A Mixed Experience at Playboy Cafe, CP!

Hello lovelies,

It was a dull afternoon of 27th Feb 2017, when I stepped in the Playboy Café. As I climbed upstairs to reach the entrance, I could see the amazing vibes that it had. The ambiance seemed welcoming. Soon, I found myself gelling up with a few other bloggers there.

The Junkyard Cafe - A Lip-smacking Afternoon!

Hello lovelies!

So about a week before, I got an invitation for an A-M-A-Z-I-N-G blogger's meet in my inbox. I checked the mail with a great deal of excitement and instantly gave my RSVP. After all, it was food! Yes, the blogger's meet was organised at The Junkyard Cafe, Saket on 2nd July 2016 as they had recently launched this outlet.

As I stepped in, the ambiance took me to the world of junk. It was decorated literally as a junkyard. I clicked few pictures before choosing a perfect place to sit -- near the much-talked-about Michael Jackson's art piece. First impression of the place -- a definite 'yes'.

There were other bloggers too. The atmosphere thereafter turned chirpy in no time. Food connects everyone, no matter what! Here are some of the clicks:

There was a special food menu for bloggers. But before we could look at it, we were served with some snacks. I will review each of them for you one after the other as I plunged into them. Here you go:

1) Junkyard Style Paneer Tikka: Paneer!! Enough to pep up my mood any day. It was right in front of my eyes, presented so beautifully that I could not stop myself from taking the first bite. The foodie in me simply loved it. The spices were mixed well. It was served on a leaf. It is often said that if the food looks good, half of the battle is already won! So yeah, for presentation, I would give a 5/5 to The Junkyard Cafe.

2) Hara Bhara Kabab: Indeed a good item to be served on the table. As I dug into the kabab, I could not stop at one and ended up eating 2-3 in just few seconds. The taste was too good and stayed for long on my tongue. It's worth trying!

3) Vanilla Cold Coffee: I see coffee on the menu and I don't order it! How can it ever be possible! It came in a elegant looking bottle and I took my first sip, not knowing if I would love it or not! But voila! I loved it. In fact, I found it one of the best cold coffees I have had in Delhi so far. I finished the large bottle quickly. Placed it on the table only once before finishing it off, that too just to click a picture for you all.

4) Veg Spring Rolls: So it was beginning to be a snacky afternoon, with so many varieties of snacks coming on the table. Ah! the presentation! Especially the flower caught my attention. The artist in me fell in love there and then! I took a piece of the roll and put it in my mouth. And OMG! it was prepared so well. It was simply the best snack I had that day. I was drooling on it till the end.

5) Palak Patta Chaat: The blogger sitting next to my table struck a conversation with me and recommended this dish. As soon as he did that, the waiter came to my table carrying it for me. I was all set to unravel the chaat. Paan in this form! What an innovative idea! And it was interesting. Presentation was spot on and it tasted good.

6) Ice Tea: Summers and ice tea go hand in hand! So I opted for Basil flavour while Kanika, who was with me at the event, went for Peach flavour. We both tasted both the flavours and they were good. I can safely say that the restaurant's USP lies in their drinks.

7) Honey Chilli Potato: Everyone loves them despite the weight-gain factor associated with them -- potatoes -- yes! I ordered them quite eagerly in spite of being full. We had been eating non-stop for about an hour by the time we decided to have these. But we were tempted to try these anyway! However, this was not that good. It was cold and taste wasn't that exceptional. As good as it looked, it did play a spoilsport!

8) Milkshake: We thought of ending on a sweet note and ordered milkshakes -- I chose Hazelnut and Butter Scotch as that's my all-time favourite flavour, Kanika decided on trying Banana and Cake flavour. Both the shakes were amazing! Thank goodness we chose to have them and not end on a cold  and not-so-good dish. I must say their shakes were one of the best I have had.

Quirky Note: I explored the place some more and went to check the washroom too. What I found there amazed me. Have a look at the basin and know for yourself!

P.S. I loved the place so much that I went ahead to check their outlet in Connaught Place too. Similar ambiance followed and I made a mental note to keep this place as one of the hangout options from now on.

Ambiance: 4.5/5

Presentation of food: 5/5

Preparation/Hygiene: 4/5

Overall Ratings: 4/5

THE JUNKYARD CAFÉ

Address: Plot D-1, Unit 16,17, 30, 31, 

Ground Floor, Salcon Ras Vilas Mall, 

District Centre, Saket, New Delhi

Phone number: 011 30806393

Also read the review of the same event by Kanika Sharma on TGC.

Lip smacking Singaporean cuisine

Every cuisine carries with it a flavour of its culture that brings you close to its ethnicity. In Singapore, food is viewed as crucial to national identity and also it is a unifying cultural thread; Singaporean literature too declares eating as a national pastime and food as a national obsession. It's a popular take that when in Singapore, be sure to try the 'fish head curry' and 'chilli crab' that will keep your taste buds relishing for a long time.

If you love sea food, you must try what Singapore offers in terms of its seafood cuisine. Their popular seafood dishes include - 'sambal stingray', 'black pepper crab', 'fried Chinese buns', 'oyster omelette', etc. In addition, they have a many different versions of Prata too.

Image Source: http://memegenerator.net/Takeaway

Before heading to some restaurant, if you want try cooking some Singaporean cuisine at home, here's a recipe that will take about 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Laksa Pulao - These are aromatic rice made from french beans, almonds, herbs, masalas, veggies and laksa leaves (they are spicy and very common in Singapore). If you can't get your hands onto laksa leaves, just use mint or coriander leaves.

Ingredients: 300 gm fresh French beans
                    50  gm almonds
                    500 gm basmati rice
                    60  gm desi ghee (clarified butter)
                    30  gm laksa leaves, chopped (or mint or coriander leaves)
                    20  gm fresh turmeric, chopped
                    20  gm ginger, chopped
                    20  gm garlic, chopped
                    40  gm onion, chopped
                    3-4 fresh green chilli, chopped
                    A pinch of pepper powder for seasoning
                    A pinch of salt for seasoning

For Garnishing: Sliced golden fried onions
                          Slit green chilli
                          Chopped laksa leaves

Method: 1) Clean the french beans and boil until they turn tender. Remove and place them into ice cold water to maintain their crispiness and color.
2) Blanch the almonds and then peel and slit them in half from the center.
3) Clean and the soak the rice in water for 20 minutes.
4) Heat the desi ghee in a pan, add the garlic, onion, ginger, and saute till onions are translucent.
5) Add fresh turmeric and green chilli and stir fry. Then, add the beans and laksa leaves. Cook till the beans are done.
6) Season with salt and pepper powder.
7) Take a flat, thick bottomed  pan, add oil and heat it to saute the rice for a minute. Add 500 ml of water, the sauteed vegetables, almonds and some chopped laksa leaves. Place over a very low flame till the rice is cooked (all the water should have evaporated from the pan)
8) Spoon the pulao onto a platter, garnish with fried onions and green chilli. Serve hot with raita.

Bon appétit!

https://www.indiblogger.in/topic.php?topic=152#inline1

#FarMoreSingapore