bangalorebengaluru

Saturday, July 5, 2014

Restaurant Review : Yauatcha in 1MG mall, Bengaluru city (INDIA) - Ep 106 - by BangaloreBengaluru

ABOUT

I have always been eager to know and experience how a Michelin starred-restaurant operates. My wish was fulfilled when I dined in Yauatcha Bengaluru. Though it’s the Yauatcha restaurant in London which has the Michelin star and Yauatcha in Bengaluru is a franchise, the latter has to strictly follow the same guidelines in maintaining the standard and quality of its food and service. The concept of Michelin star ratings is still catching up in India, but they are highly regarded abroad.

The restaurant is famous for its dim sums which comprises of 50+ mélanges and it has an extensive list of local and imported teas. Apart from the a la carte menu, they have packages like Yum Cha (dim sums and teas on weekdays 3pm to 8pm) and a four-course set menu for their Sunday Brunch.

DECOR

The space of the restaurant is a long wide passage with floor-length and see-through glass walls which allow lots of natural light to come in. Though it looks crystal clear from the inside, the glass has a blue tint from the outside to filter the harsh direct light and also provides diners some privacy from the passersby. I feel really happy knowing that they have applied such caring details.

The decor is casual but elegant, and they have done up the place to look like a contemporary Chinese tea house. I myself have only seen these traditional Chinese tea houses on TV. The restaurant is big enough to seat about 100 people. It also has a space for a private dining experience.

Another good thing is that it has an open kitchen. Try to get a seat with the view of the kitchen. It might be a little noisy but seeing the chefs in action makes it interesting. Though it is an open kitchen, it's not an eye sore as it looks very clean and orderly.

This restaurant does not miss out on any of the little details. For instance, did you ever notice that the long row of tables and chairs are aligned perfectly? I was told that they actually hold a rope from end to end to align the chairs and tables in the morning, before opening time.

Cuisine

If you are going to Yauatcha for the 1st time, you will be asked about any food allergies that you may have and if there are certain ingredients that you wish to avoid. You can check out the ingredient chart that they have created to help you decide what dishes to order. This is good, right? I have not experienced this kind of service in any restaurant till now.

For those who are wondering about MSG presence, the restaurant doesn’t add this ingredient directly. It is present in small and safe quantities in the proprietary sauces from the mother company which they use to prepare some of the dishes.

The Yauatcha team started me and my friends with their Yum Cha menu. As a vegetarian, I usually find it difficult in restaurants that serve both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes, because the varieties in the vegetarian menu will be comparably less. But in Yauatcha, they have as much vegetarian dishes as the non-vegetarian ones. I got to taste an array of dim sums which ranged from fried ones to baked and steamed. Each has a unique taste and stands out from the other. Looking at all the 24 varieties of dim sums that were served to us, I could only guess the painstaking effort and time they devote to come up with such beautifully crafted dishes.
Asparagus cheung fan

Baked chicken veg puff

Fried turnip cake

Golden fried veg puff

Shiitake mushroom dumpling

Truffled edamame dumpling

Veg peking dumpling

Veg shanghai dumpling

Vegetable chive dumpling

The server kept a watchful eye on my cup of tea too, he made sure to pour hot jasmine tea into my cup whenever it reached the bottom.

It is the restaurant's policy to serve it steaming hot, any dish that should be served hot, like the dim sums. Did you know that when a dim sum gets cold no amount of re-heating will restore its original flavor? This is the reason why Yauatcha does not allow the dim sums in their take away menu.

If you wind up getting full like me and can eat only few of them then I recommend you to try the

1. Turnip cake, seriously I have never had such a yummy turnip in my life.

2. Truffle edamame dumpling, you can’t be a vegetarian and not try these mushrooms.

3. Veg chive dumpling, these are so pretty that you will hesitate to eat them, but they taste just as good too.

4. Baked Veg chicken Puff made from soya nuggets tasted a bit sweet buy a must try even if u don't have a sweet tooth.

After settling down a bit headed to try out some of the brunch dishes.
Braised tofu claypot.
The sauce from the braised clay pot dish complimented the spicy veg fired rice. The ingredients in the clay pot itself could be eaten like a starter that has a bit of curry. They were all equally soft, which makes you feel like your eating the same ingredient but only after you experience the flavor you release they are all different.

Stir-fried lotus root, asparagus and water chestnut with black pepper sauce.
The stir fried lotus root, asparagus and water chestnut with black pepper sauce was a bit bland and I felt this was done on purpose as it helped in restoring my taste buds to try the next dish.

Veg hofan noodle
The last dish I tried had a subtle burst of color to it. Loaded with spices which started as one and ended as another.

Spicy vegetable fried rice

After having so much you will wonder how I had space for dessert but a true foodie will know the answer :)

All the desserts were first-rate both in flavor as well as presentation. One cannot help but be awe-inspired by the presentation. I was given a heads up that their desserts were one of the most instagramed pictures in Instagram. Well, I too joined that band wagon.

