Search This Blog

About Me

My photo
Am a contradiction of sorts. i love going out and having a good time with friends, and i can also stay home chill out over a book or a movie.. Am very passionate about writing, so give me a topic and watch me float away into wonderland... I Am crazy about music,books,friends and my doggie... :)

Thursday, August 23, 2018

Food Exchange at Novotel Chennai Chamiers



Yes, you read it right. There is a new kid in the block, err a new Novotel in the city, that too on Chamiers Road [ almost adj to Times Now office].. Was at dinner at their resturant Food Exchange [the name had me surprised cos in other Novotel hotels, the restaurant is called The Square] .. The minute you walk out the elevator, you are greeted by giant doors that lead the way into a restaurant that is large, spacious with multiple sections and different kinds of seating options. All along the walls are shelves lined with interesting knick knacks, with one wall carrying different sauces and condiments used in the restaurant. 

Right in the middle of the place is the open kitchen [ a good sized space, but they should relook at their exhaust system, there were moments we were coughing cos of the smoke coming from the Tandoor]... 

Coming down to the most important part, the food, the Chef at the helm of things is Chef Kalaiselvan who is here after working across Dubai and various other places..  Over the weekends you are in for the Buffet while other days it is a la carte. The bar is just being set up- Gourmet bar, and they are yet to get booze license, so we settled for mocktails. The first drink I was served was an Almond milk based coffee which wasnt that great [ maybe I am just not the almond milk kinda gal], but the second one was good - Delicious Sour [made with peach, apricot, lemon and soda] which as my friend noted, came without a garnish... 

Going on to food, am going to let the photos do the talking.... [Comments & inputs along with the photograph]



 The open kitchen

The Almond milk coffee drink...not really my thing..

 Delicious Sour- refreshing and light..

Chilli honey lotus stem- was crunchy and chewy [maybe fried too long]

Paneer Tikka served with green chutney- good and familiar flavours.

Burnt garlic veg soup- Loved loved the burnt garlic flavours.. perfect if you have a bad cold

Mushroom velouté with porcini oil- you know me, you know how much I love 
Mushrooms. This was yummilicious 

The bar menu... 

Gnocchi with basil pesto, shaved Parmesan in Sage butter sauce - It was heavenly, pillowy and melt in your mouth...

Mushroom ravioli with garlic bread  - perfectly cooked ravioli , good flavour of mushrooms and simple sauce...


 The garlic bread- it was soft and crisp on the edges.. Loved the bowl it was served in

Veg pizza- red olives, basil, simple tomato sauce and mascarpone cheese

Jasmine rice with Thai green curry- My absolutely favourite food in the whole wide world and it was delicious... non veg folks have red prawn curry to dig into..

The dessert platter - Brownie,  tender coconut payasam parfait; 
Oreo cheesecake and Double chocolate mousse[the one with ring on top] - was a mixed bag of flavours and textures, but overall found most of them tad too sweet for my liking [ am more the dark bitter chocolate kinda person]

Next time you are in the city and looking for a new place to explore, you should hop into Novotel and Food Exchange... Apart from the Thai & Italian cuisine, they also offer a range of Indian dishes ... Go ahead, give it a shot and let me know how your experience was..

Address: 
Novotel Chamiers 
11, Pasumpon Muthuramalinga Thevar Rd, 
Rathna Nagar, Nandanam, Chennai- 600035
Phone: 044 2430 2333 

Disclaimer: The reviews posted on this blog are based on my personal experience. Also remember these were just my views!! Remember, no two palates are the same. Bon Appétit :-)


Thursday, August 2, 2018

'Tashi Delek' - Tibetian popup at Ashvita Bistro, Chennai





Food in reverse order... :-)

The dessert- Banana & oreo ice cream

The main course

Thupka- Soup

The momos
[photograph courtesy- Kamalika]

A friend pinged and asked if I would like to join her for the Tibetian popup lunch.. It was then I discovered she was referring to the three day event scheduled at Ashvita Bistro, Bawa Road... 



Chef Esha Sahor Lepcha from Bombay was here in Chennai and offering 'Tashi Delek' (blessings and good luck) through food... It was our chance to experience Tibetian food..  I have had this cuisine/dishes in the hills, during my Leh and Sikkim trips and so was curious to see how similar/different the flavours were. I quite love this cuisine cos it has very little to no spices/masala and yet packed with flavours. 

Saturday afternoon, we landed at Ashvita and waited for our meal. They had a Veg and non veg menu, since both of us were veg, we opted for the veg menu.  You get to choose between Momo and Thupka [soup], and similarly each category had two dishes. We decided to order one of each so we could try them both.  

The momos were delicious, served with spicy red chilli sauce and peanut chutney of sorts [which was out of the world, we asked for refill] , we went in for a repeat order of Momos as well.  The Thupka was good, similar to the one I tasted in Gangtok. It had noodles, vegetables, and a clear broth. Here too the Thupka was low on salt [I was told that most places serve it salt free, allowing the customer to season as they wish]. 

Following this came the main course, which was served with Brown rice. Along with the rice came a dish made with vegetables and blue cheese that I loved, a Tibetian version of Daal along with two sides - Cottage cheese fries and spicy Shogo Khatsa[baby potatoes]

All this was topped off with freshly handmade ice-cream [Banana & Oreo] for dessert. Overall, it was a good meal. This was priced at Rs599/- per pax. 

Overall experience- While we enjoyed the food, the service left us feeling blah, and after we left the venue is when we realised that we had shared one main, but had been billed for two full orders..  Friend raised this with the owner of the place who said we could claim the due on our next visit.. I wish restaurants educated their staff better... We were also told that refills on all dishes were part of the offer, again something we did not know nor were we offered the same...  Its not just the food, it is the ambiance, the service that adds to the dining experience, atleast for me! 

Address:
#11, Bawa Road, Alwarpet, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 600018
Phone044 4210 9990

Disclaimer: The reviews posted on this blog are based on my personal experience. Also remember these were just my views!! Remember, no two palates are the same. Bon Appétit :-)

badge