A Balinese Lunch at The Orient and meeting some lovely people.

The Orient tucked away in the ground floor of City Centre NewTown may seem to you as another Chinese watering hole but it has much more to offer. I myself being a frequent visitor of the mall had not ventured beyond take aways. But not anymore! The other  day  KFB was invited to sample their fare over a Balinese lunch along with some lovely people from the Ambuja Neotia group. I was joined in by my fellow bloggers Antara of Antipasti and Pritha of Guilt Free - both being big fans of South east Asian cuisines. I am, to be honest not to adventurous when it comes to SE Asian cuisines but I went with an open mind. With non stop servings of Jasmine Tea we tasted a flavourful - not over powering-Balinese meal. My fellow bloggers tell me that originally Indonesian cuisine is very robust and spicy but I presume that was underplayed at the Orient keeping in mind the local tastebuds.

We  started off with a flavourful,mild spicy Soto Ayam - Java's popular chicken and glass noodle broth that could be made spicier by adding some sambal sauce. I stuck with what was being served and quite enjoyed it.

For entrée there was Lumpia Sayur - Fried spring roll stuffed with vegetables and tofu - served with some dips. The filling was subtle with an aftertaste of black pepper. The Sate Udang Besar, Bumbu Rujak - Skewers of king prawns with a spicy west java sauce was something I liked a lot. The prawns were cooked well and went well with the sauce. To be honest by now I was pretty much full and requested the chef to cut down on few of the items that was a part of the original menu.

Sate Udang Besar

Lumpia Sayur

Nasi Goreng - Stir fried rice with shrimps,sate,chicken and pickles,topped with fried egg and a prawn cracker was Chef's choice of main course. I am totally a rice person so was very happy to see a loaded plate and especially that perfectly fried egg had me at it. It is definitely the most popular dish when it comes to Indonesian cusine and as google tells me it literally translates to "fried rice". The flavours were reminiscene of the quintessential oriental fried rice to me and I would have liked it a bit more spicier. There was Ayam pelalah - Shredded chicken,tomato chilli sambal served as an accompaniment.

Nasi Goreng

Ayam pelalah

The star of the afternoon would how ever have to be the Balinese Chocolate Cake with white chocolate and rum ganache served with wasabi icecream. Must admit the icecream did have that kick in taste from the wasabi flavour used and the chocolate cake was one of the best I have had in a while. And this coming from an absolultely non chocolate person like me!

Wasabi icecream with chocolate cake

As we know, Indonesian cuisine is diverse and vibrant and has a lot of ethnic influences, so it is commendable on the part of Chef Ghanshyam  - the executive Chef at the Orient to be able to design and execute an menu that would also be appealing to the local palate. The Orient hosts frequent food festivals from around the SE Asian countries as Tanmoy Roy  - Corporate F&B Manager, Operations from Ambuja Neotia tells us. They also have this brilliant concept of oriental martinis that is a part of their happy hours. So there, now you know where to go for your martini fix!

They also have some vegetarian options in their menu like the Tempe Manis - Crisp soya bean curd,green bean,kaffir lime,lemon grass and palm sugar and Sayur Lodeh - Sweet potato, baby corn and baby egg plant cooked in mild curry sauce.

So there ended my tryst with Indonesian food and a good one I would say. I was lovely meeting everyone from the Ambuja Neotia group present that afternoon and thanks a ton for the goody bag- that ofcourse went to my 7 yr old!

Hand made chocolates as a parting gift!

 

Swiss Food Festival @ Swissotel Kolkata Neotia Vista

Yet again I found myself soaking up on Swiss hospitality, this time for the mega Swiss Food Festival to commemorate the Swiss National Day celebrated on 1st August. Swiss food is new to me and obviously there is so much more it it than just chocolate and cheese! The ever smiling Mr. Saxer (GM Swissotel Kolkata) and the vivacious Enakshi was there to usher us into the celebrations. I settled in with a glass of sparkling wine all ready to unwind after a particular tiring day. There were some traditional Swiss games being played by the guests which added to the fun ambience of the evening. The lavish dinner spread  at Café Swiss was thrown open to the guests after a brief ribbon cutting ceremony by Mr. Saxer and team.

 

 A walk around the buffet spread, and I realised that Swiss Cuisine is so multifaceted. There was everything possible from salads to breads to cheese to meats and even an array of vegetaruian dishes! I was a little low on my appetite that night and was more interested to get a taste of the vegetarian fare. I started with some salads. Options were many - Carrot and Raisin, Swiss potato salad, Green apple and Walnut along with some Swiss cheese salad.Even their regular salad bar was well stocked up. It was possible to stuff up oneself only on the salads and be happy!

 

There was Roesti that I quite liked - soft potato patty loaded with cheese and Capuns - stuufed cabbage rolls served in a tomato gravy that I enjoyed with Spatzle  - a traditional Swiss pasta that resembled our desi Anda bhurji! The Surri Gummeli - potatoes served with sour cream also deserves a special mention.

