Maplai, Nungambakkam (4/5)

Background:

I have been to Maplai twice; first was when they had newly opened and the other was a couple of days back - based on a meal organised by the management/zomato. 

During my first I had a lunch thali - a chicken meal. It was a point when the restaurant was at the receiving end of criticisms from one and all - a view that I did not agree. Though my experience was nothing out of the world - the restaurant had a few good dishes. 

What impressed me more is how the restaurant did a phoenix move and pulled their act together. Despite all criticism they faced during its first few months, they are easily among the better restaurants today in the chosen cuisine. 

Ambience (3/5)

Kept simple and elegant - they do justice to the price band they are operating in. 

Pricing (4/5)

The restaurant believes in truly feeding its customers and that means 'a lot' of food and a price one would definitely not mind spending. 

The sit down menu which consists of a soup, 6 starters, 3 main course, ghee rice, indian breads (parota, naan (soon to be introduced), idiyappam, dosa, etc), desserts is great Vfm

Drinks (3.5/5)

1. Virgin green apple mojito - a drink that I would have never ordered again - if not for maplai renewing my love for it. Unlike other places which get the balance of green apple syrup wrong most times- this was spot on. 

2. Ginger berry Margarita - that was no margarita, but the ginger and berry blend was an enjoyable mid-meal drink. 

3. Rose milk - a childhood favourite for most TN kids. Unlike the diluted ones you commonly find, their offering was thick and tasted good. 

Food (4.5/5)

Starters 

While their veg starters were decent, the offering is much more promising for non-vegetarian.

1. Thanjavur kari kari gola

Eaten hot, this mutton kola balls are yummy. 

2. Mutton chukka

Did not eat much of the same - but came across as  just ok when compared to other finer offerings in their menu. 

3. Nethili fry

A vanilla offering that was fried to perfection. Had the perfect crispy crunchy flavour - cant expect more from this regular fish offering.

4. Cheesy lollypop

In the midst of all the spicy enjoyable food - this was slightly a spoiler for me. Am unsure if this was on account of the spice-joy moment I was having, 

5. Kozhi kaal ney roast

Nothing but chicken legs - ghee roast style. My favourite starter for the day.  The mallu in me refused to eat it in without their parota's.

Loved how the parota and this dish combined. A combo that I expect to lure me back to this restaurant.  

6. Veg starters: while most of them were decent, what stood out for me was the crispy guntur corn. 

Other decent dishes were chepankazhangu roast (only when combined with the chilly mayo dip) and vazhapoo kola urundai. 

Main course: 

1. As a mallu another dish I has to try and judge was the puttu and kadala curry. The kadala curry was nice and thick - but I am used to having a more diluted version with puttu. 

2. Ghee rice with paneer butter masala - I was told this is one of their fastest moving combo and there was no reason it shouldn't be. 

3. Varathuariche kozhi - Among my favourite curries when made well, more so when combined with parota. The irresistible consumption of this curry with parotas and ghee dosa left me nearly immobile (was so full after the meal). 

Challenge dishes:

- theepori chicken

- theepori paneer

The spiciest dish you would ever come across and a dish that is not for the faint hearted. 

Try it only if you can handle spice and this dish is exclusively for challenge; couldn't really appreciate the taste. 

Desserts

A mixed bag for me: 

✔️ salted caramel akaraivadasai - salted caramel, white chocolate topped rice cake. An infusion that thoroughly impressed me.

✔ ️3 way vattapalam - not a fan of caramel puddings usually - but this was delectable

✔️ jigarthanda - not the best I have tasted, but almost there. 

✔️ maplai falooda - having a good rose milk offering can clearly help when making faloodas - a lesson that I learnt by experience at maplai. 

❌ gulab jamun cheesecake - a total spoiler. Jamun and cheesecake hardly combined.

❌ mud pie - too gooey for a mud pie. 

On a summary note, I loved their food, the drinks and some of their dessert offering. Definitely going back for more.

Zomato Event with George Calombaris

Bangalore was lucky to host one of the biggest food connoisseurs of all time, restaurateur, chef and master chef Australia judge - George Calombaris.

