Bangalore - INDIA

You can find a lot of street food in Bangalore and in India, to which we would advise you to be careful, because of lack hygiene and the water used to cook.

Obviously being in India, and in Bangalore, you will have access to lots of South-Indian food, but there are also some western type restaurants you could give a try while in Bangalore.

These reviews are based on the time we visited these restaurants in October and November 2012.

KC Das

KC Das has stores spread all over Bangalore, and there you can find a type of yoghurt called Mishti Doi, a sweet yoghurt kept in a clay pot (you can also buy it in the plastic container, which, to be honest, conserves better than the clay pot).

They sell it in a 500 gram or a 1 kilogram pot.

This is a delicious yoghurt and a nice change from the curd yoghurt that Indians have a the end of the meal.

Toscano

They have currently three locations in Bangalore, we tried two of them; the one at the Forum Value Mall in Whitefield and the one at the very posh UB City Mall.

The one we prefer is the one located at the Forum Value Mall in Whitefield.

The food is excellent. However the desserts are not good: The ones which could be great, are overdone, which makes them too creamy or too rich, simply disappointing, and the rest of the desserts we tried are tasteless.

Here are the dishes we tried and what we have to say about them:

• Parma Ham and Melon (24-months proscuitto served with melon sorbet, marinated olives, mixed greens, and fresh mozzarella): The parma ham was delicious, the mozzarella was authentic, and the melon sorbet was a nice touch. The melon, as a fruit, was not sweet, which was a shame, because this appetizer could have been perfect.
• Crumb fried fresh mozzarella & basil with raisin-based crumbs accompanied by pesto grilled vegetables served with red pepper coulis and reduced balsamico: These mozzarella sticks were delicious, the mozzarella and the breadcrumb were fried perfectly, and the pesto-grilled vegetables were a nice touch. The red pepper coulis was a bit bland (I think a marinara sauce would have been better).
• Polenta fritta con pollo all gorgonzola (deep fried chicken and polenta cakes served with fresh tomato salsa and gorgonzola cheese): It was good. The chicken and polenta cakes were nicely balanced and the gorgonzola sauce, even though it was served in a tiny quantity, was a nice addition.
• Isalata Ortolana (Young mixed lettuce, buffalo boncoccini, olives, grilled artichokes and sun-blushed cherry tomatoes dressed with balsamic mustard dressing & virgin olive oil): The combination of all the salad ingredients was good, but the virgin olive oil was in excess and so overpowered the balsamic mustard dressing.
• Wined poached pear stuffed with feta and pancetta, served with fresh rucola and cherry tomato salad tossed in balsamic vinaigrette, parmesan shavings, capers, and toasted walnuts: we were very excited about this starter/appetizer, but we ended up quite disappointed: The pear wasn't cooked enough, so it was hard. It was only one half of a pear, so the feta and pancetta stuffing was quite small. Regarding the wine poached part, it was barely perceivable.
• Crispy bacon wrapped roasted filet mignon served with porcini risotto and red wine jus: The filet mignon was cooked perfectly as we ordered (we both ordered this dish on two different occasions), and the porcini risotti was a delight, a small but fulfilling enough serving to be able to appreciate the whole dish.
• Fettuccine e Salsiccia Piccante (Pasta with spicy pork sausage, bacon and mushrooms in pomodor basil sauce): A relatively simple tomato-sauce based pasta, Toscano managed to excel in the blend of flavours and spices. The sausage was spicy delight, especially in a country where sausage is hard to find, and the textures worked beautifully to keep each bite interesting.
• Linguine Aglio e Olio fruiti di marie (with pan fried sea prawns, vongole, mussels, and green peas in wine and lemon flavored olive oil sauce topped with a chunk of grilled basa): The dish was nicely balanced and the seafood and fish were cooked perfectly.
• Lemon grilled basa with fresh salad, potato, steamed vegetables and olive citronate dressing: The fish was cook perfectly, but the dressing was a bit too oily.
• Grilled pepper steak with garlic mash, caramelized onions, and grilled vegetables: This is a thin piece of beef, grilled and served folded (that makes it look thicker). The steak is specifically very average. It is so thin, that even medium rare is very difficult to do. However, it was still juicy and quite tasty, but just wasn't able to satisfy a steak-craving. If you're craving a steak, get the filet mignon. The garlic mash tastes almost like it came out of a box (I'm sure it didn't, but my taste buds think otherwise), the garlic almost seemed like it was there to mask the dehydrated-potato flavour. The roasted vegetables on the side we good, but not enough to compensate for the rest of the plate.
• Papardalle Al Ragu Di Anatra Con Funghi (with Duck Confit and Mushroom in Flavoured Cream Sauce): The sauce came off as being quite oily, which was especially odd considering the little duck in the dish, and the excessive mushrooms in comparison. The pasta itself is rather large, which is a problem because the sheets tend to stick together, thereby causing me to eat a large chunk of pasta. This made the dish quite disappointing; which is a real tragedy because the combination of ingredients could make an excellent pasta dish, perhaps with different pasta and a better cooking of the sauce.
• Special of the day: Tortellinis stuffed with shrimp and smoked salmon served in a creamy and saffron sauce: the dish was good, and the sauce accompanied nicely the dish, however the saffron taste was undetectable.
• Mango eggless panacotta: It was delicious, but it's not on the menu anymore.
• Toscano's signature tiramisu with crème anglaise and cocoa: It was good, but a bit too creamy, not enough biscuit.
• Vanilla crème brûlée served with biscotti and cocoa: It was good, the brûlée was done perfectly with the perfect thickness and crunchiness, but the cream, even though good, was a bit too thick for my taste.
• Cappuccino crème brûlée served with biscotti and cocoa: same as the vanilla crème brûlée, the brûlée was done perfectly with the perfect thickness and crunchiness, but the cream, even though good, was a bit too thick for my taste. Compared to the vanilla crème brûlée, the thickness of the cream made the taste of the cappuccino cream quite overwhelming. 
• Chocolate kahlua® mousse in almond tuile and crème anglaise: the chocolate kahlua® mousse was tasty but quite rich, the presentation was nice and added to the taste as the mousse is served as a swirling cone on the tuile itself. The crème anglaise was very disappointing because it wasn't a crème anglaise at all, but more of a whipped cream, not whipped.
• Red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting served with vanilla ice cream: It was completely tasteless, and it was also served with some dried cake pieces, which was also tasteless and really dry, and with a apple and cinnamon purée, which didn't have anything to do with the cake. The vanilla ice cream was quite creamy and not good quality. Needless to say, it wasn't good at all.
• Warm apple crumble with cinnamon and raisins served with vanilla bean ice cream: The apple crumble was good. However, it wasn't served with vanilla bean ice cream, but with the same cheap and creamy vanilla ice cream than the red velvet cake.

