BENGALURU: Shout out to all the bhindi lovers in the city! If you thought you had seen it all with bhindi fry, masala, tadka or even a South Indian vengaya theeyal, then you Sir, need to order yourself some Bendakaya Pulusu at Nook, in Aloft Bengaluru Cessna Business Park.
The cafe style restaurant offers south Indian, north Indian, pan Asian and continental food. The ambience is set in green and white palette with box lights hanging from the ceiling. You are most likely to be surrounded by techies and a family crowd at this restaurant that also has a pool table and couch set in the lobby.
The Lamb Seek Kabab is minced well and is topped with fresh coriander, the Prawns Tempura falls on the crunchier side and the Chicken Tikka was well marianted with flavours of the charred grill in the soft meat pieces. In the vegetarian part of the starters menu, the croquette were equal parts crunchy on the outside and goeey delicious on the inside.
Among cocktails, the whiskey infused in tea, served chill was an interesting combination, but did fall back on the blend and the alcohol punch. The Hot Toddy is warm and soothing, but missed a brandy punch.
And now that you have read through the starters, let’s take a minute to talk about the bhindi, shall we? The Bendakaya Pulusu is hands down the best bhindi with tamarind curry combination I have had so far. The tamarind based gravy has the typical Indian curry texture with the sourness of the tamarind and tomatoes. And the ladies finger pieces soaks in the spicy tamarind curry flavours and makes for a delicious bite with naan. Save butter garlic naan for the non vegetarian curry, I’d say.
The Murgh Musallam, a Mughlai style chicken curry in the restaurant is rich and creamy. The onion based gravy underplays the spice tadka in the dish and tastes buttery instead. No complaints though.
The aromatic Mutton Rogan Josh has rich Kashmiri flavours with delicate lamb chunks. The Chicken Biriyani came in as a colourful ensemble of rice cooked well, but was served cold. The Dal Makhani on the other hand was another star on the dinner table.
The red kidney beans and black gram cooked with plenty of butter and spices was really smooth, creamy on the palate and yes, I asked for a second serving of this delicious Punjabi dal that stuck true to its roots.
The cheesecake served with a side of blueberries sauce has balanced flavours of cream and cheese and has a chocolate chunk topping that adds crunch to the dessert.
Place: Nook - Aloft Bengaluru Cessna Business Park, Bellandur
Cost for two: `2000