During his visit to the city, he explored the local cuisine and had two invite only sessions with foodies and food bloggers. Thanks to Zomato and my untiring passion to review restaurants - I got an invite for one of these sessions that was held at JW Marriot, Lavelle Road - Bangalore. Other invitees for this event included CxO cadre employees of some of the leading corporate houses operating in Bangalore and few of the top Zomato and food bloggers from Bangalore. 

My experience:

It was my first black tie food event and was a great opportunity to meet and socialize with some of the corporate heads and my fellow foodies from Bangalore. 

Table 13 Members

A pic with the man himself

George Calombaris

Before I talk about the food, I would like to say a few things about the man himself - George is extremely passionate about food: while typing this, all I can do is visualise the way he describes food - his narratives could stimulate hunger in you even after an Andhra meal.

Otheriwise, he seemed hardworking, friendly, funny and above all level headed despite all his achievements. 

Quoting and unquoting a few things he said during the event:

1. George - My son went to a fast food joint for a birthday party and he took his own food

Well, with a chef like this at home who would want fast food? More importantly, this is in line with his principles on how most fast food joints do not offer healthy food - a cause he has stood up for in one too many public forums. 

2. George - The donut - what do you call them? Vada!!! 

Clearly George had his share of South Indian food and fell in love with it. He described the south Indian vada as a savory donut. 

3. George - I worked with Gary in 1996 and he hates the fact that the apprentice has overtaken the master. 

Said in light vein, he loved to take a dig at people that are close to him. 

4. George - Matt's knowledge of Indian food is better than the Indians I know

Only thing running on my mind was - when can we get to see Matt? :D

5. George - What was it- Chicken 54? 

George was clearly finding it difficult to memorize the names of Indian dishes. But he did admit his liking for spicy Indian food and chicken 65 was something he loved. I feel, next time his hosts should try better than chicken 65 when it comes to spicy Indian food.

Can George handle the real Indian spicy food? I am sure his love and understanding of food will help him deal with it. He might turn red eating, but would be a happier man after the meal. 

The Food:

I had given my meal preference as non vegetarian and though I am usually averse to trying non-chicken dishes, considering the rarity of such opportunities decided to have an open mind to trying all meats. This was one of the wisest food decisions I have made as I thoroughly enjoyed the uniqueness and quality of each of the dish. Have detailed my view on each of them below:

1. Beetroot - feta - papadom and yoghurt
Not a big fan of beetroot, but cleaned this dish up, The ingredients of the dish combined well together; but for somebody like me who has eaten papadom all life, the semi-raw papadom was a marginal spoiler.

2. Sea Bass, miso, eggplant and celery
I was among the lucky few in the table to have got a tender and skinless piece of the dish. It was mildly flavored for an Indian palette and tasted pretty good. The unlucky ones had some difficulty in cutting dish.

3. Green Greek Salad
The green greek salad with peanuts was fabulous. George recommended that we try this dish with Naan's and I was pleasantly surprised on how well they combined.

4. Prawn Saganaki, tomato and mustard
Soaked in olive oil this dish looked like a dumpling of sorts and was filled with fresh and well cooked prawns. The prawn by itself had no special flavors, but it was yet another dish which combined flawlessly when eaten together. Was my favorite dish of the day!

5. Lamb, onion, fondant potato
The lamb was cooked semi-rare and considering my limited experience in eating such preparations I struggled in cutting the dish. I always wondered how could someone eat rare and semi-rare preparations and this dish answered that question for me. Enjoyed the meat!

What made the dish better was the lamb puff - it just melted in the mouth.

6. Dessert - rice pudding, salted caramel and rice cream
A mix of sweet, bitter, crunchy and gooey - this was one of best non-chocolate desserts I have had ever. Liked it so much that I almost had a heart attack when I saw somebody waste it.

Most of these dishes were served in small to medium size portions and by the time I was done with the meal I felt quite stuffed. A perfect six course meal and one I would have to wait another lifetime to eat again.

Thanks Zomato, Goldrush Events and JW Marriot for making this possible.