Prankster

A friend of mine invited me to lunch with her at Prankster one weekend (the day before I moved states, right before the holidays, and followed by my return to the US, which hopefully explains my very belated post). Once we met, she explained that we were going to be hosted by the ever-gracious Pawan Soni and try a little bit of everything on the menu. I had a such a great time eating and chatting with so many great, new people - I can summarize the experience with these few word: soooo.much.good.food!

Fantome Bar Exchange

Conveniently located at South Point Mall, just behind my home base in DLF's Phase 5, I noticed Fantome Bar Exchange a few weeks back while detouring past the mall due to the never-ending metro line construction. Just opened 1 1/2 month back, I finally dropped in a few weeks ago for some drinks with a girlfriend before heading out to an event. Once settled however, we didn't leave. The ambience was inviting and the music selection was good, but not so loud as to be off-putting where we couldn't sit and conversate. (Note to bars in Gurgaon: Knock it off; you don't all have to try to be a dance club. If you are a pub or a family restaurant your music should never be so loud that I have to shout to the person sitting across from me.)

Wanting to catch up with another friend in the vicinity, I suggested we meet at Fantome to see if it would be as charming as the first visit. I also wanted to try some of their handcrafted beers this time around. Verdict = nice ambience, good service, and pretty good pub grub.

Mixing Indian flavors with American tastes

I've had a parade of visitors since we moved to India almost 2 1/2 years ago. Most of my guests are expats who have/are living abroad or friends of friends who are frequent travelers, but recently my parents ventured over as well as one of my besties from the US. This is when I realized that not everyone loves Indian food as much as I do (I do miss my weekly sushi and the variety of different cuisines in my diet, but I also happily eat Indian for the majority of my meals daily). While many expats and frequent travelers love to immerse themselves in the food and culture of a new place, many Americans can't handle all of the richness and flavors. (I have a test case of a Polish-American expat (aka Buffet Queen for long-time readers!) coming to visit this week to compare - she grew up on barely any black pepper and can't handle spicy, but she has lived abroad for many years - we'll see how much Indian cooking she can endure.) 

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I think the reason that I love Indian food so much is because it's made from so many familiar flavors. I grew up in Texas eating a healthy amount of Tex-Mex and Mexican food for as long as I can remember, and those flavors of cayenne, onion, chili peppers, cumin, bell peppers, garlic, and coriander/cilantro, amongst others made Indian cuisine feel a little bit more like home. That said, there was an article on WaPo last year discussing the science behind what makes Indian delicious, and it was mostly because they combine flavors completely differently than we do in American food. Another aspect of it is the fact that Indian food isn't just a few dishes, it's literally thousands of different meals (not that our cook realizes this ... I need Curry Delight back in the kitchen). 

So all of this led me to think more about how India "Indianizes" American foods and how the US "Americanizes" Indian foods to meet individual taste expectations. Sometimes this is done successfully resulting in deliciousness (visit The California Boulevard in Gurgaon to experience a delightful fusion of flavors) and sometimes it ends poorly with an over-masala-ed mishmash of seasonings or a weird, wannabe bbq sauce/Ranch dressing. So my plan is to take my favorite American dishes and "Indianize" them. While I'm no expert on flavors, I'm hoping I can't screw up this experiment too badly since Indian food is supposedly all about combining things with nothing in common. First up is baked potato. Check back for how I changed the traditional bland American version into a more flavorful dish using Indian spices!

Giruz Bakery and Cafe

I recently had the opportunity to visit Giruz Bakery at Baani Square (Sector 50) for lunch and bread tasting during their soft opening. I have been eagerly awaiting their opening as there is a dearth of unique bread shops here in Gurgaon. I can easily find white or whole grain sliced breads, but few groceries offer speciality breads more than just a baguette or croissants, choosing to focus more on pastries than the wide array of tasty bread options. I previously tried L'Opera (at Galleria Market in DLF Phase 4 of Gurgaon and Hauz Khas Village in South Delhi) and the DLF Phase 5 Club bakery (on the ground floor of the main building near the central sitting area). L'Opera was hailed by my French friend (living in Bangalore with even less options than here) as fantastic and a much needed reminder of home. They have an excellent selection of pastries, specialty jams, and an array of teas, if you're into that kind of thing. The baguette and croissants are both quite good - their website boasts of several additional options that I have never seen fresh in the shops, but that could just because I don't make it over early enough to indulge. My parents loved their chocolate pastry.

Post-sightseeing snack at L'Opera Hauz Khas

I've only bought baguettes from the Phase 5 Club, and they were fine. However, their website also lists a number of bread options, most of which are gone by the time I stop in. I clearly need to prioritize my bread shopping! My problem is that I don't eat baguettes nearly fast enough and by nature they go stale and hard almost immediately. However, I learned from Giruz that in order to avoid wastage you should immediately freeze whatever you won't eat within the day. You can then later defrost piece by piece and they're just as fresh. 

What I didn't realize when I dropped into Giruz's bakery was that they also have a small cafe. I visited during their taste testing phase so they did not yet have a set menu and I was treated to a wide array of dishes they were testing on customers. Full disclosure: I did not pay for this meal (I did purchase my breads and cakes though); the owner is a friend who invited me for taste testing. I did not receive any compensation for this review and she did not ask me to write this - she just knows I love fresh bread and hopes I'll become a loyal customer.

Baani Square, while most consider it "out of the way" since it's not on Golf Course Road and is closer to Sohna Road, it's actually quite conveniently located next to the Hilton Garden hotel on Vikas Marg near Hibiscus and Nirvana Country. I live in Phase 5 and it's a short 10 minute drive most times of the day. There is a vast array of restaurants in this small shopping arcade. Other than Giruz, I've visited their fast food version of Lebanese food, Lub Lub (also quite good). I've also heard good things about The Spice Lab and Big Wong, but can't personally vouch for them. Giruz is located on the ground floor central section opposite Big Wong. They are a small and cozy cafe, with smart French country decor. If you still find it daunting to venture over yonder, Giruz also offers delivery options.

