Cafe Mestizo – The Brew Bar

So, last week a close friend from Singapore pops in and says ‘I want to try something “different”‘. She is a “part-time vegetarian” (someone who eats chicken “sometimes” – meh!) so something like Flying Duck was out of question. That also threw mutton specialty or seafood delicacies out the window.

Had been eyeing Cafe Mestizo for a while now, and this evening seemed to be a good one to head there.

Cafe Mestizo has this urban chic decor, with white metal chairs and bright psychedelic walls. Loved the coffee clock on the wall!

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1. Butter Chicken Pizza: Yes! Butter chicken on a Pizza! Dreams becoming reality? Husband being a number one fan of butter chicken , trying the pizza version was a must! I, personally, loved this butter chicken pizza. Thin crisp base, yummy butter chicken and topped with generous amount of melted cheese. I can go back just for this dish if not anything else. Husband wasn’t a fan of the thin crust. Butter chicken needs something soft and absorbent, so a normal / deep dish base might have been better. But overall, this is a super hit. For 300/- its worth it.

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2. Mestizo Gave you Wings: I LOVE Chicken Wings (who doesn’t?) so thought of trying out their version. The menu says “Chicken wings dipped in Teriyaki Sauce”. The description was deceiving. It turned out to be chicken wings coated with a mix of some Indian masalas with a strong hint of basil. Desi masalas and Basil do NOT go well, as was evident with this dish. The teriyaki sauce as a dip was a bit of a savior. However, give this a miss.

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3. Create your own pasta: So they give you this list of options, and you can merrily select what you want in there. Our friend was on the cautious side, and went with a safe cream (white) sauce (though I really wanted to see what a pink pasta would taste like!), with Penne, chicken, olives, seasonal vegetables and mushrooms. The sauce was nice, and creamy with loads of cheese. Generous portion of chicken, well balanced, served with a rather tasty warm garlic bread, this was a lovely all-round well prepared dish.

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4. Mocktails: Here’s where they really earn the “BrewPub” title. Cafe Mestizo boasts of an impressive variety of beverages, ranging from tea and coffee to shakes and smoothies.

-Green Apple Cucumber Cooler : The salad-hating Husband ordered a cucumber drink! And was surprised! Give me all salads in this form, I’ll be happily “healthy”!

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Green Apple Cucumber Cooler

-Watermelon & Mint iced tea : Mint and Watermelon is a match made in heaven. ’nuff said.

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Watermelon and Mint Iced Tea

-Hot chocolate : I’ve had better. Pass.

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Overall, they do have some very interesting offerings on their menu. Next time round, I intend to try their egg dishes as well as the Kheema Baguette. Definitely worth a visit!

PS: Dessert craving took us to Oh So Stoned just across the road. And this was wow!!
Ordered the ‘Charlie’s chocolate factory’s & ‘American pie topped with caramel sauce’. Both the ice creams were Oh-So-Good!! Going back again to try other stuff here for sure. Drool on!

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Charlie’s chocolate factory
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American pie topped with caramel sauce

Cafe Mestizo Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Rastaman Soul Food – Bacon Cheese Burgers!

Rastaman, Soul Food – Food truck

Bacon Bhabhi

Rastaman Soul Food, a food truck opposite Balewadi High Street is dishing out some amazing burgers, pasta and sandwiches. They have recently moved here from Aundh, and man, its a delight!

We were invited by the delightful owners, the newly married Satya & Naina, who run it with all their passion for cooking and love for food.

Their menu seems super inviting and absolute VFMwhatsapp-image-2016-12-28-at-11-46-21-pm

We started off with 2 refreshing drinks – Iceberg Lime & Mellow Mood.
I loved the Mellow mood. It was sweet, it was salty and had a beautiful hint of ginger flavor.

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Tried 2 non veg burgers from their menu:
Cheezy paradise:
Yummy yummy & yummy! Yes, it was delicious. And juicy. This has a chicken patty with a cheese filled center, caramelized onions, topped with mayo,chipotle sauce, jalapeños, and loaded with huge strips of crispy bacon. Yes, when something has bacon added to it and OOOZES cheese, what’s not there to love!
#HighlyRecommended

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Cheezy Paradise

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The Asian:
This had a beautiful grilled chicken fillet tossed and coated in some soy, vinegar, honey, fish sauce, sesame seeds. Very Asian in flavor with a lovely sweet ‘n sour note as the name suggests. An interesting one worth a try.

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The Asian

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Next was Rastaman’s fusion pasta. Currently these guys serve a veg / non veg version of this. That’s the only pasta on their menu, and it was super tasty.
Penne pasta in a rich cheesy white sauce with lots of Italian herb flavours, succulent baked chunky chicken pieces, mushrooms, bacon bits and parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. Yummy again!

We ended the meal with their dessert ‘Heavenly Delight’. That’s chocolate brownie topped with vanilla ice cream ,banana,chocolate sauce,some nuts, and drizzled on top with condensed milk. I am personally always a bit partial whenener there is brownie involved in any dessert. So yes, I totally loved it. The brownie itself was so delicious, which by the way Naina herself bakes! Our 2 year old couldn’t stop eating this one 🙂

Rastaman can be found opposite Balewadi High Street (on the Urban Foundry / Apache side) and are open from 6:30 PM to 11:00 PM. Leaving you with some more yumminess!

Rastaman Soul Food Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

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