What Sam says about_____?: October 2015

Saturday, 31 October 2015

Sam's Lavasa Lake City, Pune - Travel Guide

Lavasa has come up really well as a tourist destination in the past 1-2 years. Located about 3 hours from Pune, in India, it is one of the most stunning Hill stations I have visited till date. I took a road trip to Lavasa from Mumbai via Lonavala and Pune and the roads are a blessing. The Mumbai Pune expressway is sheer pleasure for anyone who lives to drive. Even though there is a slightly slower traffic patch uptil Lonavala, but post that you can just go Vroom Vroom uptil Pune.

It was the long weekend of August 2014 that I visited Mumbai and decided to take a roadtrip to Lavasa. We borrowed my sister-in-law’s friends Hyundai Santro which was accessorised like a Ferrari (and I am not exaggerating) and drove all the way. The drive till Lonavala from Mumbai Border is almost an hour or so and since we visited during the Monsoons the drive in the rains and fog was oh so stunning. Lonavala was oh so lively. We drove in and around Lonavala, and had Corn Pakoda’s with tea at a local tea stall near the waterfall. And guess what I ticked one item off of my bucket list – Standing under a waterfall. Walking down the hill uptil the waterfall was quite the daunting task. But standing under the waterfall was—Priceless! I ought to thank my sister in law for that. I was oh so sceptical to go down the hill and man standing under the waterfall, wasn’t something I would have attempted in Public. But I am glad I did. And the ice cold water felt amazing on my skin. I felt alive. I felt I turned 13 again.

Post that we drove to Pune and stayed the night at the comfy Hotel Ibis at Phoenix Market City and the next morning after the shopping at the legendary Kayani Bakery at Pune, we left for Lavasa. The drive to Lavasa post the Pune Border is so scenic and one of the best I have driven in the mountains. Small patches of greens, lakes and landscapes makes the drive truly worth it. We reached Lavasa around Lunch and thankfully had booked a table at the All American Diner in Lavasa which was over crowded being the long weekend. After the amazing meal at the diner we started to walk around and drive around Lavasa. I regret not booking a hotel in Lavasa, I would have loved to stay back for a day or two and at the last minute nothing was available, since hotel accommodations are still coming up in Lavasa.

In the centre of the Lavasa Lake City happens to be the Boulevard which looks like Portofino in Italy and there are so many buildings that bear the names of places in Portofino. The boulevard overlooking the lake is quite the sight and because it was all rainy and cloudy Lavasa is oh so erotic, I hope u get what I mean by using that adjective. I recommend you visit Lavasa at least once and stay 2-3 nights at the place to rejuvenate your soul.

Here are some facts about the Lake City that I have compiled for you.

Area – 100Kms

Nearest Airport – Pune (57kms)

When to Visit – All year through especially in Monsoon

Where to stay – ITC Fortune, Mercure, Waterfront, Ekant (If you are planning to visit, book atleast a month in advance, because accommodations get tricky)

Where to Eat - All American Diner only has two branches in India, one in Delhi and one in Lavasa, so this one is a must try. Tabakh is a nice Lebanese restaurant you must try. Orient 8 and Chor Bizarre are nice too.

Things to do in Lavasa – Walk around the waterfront, walk ahead the hill, meditate, do yoga, water sports at the water front, read, sit back and relax

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Tuesday, 27 October 2015

Foodopia - A pleasant surprise - 3/5

All couples fight, so we fought and I was angry, so in order to ease the tension my husband decided to take me out for dinner. And since 100% of the time we decide to go out, I am the one making dinner plans and since I was fuming angry, I decided to keep mum and let my husband decide what was the very first time where he would take me for dinner.

The first restaurant he recommended was a small time Thai cafe near our place and it seemed to have shut down and ouch was he so so conscious because he had recommended the place. And suddenly he said lets go to Dwarka Sector 7 and one of his colleagues had recommended a new place and we decided to visit Foodopia.

Located on the Ist floor this no frills attached place is not your usual fine dine. The Ist look at the place and you actually wonder have you made the right choice by visiting here. But then your head tells you its always about the food and you think what the heck lets sit back and order.

