It has been a while since my last visit to Goa. Yet the aroma and the flavours of the Peri-Peri Chicken and Prawns which I had during my visit remain fresh in my mind along with picturesque beauty of the beaches. The invite to try-out the on going Goan food festival at Spice Haat, Hyatt Regency called the Sussegado -Just Like Goa!! was something which I could not turn down despite the low calorie diet, I am on.

The food menu was curated by Chef Edridge Vaz who is part of Park Hyatt, Goa and has come down to Chennai to play a special role in bringing the flavours and essence of Goan food to the plates of Chennai's foodies.

Food:
The meal kicked off with an intro with the chefs. It was great talking to Chef Edridge Vaz who shared his knowledge on Goan cuisine. The first dish to be served was the Peri- Peri Prawns which was simply exquisite. Spice, aroma and taste... WoW!



Next up was the Rava Fried Calamari which was crispy and little different to the batter fried types I am used to, but still irresistible. The taste quotient was upped by a several bars when the peri-peri masala of the prawns was used as a dipping sauce. The sole veg starter to be served - the Vegetable Jeri-Meri, was decent.


Moving away from the starters we were treated to Goan food medley which was part of the buffet. Before I dive deep into the Goan dishes, the Chicken Biryani which was part of the regular buffet menu is by far the best I have had by 5 star hotel standards. Mild, aromatic and filled with pieces of Chicken.

Coming back to the Goan dishes, the Mutton Buffaldo was tender and spiced right and cooked to perfection, little similar to the Rogan Josh but just a little milder I would say, made a fantastic combination with the rotis.

Goan Fish curry was little light for my liking, a little bit of heat would have made it outstanding. Finally the Chicken Green Curry was fantastic, very similar to Kerala Style Pepper Chicken. Made a terrific combination for the biryani. I left the veg dishes to be sampled by the veggie foodie who was in our company.


Before I move over to the desserts. I have seen many weird requests on Food forums for best Arabian food along with Indian food. Or which buffet has a good dessert spread. I must say, the quest ends here.


Finally the desserts!! The Goan speciality desserts were served on the table. Apart from the selection of speciality items, the buffet had the regular desserts as well, which was simply outstanding. The three speciality desserts served were fantastic but my star pick was the Dodal simply because it reminded me of Karputty Halwa from my native. Small bits of Dodal along with Vanilla Ice cream was simply devine.


My other pick was Bibinca which was slow cooked layered cake served with honey. Mix and match with the vanilla ice cream, again another delight. Finally there was the Alle Belle which was a Crepe with dates stuffing and honey drizzle which was good. All in all a fantastic experience. I must thank Chef Edridge Vaz for recreating the flavours of Goa in Chennai.

Ambiance:
Quirky Indian market theme fused with technology has stood the test of time in the last 3 years and I still love the feel of the resto.

Price:
Sussegado - Just Like Goa! is part of the dinner buffet at Spice Haat which is priced at Rs 1550/- plus taxes.

The Sussegado - Just Like Goa! is available at the Spice Haat as a part of the Dinner buffet. This food festival is on upto 14th of September.

Disclaimer : Invited review

Spice Haat is located in the lobby of Hyatt Regency.

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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.

Food:
As soon as we entered, we went head and placed our orders. I had the Crunchy Crazy Sushi while mom settled for a Cucumber Crabstick Salad and my mom friend had the Steamed Edamame.


It was my first time at having Steamed Edamame which was quite nice. A very good appetiser or in my case it was like a palate cleanser in between the sushi's.


The salad on the other hand was not a light dish, but rather a belter. Finely chopped cucumber topped off with a bucket load of Mayo followed by handful of Tobiko. Tobiko is otherwise known as Red Caviar. We had a few attempts at trying to gobble the dish with the chop sticks, but we ended up using our regular weaponry fork and spoon.


The Salad was mildly flavoured but rich thanks to the Tobiko and Mayo. Also the mayo helped to mask the slightly salty nature of Tobiko. The Crab meat was smooth and it just went down in one WHOFF!!!





