Candies, Bland Chicken Biryani, sour salads!

Candies is probably the best restaurant in Bandra where food is light on the tummy and the prices even more so on the wallet. The wide variety of food items here is complemented by a variety of desserts. On this documented trip, one of the many countless trips, we ordered for a Chicken Tikka Biryani and a plate of mixed salad. Salads here extremely healthy and are generally replenished quickly as most salad items are in demand here!

We took a mixture of corn, potato and chicken macaroni salad. Sadly, the macaroni salad was a bit sour and that kinda spoilt the taste of the entire salad. The biryani was just about alright as well. From the taste it was clear the pack of rice and chicken has been lying on the counter for a few hours. Stale bland biryani, was the way my friend aptly described it.

However, the only good experience on this trip was the Baked lemon cheese cake which was awesome! The Baked Cheese Cake was such a refreshing dessert. It wasn’t as heavy as the normal candies cheese cakes are usually. The texture smooth and the base was deliciously yummy unlike the soggy bases on some cheese cakes.

Overall disappointed though the baked cheese cake was a saving grace!

WOW at Summer Bliss at 5 Spice

5 Spice serves one of the best Chinese Foods in Mumbai. There is little doubt that good food and great ambiance are one of its biggest attractions. However, 5 Spice also serves excellent desserts. One of them being Summer Bliss. Sinful, to say the least, it is much like a sizzling brownie except it comes in a humongous glass bowl. Brownies, ice cream and a liberal dosage of nuts makes it an excellent dessert option. off course it is for INR 140 but if five people can share it, then price doesn’t matter.

Besides Summer Bliss for dessert one can try out the Spicy Pot Chicken which is a complete meal full of rice, veggies and offcourse chicken! To have along with the Spicy Pot Chicken, one can order for a Lemon Mojito Mocktail which is an excellent cooler for the hot summer months in Mumbai.

Wanton House, Hill Road, Bandra

Wanton House is this, surprisingly, little known place opposite Spice Tree in Bandra. A Chinese outlet, Wanton House is similar in ambiance to Dynasty in Santacruz though the former is bit more cramped up especially for big people (like your’s truly).

Went for dinner with Rock Chic and since we were both hungry, we set aside our dieting goals to gorge on some Chinese goodness.  First up we ordered for Wantons (now don’t be surprised at the choice!) and Chicken Shanghai Fried Rice. The Wantons were deep fried but were quite different from what I thought are Wantons. The filling is too small even as the number of Wantons is quite good (about 10). This was followed by the crunchy Shanghai Fried Rice which could easily suffice 3 people. The quantity is extremely good at Wanton House, though the pricing is about double that of Jimmy’s Kitchen. At Rs.160 for the rice, it wasn’t the best made Chinese food, far from it! The schzewan was a little over the top, negating any other flavours in the meal. I would have expected better for Rs.160!

A cramped up place, Wanton House is quite good for a cosy meal with the advantage of free WIFI. Though I would rate it 3/5 for food, the service was good, a smiling waiter/waitress will always get bonus points (double points for a waitress!) from me!

Venus Bakery, Bandra

One of the oldest bakeries in Bandra, Venus is a popular one amongst people of all ages. And why not? With desserts and snacks ranging from INR 15-INR 50, it is easy to see why its well recieved by many! Its not just the pricing but the quality too which provides Venus with repeat customers like me. Cakes can also be had from here and they will, like most all bakeries, bake a cake according to your specification.

Though they do have many snack items like chicken fingers, chicken wings, chicken lollipops, chicken/mutton cutlets, burgers, rolls and many more. My current favourite though is the Chicken Sandwich. For INR 20, you get 3 half cut slices of wheat bread and in between as much chicken as you can stuff! Though the sandwich still doesn’t beat the one at Star Bazaar (Which is for INR 35 and with big chunks of chicken and tastes totally yummy) but its still good enough to be had on a daily basis!

Besides the sandwich, the plum cake is great and so is the pack of wheat bread which is for INR 15! The plum cake is a favourite of many in my office while the wheat bread is my personal favourite! Every friday I buy wheat bread from here so that my whole family can enjoy either as a sandwich, toast or just plain bread with milk!

A nice little bakery, Venus is a must visit during Christmas when they bakery itself is nicely decorated and selling even more delicious products!

Address: Near MET Building, Near Mount Carmel’s Church, Bandra Reclamation, Bandra (W), Mumbai 400050.

Ph No.: 26433263

Masalacraft, Bandra – Cheaper than I thought

Everyone’s going ga-ga over this new place next to Desiree which is next to Candies at Bandra Reclamation. So my team decided to head out to Masalacraft for the farewell of 2 colleagues. Eight of us, paraded through the glass door at Masalacraft, enchanted by its decor and an intriguing ceiling – adorned with small black pots! The ambiance got the thumbs up from us, and as we were the first to arrive there, we could choose a nice comfy place to have our lunch!

Whilst waiting for another colleague, the rest of us ordered for a few drinks including lassi, kamikaze shot and a saffron drink which was just so darn good! So good that multiple rounds followed thereafter! Besides the drinks, we had a paneer starter and a main course for the veggies and a chicken gravy dish for main course and biryani!! (Oh! How i just love biryani). The biryani quantity was quite a lot and for the price of INR 150, I think it was well worth the cost! Was it the best biryani I have had? hmm not really but definitely one of the best!!

A good, heartening meal and surprisingly, at only INR 281 per head, lighter on the pockets as well! They have drinks as well to make for a complete meal! We did not get to try the desserts, as we ran out of time, but surely, the desserts will be tried next time around!

At the end, along with the bill, came a Tibetan meditation bowl. Read more about the bowl here.