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I FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2014

15

A neighbourhood high
KAUSHIK JN

The Local
8 R 6 B B -5

Pub grub Rajiv Ramnane Vikas Yes Well-stocked bar, at reasonable price Price range For about `1,800, you could share a couple of drinks, two non-veg starters, and a main course dish (inclusive of taxes and service charge) Valet parking No Wheelchair access No Service Efficient, helpful and friendly Music and sound level Loud, but that does a good job of drowning out street noise and allowing conversations Ambiance Great dcor with character, relaxed Hours 10 am 11 pm Home delivery No Reservations Wouldnt be a bad idea

Food Owners Chef Alcohol Wine list

Manu Prasad bmfeedback@gmail.com

From top: Chicken Hariyali Kabab, BELT sandwich, Italian Stuffed Bell Pepper, Portugese Patra

f Jimi doesnt give you enough of a high, perhaps you should try a stairway to heaven, led by messaging on a steep flight of stairs. Subtext apart, theres a new watering hole in Koramangala, or rather, a terrace drinkery, that goes by the name of The Local. The logo sets the tone quite clearly it is inspired by a bottle cap. If that doesnt bring a smile to your face, perhaps the messaging on the stairs will. Its too long to recount in entirety, but the message is that this is a place that celebrates the ordinary, and all the kinds that make up a great hangout. The talk is easily backed up by the relaxed ambiance. Quirky is going mainstream, but The Locals dcor is certainly a candidate for tastefulness. An assortment of seating options indoors and al fresco, featuring a motley group of chairs, stone benches, and surprisingly, greenery in the heart of Koramangala. Add to this, beer served in ceramic mugs, the little blackboard menus, offers like Tap Tuesdays and Tequila Thursdays, its easy to imagine an evening spent lazing around. And then

theres the music! We started the evening with classics As time goes by, Uptown girl and so on, quickly moved on to New York city speed and such, and ended the night with everything kids listen to these days. Appetiser: When the drinks menu occupies as much space as the food on the menu, it does seem like a good start. It gets better when you figure that they actually do have the stuff. Theres no end to the number of pubs which have Hoegaarden and Asahi on the menu, and on the menu only! However, their in-house specials are nothing out of the ordinary. We asked for a Strawberry Margarita and it arrived in the form of a Strawberry Martini! Someone at the bar was definitely having a few hic cups. They did offer to replace it though, after we pointed it out. The starters took a long while to arrive. The good news was that it was the Chilli Beef that arrived first, the bad news was that it forgot to cook itself! That was unfortunate because the flavours were really good.

The next to arrive was the Portuguese Patra, which in name and appearance was similar to the Parsi Patra ni Machchi, except that this one has a chicken version too. Wrapped in banana leaves, this was easily our favourite starter and was well complemented by the peanut based dip. The last dish to arrive was the Veg platter which had Paneer Tikka, mushrooms, cauliflower and Basil Hariyali Kababs. The last was an easy winner, since the tikka was only average, the mushrooms rather insipid and the cauliflower suffered from a mustard overdose. Entre: The options consist of burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, pasta and a few steaks. We began with the Meat Lovers Pizza, which was a chicken, pork and cheese extravaganza. They did play their parts well, but the pizza itself was burnt. The BELT was our favourite mains dish, the acronym (and the dish) being made up of bacon, egg, lettuce and tomato. Despite the ingredients, the sandwich was light, with subtle flavours. The Penne Alfredo (we had

BM VERDICT

6 10

the veg version) was only average though the cream sauce promised much. The Italian Stuffed Bell Peppers sounded quite interesting bell peppers stuffed with cheesy rice, served with baked apple and red wine sauce. It looked quite the belle too, red and green bell peppers looking pretty in the company of the apple. But looks proved deceptive, the dish wasnt great, the barely cooked rice being the chief culprit! Afters: Very quickly, no, not even a single dish. In all: The Local makes no pretence to being a fine dining destination, and bills itself as a my kind of place, come as you are hangout. The dcor, music and the general buzz manages to do that quite well, but it has a long way to go in terms of the quality of food served. If the general idea is only to lounge around in Koramangala with beer and sides, and in a relaxed atmosphere, you wont be disappointed. But if the expectation is more than casual drinkery, then the terrace might fall short.

BM SAVEUR: FRENCH TOAST

Break bread with simple to make, great to taste, and versatile experiments with the humble toast. We explore different varieties
Kunal Chandra

Top: French Toast prepared with Challa bread; Right: Diplomats Pudding

tarting from the simple jam on toast, there are several exotic varieties that make great b(r)eadfellows. The humble toast also tastes good as a base for a delicious appetiser or antipasti, snack, meal or even a dessert. Take Kaya toast. This popular toast from Malaysia and Singapore is a comfort breakfast at the kopitiams (coffee shops). A distinct yet acquired taste, says foodie Aslam Gafoor, who keeps a stock of Kaya jam, the main ingredient. Kaya is an eggy coconut jam that is slathered on the toast with a liberal dose of butter and topped off with runny eggs. Follow up Kaya toast with black tea sweetened with condensed milk, he says.

One toast that figures in most home kitchens is the French Toast. This sweetened egg and milk version is made differently by chefs, some preferring to dip the bread separately in egg and then milk seasoned with sugar and cinnamon powder before shallow frying the bread. Most prefer making a mixture of eggs, milk and sugar and dipping the bread into it. Chef Shweta Kurada, Le Cordon Bleu at Desserted Caf speaks of eating the best French Toast at her baking school in Paris. It is called the Diplomats Pudding, a French take on bread and butter pudding but it is actually just a French Toast made with brioche. Brioche is a butter-rich yeast bread that soaks up the

milk and sugar like a sponge and just melts in the mouth. Kurada makes French Toast with both brioche and baguette. Chef Manu Chandra of Monkey Bar uses only Challah bread or the Jewish egg bread which is soaked in milk, eggs, wine, cinnamon, orange zest, honey and vanilla, and served with house syrup. Another toast popular as an antipasto is the bruschetta which uses the oval shaped baguette. Lightly grilled, the bread is rubbed with garlic and topped with olive oil, salt and pepper. Variations include the toppings like tomatoes, beans or cured meat. Gafoor talks of having the Bombay Masala Toast in his childhood. It is actually a

sandwich with potato filling and toasted over fire in a handheld sandwich maker. But sometimes, I just cut some slices of bread and keep it in the warm oven till crisp like rusk. This can be had with soup or liver pate. Perfect, he says. And heres raising a toast to the toast. Jayanthi Madhukar