Finally coming to my Crunchy Crazy which was Shrimp Tempura Roll covered with a sweet chilli sauce was simply outstanding. I bet I have never had a better shrimp roll than this. Served along with Wasabi which was just spectacular. The crunchy texture complimented the shrimp which was the icing on the cake.

Ambiance:
They had both outdoors and indoor dining. Dining outdoors with the temperature hovering around 45 degree would be just madness. Thankfully the well appointed interiors with large glass windows was comfortable to dine in.

Service:
Simple, fast and effective.

Price:
The short snack for three cost us 85 AED. Also I think I should stop converting the prices to INR to feel the impact.

I must thank my moms friend for taking me to this wonderful place. Also a couple others which I would be posting soon.

Food - 8.5/10
Ambiance - 8/10
Service - 8/10
Price - 7/10

Disclaimer : We paid for the meal.

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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.

Food:
Mom and I have almost similar tastes in food. Thanks to that it gives me great versatility in ordering food. We had a quick glance at the menu and we chose to have the Chefs special Seafood Platter for starter and since Mango is the flavour of the season we decided to try the Cajun Spiced Chicken with Mango Puree and served on a bed of Mashed Potatoes.

Before our delicious starter could arrive, we were served with Focaccia with Olive oil and Salt in the color pink. The Focaccia was a bit hard and it gave a good workout to our muscles of mastication. Inspite of the hard nature, we chowed it down as we were really hungry and the taste was quite nice if only it were a little soft.


After a little while came in our Chefs Special Seafood Platter. They had informed us that they were out of Calamari, and asked if we wanted it to be replaced with Fish or Prawns. We chose to have the prawns. Firstly the platter consisted of Grilled Lobster, Prawns and Fish minus the Calamari and also Bruschetta. Positives first, the Grilled Lobster Prawns and the Fish were just divine. A dash of the garlic sauce made it spectacular. The negative it again comes down to the bread which was really really hard.


Chowing down the starters we served our main course which was just spectacular to look at. Amazing plating work. Cajun was mildly infused into the chicken. The king of the dish was the mango puree and the way it complimented the chicken was just fantastic. The mashed potatoes were nice, but I did find them a little clumpy.


Finally we had a Tiramisu to finish off the meal. The ladyfingers were just fantastic, great infusion in them and the mascarpone was just WoW!

All in all I, loved the entire meal despite the minor hiccups.

Ambiance:
The outdoor ambiance looked fantastic, but we chose to dine indoors as it was a bit sultry. Indoor is nice mix of contemporary with elegant Indian wood work. Big marks for this mix

Service:
They were attentive. But they did inform us before hand that they would a little longer than regular restaurants to serve. As all the time goes into wiping us a mind blowing meal.

Price:
This meal for two cost Rs 1800/-

Food - 8/10
Ambiance - 8.5/10
Service - 8/10
Price - 7.5/10

Disclaimer : I paid for the meal.

Le Dupleix is located Caserne Street in Pondicherry.

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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.

An International food chain starting its operations in Chennai first, before looking at other metros means a lot. Chennaites can now proudly announce that we were the first to get the Manhattan Fish Market. There was a lot glamour surrounding the launch of this restaurant. They had promos on Facebook, up and running at least over a year ago which created enough buzz. Looks like social media is the way forward. If you create enough buzz before the launch of the operations it would translate it into sale.








Fried Country Mushrooms were the first to be served along with Garlic Herb Mussels. Fried Country Mushrooms were delicious. Imagine KFC popcorn but only veg here, with mushrooms. This was the first time I was having Mussels. It was more of a like or dislike kind. Chewy and soft, Few of em were great but one was distinctly not to my liking.  It had inky taste. I am not able come to a conclusion if I had enjoyed it or not. But the taste profile of the Garlic sauce was fantastic.


In between gorging on the starters we were served with the Cream of Mushroom Soup. Yes we chose to have a veg soup. Surprising Yes! Between all the Seafood we were to binge on, a veg soup was a welcome change. It had a thick creamy consistency, which was to my liking.


