion and aubergine, this pizza was excellent. The crust was very good and we loved it!

The Lasagne and Ravioli were served together and while I had asked for the latter in white sauce, they served it in red sauce. They immediately offered to replace it without any fuss. 

Lasagne - Little Italy

The Lasage was alright, but we thought it was too tomatoey. The updated Ravioli in white sauce needed some salt and pepper to be added, and it again tasted really good.

Overall, an excellent meal. But for the Lasagne, all the other dishes were yummy. The service was great, and no qualms about the ambience. However, the food is pricey and a meal including the service charge is heavy on the pockets; but I guess that is expected when you’re dining at Leicester Square. This is definitely a good Italian find in London.

Food: 9/10
Service: 8.5/10
Ambiance: 8.5/10
Meal for 4: £70.15

Verdict: 8.5/10

ASK Italian | Restaurant Review

Place: ASK Italian 
Location: Ground floor, O2 Peninsula Square 
Cuisine: Italian 
Meal: Dinner (with wifey, amma, and our lil one) 
On: Saturday, 6 August 2022 

After watching a movie at the O2 Arena, we decided to try Italian at one of the multiple options and picked ASK Italian. We stepped into the restaurant at about 8:30 PM, and there was no one at the entrance to tend to us. We should have taken this as a sign and gone to another restaurant, but for some reason, decided to linger around and wait until a guy walked up to us after about five minutes, and put us at a booth in the middle of the restaurant.

The seat cushions at this booth were ripped and the foam was out, so we asked for another table. But then almost all the seats at the restaurant were in the same shape, and this one if anything, was better than the rest and so we decided to stay put.

We decided to order the Mushrooms Al Forno starter, Mushroom & Truffle Calzone, and the Spinach & Ricotta Girasole pasta. Wifey wanted to have a drink, so we also planned to order a large glass of Merlot. And then began the wait.

Our waiter was nowhere to be seen on the floor and so there was no one to take our order. There were a couple of other waiters around our table but they wouldn’t attend to us cos it wasn’t their table. When we asked them to call our guy, they turned a deaf ear. Another sign for us to get out, but we still didn’t (particularly because wifey doesn’t like to walk out from a restaurant after we’ve settled in).

Anyway, after about ten minutes, our guy finally appeared and apologized for the long wait. We placed our order, and again, the wait continued. About twenty minutes went by and there was still no sign of our food or the waiter (again). I started walking around the place to find the guy but no sign of him. I however saw our mushrooms on the kitchen counter, ready to be served, already cold.

Wine - ASK Italian

After about thirty minutes, he walks to our table with the Wine. I told him off and informed him that the starters have been sitting at the counter for a while now, and I need them to be heated before being served. He walked to the kitchen and an argument broke out between him and the chef (who was equally miffed with him). All this was happening in front of the guests at the restaurant. 

Anyhow, the mushrooms were served about an hour after we entered the place. At this point, I asked for the manager who came to us apologizing for the long wait and said he will waive the dish off our bill.

As for the dish, there were 5 pieces of mushroom stuffed with mozzarella and breadcrumbs, served with garlic mayonnaise. They were flavourful and tasty. While the quantity wasn’t great, I was happy with the dish.

After another fifteen minutes, a burnt calzone and watery pasta were served. I immediately asked them to be taken back, but the manager said they would not be able to redo them (it looked like the chef quit and left) and again offered to exclude them from our bill. It was almost 10:00 PM, we were hungry, and most other places were either closing or closed, so without any option, we decided to eat whatever we could.

Calzone - ASK Italian

The burnt calzone was almost inedible, but we somehow managed to pull out some sections without any burn and eat it. While the stuffing was good, you could taste the smoky flavour in every bite. We had to discard about three fourth of the dish. 

As for the pasta, the girasole/ravioli was undercooked, and the sauce that was supposed to be creamy was watery. This was better than the calzone, but still disappointing.

