Rotti oota @ Sri Basaveshwara Khanavali, Malleswara 8th cross

Chance of finding an authentic North Karnataka food in Chennai is impossible & if it exists it won't be that authentic! After having an authentic satvik Uttara Karnataka Bhakri (synonym of jolada rotti) oota prepared by my mother in my house (staple food of our house), i was craving for the Khanavali version of Uttara Karnataka oota. 

Recently I was in Bengaluru and had some important works that had to be done. Hours before boarding Vande Bharat express for the return journey to Chennai, I made up my mind that Uttara Karnataka oota is must.

I headed to Malleswara, a locality in Bengaluru which is a one stop shop for the north Bengalurians. After shopping, my stomach was asking me to go get some food as well as life! So, I decided to walk down the 8th cross of Malleswara which is a crowded street & a place where micro to large businesses happen throughout the year. After walking several meters, I arrived at Sri Basaveshwara khanavali. This is the branch of Sri Basaveshwara khanavali of Hubbali, which is serving the people for the last few decades.

Even though the branch in Malleswara is less than a decade old, it has earned a fame for serving the authentic Uttara Karnataka rotti oota. 

Usually, rotti oota is served on a thaat or thali in northern Karnataka. Here, to attract the people as well as to save water they have replaced the thali with plantain leaf. Plantain leaf was placed on the table & which was gently washed by sprinkling some water & wiping it thoroughly so that there won't be any dust on the leaf. 

Servers started serving the oota on the leaf, starting with a chutney made of radish & coconut. Then came jhunka, some raw vegetables, eggplant (brinjal) or badnekayi enne gayi, kaaLu palya, next a curry in which the main ingredient is sprouts & a salad which is also called as mosaru bhajji. They also served a cup of thick yoghurt and a glass of buttermilk or majjige. Uttara Karnataka oota is incomplete if you don't serve some of the pudis like shenga chutney pudi, gurreLLu pudi also the Ranjaka (chutney made by the chilly fruit). 

Now, Bhakri or jolada rotti announced "may I come in?" Just the way Rocky Bhai roared in KGF!! Piping hot jolada rotti landed on the organic plate where all the curries, salad, pudis & Ranjaka were served. Also 2 small cubes of butter were served, for a special purpose.

One cube of butter was thoroughly smeared on either sides of the rotti & a small Portion was delicately torn and took some gurreLLu pudi, a small portion of jhunka, some raw onions & greens, a pinch of Ranjaka & was rolled to savour the uttara Karnataka version of rolls or frankie! Burst of flavours filled inside the mouth, the spiciness of Ranjaka was being reduced by the jhunka as well as the butter. Also, the gram flour flavour from the jhunka made me feel that these people are not dependent on the readymade flour. Then comes the flavour of the raw veggies making this as the most healthy frankie in the earth.

Now, it's time to taste some badnekayi enne gayi along with rotti. The groundnut flavour which will be hiding in the enne gayi will be trying to open up but the brinjal tries to supress as well as try to distract us by showcasing it's extremely soft texture, and a burst of onion flavour also tries to suppress the groundnut flavour. After few moments you start feeling that roasty flavour but it will be overtaken by the spicy flavour of chillies. I can claim that this is one of the best enne gayi which i had in my life.

Time to taste some kaaLu palya, today the kaaLu palya had channa. Palya was not very spicy to me but well balanced in terms of spice and salt. On the other hand molake kaaLu palya, curry whose hero is sprouts was too simple with respect to ingredients, but it had all the potential to be a show stealer. I had to refrain from the second serving of all the curries, as I am not supposed to consume more than 100 grams of protein (in any form). Mosaru bhajji, Ranjaka & gurreLLu pudi came to rescue for the subsequent servings of the rotti. I also requested for the khadak rotti from the serving staffs and it was also served.  

After 3 soft rotti & 1 khadak rotti smeared with good amount of butter, time to have some anna or rice. Before Sambhar was served I made sure that, small portion of rice is dedicated for mixing with chutney & pudis along with some ghee. 

Time to have some Sambhar rice, on this particular day they had prepared the drumsticks sambar which was bit spicy, yet it was being reduced by the ghee. Drumsticks, tomatoes & toor dal were the main ingredients. Papad along with Sambar rice is like "what a combination, sir ji!"

Before ending a South Indian meal, curd rice is a must & i was surprised by the staffs. They served me a very special lemon pickle which is sweet, yet sour & also reminds you that I (pickle) am not a sweet pickle by showing it spicy side. I can easily give a verdict that curd rice and this pickle is like the couple who's wedding was decided in the heaven. 

No need of dessert after having that spicy rotti oota & Sambhar rice, this curd rice along with lemon pickle will not even make you feel of not having a dessert. Finally, I requested for a refill of majjige or buttermilk which helps in digestion as well as the one which helps our body to cool down. 

Hands were washed after the oota & they gave me a file along with a packet of paan. This file consists of the bill which I owe for having the delicious rotti oota at this establishment. ₹290/- including GST was the amount for an individual. One can have unlimited number of rottis along with unlimited servings of curries & pudis also unlimited servings of rice too. I refrained from the unlimited servings as I had to travel in sometime. 

