MTR, Nagarjuna and Meghana
Bangalore’s rapid growth into a cosmopolitan capital has ensured a steady stream of new and trendy restaurants. Expat chefs from Italy and Japan demonstrate their skills daily in fancy new dining spots while local chefs showcase fusion and flair in chic settings. I have reviewed several in this blog earlier. This time I wanted to do something different. I went back to the city's roots and discovered local eateries that existed and flourished before the city’s new and modern avatar and its upscale dining options came into being.
RR's is a restaurant that serves Andhra cuisine on banana leaves - not very upscale, always crowded - exactly the way I remembered it down to the dog-eared menu (that appears to have lasted a generation). The mutton biryani didn't taste as good as I remembered, but then I am spoilt now. The Chicken 
These short business trips have become so frequent, I now begin packing only in the hour before the car comes to pick me. Which is probably why I forgot to take my camera this time; the pictures here are from the camera on my Blackberry Curve.
The Gilawati Kababs were very, very good. The Tandoori Chaamp, marinated ribs of lamb, were cooked just right too. The Dum Biryani was fragrant and tasty. What made the experience a good one were the small touches, like the menu printed to look like an old newspaper, the drinks menu printed on the side of a bottle, etc.
If you are in Bangalore and craving for kababs and biryani, I will definitely recommend this place. BTW, North Indians will love the excellent 
The Jet Airways flight to Hyderabad landed on time at the spanking new Rajiv Gandhi airport. I noticed an ample amount of space that will make further expansion in the future easy. There is enough space for newer extensions to the main airport building and lots of parking. The airport is a huge improvement our our older ones. While flying back, I also found I could check-in bags without needing to first scan them manually at an x-ray machine like is common at every other Indian airport. It was also good to see a bookshop, coffee shop and fast food restaurants after the security checks and within the departure area.
Bangalore airport too looked well-planned and seemed to have space for future expansion. While people say the airport building and infrastructure are just enough to sustain today's passenger volume, it didn't look too crowded to me. Again, here too, the Departure area has quite a few shops and restaurants after the security checks which is a relief. The airport looks and feels similar to the one in Hyderabad. Actually, if at all there is at all anything negative to these gleaming new airports, it is the fact that they lack character and look the same.
I stayed at the Oberoi in the heart of downtown Bangalore. My work got done by lunch and I had the rest of the day to myself. The Oberoi is an oasis of tranquility with its large gardens, trees and balconies filled with violet flowers. I walked into the Rim Naam Thai restaurant set in the gardens and surrounded by a water body. The food they serve is excellent too!
The recently renovated Oberoi Spa is run by Thailand's famed 
On a colleague's recommendation I walked out of my hotel for dinner. The Karavalli restaurant in Taj's Gateway Hotel on Residency Road is a brisk 20-minute walk from the hotel. There was a cool wind blowing which made the walk pleasurable in spite of the traffic and the construction of 
The Prawns Sukha Karwari was deep-fried, crunchy prawns tossed with a fiery red masala. The Karimeen Pattichatthu, their signature dish, is made from fresh fish caught in Kerala. I also learnt some interesting details on how this fish is caught. Apparently women pile their hair on top of their heads and submerge themselves to sieze the fish by their tail. Men, on the other hand, hold a lamp and a butterfly net to snare the fish attracted to the light. The Karimeen Pattichatthu is a shallow-fried dish flavored with exotic Kerala spices.
The other dish I remember is the Meen Polichatthu, a fresh black pomfret, marinated in Malabar masala, and wrapped in a banana leaf before being pan-fried to perfection.
After all that hot, spicy food, it was nice and refreshing to nibble on 
I ordered their signature Coriander Prawns and ended with a fruit-salad. While the ambiance in the restaurant was good, the food was just ok. Nothing to write about. However, do try the Karavalli if you are in Bangalore (and you can handle really hot food!).
The next day began early with a mess up with my credit card that led me to miss a couple of early morning conference calls. I had to then quickly rush to the airport for my flight back to Pune via Bangalore. While Jet Airways continues to be efficient, have they lost that little edge in service quality, especially when compared to Kingfisher? Maybe it is only the extra attention I got from the Kingfisher girls that made me feel so. :)