Overall, a terrible experience and meal. The manager again walked up to our table and apologized profusely, but that didn’t help in any way. He charged us only for the wine and asked us to come back for a better experience the next time around, but I think we’ve had enough of ASK Italian for a lifetime. Forget the food, even the ambience was poor; who has almost every seat in the restaurant ripped apart? And the callous attitude of the waiters was pathetic. I don’t think I’ll be visiting any of their outlets even if they offer me free food on every visit.

Food: 4/10 (for the mushrooms)
Service: 3/10
Ambiance: 5/10
Meal for 3: N/A (£7.43 for the Wine)

Verdict: N/A

Ananda Bhavan | Restaurant Review

Place: Ananda Bhavan 
Location: 240 High St N, East Ham 
Cuisine: Indian 
Meal: Dinner (with amma, wifey, and our lil one) 
On: Saturday, 23 July 2022

After a visit to the East Ham temple on the first weekend that amma (mom) was here in London, we were looking for viable dinner options. There was Adyar Ananda Bhavan right next to the temple, but for some strange reason, we decided to try this Ananda Bhavan opposite the temple. Soon we realized that this was a big mistake!

The restaurant is small and spacious, and we settled down at a table for four near the entrance. The menu was quite decent and we more or less decided on what we were going to have, but no one came to take our order for a long long time. And when they finally did, they said most of the stuff was unavailable; they didn’t have Thalis, no noodles, no tandoori items. After a long hustle, we finally ordered a portion of Veg. Spring Rolls as starters, an Onion Rava dosa for amma, Poori for the lil one, Veg. Kofta and a couple of Parotta for us. 

Rava Masala Dosa - Anand Bhavan

The Dosa was served in about 10 minutes without any sambar (which was eventually served after another 5 minutes when we asked for it). The dosa was cold, and portions of it were undercooked. I wanted to call the waiter and return it but amma was so hungry that she decided to eat it the way it was.

Poori - Anand Bhavan

The Poori was served next alongside some aloo korma (no chutney). While the poori was alright, the aloo korma was very bland.

Kofta - Anand BhavanParotta - Anand Bhavan

A few moments later, the Kofta and Parotta were served. These looked palatable, but unfortunately, didn’t taste great. While the kofta balls were decent, the gravy was undercooked and this meant that we could taste the tomato. Again, we were so hungry that we decided to eat it without any complaints. Thankfully, the parotta was flaky and good.

Spring Rolls - Anand Bhavan

The Spring Rolls, which we ordered as starters, were served almost at the end of the meal, and they tasted terrible. Looks like they just bought a packet of frozen ones after we ordered for them. We couldn’t even eat a couple of them.

Biryani - Anand Bhavan

Given that the parottas didn’t fill our tummies, we decided to order a Veg. Biryani, which was served soon. This turned out to be decent with a lot of masala, but wish they added more vegetables.

Overall, a bad meal. But for the Biryani and Parotta, nothing else was worth mentioning. While the ambience was alight, the service was pathetic which made our experience even more miserable. I definitely wouldn’t recommend this place even for their South-Indian offerings.

Food: 5/10
Service: 5/10
Ambiance: 7.5/10
Meal for 4: £26.43

Verdict: 5.5/10

Brahmastra: Part One – Shiva | Movie Review

Brahmastra was announced in 2014, back when Alia was 4 films old, and Ranbir was dating another co-actor. Post multiple changes, the pandemic, and more changes, the film was finally released six years after its intended release of December 2016. So much has happened in the world since the announcement; Alia is now about 20+ films old, and now married to Ranbir. Anyhow, whatever the delay, what matters is the output. So, does part one of this trilogy deliver?

In one of the interviews, director Ayan Mukerji stated that he was fascinated by Hollywood action movies, particularly Marvel and other superhero films, and wanted to make Brahmastra on par with such films. He does make a grand film, yes, but what does grandeur do when you have a mediocre script and absolutely no idea or vision of what you want to showcase? You get a badly screen written and directed, incoherent dud!

