I usually don’t go out to eat vegetarian food but when I got the chance to explore the so much talked about ‘The Bangalore Cafe’ (TBC), I thought why not. Dear foodies, the hype is real.
The place delights your taste buds with some mind-blowing mocktails such as Bull-Dosser, yummy shakes such as Baba Brownie and Kalia Kalia Kalia — yes they have quirky names. The best Mushroom Soup in the city, lip-smacking food such as Khatta Meetha Paani Poori and Red Velvet Cheese Balls, and delicious desserts such as Coffee Rasmalai and Feet on Waffles.
We started with the mocktails, the shakes and the soup.
1. Bull-Dosser (5/5) — A fancy-looking mocktail with a red bull can be inverted into a jar of watermelon juice mixed with apple juice, mint leaf and cucumber ribbons. You keep adding the red bull to add more zing to the drink. A real winner for a hot afternoon as we were sitting in the garden area.
2. Baba Brownie (5/5) — A brownie and vanilla ice-cream shake with two brownie slices to top off the whipped cream. I loved the shake so much that I actually finished a shake for once. And the brownies on top were really tasty. I could easily eat a plate of them.
3. Kalia Kalia Kalia (4/5) — A regular chocolate ice cream shake. Nothing great but a good shake nonetheless.
4. Wild Mushroom and Sweet Potato Soup (6/5) — The best mushroom soup I have ever had in Bangalore. Initially, it was meant to be shared by two people but everyone wanted a share once it was tasted. So, we had to order another one to satiate everyone.
Then came the appetizers:
1. Khatta Meetha Paani Poori (4.5/5) — Nothing can beat the street gol-gappas but these came close and the presentation is cool with the paani in the test tubes with smoke coming out of the dry ice.
2. Chatpate Cones (4/5) — Crisp fafda cones with an Indian version of salsa. Made for a good nibbler.
3. Tandoori Cigars (4/5) — Stuffed roomali roti smoked with fresh tobacco leaves and glazed with tandoori masala. I really loved the presentation but the smoky taste is probably not great for my palette.
4. Bharela Cheese Pot (4.5/5) — Kebabs in the shape of a basket topped with melted cheese. This was really tasty and the presentation was cute.
5. Red Velvet Cheese Balls with House Salad (5/5) — This was the winner among the appetizers. Never thought someone could make such tasty red velvet based cheese poppers. And the creamy house salad was yummy too.
6. Dilli-6 Local (3.5/5) — The only average dish we had when it came to food at TBC were these mini kulchas topped with chickpeas and radish.
Tip: The radish could be replaced by mint leaves or even cheese to make this one better.
We took a 15–20-minute break to stir up our appetites because we had heard a lot about their pizzas as well as the Indian main course.
We kept the main course selection simple,
1. Classic Margherita Pizza (4.5/5) — I prefer a thinner crust but loved the overall taste and the volume of mozzarella cheese on top.
2. Green Thai Curry with rice (4.5/5) — a spicy twist to the Thai curry. It goes well with the Indian palette.
Curries and Bread:
* Malai mushroom (4/5) — The menu says the mushrooms are handpicked from Coorg. Sweet almond and cashew-based gravy but I’m not a great fan of sweet curries. Paired really good with the spicy Amritsari Gali Kulcha though.
* Daal Maharani Khaas (4.5/5) — TBC version of dal makhani, I must say I liked it a lot. It paired so well with the Kakke Di Roti (Tandoori Roti)
Pocket Pinch: ₹200 + ₹40 per roti
* Bandli Paneer (4.5/5) — Spicy Kadhai paneer with just the right flavours. Paired well with the Chur Chur Naan.
P.S. The bread I would rate 5/5 except for the chur naan. The chur chur naan does not look or taste like that usually but would still give it a 4/5
Then we decided to go berserk with desserts.
1. Coffee Rasmalai (4.5/5) — More like coffee rosogulla in terms of texture but I loved the coffee flavour. Definitely my kind of dessert.
2. Mama’s Broken Tart (4/5) — This was a real mystery in terms of flavours when we had it. We could definitely taste the broken tart, mango jelly, the raspberry and the white chocolate but could not decipher which flavour of ice cream was being used. Later I checked the menu to know it had Honey and fig ice cream, Broken oatmeal biscuits, Crushed pistachios, Fresh mint, and chocolate biscuits as well. Quite a combo. I don’t like my desserts too sweet, so not the right choice for me.
3. Feet on Waffle — Ordered three plates of stick waffles with two sticks each. Pocket Pinch: ₹200 per plate
a. Apple (5/5) — I absolutely loved the small apple pieces on top of the stick waffles which were covered with maple syrup
b. Banana (5/5) — how could anyone not love waffles with Nutella, vanilla ice-cream and banana on the side?
c. Chocolate (4/5) the chocolate waffles surprisingly were the least favourite for everyone. This was mostly because the chocolate sauce was not poured well over the waffle leaving a lot of the waffle dry.