Compared to food prices generally in India, the prices at Toscano are much higher. The wine selection is very expensive. Their kir royal (which was made with sparkling wine, and not Champagne) was 450 rupees a glass, but was good.

Compared to any other restaurants we went to in India, this one is pretty quiet, with relaxed music (instead of loud dance or techno music).

Compared to a lot of other restaurants and hospitality service we tried, the staff was friendly and attentive and they provide a good customer service.

The restaurant at the Forum Value Mall in the Whitefield area also provides a deli service.

Toscano also organizes cooking classes (the one I participated in was the bread making class), however, it is not a real class. It is actually a sit-down, theoretical class which is disappointing, because you can not make anything. You just sit there trying to listen through the brouhaha of chats and questions. It is also a big class of about 30 people, so the experience I had wasn't quite pleasant. I would suggest watching a video on YouTube instead. The only comfort was the fact that snacks and lunch was included with the class.

http://www.toscano.co.in/

Millers 46

The restaurant has been designed with a cowboy ambience.

We tried their:

• Millers mixed starters platter (an assortment of their popular starters: Wings, mushrooms caps, tenders, chicken lollipops, and French fries): Everything was good, except the French fries which were soggy and over-greasy. The wings were spicy enough, and the mushrooms caps really good.
• Bacon burger: The beef patty was really good, soft, and tender. All burgers come with coleslaw and French fries, which I switched to mashed potatoes, after tasting them with the appetizer's order). The coleslaw is not great.
• Twice marinated steak: The steak was perfectly cooked, and even though the sauce was very tasty, it was just a little too much for my liking. You can order a "naked" steak with the sauce on the side, which would have been better. 
• Apple pie: It wasn't good at all, the apple layer was over-sweet, dense, and thick, and the pie crust was quite dry.

The meat was good and was cooked as we ordered.

The staff was friendly.

http://www.millers46.com/

Reviewed by Charline Leblond & Shyamal Addanki