Shiva, played by Ranbir, is a DJ in Mumbai. He is smitten by Isha (Alia) and stalks her on their second encounter, she acknowledges, they then go to his room where he shares his life story, she cries and holds his hand. Shiva suddenly has visions, acts strange, and asks her to leave. They meet the next day, he describes his visions and resolves to travel to Varanasi to aid someone. Isha decides to travel alongside him, and that, ladies and gentlemen, is their love story.

One day, not even 24 hours, is what it took for Isha to run away with Shiva, all based on what he told her. There is no information on her parents, what she does (but for she’s rich and is from London), no further information on DJ Shiva apart from what he tells her (he could be a stalker, psycho, murderer or anything), has a daura/seizure where he acts strange and pushes her away. But she still decides to travel with him saying Shiva ke saath Isha (Parvati) hamesha rahegi! 

This ridiculously shallow love story is the base for the plotline where they discover that love is the biggest astra of them all. Now don’t ask me what an astra is, or why Shiva has these episodes, visions or seizures (whatever you want to call them). You have to suffer like I did to find out more.

Ranbir and Alia are good on screen and their chemistry is apparent. But their underdeveloped characters make them look silly on multiple occasions. Some badly written dialogues don’t help either. Not just them, every character is underdeveloped and lacks a proper arc. Amitabh is alright as guruji but looks odd performing some of the action sequences. Shahrukh Khan and Nagarjuna do justice as keepers of Brahmastra. Dimple Kapadia is underutilized. The rest of the cast and casting is terrible. Mouni Roy is terrible as the lead on-screen antagonist for she does not have the stature or the persona to breathe life into the character. Her two minions were even more ridiculous.

Music by Pritam is passable. But for Kesariya, no other track makes an impact. The background music is not to the mark either. No comments on the editing by Prakash Kurup or the cinematography by a bunch of people; I feel there was nothing they could do to make this film better. For a movie with tons of money spent on VFX, the output is mediocre. 

Is it worth your time and money?: What happens when the director has no clarity or vision of what he wants? Brahmastra! Unless you have loads of patience and undying love for the lead pair, avoid this dud. I can’t believe it has two more parts to it. 

Worth mention: The only saving grace is the chemistry between Ranbir and Alia.

Acting: 6/10 
Story-Screenplay-Direction: 4/10 
Technical Aspects: 5/10

Verdict: 5/10

PS: I was sitting next to three VFX artists who worked on the film. They too were disappointed with the overall output (including the VFX), and spoke at length about how the director made them change the effects innumerable times over the years for he did not know what he wanted. 

On another note, they confirmed that Deepika plays Amrita, Shiva’s mom, and there is a possibility that his dad, Dev, is Ranveer Singh. Now that’s something! 

Desi Dhaba | Restaurant Review

Place: Desi Dhaba 
Location: Glenmore Parade, Ealing Rd, Wembley 
Cuisine: Indian 

July 2022     September 2022

Meal: Dinner (with wifey and our lil one)
On: Saturday, 9 July 2022

We were at the Shri Vallabh Nidhi Mandir located on the other end of Ealing Road at Wembley last Saturday, and came across this small joint tucked in between a row of shops. It was about 5:00 PM, and given that we weren’t really hungry, decided to come back later. After a couple of hours exploring the Indian market and eateries on the street, we dropped by at around 7:00 PM, and the restaurant, given that it was away from most of the Indian joints on street, was pretty empty with just a couple of tables occupied. We made ourselves comfortable at a table for four. The place had a nice vibe to it and reminded us of a typical Indian dhaba.

A few minutes after we settled down, we were served with some fryums alongside mint chutney, garlic & herb sauce, and sweet chilli sauce. Now, this was a welcome surprise for we were starving and the fact that we had food on our table without any “do you want papad?” question thrown at us the moment we walked in. And no, we weren’t charged for them!

The fryums were crisp and satisfied our initial hunger right away; we emptied the basket in about 5 minutes.

Now for the proper meal, we ordered Tandoori Stuffed Mushrooms, Kofta Dilruba, a Butter Naan, and three Butter Chapati. We also asked for a portion of Paneer Pilau for later.

