Manas Garg Speaks

I’ve been on an eating out spree lately, and have visited more than 15 different restaurants in the last 10 days (!). I’m going to write what I think about them, but let me first mention my personal habits. I’m a vegetarian, I don’t drink and  I’m not fond of cottage cheese (paneer). So here we go, One restaurant at a time:

1. Waterfront - Amazing view of Hussain Sagar lake. Perfect place for a romantic lunch or dinner. The service is a little laid back. (we had to ask for the menu 4 times, then my friend got angry, and we got free mock tails :) The food is good, and is not too spicy. They have Indian, Chinese and Thai too. The amazing ambiance makes this one one of the best restaurants in Hyderabad. Average meal for two: Rs 700. (They tell you at the entrance that you need to spend at least Rs 350 per person! )

2. Sahib Sindh Sultan: The flagship BJN group restaurant in the shape of the luxury train palace on wheels. They have the best vegetarian starters I’ve ever had. The best part is that they don’t mistreat the veggies by offering them just paneer - there is so much to choose from! The service is very good, and you can have a very relaxed dinner here. My favorite place for Indian food. Also try the Suntani Sherbat - just awesome. Average meal for two: Rs 800

3. Indijoes: If you want to have sizzlers, this is the place to hit! Awesome food, a great varieties of sauces on each table and like all BJN restaurants, great service. This restaurant has international cuisine, but has distinctly great sizzlers. Average meal for two: Rs 700

4. Aromas of China: The BJN’s chinese restaurant - with simple yet pretty interiors, this restaurant is good, but not as great as its siblings Indijoes and Sahib Sindh Sultan. The food was good, but we felt that Ohri’s Far East was better. Not bad at all, I must say, we had a good time! Average meal for two: Rs 600

5. Zafraan Exotica: The rooftop restaurant. A very pretty restaurant, fit for a date. They serve Indian. The service was overzealous, and felt intrusive - I mean they were too eager to serve you. I found myself trying to quickly pick up a piece of naan from the basket before one of the waiters comes and says - let me help you sir. The food was only average. For the price they charge, the food is not good enough. The ambiance sure is. Average meal for two: Rs 800

6. Zafraan Laguna: Zafraan’s international cuisine restaurant. It is like an assortment of food from all parts of the world. Little bit of Indian, Chinese, Italian, Mexican and so on. However, the quantity of food served was very sad. A starter that cost Rs 270 had nothing but 8 small pieces of fried vegetables. Beautiful interiors, but little value for your money. Average meal for two: Rs 1000

7. Tex Mex: This mexican restaurant was again a disappointment. The ambiance was very normal and did not justify the expensive menu. The service too, was ordinary. To top it all, we did not like the food. Average meal for two: Rs 800

8. Ohri’s Tadka: Ohri’s is always good. Good Indian food, decent service even when the restaurant has a full house and good ambiance make this place good value for money. The place was a little loud because it was so full, but still a decent visit. Average meal for two: Rs 500

9. Ohri’s Havmor: If you want to have a snack (Indian Chaat / Pizza / Burger), and not proper dinner, this place rocks. A great menu and a huge collection of ice cream sundaes. And very economical too. Just the place for the time when you’re not hungry enough for a full meal but still want to eat. Average meal for two: Rs 250

10. Ohri’s Chaat: I don’t know of any other place to have good chaat in this part of the city, and so this is the one. Broad menu, and the chaat has that north Indian taste. A little expensive compared to the chaat one has on the friendly roadside thelas, but a must visit. Average chaat for two: Rs 150

11. Mc Donald’s: Good Ol McD’s. What can one say? The favorite of all, fastest fast food joint. When nothing else makes sense, McD’s it is! Average meal for two: Rs 175

12.  Pizza Hut: Their service is always bad, and no exception in Hyderabad too. The pizzas are good but more expensive compared to Dominos. Nothing to write home about. Average meal for two: Rs 350

13 Dominos: My favorite for home delivery. They have always served me within 25 minutes of placing my order. Totally satisfied. Their garlic bread with jalapeño dip makes my mouth water. Average meal for two: Rs 300

14 Basil: A vegetarian place, ideal for a visit with the family. They have a very broad menu, and as happens with places with broad menus, nothing is bad, but nothing is exceptionally good too. The nonalcoholic drinks menu looked impressive though. Average meal for two: Rs 700

15 Cafe Nandini (Madhapur): A typical south Indian cafe, super economical, clean and tasty food. Average meal for two: Rs 80

16. Punjabi Mess (Gachibowli Y junction): We love their aaloo paranthas, and so that the place to hit when we want them. Each parantha is Rs 30.