Report card :

Taste : 9

Ambience: 8

Service: very quick, 10

Value for money: if you are having the capacity to belt full meals you can easily give 10

If you are in & around Malleswara 8th cross, Sri Basaveshwara Khanavali is just a few steps from where you are standing, which reminds me of a song, onde koogaLate composed by Sri Purandaradaasaru. 

Time to sign off from this post, please do share your thoughts in the feedback along with your name. These days I am unable to see who's pouring their valuable feedback in the comments section, because it's showing Anonymous uvacha!! Also, stay safe and healthy by having good food.

Kaapi katte of R R Nagar

Hello all I am back & I am hungry, today I am reviewing a restaurant namely kaapi katte,which is located in R R Nagar which also known as RajaRajeshwari Nagar, Bangalore..

Known for its wallet friendly menu, popular item in this hotel is masale dose, you may have to wait upto 15 minutes during rush hour to get your plate..

Limited items in the menu, they serve idly-vade, plain dose, masale dose, onion dose, rave idly, as usual twin brothers of south Indian breakfast "kharabath & kesari bath"..

Believe it or not a plate of idly-vade i.e 2 idlies & 1 vade may cost you from rs 35/-
But here it costs just rs 30/-.
Known for its economical yet crispy masale dose, customers here mainly order masale dose which costs rs 20/- ..

Chow chow bath brothers alias "kharabath & kesari bath" costs rs 20/-...

Beverages here are just awesome, kaapi in kaapi katte just mesmerized me 😂😂..
Apart from kaapi & chai there are hell lot of options like green tea, lemon tea ( please do try), ,(must try) masala chai   in hot beverages are to named.

If you don't like the hot beverages please try cold beverages,which is also a must try..

In the evening, they offer snacks like bun butter gulkan, bun nippat, samosa , kachori, ambode,etc..
My personal favourite is bajji ( pakoda) ..

Bajji & cup of kaapi, a love story Better than twilight saga 😂😂..

A cup of coffee costs about rs 10/-..

Do visit this wallet friendly restaurant when you are in R R NAGAR..

Time to give the report card
Taste : 9
Service : quick but self service
Ambience: too crowded but I will give 8
Quality : 9
Value for money : 10, because for the first time my bill didn't cross rs 200/- even after my tummy was full..😂

They do have branches in Nagarabhavi & Malleshwara too..

Time to sign off, will meet you guys in the next write up..

Iyer's mess - Malleshwara, Bangalore

I aaaaaaaaaaammmmm baaaaaccckkk, I aaaaaaaaaaammmmm hungryyyyyyy...
Today I will introducing a very popular mess of Malleshwara, Bangalore.

Malleshwara is said to be one of the oldest areas of Bangalore, Malleshwara is a place which is rich in heritage, culture, food, & also shopping.. If there is a function or festival in a house, every North Bangalorean visit to malleshwara for their shopping..

When comes to food, you guys have plenty of options in malleshwara, places like CTR, janatha hotel which serves crispy masale dose, veena stores for piping hot idli-vade with chutney, darshinis which serves the break fast, NKB which serves best meals are to named a few..

Recently I visited well known Iyer's mess, which is in Malleshwara for lunch..
Simple menu which consists of a curry, ambode, Majjige huli (moor kuzhambu), saaru (rasam), papad, a gravy made of channa, rice, chapati, a dessert & finally mosaranna alias tayir sadam (curd rice), which is served on plantain leaf plate..

Curry was very tasty, typical iyer's style potato curry was just amazing. Ambode which is also known as masala vade( which iyer's Don't call 😂) was very crispy & yet mildly spicy.
The channa gravy was not bad to be honest, as it was a side dish for chapati.
Majjige huli (moor kuzhambu) was delicious, as it had generous amount of pumpkin, pepper & also ginger which dominated majjige huli.. Majjige huli tastes best when the rice is hot & when you add generous amount of ghee😋..
Saaru or rasam is 2nd  hero in the Brahmin's meals, saaru was also very tasty here, mildly spiced but I had to request them for extra saaru just for drinking it.
Dessert was a payasa, which was also good, but picture abhi Baki hai mere dost because you can't tell that "I finished the lunch" without eating mosaranna or curd rice.. Yes that's the way you have to end the meal in the southern India, curd rice is the main hero in  the Brahmin's thali. Others do have importance, but lesser than mosaranna..

How do you tell that you are happy with the meal symbolically?
Just fold the plantain leaf towards you, that indicates you are satisfied with the meal or you are happy with the meals..

If not, fold the plantain leaf in the opposite side , which indicates you aren't satisfied with the meals..

Meals here costs ₹70/- per person which is really economical yet healthy, another thing zero usage of garlic and onion is the plus point for the Brahmin customers..

