FOODLINK

I had spoken earlier about how hard it is to find good lounge experiences in the east side of Pune. I guess my complaint was heard by one more authorities. This time it wasby the Foodlink restaurant at the ICC Trade Centre B Wing. Don’t confuse the place for the one that was previously well-known here. Foodlink is in the new wing. Giving you a complete bird’s eye view of Pune, the ambience scores very high. Foodlink also has a well stocked Sky bar and grills. There is a party deck area overlooking it with a DJ console, where already a party was in full swing. For walk-in guests, there are two restaurants — one serving Indian and the other Italian cuisine. We chose to check out the latter.

Though the menu is limited, it promises variety. The cream of asparagus soup was really good as they were extremely generous with the quantity of this exotic vegetable in the soup. Minestrone also lived up to our expectations. Pizza Mama Mia (cottage cheese with spicy tomato sauce, Italian herb, onion, capsicum, coriander topped with mozzarella) was also good. But again, I found the base very crispy and hard. The toppings and quantity though, were sufficient. Pasta Farfalle Fresco and Lasagne Bolognaise were both perfect, and very close to the authentic. Grilled Salmon Steak with asparagus and cherry tomato in a saffron white wine sauce, seemed perfect for the chilly atmosphere. For desserts, we tried Choclate Budino (pudding in Italian) and

vanilla Crème Brule. The latter was better, while the budino reminded

us of a brownie.

The service is courteous and attentive. The guest relations themselves escort you to your place, thus putting the service standards at high. Having pampered us with this hospitality it would be not a good idea to grouch on looking at the left side of the menu. But once again, the location and the ambience have scored upon. One can’t argue about the feeling you get when you dine-in here. Strongly recommended for couples. If you are going on first time date, you have

won half the battle!

MY OVERALL RATING: 8/10

The Foodlink Court

‘T’ Floor, B Wing, ICC Trade Tower,

Senapati Bapat Road, Pune 411016

Contact: 66239999 / 01

SALSA

No one could have done better than The Corinthian Hotels to introduce a restaurant dedicated to Greek cuisine. You will be fascinated by the view at the entrance, especially the life-size sculptures of racing horses. Even if, I feel, the interiors do not compliment the cuisine, it’s spectacular to dine in. Okay, to move forward and coming to the point, we have experienced Greek cuisine in Pune. To name a few, tahini paste, chickpeas, hummus, tzaziki or slouvaki. Many of them must have spotted these names among appetizers on the menu. But now we can experience an entire meal, rather have the whole cuisine! We started on with the most known name – Greek Salad. It was great as ever with imported Feta cheese to give it full flavour. It was followed by Chickpeas Cakes (similar to falafel but here they add dill) and Minced Lamb Rolled In Vine Leaves. Both were good, but the latter would have been better had the portion of minced lamb been bigger. They had also added some Indian preparations to balance customer preference, I guess. So, when we tried Chicken Kasturi Kebab, it was really great! So succulent, it didn’t give the bitterness of fenugreek at all. We also tried Curried Fish Fingers (made of betki) - fresh and tasty. For the main course, I was eager to try my favourite Greek preparation – Moussaka. Made from eggplant, zucchini, potatoes layered with pungent tomato sauce finished with cheese and baked. I ordered the vegetarian version, and it didn’t turn me down. We was suggested their Paneer-Bhindi Korma, it too turned out to be well prepared. The Orange Mousse Cake gave it a sweet ending. The number of dishes on offer might be fewer, they haven’t compromised on taste. It’s difficult to prepare these dishes with local ingredients, so they use imported stuff which makes it expensive. But yes, a visit here is truly satisfying.

MY OVERALL RATING: 7/10

Salsa, The Corinthians

Nyati County Nibm Annexe,

Off Nibm Rd, Hadapsar, Pune - 28

THE HIDDEN PLACE

This week we hunted down a place that is typically not included as a restaurants or a food outlet. It’s more of a hangout joint and despite it’s name, the place is not exactly hidden. When I entered, it reminded me of the many places that have sprouted up in Mumbai’s western suburbs. Then gradually, I got convinced the Hidden Place is different and much better. There are cricket matches playing on big LCD TVs, chartbuster songs on in minimal volume which means you don’t have to scream for your order, and the bottle keepers and coasters all bear hit Bollywood dialogues. Imported spirits, including beers, rule the bar menu. Also superb are the cocktails, martinis and muddlers. Their chocolate frappe was good too. So, after trying some of these, I was waiting for the main event – the tasting of the food.

When I was told about this place, I wondered what I could possibly write about. But now, after tasting the food over here, I planned (in vain) to write about the food only. The starters are very good. Especially the Lucknowi Galouti Kebab,Malai Kabab and Tandoori Hariyali Prawns. Even the Tacos with Tomato Salsa and Garlic Bread were fine!

But still, what is a review if there’s no criticism at all. For instance, the Fish Biryani we had was not as nice as the rest (with uncooked rice and a slight lack of flavour), the normal bread used in the garlic bread or extra béchamel sauce in the cheese dip. But who’s complaining? I hadn’t expected the quality of food to be so high! Even the service is splendid and super fast. Well, I don’t want to fail to mention other reasons to recommend the place. There’s no entry charge, however, on the weekends you might have to arrive early to secure a good place where you can relax, enjoy a drink and the starters too!

Even lone patrons can enjoy the place just by looking around and reading the stuff put up on the walls. And now, as to why I said this place is good for Pune, is because we get good quality, a variety of food at more than just ‘reasonable’ prices.

MY OVERALL RATING: 9/10

The Hidden Place

Near German Bakery

North Main Road

Koregaon Park