Dadar

Description:

The hoardings tempt you. "GRASS"... the name sounds like a vegetarian paradise.. it was a flop show.

Dare not use their washroom/loo-s, especially after eating. The horror of the place might make you lose your lunch/supper.

Nice place, interiors.. Grrreat potential.. these guys (who are running it) are just RUINING it.. :-(

We (spouse & self) were the only 2 people eating there at 10 pm on a Thursday nite.. That pretty much sums up things.

Some lousy movie was on the wall projection cable TV. We requested the waiter to change it to any Eng News channel, the reply came back, All Eng News channel are paid channels and we have not renewed our payments !!

They have pizza in their menu. When we enquired the waiter about it, he said it was a nine inch 'pijja'. Thank you very much !

The prices are very expensive for what they serve. They slap a VAT of 12.5% but it is not mentioned anywhere on the menu. Further there is no Mah. ST/ CST Regn. no. on the bill. God knows where the VAT goes.. (to fund their VAT-69s.. I guess)

Six tiny pieces of mushrooms with two tb-spoonfuls of a gaudy red sauce - The starter - was INR130.. a big flop

I suspect they dump the sauces/ketchups used by the road-side sandwich-wallas inti their gravies.. you get tha unmistakeable (dis)taste in your mouth.

That sums up the experience of "Eggplant-in-Hot-Garlic-Sauce" (INR115). It would have helped if the dish had even traces of garlic.

The steam rice (INR50 per small bowl) was woefully under-cooked.

The tragedy that followed was the Green Thai curry (INR130). It tasted like paint. The texture of the curry was terrible.
The basil leaves were burnt (literally). The curry was loaded with just small pieces of cauliflower and carrots (aaaaarrghh !!)

However hard we tried, pushing the stuff down the throat was becoming a task that was getting more painful by the minute.

(Packing that and giving it away to the needy on the streets would have brought us their curses; not blessings!)

Couple of tables away, the waiting staff were sitting with legs on the chairs, slurping some drinks and noisily gossiping. Every three minutes a staffer comes to your table to ask whether he could remove the plates, even while you were eating !!!

The hotel management is JUST NOT SERIOUS ABOUT THEIR BUSINESS. It is amply clear.

Considering that we were the ONLY diners in that hall, they took an AWFULLY long time to serve the food !!!

INRs-525 spent on a flop dinner show.

Maybe my review is based on only their Oriental cuisine. Its a case of first impressio is always the best (here - worst) impression !!

As a rule, We are great supporters of pure veg restaurants; but this one was abominable.

Stay CLEAR of GRASS.

Like the great Ivan Lendl once remarked "Grass is for cows"

Description:

Sachin is a very old establishment in Dadar. It is a small joint with minimal decor with no pretensions to being anything but.

We had a bunch of things, a prawn masala which was good (altho i personally thought it could have been fresher). The rava fried surmai was excellent, as was the pomfret despite being relatively small. friend ordered a tomato salad( chopped tomato and chutney and curd) and that was a hit, we ordered seconds.

Chicken sukka was good, spicy and garlicky but not very oily. The egg masala was excellent (had some black masala, which gave it a sangli/kolhapuri flavour. We also ordered the mutton vada, supposedly their speciality. The vadas were good (if you like them in the first place) not oily, or chewy. The mutton was disappointing. The gravy wasn't as appetizing (the egg on was better) and the meat was badly shredded, nice bigger chunks would have made a big difference.

the butter milk and sol kadhis were soso.. chapatis were excellent, light and fresh.

overall total value for money. 5 of us ran up a tab of 516 bucks, and everybody except me confessed to overeating.

no beer.

Description:

If you happen to be at Dadar TT, on one of those hungry evenings, and are in the mood for something different, then head for a small eatery called ‘Swagat’ next to Birdy’s at the northern end of Khodadad Circle. It’s an unpretentious down-to-earth place, so don’t bother to go inside, unless you want to suffocate in the fumes emanating from the kitchen; just sit on one of the tables outside and order a plate of Veg Cutlets and wait in anticipation whilst watching the action on the street.

You won’t have to wait for long, for here they mean business; and you will find thrust in front of you, a plate with two dark brown piping hot vegetable cutlets in a bed of freshly cut tomatoes and cucumber.

First, an exploratory nibble. The cutlet is superbly crisp on the outside, but inside it’s a zesty melt-in-the-mouth medley, an almost semi-liquid conglomeration, a spicy potpourri, or rather a delicious hodgepodge of assorted vegetables (carrots, beetroot, peas, potatoes and many others). It’s hot - both temperature-hot and spicy-hot - and leaves a tangy sensation on your tongue. No, don’t go for the glass of water - just place a slice of cucumber on your tongue, and when it cools down, pop in a slice of tomato. That’s the way begin to eat it!

After the first bite, you won’t find it that piquant, especially if you add a dab of tomato sauce, but if you want to really relish it, do eat it in small pieces, exactly as I described it, without any additives like the dreadful tomato-pumpkin sauce the serve at these places. Let the symbiosis of tastes come through ( of the blended medley of vegetables and spices, chillies and coriander, ginger and garlic and the crisp crust ) and let the aftertaste and pungency linger within you for some time - so please don’t have tea or coffee, or even a sip of water, immediately after enjoying the cutlet.

You may have eaten all types of cutlets, in various sizes and shapes, but this one is different. The vegetarian cutlet at Swagat is no ‘run of the mill’ stuff! You can take my word for it.

