Food:
The best selection of dishes from around the world are placed here as live counters all around the buffet.




It starts off with the Chaat items from the Indian food bowl:Dahi Poori, Papadi Chaat and Bhel Poori and if you walk along, one is treated with Momos both veg and non-veg along with sticky rice from the Chinese food bowl. Further down you have Dosai and the Pesarettu from South India. As you move along you are greeted with a Big Shawarama from Arabia. Trot down further, you are greeted with Sliders and Sandwiches and finally the quintessential Pasta, Risotto and Burrito from Italian and Mexican  cuisine.






Apart from the loads of food from around the world, there is the regular buffet. Buffet spread is extensive. Full marks for the salad counter. Which is the best I have had in a long time. Salad lovers paradise. Main course had dishes which would please everyone Chicken, Mutton, Fish, Beef and Prawns all yummy!









Binging on hell load of food, I was stuffed. But desserts! I just had to have em. Dessert spread was extensive with 4 choices of ice cream and selection of Tiramisu, Chocolate Fudge, Mango Gateaux, Keer, Blueberry Compote and also a selection of assorted fruits all fabulous in their own right.




Ambiance:
The kitchen which is the 24hrs cafe for the hotel is simple and elegant.

Price:
The buffet is priced at Rs1400 for lunch and 1600 for dinner.

The world food festival is on up to the 23rd of May at The Kitchen, Anna Salai. A small gastronomic trip around the world for people who wish to devour different cuisine.

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*A review about a place holds good only for 6 months as there can be a change in quality and quantity of the food, the service and the staff, due to reasons best known only to them. So kindly consider these factors while visiting the places.

The drinks were the first to be served. Very refreshing. I was too hungry to find faults with my drink. And about 5 minutes later our Fish and Chips arrived. If you are just two people, then one portion would be fine. Incase you had more than two people dining I would suggest you order an extra portion as it contains just two portions of fish with six pieces of potato wedges. Aside from the portions, the fish and chips was an absolute delight. Infused with herbs, fried to perfection, the way I always like.

While we were getting done with our starters the Pizzas were out. Since I have had the Roma, many a time, I decided to allow my friend to pick that and I went with Chicken Hawaiian. Roma which is a Roasted Chicken, Tomato and Mozzerlla Pizza while mine the Hawaiian was a Chicken substituted for Ham, Pineapple and Mozzerlla Pizza. I was expecting smaller pieces of Pineapple on my pizza in lines with the Hawaiian Pizzas from Pizza Deli. This had major big chunks making it taste like a sweet dish. The Roma on the other hand had all the ingredients but lacked  depth of flavour which I was used to at the Alwarpet outlet.

Looks like Kilpauk - Anna Nagar has become the hub for Middle-Eastern food. With easily 18 outlets which serve up Shawarma and Grilled Chicken, its a non-veggie's paradise. The latest entrant to this food scene is Laham located near Kelly Signal. Laham with its contemporary interiors feels more upmarket when compared to the rest here. To add to  this there is a Bubble Tea joint called Tas Tea right next to it, which is more like a sub-let of Laham. Since this place is only a few days old, a small group of foodies decided to visit & sample what was on offer.




I was new to the Bubble Tea concept. Mr.Chennai Foodie, was raving about it on our ride to Laham. I chose a Lychee Ice Tea with Lychee Topping for my Bubble. First sip and it was just like a regular tea. Where did the bubble go! Next sip I pushed the straw to the bottom of the beaker and took a sip and then I felt the bubbles (jelly like substance) rush into my mouth with a fruity tea flavor. Very different and definitely a first for me.


Before the next dish could arrive, the owner recognized the group as his school mates and joined us. He disclosed his elaborate vision for the restaurant. He informed us that it had been only a few days since the place had opened up and so the entire menu was not available. He told us that he would be launching burgers to the menu soon. This is something I am really keen about. Chennai has a drought of burger joints. I surely hope that this fixes it.

Next came the Chicken Shawarma, it was kubbus stuffed purely with chicken and minimal amount of veggies and small dash of garlic mayo and sauce. I am definitely a person who loves more non-veg inside a dish and I sure liked it. The owner told us, the kubbus is being sourced from Zaitoon as of now as the kitchen is not fully functional and he hopes they would be able to make their own soft kubbus soon.