17. Rajasthani House (Kothaguda junction): Typical rajasthani food, but the place though cheap compared to any else, does not feel like value for money coz of its setting. Cleanliness is a bit of an issue too. Average meal for two: Rs 120

I’ve missed out a couple of the ones I visited, and will append them too. Believe me, I’ve been to all of them (and more) in the last 2 weeks. I know I’m crazy :)

Update: I left out 4 of them. Here are they -

18. Ginger Court (Madhapur): I like the food and the surroundings at this place - it is not like they want you to eat fast and run away! Its quiet on the ground floor though the first floor is quite noisy. The service is good, but the starters are not the best. Still, a great place to go if you stay in this part of the city. Average meal for two: Rs 500

19. Olive Garden (Madhapur): Went because I wanted to save some money. Very spicy food. And ended up not saving so much but had to take unappealing ambiance, normal service and normal food. Go to Ginger Court instead. Average meal for two: Rs 350

20. Tandoor: You need to eat their dal makhni with steamed rice. You just need to. Its really amazing. They are confident enought to write ‘the best you have ever had’ under their dal, and they are right. Other Indian food is also equally good, the sarson ka saag had that real taste so rarely found except at home. A must go. Average meal for two: Rs 650

I don’t remember the name of the 21st one - it was terrible. I haven’t put restaurants I’ve been to in the past but not in the last 20 or so days. Will put them in another list. Happy eating! :)

The second list… More places to eat at :)

21. Little Italy: A pure vegetarian Italian restaraunt-a rarity in itself :) Located in Filmnagar, it’s a nice place with good Italian food. I particularly like the Lasagne and Tortillas with cheese. It can get a little noisy when full but you should try it for the food. Also,  you have the option to sit outside or inside. A meal for two would be around Rs 800-1000.

22. Shanghai Chef: A Chinese restaraunt with a slightly Indian touch in Madhapur. A decent and reasonable place to eat if you’re looking to grab a quick bite. It’s not to enjoy a long quiet dinner. A meal for two would cost around 300-400.

23. Our Place: This is probably the biggest restaraunt I’ve been to in Hyderabad. But yet it has the feel of a small quiet place like the name suggests probably because it’s divided into small sections. It has a lot of greenery and is a pleasant place to dine at. A multi-cuisine restaraunt, it gives you a choice between Indian, Chinese and Thai. The food is good but nothing to talk home about. However, you can definetely go for the ambience :) A meal for two would cost around Rs 600.

Though I’m not very religious, I like to visit temples. I visited the temple of Chilkur Balaji with my dear cousin Harsh today. It is located approximately 20 km from Mehadipatnam, Hyderabad.

The interesting thing about this temple is that among other things, people come here to pray for Visa. They say that God grants an early Visa to all those who pray here. So much that this temple is now fondly called Visa Balaji’s Temple :)

There was something else that struck both me and Harsh - even though there were thousands of people in the queues, there was no Hundi in the temple! No provision for you to donate money! Also, there was no provision of a VIP darsan, where the so called VIPs can skip the queues and get easy darsan. All were treated as equals in this temple.

I have never seen a temple that did not encourage donations before. I am quite impressed. Way to go, God! :)

Here is a page that gives a detailed description of this temple.

What do you think of when you think about an auto-rickshaw driver? Tampered meters, wicked ways and bad sense of driving? Let me share one trip with you. I had to take an auto from Hyderabad airport to office - a long distance. I asked an auto wallah, and he quoted me the expected 250. That is their standard rate to go anywhere from the airport! I moved ahead, murmuring something to myself and looking for a better deal. I asked another one, and to my surprise this one said “I’ll go by the meter”.

Now, first of all, no auto driver in Hyderabad offers to take you by the meter. And if he does, it means his meter is especially tweaked to facilitate one way transfer of funds. I told him “Your meter must be rigged” He said “No Sir! This is an electronic meter - cannot be rigged”. I knew better - “Ha! Who are you kidding! I’m an engineer - I know that these can be rigged too” and went on to describe him how it could be rigged. I’ll spare you of the details of how to do it.

However, seeing no other better option, I hopped in.

Now, there is a simple way to determine if the auto meter is rigged or not. When the auto is running on a clean stretch of road at constant speed, if you observe the meter advancing, it should ideally advance after regular intervals of time. A rigged meter, on the other hand, doesn’t - sometimes it is normal and sometimes it is faster. I wanted to find out and so I tried observing as hard as I could.

Turned out that the meter was not rigged after all. Reached office and the meter showed Rs 114.60, which is the lowest I’ve ever paid. After paying him, I asked him -”So.. your meter is actually not rigged?” and he was like “Yes Sir - there is talk that the new meters get burnt out if you rig them - and moreover, its more satisfying to earn an honest living and  to drop off your passengers smiling!”

Wow, if only all auto-wallahs were like you my friend..