LEISURE

Imli or Tamarind - an important ingredient of gravies that brings a completely different flavour to the dish. Hence the name, Tamarind. The restaurant has branches in Indiranagar and Banaswadi. This restaurant is a part of the same group that owns Enigma, the pub, and a rooftop restaurant interestingly called ‘Over the Top.’ All three are located in the same building. Handi Mushroom - Tamarind. Pic: Anisha Nair    This giant will not satisfy Bakasur, a new restaurant on ORR will definitely draw your attention with the images of a giant with his mouth wide open, displayed along the building.…

Havelock, in JP Nagar 5th Phase, though multicuisine, largely serves Mangalorean and North Indian food. This month-old restaurant has all the usual fare. The menu is extensive especially for non-vegetarians. The recommended dish for non-vegetarian food lovers would be Prawn Gassi (Mangalorean Prawn Curry) served with plain steamed rice or neer dosa. The curries also taste good when served with neer dosa. Manglorean Prawn curry with roti and rice. Pic: Abhishek Angad The typical Mangalorean food usually comprises seafood and poultry. It is prepared with a coconut base. It’s high on spices but is not very oily. The curry has…

National Geographic Traveller India (Indian edition of the American magazine) was launched in India in July 2012. The August 2012 issue cover story is on "Quiet Places, Spaces of serenity".  While skimming through the magazine, we found a page for Bengaluru/ Bangalore where there is an article on the Someshwara Temple in Ulsoor, and below this there is a mention of "4 other spots for quiet time". One of the spots named is Puttenahalli Lake!   We would love to think that it is our JP Nagar Puttenahalli Lake that the editorial team means, but given that there is a Puttenahalli Lake in…

Oota from your Thota (OfyT), an event for organic gardening enthusiasts, will be held this Sunday Aug 26th, in JP Nagar III phase. The participants and invitees at 'Oota from your thota' include practitioners, vendors, and enthusiasts; promising an interesting, informative and hands-on experience for all visitors. If you are a newbie, you will gain a starting point. If you are already a gardener, you will still get new ideas to implement in your own patch of green! You can find seeds, saplings, organic pesticides, compost, composters and other garden products, and organic vegetables, fruits, snacks and more. Participants include…

In my unending search for resources that familiarise children with the environment I had chanced upon the 'Garrulous Gastronaut' a few months ago. So it was quite a coincidence that my daughter was invited to a workshop titled, 'Planting an edible garden' recently held at Galleryske, Richmond Town. Pushpi Bagchi's Garrulous Gastronaut. Pic: Pushpi Bagchi Conceived and facilitated by Pushpi Bagchi, a young Illustrator & Visual Communication Designer from Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology, the three hour workshop was a fun mix of story-time, experience-sharing, eating some delicious food prepared from fresh vegetables and finally some hands-on seed…

Looking for a fresh Mediterranean snacks that’s vegetarian? Alright folks, Tahini Garden at Jayanagar offers you the combination. The name is inspired from tahini, a sauce prepared from sesame seeds. Moroccan Spaghetti. Pic: Abhishek Angad The food draws its inspiration from the nations surrounding Mediterranean Sea. Countries like France, Italy, Spain, Morocco, Greece, Turkey have contributed to the variety of food. Sea food, poultry, red-meat, grains, beans and pastas forms major component of the food. The main flavour though is that of olive oil, that is used extensively. The food is generally baked or grilled.Unlike other Mediterranean food joints in…

A cuisine inspired by countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea - Italy, France, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon and many more. And since a sea surrounds them, seafood is a huge part of the cuisine. Apart from that, fruits and vegetables with an emphasis on rice, grains, beans and pastas is the main feature. The most prominent mode of cooking is grilling or broiling with generous use of olive oil. Ruh, set up with an ambience inspired from these nations surrounding the sea with sand and pebbles for floor. The place is decorated with long curtains, red and golden lanterns, ornamental mirrors…

Like many others, I watched 'The Lorax' about a month ago. While the movie itself was something I wished we could publicly broadcast at various venues in our city, it was the post-movie conversations among the children in the audience that actually left me thinking. BM English School Green Club green club members 2012-13. Pic: Vinita Young ones compared notes on their preferred character; some older children felt that adults would only continue to chop down trees and we would really need electric trees on our streets! Some even shared facts about global warming and climate change. And yet when…

Restaurant at the end of the ORR was how Kanua was described to me. And unlike the Douglas Adams' restaurant, food is the protagonist here.Inspired by coastal and Konkani cuisine, the place serves some great food.The open architecture and use of wood in the interiors transport you to a coastal home. The menu tells you the story behind Kanua and their philosophy. Neer dosa. Pic courtesy: Wikimedia commons Kanua is the name of a rice variety that is now extinct. The menu says that this is their attempt at rediscovering, recreating and reviving, the lost cultural history.And this, they do.…

So this time, it’s Karnataka cuisine. While interviewing Sakuntala Narasimhan, a senior journalist, she said there is dearth of restaurants that serve authentic Karnataka food in the city. So Citizen Matters did some digging. Mavalli Tiffin Rooms, popularly known as MTR, is a vegetarian restaurant that came up in Bangalore in 1924. It also claims to have introduced the popular South-Indian breakfast item, Rava idli. The legend goes that during the world war II, there was a grave rice shortage in India, MTR experimented with Semolina (Rava) instead of rice to prepare the idli batter. And as you know, it…