Restaurant Review - Bow Barracks, Indiranagar

Neatly tucked on 2nd Main in Indiranagar is this restaurant which derives its name from an Anglo-Indian locality of Kolkata. Needless to say, the cuisine on offer is Anglo-Indian and Park Street (the age old restaurant street of Kolkata)-style Continental. Anglo-Indian fare is all about fusion and with the interesting names, will appeal to the taste buds of the experimental and the fun-loving. The red brick building also does justice to the name since that is the typical kind of houses you find in Bow Barracks. The interiors are also done up with red brick and painted plates as wall hangings which give the place a warm and homely feel.

Once we entered, we were greeted warmly and given a table of our choice. There are different floors for smoking and non-smoking area, and we had chosen the former. For starters, we ordered Pork Lasooni Kebab and Fish Cutlet accompanied with three Gingerade and one Virgin Mojito. We did not have to wait too long before the food was served. Pork Lasooni Kebab tastes like heaven with the right taste and texture and Pudina Chutney to go with it. It is a must-have here and we order it everytime. Fish Cutlet had three crispy cutlets with a filling of fish and cut into halves, accompanied with a sweet chilly sauce. Both the drinks were good but I preferred Virgin Mojito because of its strong refreshing mint flavor.

  

For main course, we ordered a Rack of Lamb, Rib Eye Steak and two Fish with Peas Bon Femme. Rack of Lamb is a dish of tender lamb chops with the right amount of spiciness balanced out with mashed potato and boiled vegetables. However this might be a little inconvenient to have in public because of the large number and size of bones in it. Rib Eye Steak is made of beef meat taken from the rib, flavored with garlic and served with mashed potato and boiled vegetables. Fish with Peas Bon Femme is a grilled Bhekti dish spiced up with a lime and herb garlic butter sauce on top served with boiled green peas. All the dishes were finger-licking good and the quantity was perfect to leave just enough space in our tummies for some sweet endings. 

We ordered a Lime and Honey Pannacotta and a Captain Morgan's Rich Fruit Cake for desserts and the steward suggested a White Chocolate and Orange Creme Brulee, which was the day's specialty. All the dishes were beautifully served and delicious. The Pannacotta with a hint of lemon had a fresh taste and the fruit cake just blew us away! 

With the wholesome meal, our total bill came to around Rs. 3,700 (for four), after a 15% discount on Amex card. I have been to Bow Barracks several times and have always come out content and wanting to go back again. So to sum it up, this is a must visit place if you want to feel HAPPY after a good meal.

Ambience - 8/10

Staff - 9/10

Food Quality - 9/10

VFM - 7/10

Overall - 8.25/10

P.S. - Even though they have a bar, there is only wine on offer.

Whiskey Sour - Cocktail Recipe

Last Saturday night in a drunken frenzy, we decided to make Whiskey Sour at home and it turned out pretty good. The frothy, golden colored cocktail gave us an instant visual high and I thought of sharing the recipe.

What you need:

Whiskey, preferably Bourbon
Lemon juice
Sugar syrup
Egg white
Cocktail mixer
Honey, optional

How to prepare:

We had taken 180 ml whiskey for 3 people (60 ml each), preferably Bourbon, though we had just used VAT 69 which was there at home with us. Added lemon juice from two lemons. 

Then we added sugar syrup, made by heating water and adding four tea spoons of sugar to it and then cooling it under the fan. Finally we added two egg whites and mixed all the ingredients well in the cocktail mixer. 

The whiskey glasses were filled with ice cubes and the frothy, golden-colored liquid was added from top, cooling itself as it trickled down the ice cubes. At the end, we topped the cocktail with a hint of honey to compensate for using VAT 69 instead of Bourbon Whiskey. However this is optional. It dilutes the taste and smell of whiskey completely and may not be liked by whiskey-lovers.

Iftar Street Food Fiesta - Mosque Road

The quest for innovative and tasty food is never complete without some street food and what better place in Bangalore to try that than the Iftar food on Mosque Road in Fraser Town during Ramzan. The Muslim holy month of Ramadan is known for its fasting as well as feasting! Mosque Road becomes the food street of Bangalore with tens of stalls offering non-veg delicacies and desserts and thousands of people thronging the place. It has on offer a plethora of dishes ranging from not just chicken and lamb but also beef, seafood and even camel. It also serves various cuisines spanning pan India including Hyderabad, Bhatkal, Bombay and Malabar to name some.

I went to Mosque Road with a group of friends last Saturday, exactly a week before Ramadan Eid. Just as we were approaching the place, torrential rains started washing all our hopes of enjoying some road side delicacies. But when we reached, I was pleasantly surprised to see that, unlike last year, most of the famous stalls were setup in a covered area. A huge crowd swarmed the place making it difficult for us to even enter leave alone trying some of the delectable dishes.

We were finally victorious at making our way to the stalls in the enclosed area and started off savouring some of the colorful fare. We started with some Mughlai Paratha which is a paratha stuffed with minced meat.

 Then we went on to try the oh-so-popular Patthar ka Gosht, which is a Hyderabadi delicacy and it literally means meat cooked on stone. It is a perfect barbeque dish made of lamb and is a must try at Mosque Road. Next we had some Mutton Sheekh Kebab and Chicken with Mayonnaise both of which tasted yum. At this time, we decided to try some camel meat sheekh kebab but the seller at the Bismillah Kabab Corner informed us that we would have to wait a little longer. So we went on to wash down all that we had consumed with some cool Pink Sherbet and some sweet curd. We also tried some Khubani Chutney on the way. It was quite sweet but a welcome change with all the meat and kebab that we had gobbled down. Finally we tried our hands at the Camel Meat Sheekh Kebab and contrary to our expectation, the meat was very soft and sumptuous. We finished our food frenzy with a particular Bombay Sherbet which was a refreshing drink with diced pieces of watermelon in it.

I realized that Mosque Road is not just a foodie’s paradise but a photographer’s too. This place is like a fair with people of all age groups, communities and interests frequenting the venue. By this time the crowd had started to increase further and kept multiplying by the minute. A stall boy greeted them with his loud cries, “Allah ka karam hai, Biriyani garam hai”. With our tummies full, we decided to head homeward. Enjoying Iftar food on Mosque Road has become an annual event now and the year-long wait starts once again..

P.S. - It is a very bad idea to drive down to this place so try availing some public transport. Trust me, the experience will be worth the ordeal!

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