Friday, July 24, 2009

Sri Shankarnarayana Refreshments



10, 12th Cross,
JP Nagar 2nd Phase ,
Bangalore.
Phone : 080 42456060

Food: 3/5
Ambience: 1.5/5
Self service
Meal for 2: Rs 50-75


We heard of this very well-kept-secret of a brekkie joint only recently, though it has been around for the past 18 years or so. Methinks its one of the perils of a small establishment which does not rely on accolades of idli/dosa-kaapi contests, content with only word of mouth publicity.
So we hunted down this place on a hungry Sunday. Yes, actually hunted it down - it's in an obscure street in the belly of JP Nagar - and to avoid going round in circles like we did, here is a 3 step plan:
1] Go to Rangashankara
2] Ask for directions to Ambarish's house (you don't know Ambarish? the red-eyed-'rebal'-star?)


3] Once you are done trying to peek into his compound, ask any passerby for SN Refreshments (or bhattru's votlu - as known in those parts) and there you are!


Ramachandra Bhat and staff

And what did we find here? One of the best idli-vada combos this side of town, swimming in a puddle of lipsmacking, spicy coconut chutney. Crispy, perfectly done vada and sambar. Hot masala dosas straight off the griddle, giving out sibilant sizzles. Pongal, khara bath and all other tiffan items too. Strong coffee to down it all with. And if you can manage to stuff yourself some more, don't leave without giving the kesaribath a try. One spoonful of saffron sweetness is enough to make you weep with joy...ok maybe I'm getting a bit dramatic here....but you get the drift, dontcha?


Fluffy idlis with the best vadas in town


Nutty coffee



The pièce de résistance

And if you are left licking your lips throughout the day, did I mention that bhattru's place is open in the evenings too? ( 7am to 1pm and 3.30pm to 7.30pm on weekdays, 7am to 1am on Sundays) Mast majaa maadi!
P.S - You still don't know who Ambarish is? Seriously??

Did you know................
........................that the bath (or bhaat or baath) in "kesaribath" means "steamed rice" in Marathi? Though popular versions of this dessert use rava or semolina, the rice preparation is similar to "sakkare pongal" minus the dal.
.......................that the good old vada has a hole in the middle for even cooking? Since the batter is thick, the hole allows the vada to be cooked from the inside as well.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Hello World

We are back (in case you thought we had fallen off the face the earth). Life here got busy the past few months and a lot of things went on the backburner, this blog being one of them. In the meantime, we have visited new restaurants, discovered yummy recipes, tried new cuisines and rediscovered old ones. Result: thickening waistlines and a few hundred pending posts.
We hope you missed us. (Please say yes)
And now that we know you did :) we hope to be more regular in our blog updates.
Thanks for staying around!

Edited to add: Don't forget to take the quiz on the right.