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!

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.

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.

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.

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”!

Green Apple Cucumber Cooler

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

Watermelon and Mint Iced Tea

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

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!

Charlie’s chocolate factory

American pie topped with caramel sauce

Maadjaapaahit, The Pride Hotel, Pune – Relive Indonesian Royalty

Maadjaapaahit is a brand new establishment nestled inside the Pride Hotel on University Road, Pune. The name is derived from the Madjapahit Empire, which was one of the last major empires of the region, ruling from the late 13th century till the end of the 15th century  AD, and is considered to be one of the greatest and most powerful empires in the history of Indonesia and Southeast Asia.

Decked up in red and gold, the decor and ambiance of the restaurant transports one to the world of rich, cultural & exotic lands of Indonesia.

Indonesian cuisine is one of the most vibrant, diverse and colorful cuisines in the world comprising of intense flavor. Maadjaapahit boasts of a diverse menu, showcasing delicacies from the regions of  Indonesia, Brunei,  Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei  Singapore, Philippines and East Timor. #baconbaba was fortunate enough to be invited to an exclusive tasting.

We started off with a Singapore Laksa and a Tom Yum (spicy) soup. The Tom Yum gave me quite a spice hit, filled with bird chillies, but was jam packed with the flavor of lemongrass and a generous amount of chicken pieces. The Singapore Laksa was a rich, delicious coconut milk based sea-food soup, brimming with prawns, fish cakes, egg and chicken.

Tom Yum

Singapore Laksa

For the next course, we got a couple of vegetarian appetizers. Lumpia – a Filipino style fried spring roll – excellent, crisp outer crust, served with a sesame tomato sauce.  Tahu Sumbat – Malaysian grilled tofu stuffed with vegetables with a chilli sauce – tofu lovers will really dig this dish. But then, tofu… meh. We also tried the Potstickers – East Timor style pan seared dumplings (vegetarian). While I couldn’t really figure out the “seared” part, the coating of the dumpling was one of the thinnest I’ve seen in Pune, leading to the veggies really shining.

Tahu Sumbat

Lumpia

Potstickers

The dips – Peanut, Sweet Chilly, Tomato Basil

Among the non-veg starters, the Fried Carrot Cake really stands out. The name is misleading – its actually a Singaporean recipe made with a fresh and preserved radish based flour cake with eggs – excellent texture, surprising to the palate.

Fried Carrot Cake

The Murtabak – a Malaysian chicken stuffed pancake has been a favorite of mine. This version was no less than any other served in the city. Delicious to the core!

Murtabak

We were also served the Sate Kambing, an Indonesian lamb satay with a peanut sauce. While the sauce was yummy, the lamb was tough.

Sate Kambing

We were getting pretty full already, and so moved on to the mains. And man, we were in for a pleasurable surprise! Here came the Chilli Crab – a hard shell crab cooked in a semi thick Singaporean style. It was a tomato-basil based sauce, but had a definite spice hit to it. This will be a hit with the spice-loving Puneris!

Chilli Crab

We also tried the Malay Chicken Curry – a coconut based chicken curry. Rich, delicious with chopped red chillies and fresh bay leaves, this was served with steamed rice.

Malay Chicken Curry

By now we were full to our gills, but this one vegetarian dish caught out eye. So we asked for a small portion of the Pumpkin Rice. This is a recipe from Papua New Guinea (an island off the coast of New Zealand). Rice tossed with pumpkin, green peas, coconut milk and spring onion, this was one of the best ‘fried rice’ dishes I have ever had! The sweetness of the pumpkin and coconut milk blended so beautifully with the rice, it took my chilli crab sauce to the next level! Absolute delicious, #MustTry !

Pumpkin Rice

 As we were ‘ooh-ing’ and ‘aaah-ing’ from the spice hit of the chili crab on our lips, the chef sent out a sampling of his 3 best desserts.

Getuk Lindri – Sweet potato and coconut rolls drizzled with honey – this is what sugar free dreams are made of! Tasting surprisingly similar to our local ‘copra paak’, this sugar free dessert is a must try here! Dadar Gulung is another Indonesian dessert we tried – beautiful green colored rice pancake rolls stuffed with coconut and sugar – yummy to the core! Apam Balik is a Malaysian rice flour pancake with creamed corn stuffing. I am not such a fan of corn, so I would give this one a pass.

From L to R – Getuk Lendri, Dadar Gulung, Apam Balik

Overall, the entire experience was absolutely phenomenal. I can only think of a couple of other restaurants in Pune serving such an exotic variety of South East Asian cuisine. With a surprisingly competitively priced menu, Maadjaapaahit is a fantastic entrant into the Pune food scene!

#baconbaba khush hua!

Ps: #baconbaba would like to thank the management of Maadjaapaahit for inviting my family and me for this food tasting. The Usual Disclaimer applies.