Street Food Festival at Dining Room, Park Hyatt

I had a chance to visit the Dining Room at Park Hyatt yet again, but this time sporting a completely new avatar. They were hosting the street food of the world festival and had put together a menu of some of the Asian favorites.

The day we visited, the festival highlighted street food dishes from India (Mumbai & Goa), Tibet, Thai and Indonesia. Unlike my earlier experiences at multiple street food festivals, this one kept the flavors authentic and the food ended up being lip smacking.

I loved the thickness and consistency of the Laksa soup (loaded with chicken and prawns) and the banana roti's (easily joined the league of my favourite banana based desserts with Banoffee pie being its only comparable peer). The Indian street food on the other hand did complete justice and felt as close as their counterparts in Mumbai/Goa.

A Glimpse at the offerings from the Street Food Counters

And, here are the highlights from their regular buffet spread

Their regular buffet spread had a decent spread, but nailed most of the dishes. Here I loved the methi malai murgh, potato au gratin and the narghisi kofta biryani. 

The festival promotional menu was priced at INR 1600 per person excluding taxes. 

Trident, Udaipur

We stayed here on the last day of our trip to Udaipur. After having decided not to over spend on palace hotels, this was our attempt to experience a lake-side, yet relatively affordable luxury stay. (I am sure that's a lot of oxymorons together)

Hotel Category - Five Star
Location - Udaipur

Service

The Oberoi Group (of which Trident is a part) is known for endearing hospitality and this was evident not only from the care and affection extended by the front office staff, but also the pleasant surprise they had waiting for us when we entered the room after a small site seeing; they took the cue from our discussion during checkin when we mentioned we were here as part of our honeymoon and had the room decorated with baloons and a heart shaped creating using bath towels, To top that, they had a delectable chocolate cake ready to be sliced. 

Mr. Mahi from the front office, his deputy and the F&B manager require special mention for making our stay a very comfortable one. They also extended their support in suggesting places to visit and restaurants to try in the city during our stay here. 

Room and Facilities

It's a large commercial hotel with over 137 rooms. What this also means is, there are going to be a lot of people buzzing around and this hotel might not be the best option if you are looking for a quaint and private space. 

Our room had a brilliant lake view, but when I look back I tend to think wasn't the lake a distant mile away from the room? Is that worth the premium I paid? Also, the room was compact sized and comparable to a business class hotel you find in Tier I cities. 

For the positives, the room had flawless hygiene and had good quality bathroom essentials. 

Location

The hotel shares its compound with the ultra premium Oberoi Udai Vilas and is easily accessible when in the city limits. 

Food

We had only their buffet breakfast and it was easily the best breakfast we had during the trip. While there may have been a few failed dishes, the lavish spread made up for it. 

On a summary note, the hotel has everything going in it's favor if you are looking for a commercial/quasi business class hotel. While the same may not be the recommendation if you are in the city for a holiday, their outstanding hospitality is BIG enough reason to revisit. 

P.S - used my Citibank premiermiles credit card points to part fund the room booking cost. 

Ramada Resort & Spa, Udaipur

We stayed here on our first day in Udaipur. We chose this hotel based on the pricing and pictures/reviews on Tripadvisor. On arrival, we were given an option to choose for a room upgrade to the premium category for INR. 1500 - which we were happy to opt for. 

Hotel Category - 5 Star (Resort)
Location - Udaipur

Location 

This is a hill-side property located at Rampura Circle. While I may not be the best judge for commenting on the locality, the hotel is ticked away from the busy lake-side localities - which are preferred locations to stay for tourists. 

Room & Facilities 

It was a twin room designed in a ground plus one model; we occupied the one on the ground floor. The room was reasonably large sized (something that might be otherwise rare in a crowded travel city like Udaipur) and had a great visual appeal - could not decide whether it looked better in day or night. 

But that said, the hotel maintenance was below par. Our issues ranged included: broken bathroom flush, dis-functional telephone (this is a big no for a property where the lobby is a kilometer from the room), stained bathtubs, etc. 

Their other facilities included spa, swimming pool, few indoor games, a fully functional pub, etc. Specifically referring to the pool facility, they have two options - one central pool accessible to all customers and other being a private one which had a paid entry. 

Food 

Our dining here was restricted to the complimentary breakfast. The spread was decent and food just above average, 

Service

The service was patchy. While they attended to most requests instantly, our efforts to get the telephone fixed went unanswered - despite informing twice. 

On a summary note, this is a good resort if you are looking to spend time with family and relax. That said, they need to maintain the place better; which is an essential for five star properties. 

My rating for the hotel is 6/10. 

Fern Meluha, Mumbai

Star Category - 5 Star (Ecotel)
Location - Powai, Mumbai

Stayed at this hotel during my last visit to Mumbai and checked in late after a long day of meetings. To my pleasant surprise they upgraded me to a junior suite room and that was the first of the many memorable things from the stay here. 

Location

The hotel is located in the heart of Powai and is also close to commercial establishments in the locality. 

