The Great Indian Sunday Brunch at Kangan, The Westin Hyderabad

The restaurants in The Westin, Hyderabad are known for their elaborate Sunday brunches. For an Italian experience there is the Bubbalicious brunch at Prego, and the multi-cuisine brunch at Seasonal Tastes is arguably the most popular Sunday brunch in the city. Now the hotel has another feather in its cap – a completely Desi Sunday brunch at their Indian specialty restaurant Kangan.

Seafood Festival at Nook, Aloft Cessna Business Park

Located inside an IT park, the Aloft Cessna Business Hotel is truly one of a kind. The hotel stands tall amongst the other buildings in the business park and is located quite close to the gate. The ambience is casual and vibrant with a colourful theme, mainly comprising of green and blue shades.

Inside Aloft Cessna Hotel

Daawat Purani Dilli at The Trident Hyderabad

During my frequent travels to Delhi, a must visit place for me had always been the bylanes of Jama Masjid area of Old Delhi for its street food. The niharis, seekhs and the cream butter chickens lure me there, and every time I end up discovering some new hidden gem. So, when The Trident decided to bring the Purani Dehlvi cuisine to Hyderabad, I felt that a big bonanza awaited me.

Kacchi Keema Tikiya

Grand Opening of The Grills at the Fifth Anniversary of Taj Falaknuma Palace

The Falaknuma Palace needs hardly any introduction to either Hyderabadis or to the lovers of history. One of the finest palaces of India, it has been a crown jewel of the Nizami state. In 2010, Taj Group of Hotels opened the doors of the renovated palace as a luxury hotel, and since then the hotel has been widely acknowledged as one of the best palace hotels of the world.

The Nawab of Arcot Food Promotion at ITC Kakatiya

ITC Hotels have been regularly presenting cuisines of different regions of India at their various restaurants in ITC Kakatiya, Hyderabad. In recent times, we had festivals showcasing food from South India, such as Mangalore, Telangana, Chettinad regions as well as the cuisine of Navaithas of Tamil Nadu. The hotel now has one more feather in their cap – “The Cuisine of the Nawab of Arcot” promotion at Deccan Pavilion. This was a part of the initiative known as Kitchens of India – Royal Repast, where chefs from ITC Hotels research the different Royal cuisines of India.

The Arcot Javahi Murgh Biryani

Quick Bytes: Return of Ohri’s 100 Degrees and Their Signature Sizzlers

Of the many restaurants run by Ohri’s group in the city, 100 Degrees used to be distinctly different – a favourite of the sizzler lovers of Hyderabad. Couple of years back we were disappointed to see the place next to Hussain Sagar close down. However, the restaurant has reopened at a brand new venue, the complex next to Shilpa Kala Vedike in Hitech City with an expanded menu. A Blogger’s meet was organized by the management to present some of the items on the menu.

Mutton Chops Sizzler

Karwar Thali and The Coastal Thali Festival at Spice Junxion

I was a traveling salesman in the early part of my career, and during my journeys to the interiors of various states I visited, I made it a point to try out the local fare, often presented in the form of a thali. A thali meal anywhere in India is pure soul food, where an assortment of simple items of the region are provided usually in limited quantity. As you move from district to district, just like language spoken the composition of the thali gradually changes and after hundreds of kilometers the content is totally different.

Spice Junxion at Taj Deccan, Hyderabad is organizing a promotion of the Exotic Thalis from the Peninsula. On offer are the typical thalis from seven different locations around the coastline ranging from Kathiawar in westen India to Bengal in the east. Except the Gujarati version, all the thalis have a separate spread for non-vegetarians. The cuisines showcased apart from Kathiawad (only veg) are Malvani, Konkani, Karwar, Chettinad, Kerala and Bengali.

Karwar Thali

Oh So Stoned Has a New Outlet at Jubilee Hills

Oh So Stoned has always been widely acknowledged as one of the top ice cream outlets in Hyderabad. Their Nutty Overload, Rum Baba and Scarface have been long time favorites of mine. From their initial place at Karkhana, they expanded to the “Ice Cream Street” opposite KBR Park. And finally they have come to Hitech City with opening of their larger Jubilee Hills outlet.

Red Velvet Ice CReam

Turkish Culinary Delights at Amara, The Trident

Positioned at the cusp of Asia and Europe, Turkey is a confluence of culture of the two continents. However, though the Turkish food has marked influences from the Greek and Arabic cuisines, it retains its own uniqueness derived from Ottoman cooking. Seafood is abundantly used in the cuisine as the country is surrounded by sea, and the favourite vegetables are eggplants, cauliflower, okras and chickpeas.

These were some of the points explained by Chef Memis Alkan who is here from Turkey to curate the “Turkish Culinary Delights” food promotion at Amara, the all-day dining restaurant at The Trident. Chef explained that the Turkish cuisine in the western part of the country has wide uses of Olive oil, the eastern part has a touch of West Asian delicacies like hummus and babaghanoush in their menu. The cuisine also has a few rice delicious and meat dishes, though they were not part of the menu on the day I visited.

The Turkish Mezze and Salads at Amara

Above Ground Levell Lounge at Bangalore Airport

Spending time at the airport is not something most of us are comfortable with. Delays, layovers and cancellations cause unpleasant surprises as we think of the airport as a pit stop to our final destination. However, after a wicked meal in one of the airlines, I nowadays prefer to drop into one of the nearby cafes or lounges to relax and grab some quick snacks before boarding. One such place to relax at the Bangalore Kempegowda International Airport is the Above Ground Levell Lounge. Invited for a review, this was my first non-travelling visit to the airport.

Above Ground Levell Lounge