I started with vada pav, the pav, of course, was made fresh in house. It differs slightly from the traditional version in that the pakora, while still made from fried mashed potato batter, seasoning, and curry leaves, was not drenched in oil like most fried foods here. The sauces add another twist, with a topping of red chili sauce and a green coriander, ginger, garlic, and onion masala chutney. 

Fresh vada pao

Bruschetta on a French garlic bread baguette

Next up was some bruschetta on a toasted French garlic bread baguette. As this was their time to experiment with tastes and recipes, the chef added a twist of some chopped up olives to the traditional tomato and basil drizzled with olive oil which didn't strike my fancy since I despise olives (weird since I adore olive oil), but was good overall. Both crunchy and savoury with not too much oil or topping that the bread becomes soggy. My friend was not thrilled with the addition either, so I imagine if you order this dish today you'll get a more traditional version.

The California Boulevard

As Gurgaon's InterNation's ambassador I get to plan fun events and culinary adventures for our members each month. I like to keep it fresh and try to find a new spot to host my monthly events so I usually identify a new place or take suggestions from members then approach the manager/owner about our organization and mission. Now that I've been doing it for almost a year I sometimes get invitations from some restaurants that want to work with us. Yesterday was one such day. A friend who is a new activity group consul for InterNations and has a background working with restaurants in the area wanted to meet with The California Boulevard and combine forces to host a duel activity group dinner. I am fully aware that because of the special treatment I received when dining with the PR head and having the chef prepare us some of his favorites I had a very different dining experience than most. Full disclosure, I did not pay for my meal, and I am hosting a future event at their location, but they also did not ask me to write this. I miss writing and this just happens to be the most recent place I've visited and had a sit-down meal rather than just an array of appetizers. Also, I have attended a previous event at this location and paid at that time.

I visited The California Boulevard's Gurgaon location in Sector 29. It is known for its fine dining and Hollywood-inspired theme ambiance. It prides itself on the California "experience" and making fine dining available for all. And it appears that is something they are achieving, for a Sunday afternoon, there were a surprising number of guests in the restaurant.

The servers were well-trained in being available, but not hovering. The meal commenced with a waiter putting a silver bowl with a small white square in front of me. He then poured water over it and voila! I had a small wet wipe for my hands. It was a much nicer presentation than a finger bowl with nothing to dry your hands on. Not a novel concept, but something different from most restaurants I have eaten at in India. While our hostess ordered a variety of bitings for us, I did get a chance to look at the menu and was quite impressed by the selection which is apparently going to grow in the next few weeks with a new menu being launched. One thing I didn't get to try, but will definitely order next time is their cheese fondue. I love fondue (who doesn't love a pot of molten cheese?!) and didn't even know that there was a restaurant offering that option in Gurgaon.

We started with their version of a Dilli ki Chaat nibbler. I'm used to it looking like this:

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But theirs was a light and airy appetizer that you could eat several and still feel like you have room for your main course. It was a great start to the meal and fun twist on a traditional Indian snack.

Crunchy spinach leaves with yogurt, tamarind, and mint chutney

Fat Lulu's Cafe and Bar

Ending up at Fat Lulu’s for lunch was a fluke; we fully intended to gorge ourselves at the well-known boulangerie, Di Ghent, only to be reminded it was closed on Tuesdays. Swallowing our disappointment, we dutifully checked Zomato to see what other options happened to be in the vicinity and decided to meet at Fat Lulu’s Crosspoint Mall location instead. 

Ladies who lunch

Sutra Gastropub

According to Delhiites, DLF Cyberhub is the only reason to venture over to Gurgaon and I am tempted to agree. Although Gurgaon has its fair share of decent restaurants it cannot compete with the many options scattered throughout Delhi's trendy neighborhoods. However, Cyberhub does offer Gurgaonians a place to eat out, take in some music, and barhop all in one location. While it doesn't have the feel of say a Khan Market or Hauz Khas, it's not far off from Connaught Place. Cyberhub embraces their suburbian-ness by marketing its nearly 50 restaurants, fast food, and lounge options to young professionals, middle-aged businessmen, as well as families. Furthermore, the open-air amphitheater regularly shows cricket matches on the big screen, hosts concerts, and offers the opportunity for wide-scale embarrassment for those gutsy enough to karaoke in front of the masses.

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#SufiSutra with Indian Ocean 5 Nov 2014

First up for review is Sutra, a spacious indoor/outdoor bar on the Cyberhub’s 2^nd level pub hub. With unlimited ₹1 drinks every Monday, free drinks for ladies on Tuesdays, Wednesday Sufi nights, and live bands on Sundays, there is something going on at Sutra practically every night of the week. Most recently we visited on a Friday night and were pleasantly surprised with buy one get one happy hour specials until 8:30pm. Drink choices were limited, but still offered a wide enough selection to make everyone in our group happy.

From Africa to India: Diary of a Hungry Expat

This is the story of my hungry journey, an expat diary of dining and all things foodie. After five years and nearly 80 restaurants reviewed throughout Africa, it's been quite the hungry adventure! But now, after a year in limbo and a lull in posts, African Nights is rebooting itself as a global food and dining blog for the expat set embracing local living. Be it eating out, cooking in, or a night on the town, Diary of a Hungry Expat is here to share our experiences with fellow foodies.

Now based in Gurgaon, a suburb of Delhi, your hungry expat guide will explore a new continent full of new cuisine. Join the adventure as a contributor or leave us a note suggesting somewhere or something new you'd like us to share with our readers.