Epilogue

My wife’s concept of a cutlet :
Take all the leftovers from the fridge, ‘CUT’ them up, season with salt and red chilli powder, mash, make into rounds, roll in leftover breadcrumbs/atta, and ‘LET’ them into a hot pan with yesterday’s left over oil.

You see, her recipe is quite simple - you “cut” and you “let” and, presto, you have your cut-let.

No wonder I crave and pine for a decent cutlet and don’t let go of an opportunity to satiate my gastronomic yearning whenever and wherever I can find a cutlet (including the insipid bland apology they serve on the Deccan Queen).

Dear Reader, please let me know where I can enjoy some good cutlets, veg and non-veg, so that I can embark upon a cutlet-eating spree. Meanwhile, let me close my eyes, heighten my gustatory senses, and in my mind’s eye, savour with simulated vicarious relish, the unforgettable cutlet I enjoyed at Swagat in Dadar TT. Oh yes, it was different!

VIKRAM KARVE

vikramkarve@sify.com

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com

Description:

A very unassuming restaurant. Decent but not very upmarket. The food though is very good and cheap. Try the thalis. The Surmai was really good and fresh.

Description:

Do not mistake Hotel Pritam with Hotel Midland Midtown Pritam. This one shares boundary with Cafe Coffee day.

They have arranged some charpais, as you would imagine/see on a roadside dhaba, in one section thereby giving it a 'dhaba' look. The other section (urban look) has decent appearance with good ambience.

They specialize in North Indian food. I particulary enjoyed nan stuffed with cheese (cheese nan) going great with 'subz makhani'. BTW, do enjoy the funny names they have tagged their dishes with.

Description:

Chetan has some of the most amazing food for a quarter bar. It's very crowded. You have people standing beside lining to grab your seat as you get up. You will almost always have to share your table with someone else if your group is not occupying it completely.

Some dishes we have tried yesterday.

Prawns Koliwada

- Only place I have found outside Sion Koliwada which makes the Hazara type prawns.
- Excellent!
- Small portions.

Chicken Tandoori

- Succulent
- Spicy

Surmai Rava Fry

- This is quite a standard and safe dish which can't be messed up. Chetan makes it slightly better then most.

Surmai Gassi

- Again a pretty standard dish at Shetty joints.

Kheema Masala

- Inconsistent quality. The first time was excellent. Second was bad.
- Should be had as a last spicy dish after all the boozing is done.

Description:

Prakash is the most famous Maharashtrian snack joint in Dadar (W). From Sena Bhavan Chowk walk for 2 mins on Gokhale Road towards Worli. Prakash is on the left. It is usually full of people, you will definitely have to wait for 5-10 mins. and share your table in the evenings.

Prakash serves only Maharashtrian snacks (no Udipi items at all) - which is probably the main reason for it's concentrated authenticity. They serve Misal, Pohe, Sheera, Sabudana Vada, Dalimbi usal, Kothimbir Vadi, Puri Bhaji, Piyush etc. Their Misal is the most popular - it is once again the satvik non-offensive kind with Matki Usal, Potato sabji, farsaan, rassa, chopped onions and lime. The Mattha Misal is topped with slightly sweet thinned curd. All snacks are below 20 rupees.

Description:

Aswad is another Maharashtrian snack joint in Sena Bhavan Chowk, Dadar(W). It is right next to the petrol pump towards Mahim.

Aswad serves the usual Udipi snacks and the Pav Bhaji menu items, but their forte is real Maharashtrian snacks. They have great Thalipeeth, Misals, Kothimbir Vadi, Sabudana Vada. They also have great Kharvas - get some if it is available. All snacks are in the 10-20 range.

Description:

Trupti is one of the many good authentic Maharashtrian snack joints in Dadar(W). It is bang opposite Plaza theatre on N.C.Kelkar road.

They serve good Misal, Mattha Misal, Thalipeeth, Kothimbir Vadi, Sabudana Vada/Khichadi, Dalimbi Usal, and the like. They also have the usual Udipi snacks, but the Maharashtrian ones are best here. The snacks are in the 10-20 rupee range, with cool drinks like Piyush, Panha etc.

The Misal here is the satvik Puneri type Misal with Matki Usal, Potato sabji, farsaan, rassa.

Description: Genuine south Indian food... not the udipi hotel south Indian stuff wid extra color n soda... this is propah pure south Indian stuff mad by cooks from palakkad, I dunno whether they are still there... but I could feel da taste (my genes are somewhere outta there) okay here what to eat... Unlimited stuff (lunch,dinner) you have to buy you coupons n wait for the junta to clear da tables, then find yourself a suitable place ( preferable nearest to da kitchen). how to start : you catch a place, hand over your coupon to the waiter, he gives u a plantain leaf, you spread it and then wait to attack... what you get to eat : Hot Rice,achar, buttermilk,sambhar, 2 different sabjis (menu changes every day), papadums (u have to buy dat extra), at times payasam. all these unlimited served on a plantain leaf wid ghee. Do try it out.. cost 25 bucks only, totall filling... If you don't wanna eat the whole lunch you can also order individual items like adai, ela adai, other usual stuff like vada, banana bhajji, dosas n idlies. You can also try da Davra Filter coffee n Chai, the place also sells south Indian stuff like rocket chutney, gunpowder chutney :)) (podi,idli podi ), achars, n other stuff which I couldn't make much sense. bad points - service not as fast as udupi hotels, can be a bit slow at times.