Here's the report card
Taste -8
Ambience - 7
Service - 10 which is very good , they treat their customers like their family members.
Quality - 7
Value for money- 9

When you are in Malleshwara in between 12:30 to 3:30 please have your lunch in this iconic mess, they are also open in between 7:15 to 9:15..
If you are planning to visit here on Saturdays, please drop the plan because they remain closed on Saturdays..

A kitchen dedicated for the south indian breakfast : South Kitchen

Hello all after few days I am back again with a new post, and I am really hungry.

As usual I search for new eatery points, while riding in the busy main road of N R Colony, I came across this unique restaurant namely "South Kitchen". As I was very hungry, I entered this restaurant.

I placed my order (self service) that was Idly- Vade, sans Sambar but hell lot of chutney.. Idly was very soft yet piping hot & yeah vade was very crispy. Vade had traces of pepper (which is very healthy) instead of green chillies..

The next thing I tried is kharabath,  which is the first cousin of the iconic breakfast namely uppittu (upma) which is also served with chutney, kharabath was extremely delicious & due to generous amount of ghee it was very soft in texture, no onion or garlic in kharabath is point to be noted..

Kesari bath which is a sweeter version of kharabath, but this is not having any veggies like kharabath, but you can find some amount of dry fruits like cashews and raisins which when roasted in ghee enhances the taste 😋..

Apart from these iconic items, there are some must try dishes..
Gojju avalakki which is a typical south Indian Brahmin's breakfast on any given day, this dish mainly has flattened rice or avalakki alias poha, roasted groundnuts. Gojju avalakki is somewhat tangy, sweet, & bit spicy.  Gojju avalakki is the first cousin of puliyogare ( another iconic dish of brahmins)..

Don't forget to try shavige bath (desi noodles), which is a very popular breakfast in the households of south Indians.

They also prepare a pongal which is not made of rice but it is prepared using "Navane" ( Fox tailed millet) which is also very healthy & very delicious..

After the break fast, one has to drink the filter kaapi ( as you all know coffee is too mainstream 😂😂), and yeah the filter kaapi available here is energetic..

Time to give the report card
Taste- 9
Service - self service 😂 so I would like to give 10
Ambiance- 8 too noisy because of the busy road
Quality - A
Value for money - 9 ( even though the price is nominal, they don't compromise with the quality).

Location : South Kitchen is situated next to the bmtc terminus of N R COLONY..
Also 60 meters walk from the iconic Dwarka hotel..

Caution : Don't visit this hotel on Thursdays, because of huge crowd..
& Onions and garlic are not used here.

Parcel  is also available but they won't charge for parcel unless you have the container..

Lesser number of items in the menu & the quality is the main attraction of this place..

I will be signing off from this post now & will be back with another post..
Untill then bye from my side..

N R Colony's dose paradise : hotel Dwarka

Hello all I am back with another post, today I am reviewing about the iconic restaurant of N R Colony (Bangalore south).

As I am hungry all the time with a lesser appetite as compared to the previous year, I visited this restaurant namely "hotel Dwarka" located in the busy streets of Narasimha Raja colony or N R Colony of Bangalore with my buddies..

The only thing which I like to eat in this restaurant is khali dose with good amount of butter, sans sambar but good amount of chutney & try aalu palya ( potato curry) which is simply awesome with dose ..

Khali dose is comparatively smaller than the dose available in Chennai, but dose is well roasted due to the generous amount of oil, which enhances the taste of dose. The ingredients that is used to prepare the dosé batter is unique & that's why it has been the hot favourite for the south Bengalurians

Customers of this restaurant usually crave for the iconic khali dose, masale dose ( a must try if you love masale dose) which is crispy till the last bite & yeah ask for butter which enhances the taste of masale dose to the next level. A small request, if you are worried about the calories i request you better stick on to your "the taste less diet", because you guys don't deserve to eat here..

Apart from dose, idli vade, poori saagu ( which is also a must try), kesari bath is just delicious ( no words to explain about it) & yeah the crispy rave vade which is a must try with the Dwarka hotel's signature chutney..

When chutney in your plate is finished, oh wait I made a mistake, because when chutney is about to finish in your plate the 12th man (chutney boys) of Dwarka hotel  is there for rescue 😂..

My sincere advice is after you eat dose or anything here, please have a cup of filter kaapi ( because coffee is too mainstream as I said in the previous post).. I usually drink sugar less straang kaapi..

confused?? Yeah, I prefer my cup of coffee should have sans sugar but more coffee decoction.. that's my taste 😋..

Time to give the report card..
Taste - 8, delicious taste..
Ambiance- 8,
Service - I give 10 because servers have gone on a long vacation since many years,  so self service 😂😂
Quality - 8..

Location - located in the busy street of N R Colony, landmark is katte balaga circle..
Any one can guide you to this south Bangalore's world famous restaurant 😂😂 ( a popular term used in Bangalore)..

I usually visit this restaurant atleast 3 to 4  times in a week, not every time for eating here but to drink the sugarless straang kaapi 😂..

That's all folks..
It's time to sign off from this post, myself Abhay will be there in few hours with a new post..

Untill then stay healthy & be happy..