Souplantation, Los Angeles

Souplantation, one of the few places that I fell in love when in USA.. It was the day before the wedding, us girls were all being heralded towards the car to go for the rehearsal.. It was the 1st time, we were told what our role was, where we had to stand, what we had to do etc.. And well, once that was done, it was time to go dig into some amazemax food - salad and soup, plus pasta and desserts.. 

It was decided we would head to Souplantation, now that is a name I was fascinated and curious about. Once I walked in, I saw a long row that was the Salad bar, it had veg, non veg, condiments and just about everything else you can think about. Oh, it had fruits as well.

All you do is grab a bowl and pile on whatever you want and then grab a drink, maybe a bowl of pasta or soup and finally bill em all. It is a self service place and quite a large one at that. There is a separate section for beverages, even if it is just water you need with a separate dispenser for ice cubes. 

I was fascinated and well, enjoyed the food as well. There were two tiny tots with us -5yr olds, one chose a bowl of soup while the other took some fruits and a pasta [mac n cheese]. We chose the long community style table with high chairs and spent nearly two hours chomping down food and yapping away dime a dozen. The day was long for a few of us, and others were headed home to chill for a while... 

The salad and soup combination costed about $12-14 [of course it depends on what you take]

Moon And Sixpence, Hablis, Chennai

“She loved three things — a joke, a

glass of wine, and a handsome man.” 

― W. Somerset Maugham, The Moon And Sixpence

 

This is what came to my mind when I heard the name “The Moon and Six Pence”. And this time I wasn’t reading about the book, but about the Irish Pub inside the Hotel Hablis, Guindy.  The name had me curious, I wondered what the inspiration was behind it, if there was a story or a connection and that is what lured me to the pub on that Thursday. A quick ride up to the 1^st floor and you spot the walls covered with Irish proverbs and sayings.  A narrow passage is what you walk down, with a door labeled “lounge” on the left and another straight ahead as well.  Quite a few posters and pieces cover the wall outside, while the inside has been kept minimal.

Done up with brown wood, the place is beautiful. To add to the décor there are a few glass panels with Guiness, Jamerson etched on them. And then there are the random selection of books and bottles, not to forget the clock with The Moon and Six Pence [hereforth shall be referred to as MASP] written on it and the beautiful Pool table sitting right at the end, almost in a corner. It reminded me of a scene from the movie “accidental husband” where Uma Thurman goes looking for Jeffrey Dean to tell them about how they are supposedly married, it is a mistake and to ask him to sign the annulment papers!

The pub incidentally has 3 sections- the Lounge, the main bar area and the Patio [which is also the smoking section]

We were all in the Lounge area, some glued to the Bar area while rest of us found a table nearby. To kick start the evening, I had a mocktail- lychee juice blended with cranberry and some soda and it was quite good. I did spend a few minutes in the bar, firing away questions about the various drinks they had, valuable lessons you see :D I also had a glass of red wine [ a domestic one], which was not really geat, so am curious to see their wine list.

We also met with the MASP Manager  who is Irish, Aine Edwards, who spoke in length about how the pub was true to the Irish standards, in terms of décor and others, but food was a fusion keeping the Indian palette in mind. We also met with Chef Nagaraj and Prabhu who made sure we tried a wide range of dishes that evening.That evening was also when Hashers were meeting there to gulp down as much beer as they could [they normally do a long walk and then drink beer, but that evening they skipped the walk and hit the pub straight]

The one awesome thing about the place is that you can sit wherever you want, and get the same service; children are allowed [a point that puzzles me] and stags are also welcome…

With reference to the food, they serve a variety of Pub food- starting with the Fish n Chips to ravioli to Apple pie.  Though I felt the ratio of non veg to veg was slightly lopsided, leaning towards the Non veg side, the veg dishes that I had were quite good. Here is a round up of all that we sampled,

Clockwise from Top- Stuffed Mushroom, Mushroom Cappucino[ soup which was served piping hot with an assortment of breads which was good] and then the last dish is the MASP salad [fresh and filled with flavour, loved that they had artichokes in them]

Also featured is the ipad using which you can go through their menu and place the order.

Clockwise from top- The open ravioli which was simply yumm- 2 sheets of pasta with quite a filling of vegetables and cheese topped with more cheese and a subtle marinara sauce served with 2 slices of  garlic bread. Then featured is the Barley & veg soup- very light and quite nice, again served with 3 different kinds of breads and a bread stick as well. Below- On the left is the Bailey's Cheesecake [loved the texture, but do wish it had more Bailey's in it.. lol] and the Apple Pie with ice cream and a custard sauce [perfect flavours, but I kinda love my pies hot and the crust crisp]

The non veg dishes- Lamb Steak & Mushroom Pie [ braised lamb pieces with mushroom in a rich gravy topped off with Mashed potato crust]- I loved the mashed potato in this and those who dug into this did love the dish. Next is the Blackened Chicken Supreme a grilled chicken served with blackened spice and grilled vegetables, I once again stole the veggies while the others devoured the chicken. And finally is the MASP burger. The fries not just in this dish but in all they were served were simply amazing- triple cooked and hand cut - Out of the world! There were more non veg dishes served, but before I could click they were gone-Stuffed Scottish Salmon, Fish n Chips,Oven Roasted Salmon. Sixpence Stew, Sriracha Wings and Supion.  