Stuffed Mushrooms | Desi Dhaba

The mushrooms were served in about 10 minutes and they looked scrumptious. The description on the menu read succulent mushrooms marinated in authentic aromatic spices, stuffed with paneer and cheese, cooked in tandoor, and boy, they were yum! Unlike another place we were at in the recent past, the quantity was great; we had about 7-8 mushrooms on our plate. Great start to our meal!

Kofta Dilruba | Desi Dhaba

The main course was served soon, and I was excited for the Kofta for it was listed as Chef’s special. With paneer dumplings in a creamy tomato gravy, unfortunately, this turned out to be just alright (against my anticipation of awesome). The Kofta balls were a little too dry and the gravy was a bit grainy. It also could have done with a little more salt to get the flavours right. Again, this wasn’t a bad dish, it just didn’t match up to my expectations.

Desi Dhaba Desi Dhaba

The Naan was soft and perfect. Our lil one who usually doesn’t prefer Naan, loved it. The Chapatis were huge and super soft. We kinda over-ordered as we couldn’t even finish the second one.

Paneer Pilau | Desi Dhaba

The Pilau was served after we were done with our bread and looked flavour packed. This was again a Chef’s special and tasted great; the paneer was fresh, and the rice was perfectly cooked. However, as with most Indian restaurants in London, it needed salt to suit our palate.

At about the time the Pilau was served, we realized that we needed another side for us to do justice to the meal, so we asked for Dal Makhani.

Dal Makhni | Desi Dhaba

And we were glad that we did for it turned out to be another winner. The dal was creamy, the spices were right, and it was lip-smacking delicious.

Mango Lassi | Desi Dhaba

To finish our meal, we ordered a Mango Lassi that turned out to be thick and perfect, the best lassi I’ve had in a while.

Overall, this turned out to be the best meal we’ve had in London thus far (Shayona was at the top of our list until we visited this place; will review it soon). We were a bit apprehensive when walking in but were totally impressed by the food and service. Our waiter, Bhumi, was super friendly and ensured that we had everything we need on the table at the right time. This is one restaurant I’d definitely recommend to anyone looking for a good Indian restaurant in town. And it is pocket-friendly. I will be back for sure, often!

Food: 9/10
Service: 9.5/10
Ambiance: 9/10
Meal for 3: £39.49

Meal: Dinner (with wifey and our lil one)
On: Friday, 2 September 2022

Given that Desi Dhaba was the best find in London thus far, it was our first choice when my brother and his partner visited us from the US. We walked in at about 8:00 PM and settled down in the centre of the restaurant. Right away, some papad and fryums were served on the table. 

I wanted to try almost everything from our last visit for they tasted yum, and I also wanted to check consistency. Therefore, in addition to what we ordered last time, we ordered Paneer Popcorn and a Veg. Platter as starters, and a Paneer Makhani with some Butter Roti and Jeera Rice for the main course.

The Paneer Popcorn was served first in about 10 minutes. Balls of paneer bhurji rolled in crumbs and deep fried, these were crunchy, yes, but I thought needed some more flavour.  

While we thought that the platter will just have a couple if pieces of everything, the portions were humongous and came in two plates. The first one had the samosa, hara bhara kabab, some cutlets, mirchi bhajji, and loads of onion and potato pakoras/chips. Everything tasted good with the chips being the stand-out dish.

The other part of the platter was a sizzling plate with some stuffed mushrooms and paneer tikka. The mushrooms were yum like the last time, and the paneer was good as well. 

The Malai Kofta and Dal Makhani turned out to be as good as the last visit, but again, needed additional salt to make them palatable. The additional Paneer Makhani was a decent dish; the makhani gravy could have been better.

The Jeera rice was a disappointing dish for the rice was uncooked and had no flavour.

Overall, a very good meal again. Barring the Jeera rice, everything was delicious. Most dishes needed salt, and that was the only downside. The service was good and the portion sizes were amazing. While we were not as elated with the food as the last time, I thought it still was a great meal.

Food: 8.5/10
Service: 9/10
Ambiance: 9/10
Meal for 6: £68.91

Verdict: 9/10