Hariyali Kebab and Chicken Sheik Kebab were tender and cooked to perfection. Shish Tawook was juicy but different. It had a distinct coal flavor to it. The menu has various other items such as the rices, roti and some gravies. Should return some other time to sample the full menu.

Ambiance:
Seats about 40 people at a time. Contemporary furnitures all around.

Service:
They have just opened up, so I would wait for talking about it.

Price:
Most dishes are priced at Rs 200/- each. So I am guessing it should work about Rs 1200/- for two.

Laham is located in Kellys junction right opposite to HDFC Bank Kilpauk.

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It's been raining Iftar Packs all over Chennai. Every Muslim owned restaurant in the city and even some non-Muslim restaurants have gone out of the way to woo this particular cliental this Ramzan season. Hopefully my last stop in Iftar boxes this year was at Sea Shells, Anna Nagar.

The Box Contents:
Fresh Juice - 1 glass
Bottle Water - 1 (250ml)
Dates - 1
Assorted Fruits -1
Vegetable Samosa - 1(Large)
Chicken Shawarma Roll - 1
BBQ Chicken - 1 piece
Kubbus - 1
Kerala Parotta - 1
Haleem - 1
Mutton Biryani - 1
Chicken Gravy - 1
Mayo - small container

The entire box costs - Rs 280/- plus taxes.

Two Arabian speciality restaurants fighting it out on the same side of the town this Ramadan. So the food has got to be ultra competitive.  I have already tasted from the first and this is the next.

Firstly the fresh juice served in the box was the Papaya Juice which could be the perfect start to breaking a fast. The Vegetable Samosa is really large and it kind of reminded me of the samosa's from Sree Mithai. Coming to Chicken Shawarma, this is by far the best shawarma which came out of  an Iftar pack. Really juicy and loaded to the brim with chicken. BBQ Chicken with the Khubbus was perfect. The chicken remained tender even though it was cool. Haleem in this box is the best in the city this season. If you are a Haleem lover do not miss it. Perfect soft texture, combined with great flavor beats the other haleems hands down. The negative elements of the box the Mutton Biryani was a little dry and the Chicken Gravy was a bit gingery. But overall this Iftar box is the best I have had this Ramzan Season.

One box would easily feed two!

Food - 8/10
Price - 7.5/10

Sea Shells, Anna Nagar is near the the main roundtana in Anna Nagar East.

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The name Taj Mount Road, brings back a lot memories of the lip-smacking desert buffet which I have had at the club house restaurant. This desert buffet was once part of our night retreats when I was doing my undergrad. But this time, I was here at Taj Mount Road for a CFG Diners Club at Kefi. Kefi is a mediterranean restaurant which is located on the top floor of Taj Mount Road. The recent addition to Kefi is the outdoor dining around the pool, called Levantine Lounge. I have my reservations against this outdoor dining ambiance during hot summer but that night was just cooler and it was fine by me.







Food was great up until this point, The Charcoal Grill Lamb and Chicken were decent, with chicken tasting better than the lamb. Then the food seemed just about average.The Prawn Tagine, was a little off, not sure if this is the way it had to taste. Then we were also served with a Grilled Fish with small portion of Stuffed Ravioli. The Ravioli was decent while the grilled fish was salty. We were also served a sample portion of Chicken Shawarma, which had the same stuffing from the charcoal grill.

Then the desserts picked us up! The best parts of the buffet were the desserts. Chosen selections of dessert samplers were served to us. There was crispy yummy Baklava, cheesy Kunafa and absolutely tantalizing pudding called the Muhaladia. Loved them all. In fact I went on to ask extra portions of the indulgent desserts.

Ambiance:
The ambiance is here is absolutely brilliant, worth every penny you spend. Save this place for your romantic retreats.

Service:
Taj is know for their courteous service, and this dinner was no less.

Price:
Priced at Rs 999/- this buffet is a mixed bag of goodies. But the ambiance alone trumps over the other pitfalls.

Food - 6.5/10 (only starters and deserts 8/10)
Ambiance - 8/10
Service - 8/10
Price - 7/10

Kefi is located inside Taj Mount Road on the rooftop.