And with that we were done and the clock was all set to strike Midnight, but the place was still abuzz. I know for a fact this is a place I will go back to, the ambiance and what I saw did catch my eye!  

Address:

Hablis No.19, Grand Southern Trunk Rd, Guindy, Chennai, Tamil Nadu 600032 

Phone:044 2233 4000

Disclaimer:
The reviews posted on this blog are based on my personal experience. Also remember that restaurants and eat outs sometimes change with time, so does their food and service. So, kindly consider these factors while visiting the places. Remember, no two palates are the same. Bon Appétit  :-)

The Gateway comes to Chennai..

REFRESH... F5 ... those were the key words for the day! Why? Well, it was time to refresh the hospitality sector in Chennai, time to welcome a new entrant, accept the fact that Chennai had also arrived.. 

We walked into the open lobby and instantly I noticed the piece of art on the wall- it was from Kailashnath temple in Kancheepuram, and the seating area beyond that had another section from the same temple. And suddenly there was sunlight streaming in, a long pathway that led to the banquet hall flanked by the swimming pool on one side and a restaurant on the other. We then entered the hall and it took us a minute to get our eyes adjusted to the dim lighting. Straight ahead was something that resembled a stack of honeycombs. There were 7 in total with people sitting in them. There were a few with musical instruments and 2 ladies who looked like dancers, one on the top grid and another below. The performance that followed was beautiful, soothing and captivating! So, what was the event? The Gateway was opening its doors officially in Chennai!! 

The Taj Group launched The Gateway Hotel IT Expressway Chennai, the first hotel under the Gateway Hotels & Resorts brand in the city. The brand unveiled in 2008 caters primarily to the upscale segment, welcoming business executives and travellers alike. The rooms here range between  Rs 4,500 and Rs 8,500. 

The group plans to set up 20 more Gateway hotels over the next 2-3 years pan India -Tirupati, Corbett, Pune, Raipur , Kolkata, and Faridabad with an investment of Rs 50 lakhs a room.  During the launch meet, Prabhat Verma, chief operating officer, The Gateway Hotels & Resorts said "Eight more hotels will come up in the next 18 months and we will have 40 plus hotels coming up in the next three years and double this number in six years". Wow, that is quite an overwhelming number!

We were also introduced to the chief Chef- Natarajan who spoke about how Tanjore cuisine is going to play a big role int he food served in the main restaurant. And then we were given the grand tour of the place. First stop was the Sian - the restaurant offering Oriental cuisine.  it has been elegantly done up in simple colours and comfortable seating. 

From there, we meandered through the lobby towards Swirl, the bar.  Long and spacious, it was quite bright unlike most other pubs/bars we see in the city. Looked like a cool place to hang out with a bunch of friends.  The walls across the corridors were done up aesthetically with art work reflecting out tamil culture and heritage. We were then shown to the elevator and headed upstairs to take a tour of the place beyond. We saw a few rooms, the conference halls, the gym, the spa and wound up with a view of the beautiful swimming pool.

And then, Lunch was served. There was a strange looking barrel filled with ice with glass bottles filled with water like liquid in them. Discovered these were flavoured water- some had slices of strawberry, while others had thyme, and then there were a few with cardamom pods and sabja seeds in them. The one thing that impressed me about the entire space was the use of natural lighting. It makes such a big difference, both visually and aesthetically. It is always lovely to sit in a restaurant that is naturally lit against one filled with light fixtures. The restaurant offered buffet lunch, with dishes spanning from  India [both North Indian & South Indian], Italy and to other parts of the world as well. 

There was quite a spread- breads, juices [bitter gourd and gooseberry], different kinds of cheeses, olives, cured meat, salads, mini starters, lasagne [single portion size in circles], naan daal, vathakozhambu Knol kol curry to exotic dishes as well. There were some interesting desserts, some of which had fresh figs, kiwi, strawberries and other candied items on them. 

The  buffet is priced at Rs 850 +tax and is ideal for those who are looking for something that is away from the city. And if you happen to visit, do take a look at the art work around the place :-) 

Address:

Rajiv Gandhi IT Expy, Sholinganallur  Chennai, TN 600119
Ph- 044 6680 2500