Chocolate hazelnut mousse served with honeycomb ice cream

Macroons

Raspberry delice served with rasberry ripple icecream

Religieuse - chocolate choux pastry served with ganduja ice cream

Tropical cake served with pina colada sorbet

My favorite was the raspberry. It was just bursting with its richness. Though it’s not a common flavor, it could easily become your favorite. SO don't miss this.

I’m going to end my post by talking about the cost it takes to dine in this place. Yes, it’s a bit pricey but considering the food quality and comparing it with the prices of other Michelin-starred restaurants, Yauatcha's is probably the most affordable. It surely was a fulfilling experience for me and I look forward to dining at Yauatcha again.

Veg Menu

You can also view my video review of this place

Disclaimer: All reviews, thoughts and views shared here are my own. This is not a sponsored review and I am in NO way affiliated with this establishment.

Contact Information:

Website: http://www.yauatcha.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/YauatchaBlore
Twitter: https://twitter.com/YauatchaBlore

All the pictures are taken using Moto G mobile .

Check out my playlist to view the other restaurants I covered: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL26iU4KSjqOZK7oh_JStcvQh8EvK5pKsx

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I no longer post in BangaloreBengaluruBlog.Blogspot.in I have relocated to a new URL, I currently post only in my website LifeThoughtsCamera.com.

Tags:

BangaloreBengaluru , Bangalore , Bengaluru , INDIA , Karnataka , review , reviews , restaurant , 1 MG Mall , Moto G, motorola , Yauatcha

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BYE!

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Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Habanero restaurant all set to celebrate the American Independence Day

Located in the prime Indiranagar area, Habanero is a restaurant one can't miss from the seemingly endless row of eating joints here.

As soon as you enter the restaurant, you will be welcomed by their lively radio music which comes from Habanero's internet radio station. I liked their simple decor which is a Mexican touch here and there. They have indoor as well as out door seating.

After a quick look around I was ready for a drink, I started with the Virgin Margarita. Only one word came to my mind "delicious". In India its common growing up having lemon juice in the summer. This drink is almost similar to a lemonade but it has a different kind of a fizz to it. You'll know when you try it :-)..

I actually went to try out the set menu, which is going to be available to you all who are going to attend the 4th of July party. It has been created to give the diners in Bengaluru a taste of an all-American food and drinks fare.

Here's a peek for the vegetarians.

The guacamole dip will be made right in front of you, suggest you see it once. There is something about eating a dish that was made right in front of you, with respect to the same dish that was made in the kitchen. You tend to appreciate it more as your eyes were also pleased.

Most of the dishes made in the restaurant like the chips are made there itself.

This is corn tortilla chips served with spinach and artichoke dip.

Another nacho plate served along with 3 varieties of salsa's. If you're trying this, I suggest you eat it right away as it will start getting soggy after the toppings get soaked in. It's meant to be eaten fresh and crispy.

I heard that they also severed a mango salsa. They were happy enough to make one and give. You will taste sweetness till the end with a bit of explosion of spiciness now and then which comes from the finely chopped chillies.

The nachos paired very well with the pineapple and the mango salsa. I feasted on this.:)..

It was nice that every dish had a flag mentioning if it is Veg or Non veg.

Love to get your fingers all messy ?. Then you will not go wrong with this number. The patty coating was so crunchy which was my favorite part. A good patty is one which can be eaten by itself without the help of any condiments and this passed the test :D..

This is the Garbanzo bean burger with crouton salad and fries.

I did not have the dessert from the 4th of July celebration menu as it was not ready that day yet. Instead I ate these which are from the regular menu.

The vanilla ice cream was really rich which is how I like mine :).

Choco loco and Pecan pie were perfect.

If you like the base of your cheese cake really soft and not crumbly at all then you should try this.

Left to right - Vanilla ice cream, Choco loco, Caramel cheese cake and Pecan pie.

I really enjoyed the food that they have prepared for the celebration. I wish all my American friends a "Happy Independence day" in advance. For those who are attending this, enjoy the celebrations :D.

Their menu.

Disclaimer: All reviews, thoughts and views shared here are my own. This is not a sponsored review and I am in NO way affiliated with this establishment.

Contact Information:

Website: http://www.habanero.in

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HabaneroTrulyTexMex

All the pictures are taken using Moto G mobile .

Check out my playlist to view the other restaurants I covered:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL26iU4KSjqOZK7oh_JStcvQh8EvK5pKsx

Tags:

BangaloreBengaluru , Bangalore , Bengaluru , INDIA , Karnataka , review , reviews , restaurant , Indiranagar , Habanero , 4th of July , 2014 , Mexican , cuisine , Moto G .

That's it guys. Don't forget to share/like this post now :-). You will find the buttons below the post.

BYE!

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