All in all a great gastronomic experience at one of the finest vegetarian places in the city right now.
We started with the mocktails, the shakes and the soup.
1. Bull-Dosser (5/5) — A fancy-looking mocktail with a red bull can be inverted into a jar of watermelon juice mixed with apple juice, mint leaf and cucumber ribbons. You keep adding the red bull to add more zing to the drink. A real winner for a hot afternoon as we were sitting in the garden area.
2. Baba Brownie (5/5) — A brownie and vanilla ice-cream shake with two brownie slices to top off the whipped cream. I loved the shake so much that I actually finished a shake for once. And the brownies on top were really tasty. I could easily eat a plate of them.
3. Kalia Kalia Kalia (4/5) — A regular chocolate ice cream shake. Nothing great but a good shake nonetheless.
4. Wild Mushroom and Sweet Potato Soup (6/5) — The best mushroom soup I have ever had in Bangalore. Initially, it was meant to be shared by two people but everyone wanted a share once it was tasted. So, we had to order another one to satiate everyone.
Then came the appetizers:
1. Khatta Meetha Paani Poori (4.5/5) — Nothing can beat the street gol-gappas but these came close and the presentation is cool with the paani in the test tubes with smoke coming out of the dry ice.
2. Chatpate Cones (4/5) — Crisp fafda cones with an Indian version of salsa. Made for a good nibbler.
3. Tandoori Cigars (4/5) — Stuffed roomali roti smoked with fresh tobacco leaves and glazed with tandoori masala. I really loved the presentation but the smoky taste is probably not great for my palette.
4. Bharela Cheese Pot (4.5/5) — Kebabs in the shape of a basket topped with melted cheese. This was really tasty and the presentation was cute.
5. Red Velvet Cheese Balls with House Salad (5/5) — This was the winner among the appetizers. Never thought someone could make such tasty red velvet based cheese poppers. And the creamy house salad was yummy too.
6. Dilli-6 Local (3.5/5) — The only average dish we had when it came to food at TBC were these mini kulchas topped with chickpeas and radish.
Tip: The radish could be replaced by mint leaves or even cheese to make this one better.
We took a 15–20-minute break to stir up our appetites because we had heard a lot about their pizzas as well as the Indian main course.
We kept the main course selection simple,
1. Classic Margherita Pizza (4.5/5) — I prefer a thinner crust but loved the overall taste and the volume of mozzarella cheese on top.
2. Green Thai Curry with rice (4.5/5) — a spicy twist to the Thai curry. It goes well with the Indian palette.
Curries and Bread:
* Malai mushroom (4/5) — The menu says the mushrooms are handpicked from Coorg. Sweet almond and cashew-based gravy but I’m not a great fan of sweet curries. Paired really good with the spicy Amritsari Gali Kulcha though.
* Daal Maharani Khaas (4.5/5) — TBC version of dal makhani, I must say I liked it a lot. It paired so well with the Kakke Di Roti (Tandoori Roti)
Pocket Pinch: ₹200 + ₹40 per roti
* Bandli Paneer (4.5/5) — Spicy Kadhai paneer with just the right flavours. Paired well with the Chur Chur Naan.
P.S. The bread I would rate 5/5 except for the chur naan. The chur chur naan does not look or taste like that usually but would still give it a 4/5
Then we decided to go berserk with desserts.
1. Coffee Rasmalai (4.5/5) — More like coffee rosogulla in terms of texture but I loved the coffee flavour. Definitely my kind of dessert.
2. Mama’s Broken Tart (4/5) — This was a real mystery in terms of flavours when we had it. We could definitely taste the broken tart, mango jelly, the raspberry and the white chocolate but could not decipher which flavour of ice cream was being used. Later I checked the menu to know it had Honey and fig ice cream, Broken oatmeal biscuits, Crushed pistachios, Fresh mint, and chocolate biscuits as well. Quite a combo. I don’t like my desserts too sweet, so not the right choice for me.
3. Feet on Waffle — Ordered three plates of stick waffles with two sticks each. Pocket Pinch: ₹200 per plate
a. Apple (5/5) — I absolutely loved the small apple pieces on top of the stick waffles which were covered with maple syrup
b. Banana (5/5) — how could anyone not love waffles with Nutella, vanilla ice-cream and banana on the side?
c. Chocolate (4/5) the chocolate waffles surprisingly were the least favourite for everyone. This was mostly because the chocolate sauce was not poured well over the waffle leaving a lot of the waffle dry.
All in all a great gastronomic experience at one of the finest vegetarian places in the city right now.