Our not so polished server came and handed over the menu's and I was amused to see Indian, chinese and Thai options all in the same menu. Even though I was so dead sure the Thai food here will be a disaster I still decided on ordering the Thai Green Curry with steam rice and Chicken Steamed Dimsums.

The order came in pretty swiftly. The dimsums were nice with the chilli sauce. And Damn I was so wrong about the Green Curry. It was not 100% authentic yet the kaffir lime leaves had somewhat made it 70% authentic in taste, even though I was suspicious of the use of spinach puree for the green colour. But hey, it all boils down to taste, doesnt it? The taste was nice and the serving of chicken for the price was pretty impressive too.

And what's nice is that the food was so so light on our tummies and pockets and the bill wasn't even 800 bucks.

Well, this is one place you might try if you have run out of options, and what do you know you just might be pleasantly surprised, like I was.

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Monday, 19 October 2015

Jamie Oliver's Pizzeria India Not as good as the one in Queen's Land - 2.5/5

India is the Ist country where Celebrity Chef Jamie Oliver has ventured opening his independent Pizzeria’s. He is launching both brands Jamie’s Italian and Jamie’s Pizzeria in India. The flagship outlet of Jamie’s Pizzeria has opened in Gurgaon in Ambiance Mall and another one will be up soon at Vasant Kunj. Jamie's Pizzeria, at Level 3 is catering to us with a number of products like pizzas, salads, sides and even desserts. The outlet at ambiance is decent with about 11,00 sq ft space and a cover size of 50 plus just adjacent to Jhonny Rockets. I hear besides dine in they will also be looking at delivery and take away. I was super excited when I saw hoardings across Gurgaon that said Jamie’s Pizzeria coming soon to Ambiance Mall. But little did I know that my excitement would fizzle out when I taste the food here in India.

I was in London in May of 2015 and the first place I went to eat out was at Union Jack’s by Jamie Oliver at Covent Garden and I absolutely adored whatever I had. Everything was good both in terms of taste and quality. I was at Ambiance mall last Sunday and having heard the Radio jingle on FM which kept repeating that their Pizza’s are to die for, I decided to make Jamie’s Pizzeria my destination for Sunday Brunch. When I entered I liked the lively interiors and their open kitchen. We were seated near the window, but I still felt they could take out a table or two to make the restaurant look less cramped up.

We glanced through the table mat Menu’s and I liked the fact that the menu has been kept crisp and simple. My meal started on a negative note. I saw the cutlery on my table had water marks and gave the impression that it was dirty and not wiped clean properly. Then I wanted to try the watermelon and feta salad and I was informed by the service staff that the same wasn’t available. They recommended I try the tomato mozzarella – Caprese salad. I also ordered a portion of Stretched Garlic bread, Fresh lime and a Funghi Wooden Pizza. The food does give the impression that the ingredients are fresh and some what to a large extent does deliver on taste as well.

The pricing of the dishes seemed pretty attractive but my fear was that the quantity may be lesser and that is exactly what happened. My fear came to life as soon as the Ist dish arrived on the table. The caprese Salad priced at around 150 bucks was just a tomato salad garnished with 2 scoops of mozzarella made into 4 halves. Well I know the ingredients cherry tomatoes are expensive, but the quantity could be upped. Taste wise it was good, presentation wise was good as well but the quantity was disappointing.

Then came the stretched Garlic bread. The quantity seemed fine but it tasted more like a Naan which had very few pieces of Garlic on it. The herby marinated Olives arrived. Again the quantity could be upped and the turn off was that even though the black olives were pitted the green olives used in the portion weren’t pitted. Finally the Pizza arrived. I could count 12 slices of Mushrooms on a large Pizza. Even though the base was fresh, It was wafer crisp, unlike the kind of Pizza base I am used to having. Right in the middle of the Pizza the base was burnt underneath, like Black Burnt. I wouldn’t serve such a Pizza to a paying customer if I was the Chef. The pizza was supposed to have 2 types of cheese as toppings, however it seems they are on a MAKE PIZZA HEALTHY mission or may be we are more used to having Pizza’s the American way loaded with cheese and toppings. I could hardly see or taste any cheese on the Pizza and it was certainly not to die for.

Well , I am not sure if I will go back and give them another try, after this mediocre experience even though the meal for two costed just around 1250/-

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