The Ant Blog

Weekends can be exciting for many reasons. For us, one happy thought (apart from sleeping till late) is to plan our lazy brunches with friends somewhere, or cooking up a delicious meal at home. The entire weekend sets rolling with all of this. So on one such rainy weekend, we thought of giving the online site  GourmetItUp   a try for the first time. They had a lovely set meal option at Oh:Cha Restaurant and bar. This place had opened a  few months ago, and we were planning to visit it ever since we had got some raving reviews. Located inside Mathurdas Mills compound, this place is almost hidden from sight. But as you walk in, the place turns around. The decor is understated, with beautiful hanging lamps all over the ceiling. Having reached there I realized that the place is run by an old friend. Tanai Shirali has been in the industry for several years now and I was happy to meet him after ages. I am a sucker for Thai food, and the GourmetItUp set menu was interest...

I recollect this evening with a lot of fondness. The Monsoon season has kicked in , and the showers are typically incessant in Mumbai. On this particular day however the rains were intermittent. We had driven down to South Mumbai to the one end of the city at the  NCPA for an evening performance. The show got over at 9:15 pm and left us with a myriad choices to catch a grub from. After debating for a while, we drove to one of the closest eat-outs The Tea Centre. I had heard of this place a lot, so was happy to pay a visit. The place has an old world charm, and has the look and feel of an era gone by. The name of the place  reciprocates in their menu, where the first few pages are dedicated to various kinds of flavors and blends available. It was late and the diners were all having their dinner. So we thought of trying our ' chai ' at the end of the meal. We ordered for our starters, Chicken with sauteed mushroom and onion , and Chicken Catchatori.       ...

About a couple of years ago, one of my dear friends had taken me to eat at a stall during the Durga Puja festival. It was probably the first stall by Bong Bong and we were among the first to sample their baked Rasgullas as customers. I was then informed that their restaurant was opening up in Bandra. Given the kind of variety in Bengali fare already available in the city, I didnt think of driving up to Bandra to give their food a try. However, until a few weeks back when I saw their new outlet in Powai. I went straight  up to this place to try a few of their dishes. It was a take away outlet, so I rummaged through their menu card and ordered a few unfamiliar looking dishes, especially the Rolls had a few strange names. I also carried along the menu card, simply because I liked the individuality of it.                                             Bong Bong outlet in P...

I have grown up in a family which loves seafood, and more so I have grown up in Goa. So the smell of the sea calls out to me. However, growing up I do not remember seeing my mother cook crabs at home. So I  thought of breaking the tradition by cooking some at home and sharing it with mom. I live in Mumbai now, for over a decade, but this is also the coastal belt and the produce are a lot similar. So I borrowed this recipe from a dear friend, a few weeks back and tried my hands on it.                                                    Crab Masala cooked Maharashtrian style It looks gorgeous, but is quite a simple recipe. Ingredients for Crab Masala: Crabs- Cleaned, 4-5 medium sized Garlic- 10 cloves, crushed and chopped roughly Bay leaf- 2 Asefoetida- 1/4 teaspoon Onions- 2 large Tomato- 1 large Chili Powder- 3 teaspoons Turmeric Powde...

Our visit to this place was as impromptu as it could get. The Bengali New year has just gone by, and the weekend was around the corner. So last week, we clubbed it all as a reason to try out the  Bong  food in this new eatery. Located in Hiranandani Gardens, this outlet is tucked inside a shopping arcade, so can be easily missed unless you are a regular in Powai. For us, it was an easy task. The menu had familiar items which brought back our hunger and fervor to eat a bit more :) We ordered the  Bhetki Rongpuri (Barramundi Fish cutlets)   to begin with. We had asked for their  Aam Panna  , but they did not seem to have that or  any of their featured special drinks, apart from the regular soda drinks. So I ordered for a Sweet lime.                                      Bhetki Rongpuri at Cafe Boda Next we ordered the  Chicken Kobiraji C...

This is one of the most delightful easy cook dishes. Very simple yet really delicious. During my last visit home, I spent some time in the kitchen while my Mom quickly cooked these up.So thought of sharing it here!  To get the flavor of the fish, one should use really fresh fillets of fish. Marinate this in garlic, ginger paste, lemon juice and salt for about 3-4 hours. Take vegetable oil in a wok, and let it heat up to boil, then dip the fillets into a bowl of beaten eggs, and then dust on both sides with bread crumbs. Gently lower into hot oil. They will  turn brown, make sure they do not turn dark.  Ingredients for Fried fish fillet : For marinating Fish fillets- 15 pieces Lemon juice- of 1 lemon Garlic paste- 2 and 1/2 Tbsp Ginger paste- 1 Tbsp  Salt- as per palate For frying Egg- 2 beaten Bread crumbs Vegetable oil Fish fillets in marination                         ...

Inspired by a recipe from a magazine, I tried making this simple yet decadent treat at home. I had first tasted this at a shack in Goa. The cook tastes great with fishes like Mackarel, Surmai, Pomfret, Seer fish etc. Fish Rava/Semolina fried is a must try dish in Goa while you look out at the sea chugging down a mug of beer. I tried to recreate this experience , with a bottle of Brit-brewed beer and some average television :D Fish- 4-5 pieces Lemon juice of 1 lemon Ginger - 1 inch grated Salt- as per palate Cumin powder- 1/2 tsp Red chili powder- 1/2 tsp I mixed these ingredients and marinated the fish pieces for 25 mins. I dabbed  a little bit Red chili powder on both surface of the pieces, so that it takes the hue. (You may not follow this step, if you chose to. This will add an additional hint of heat, which goes with this fish) Take Semolina/ Rava and spread it on the surface of a plate. Place each fish piece on this plate, one at a time, and c...

Tell me what can possibly happen when three cheery and chattery women meet after a long time.. Well one of the possibilities is that they  turn the place around into a loud and happy hangout :) One of our last rendezvous went something like that. It was a Friday night, so spirits were high in general, we wanted to check out a place where we hadn’t been to before, somewhere where there would be music but not loud enough for us to catch up. So, we headed to Mocha cafe in Mumbai at R city mall, which was conveniently located for all of us. We opted for the sit out area, which was bright and decorated with comfy couches and lodged ourselves on one of the couches. We ordered our Chenin Blanc and The Non- Vegetarian platter because we were all hungry after a long day. One can  select 4 mini dishes in the platter, from the menu options in veg/ non-veg platter. We went with Hot Tennessee style chicken wings, Nut crusted fish fingers, Moroccan meat balls, Chicken Bruschetta. ...