Capuns and Surri Gummeli

I was eyeing the dessert bar by now so didn't eat much of the non veg fare which my friends tell me is a winner! I only helped myself to some Chicken Cordon Bleu- crumb coated balls of chicken stuffed with ham and cheese. There were also Grilled Jumbo Prawns - with chilli flakes and olive oil cooked tender and juicy. I also spotted some unsual dishes like the Alpine Rabbit Stew that my friends vouched for.  Surre Mocke - roasted meat served in a sour sauce and the Salmon in sparkling wine and cream. Also the Rippli - pork tenderloin with green beans.

Chicken Cordon Bleu

As usual,by now I was stuffed uptil my neck and couldn't move even upto the dessert bar. But the greedy me cant give up on sweets so I asked A to get a plate as well! The dessert  bar was loaded with goodies. There was Chef Abhiroop Biswas from the Barry Callebaut Institute - the chocolate conoisseurs to give us a brief of the dessert he created that evening.The Raspberry Mousse pie stood out with a cumin scented shortcrust biscuit. Swiss Museli Quark Torte, Baba Au Rum, Mini Carrot Cupcakes, Engadin Nut cake and Apple Fritters with Vanilla icecream - everything was so yummy.

Pic Courtesy - Sayantani

The thing with Swissotel hospitality is that they spoil you with choices and options and let you enjoy your meal at your own pace. It was a super fun evening spent with my fellow KFBians over some yummy food and gossip. You can read about their experiences here Sayantani , Amrita and Antara

The Swiss Food Festival is on till the 7th Aug at the Café Swiss for Dinner Buffet and priced at  INR 1600 +

Go for it if you like to explore new cuisines..you will not be disappointed. Trust me!

Quick Review - Spaghetti Kitchen - For some cool Italian Food

It was my day out with a dear friend today and we did what girls love doing the most - we went shopping (what did u think..wink)!! We hit one of our favourite malls..infact the only mall in Kolkata that houses most of my favourite brands and stores. We simply shopped our hearts out and beautifully complemented each others shopping by encouraging to pick up whatever we felt like. However we also decided that its best that such sprees are restricted to once in 3 months or else our bank accounts would have to take a massive hit. We did not have much time at hand as she is leaving town tomorrow for a holiday and had to rush for some appointment. At this stage I was joined by the husband and the kiddo and I was famished for some food by now. So we headed to one of our favourite joints in the mall that serves some great Italian fare. Spaghetti Kitchen is one of those few places that has never disappointed us. Everytime we went there we have ordered a mix of tried and tested dishes and some new ones and always enjoyed the meal. Today also it was no different.
When eating out with the kiddo we always have to stick by with some dishes that he likes to eat and then order a mix and match of dishes that hubby and me enjoy. As soon as we entered we were ushered in by the maitre d ... and taken to our table. Almost immediately we were served water and a basket of assorted fresh bread with some butter.

The basket had an assortment of some pesto pinwheels ,multi grain buns and some crispies. Both me and the 5 year old attacked  and devoured the different breads with vengeance. They were extremely soft and fresh. There were a whole lot of condiments already at the table - sea salt and pepper - two kinds of tabasco and the usual suspects oregano, chilli flakes and Evoo.

The kiddo wanted to have a pizza so we stuck by with the original Margherita - thin crust.

It is originally served with some cherry tomatoes ,fresh basil leaves on a bed of a tangy tomato sauce topped with a lot of yummy mozzarella. However we requested to avoid the tomatoes to which they happily customised it. If you like thin crust pizza..this is the place to go to.On other occasions we have tried out other variants and those were very good too.This was served first keeping a hungry kid in mind. Very thoughtful I say.

Since we had to help finish that pizza, the husband and I decided to keep it light and order a salad and one main course.On being asked the Captain suggested that we opt for the Caprese Salad as it was one of the best. For the main course we decided to share a portion of Chicken Lasagne.

The Caprese, I must admit is one of the best I have eaten in a long time. Fresh tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella served with a drizzle of good quality Olive oil seasoned with some salt and pepper with a side of crunchy salad leaves - mainly rocket and some lettuce. The husband said it was very nice ...considering he is a hard core meat person, it felt good !

Next came the Chicken Lasagne which we decided to share. To be honest I really liked the taste of the sauce - a bit spicy and tangy but the lasagne was not really upto the mark. It was a bit dry and would have tasted better with a little more sauce. Minced chicken as it is tends to get a bit dry when assembled with the lasagne sheets so some extra sauce would have helped that.
We were totally full by now so skipped dessert though I know that they make some great desserts as well  like the tiramisu and the creme brulee !

I am not mentioning individual prices of the dishes, however a meal like this for two adults would cost approx Rs. 2000 without alchohol.

Over all a great Saturday lunch and we came back happy souls. If you are at Forum anytime soon  and get hungry after your shopping sprees - do try out this place.

Spaghetti Kitchen
4th Floor , Forum Mall
Elgin Road
Kolkata

Disclaimer - I have reviwed this place absolutely independently and was not compensated for the review monetarily or otherwise.