Given my desire to explore the neighborhood when I am in a new city, this hotel was perfect for a small dessert and dinner sojourn. 

Room & Facilities 

When you get more for what you pay, you are more likely to be impressed. That is clearly my views about the stay here and junior suite room is perfectly designed if you are carrying work back to the hotel. 

I stayed up late to work and watch the Indian wrestler bring us the first medal and that was the perfect icing to the stay here. 

On to details, the room had a study, two tv's, a cloak room, a mini bar counter and very comfortable and cozy king-sized bed.

Pricing

They are priced slightly premium and having stayed at similar priced properties in other parts of the city, this was definitely among the ones I found most comfortable in many ways. Hence, it could be considered necessary premium. 

Food

Had a quick breakfast and did not have enough time to do justice to their breakfast spread. 

But what little I had, found it just above average. However, would definitely want to have a more elaborate meal next time. 

Service

The staff were extremely courteous and the check in process was hassle free. 

On a summary note, a hotel stay I enjoyed and one I would surely want to revisit: 

Fern Meluha, Mumbai

Star Category - 5 Star (Ecotel)
Location - Powai, Mumbai

Stayed at this hotel during my last visit to Mumbai and checked in late after a long day of meetings. To my pleasant surprise they upgraded me to a junior suite room and that was the first of the many memorable things from the stay here. 

Location

The hotel is located in the heart of Powai and is also close to commercial establishments in the locality. 

Given my desire to explore the neighbourhood when I am in a new city, this hotel was perfect for a small dessert and dinner sojourn. 

Room & Facilities 

When you get more for what you pay, you are more likely to be impressed. That is clearly my views about the stay here and junior suite room is perfectly designed if you are carrying work back to the hotel. 

I stayed up late to work and watch the Indian wrestler bring us the first medal and that was the perfect icing to the stay here. 

On to details, the room had a study, two tv's, a cloak room, a mini bar counter and very comfortable and cozy kingsized bed. 

Pricing

They are priced slightly premium and having stayed at similar priced properties in other parts of the city, this was definitely among the ones I found most comfortable in many ways. Hence, it could be considered necessary premium. 

Food

Had a quick breakfast and did not have enough time to do justice to their breakfast spread. 

But what little I had, found it just above average. However, would definitely want to have a more elaborate meal next time. 

Service

The staff were extremely courteous and the checkin process was hassle free. 

On a summary note, a hotel stay I enjoyed and one I would surely want to revisit: 

Beyond Indus - Beyond Awesome

Was here as a part of preview of the Ola Prime restaurant week. I had chosen to dine here for the silliest reasons:

1. I turned vegetarian for two months and I believed if there was any cuisine that would appeal to me, this was most likely to be it. 

2. Forgot to add, not just vegetarian- but no desserts too. I assumed it would be easier to skip desserts when dining at a North Indian cuisine restaurant. A judgement I was grossly incorrect about and regretted when I saw my friend eat desserts like there was no tomorrow. 

About the food:
We were served with paapad and an in-house pre-meal appetiser. This appetiser or chips made from Indian breads was crispy and combined fabulously well with the hung curd-garlic-olive dip. 
Starters:

1. Brocolli Simla mirch or cheesy brocolli
This was well cooked brocolli with a healthy cheese infusion; never tasted anything better made of Brocolli. Loved it! 

2. Lal mirch paneer tikka
Moderately soft paneer chunks with a good spicy flavour. 

3. Hara bara kebab
Not my favourite among the three, but nailed it for sure. 

Main course:
1. Aloo tee wadi da bharta - on a normal day, I would have definitely never ordered a dish with potatoes in it, that too at a luxury diner. But this, is by far (when I say far, I really mean far) the most interesting and tasty use of potatoes I have come across in North Indian/ Punjabi cuisine. 

The curry is made with mashed potatoes and I literally had to snatch my share from the otherwise carnivore friend. 

2. Paneer lababdar
A perfect contrast for the aloo curry, even-though both aren't the spicy options. They nailed the lababdar and it had the right balance; it's one dish I love but find overbearing in a few restaurants - this was fortunately not the case here. 

3. Kadai vegetables
This was the extremes to which a temporary convert carnivore would go. That said, it was an extreme I was impressed with. 

Breads: tried pudina parata, chilli olive naan and garlic naan. As always, would rate the garlic naan best. 

Vegetable pulao - Typically, the vegetables are tossed in tawa and mixed to make pulao; this was possibly the reason for the vegetables being marginally saltier than the rice. A decent offering minus this inconsistency.

Desserts 
Did not eat them, but a part of me ached as I saw my friend having a mini-meal with my share of desserts included. 

Ambience
A relatively small restaurant if one was to judge by the carpet area. The interiors are however done gracefully and definitely sets the theme for the cuisine. 

Pricing 

The restaurant week is possibly the best time to try for cost conscious customers. But even otherwise, this is a place worth visiting on special occasions. 

On a summary note, this restaurant is the gleaming highlight in the last couple of weeks I have spent as a vegetarian and is one restaurant I would recommend all my north Indian cuisine loving vegetarian friends to try.