Zuff! the starters were done and we moved to the main course. I am a sucker for good fish and chips. My 2nd brother introduced these delicious babies to me when we were on tour in Maldives. Manhattan Fish and Chips thats what it is called here. Please do not skip this. This dish was just phenomenal. The crispy batter fried fish with the garlic herb sauce make this dish simply irresistible.


Moving along we had the Veggie Oilo - Spaghetti with sautéed mushroom and diced capsicum without even a drop of onions or garlic was a refreshing change.




Next up were the platters. We were served with Grilled Flaming Lobster Platter and the Manhattan Star Platter. My pick here will be the Grilled Flaming Lobster Platter. It had all the items I love. Flamed Lobster check, Batter fried Calamari and Fish check, French Fires check and finally the garlic herb mussels. Lobster was the item of this platter. Simply exquisite. Best lobster I have had in a long time.

 I did like the Manhattan Star Platter as well because of the spectacular Flaming Prawns. Did binge on some Grilled Calamari and some Fried Oysters. My first for both. Calamari more because of the preparation while the Oysters a definite first time. Oysters too had the same feel and taste of Mussels. I am unable to pass a verdict on the same.

Gone are the days when people say, " We are going to Mahabs to visit the Shore Temple" now it has come down to " Mahabs man, Moonrakers buddy! Sea Food!  After a long gap, I was at Blue Elephant a sister concern of Moonrakers for a delicious soul filling, protein rich diet.





First to arrive was the Golden Fried Calamari, which was served with lemon sauce. My taste was, avoid the lemon sauce. Have it with tomato ketchup. The Calamari is  always fresh and  has never disappointed me. The crunchy outer texture to the squishy interior is a nice contrast. Chili Chicken was the next to arrive for my brother who is allergic to Calamari. I just sampled a piece, it was nice and spicy with a hint of tawa flavors.



Next came the Tawa Prawns, Wow!!!!!! The best prawns one could have. This dish is best with smaller size prawns as the masala infuses better into the dish and also you get more pieces. A combo of this with the Parotta is deadly. Finally the Star item the fresh Fish in Tawa Masala, The Fish had a crispy outer texture with a soft and fresh inner portion. Nothing beats this fish. If you are an ardent fish lover, this is the place to have fresh fish.

Ambiance:
Since my 1 year old niece had come along and loves to keep running around, we chose Blue Elephant over Moonrakers. Its a wise decision for families with kids. The restaurant is air-conditioned, which wins brownie points during hot summers.

Service:
The people who serve you are not trained professionally in the art of serving, but they definitely go out of the way to help you out.

Price:
The price for this meal was Rs2300/- which was for 4 people. If you do go as a large crowd do not hesitate to bargain on the price.

Food: 8/10
Ambiance : 7/10
Service: 8/10
Price: 8/10

Blue Elephant is located in Otha Vada Street, Bang opposite to Moonrakers in Mahabalipuram.

For main course the non-veggies ordered Peri-peri Chicken with rice, the same with fish for myself, Goan Fish Curry, Steamed Rice and finally Jeera Rice to go with the Mixed Vegetable Gravy. I did not sample the veg items so I would not comment on it. The Peri-Peri Chicken and Fish with Rice is a single serving main course. The flavors of both chicken and fish were similar, its a matter of personal preference. The peri-peri masala was nice, but a little off from what I had experienced at Goa. Finally the Goan Fish Curry with Steamed Rice. This is the best combo to have the Fish Curry was authentic with right amount of coconut milk and a mild vinegar taste. The combo of Steamed rice with fresh pieces of fish was just blissful. We were too stuffed to try the desserts.

Ambiance:
The place looks like it has had a small make-over to house the new restaurant. Also the number seats has definitely taken a hit. If the weather is perfect, I would strongly you to dine outdoor.

Service:
The service was pretty decent. Since it is a new restaurant, it should improve with time.

Price:
This meal cost us Rs 2750/- which is reasonable for a restaurant located on KNK Road.

Food: 7/10
Ambiance: 7/10
Service: 7/10
Price: 7/10

Goa Portuguesa is located in KNK Road in the building which used to house 5 Senses.

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