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Cafe Masala, Eva Mall (Bangalore, India)

CAFE MASALA

This is another BJN hotels property on the 5th floor of Eva Mall.

One can either chose to sit outside and enjoy pleasant bangalore weather or sit inside. However, balcony seating is void of any views. The food is really good, but avoid rumaali rotis.

We enjoyed north indian food that was ordered and the Kulfi was amazing. The tables provide enough privacy and are decently spaced. Also, the seating is very comfortable - puts you in nice position to enjoy food and conversation.

Turn around time is also decent and waiters are responsive. For example, as soon as our drinks were done. Table was set up immedietly for dinner and dinner was served.

For Saturdays and Sundays one needs reservation.

This is a decent joint in the heart of the city. I would recommened this joint for a casual dinner after shopping. I was also told that their lunctime buffet is really good and there are plenty of items to choose from.

I will post more on other BJN hotels property like Samarkand, Hypnosis, Indijoe etc.

Spice Jet

Spice Jet Flight - Bangalore to New Delhi
Experience on a Spice jet flight, on a recent trip from Bangalore to Delhi.

I have been on this same flight on two occasions, and it has never been on time. The original flight was at 8:55PM (Friday). As usual I got an SMS 1 week before; that the flight has been rescheduled to 9:30PM.
However, I was expecting further delays.

On the day of flight; the flight was then delayed to 10:30PM. However on reaching the airport the flight took off only at 00:00AM. The only plus point was, that the luggage was released quickly and I was out of the airport within 30 minutes of landing.

Well coming to the point. The whole idea of taking 8:55PM flight was that I will reach New Delhi at decent enough time and the problem is, that on both the occasions the flight was rescheduled and took off at midnight.

What I understand from this is that the airline ignores customer feedback. However I will have to take the same flight again if I book the tickets late as it is the only airline available.

The other side of South African tourism : Sad

Please see the link...

I don't understand the fundamentals behind killing some living being and enjoying.

Jet Airways - flights to San Francisco

According to the advertisement in TOI today,

Jet Airways is announcing flights to San Francisco from Mumbai on daily basis.
This flight is starting from May 5th, 2008.

I will review international and national flights of Jet airways in next post.

Travel Websites - India

In recent years there has been a boom in number of websites offering air tickets, packages, hotel packages etc. Here is a short list of few popular web-sites:

1. Makemytrip
2. Yatra
3. Cleartrip
4. Indiatimes travel
5. Ezeego
6. Travelguru

Air Travel in India

Air travel in India was a good experience till last year when I travelled Jet and Sahara. With new year's start (2007) I travelled with Paramount, Sahara, SpiceJet, GoAir and IndiGo.

Well Air Travel especially with -SpiceJet, GoAir and IndiGo is a nightmare. My advice to people travelling especially with IndiGo is to go 1hour late as all their flights run 1 hour behind schedule. We always talk about Deccan being late and not being on time. But these other no frill airlines have crossed the limit.

First the boarding call is delayed by 15-30mins and then after boarding the plane, one keeps sitting inside for 30-40 mins for god knows what. So overall - Indian no frill airlines I give a thumbs down. I only travel through them because I have no other option. Travelling through no frill airlines is a painful experience, especially if you are one of those very few punctual flyers. Who reach airport on time and check in on time.

Moral of the story: If these airlines cannot get a person from Point A to Point B on time these airlines are useless. They don't solve the purpose of travelling with them. No frills airlines provides no extras and the only service provided by them is to pick up a person from one city and drop them to another city. If they fail to provide timely and efficient service, then I think they have failed as a company and as a airline.

Restaurant: Fav 5

List of my 5 favorite restaurants are:

1) 13th Floor, MG Road Bangalore. - For its Daal Makhani and amazing view of Bangalore from the 13th Floor balcony.

2) 3 Quarter Chinese, Bangalore - For its ambience

3) Queens, Church Street, Bangalore - For its daal Makhani

4) Elixir, Sector - 29, Faridabad - For its Daal Makhani

5) Hunger Cure, Sector - 29, Faridabad - For its Indian sauce used in Pizza

I rate restaurants on the basis of the quality of Daal Makhani.:-)

Landing at New Delhi Airport...

Now that I have landed in Delhi many times, I thought of sharing my experience and write this post.

Even if one is blindfolded he/she can make out that they have arrived at New Delhi airport by the smells. One can smell and tell that the flight is about to land in Delhi. It is a good 'fragrance', a mixture of dust and smoke. This smell creeps a little into the the plane's cabin when the plane is hovering over Delhi, just before the landing. It is a wonderful feeling to be choked. I feel so nostalgic.

For me who is allergic to dust and smoke, I know I have arrived in Delhi as I start sneezing. It takes couple of days for my immune system to adjust to Delhi air.

As soon as one gets down at IGI (New Delhi Airport) airport there is a strong smell of Phenyl and the white tiles and mosaic floors reminds of 1980s. By this time having experienced so many 'fragrances' my nose gives up and I can barely breathe.

Then comes the immigration queues with broken wooden tables, and paan eating babus waiting to stamp your PASSPORT and ask weird questions. Just as one thinks it is all over and now I will meet my loved ones. One has to collect the luggage, with people literally resting their heads on your shoulder to look at the conveyor belt.

By now you would love to run outside, cry, scream, etc; but wait there is more. While getting out of the airport one has to tell so many people that they have their own arrangements to go back home or to the hotel. People of Saddi Dilli (New Delhi) are so courteous to the guests.

I am talking about millions and zillions of taxi drivers and touts waiting outside. With only one intention, of fleecing you of all the monies you have.

Well, whatever it is; It is my home and I love being in Delhi. The dust, the smoke, the traffic, the swearing and shouting while driving, the food, the mess, the chaos, the heat - I love it ALL. Dilli is Dilli And, I love Dilli.

Tandoor, MG Road (Bangalore, India)

To start off Tandoor is a restaurant on MG Road, Bangalore.

The décor is 'haveli style', this is the best I could think of to explain the decor. And yes the seating is not that comfortable.

I don’t know when my search for perfect seating and perfect food will end. Coming back to food, it is amazingly delicious at Tandoor. It is a heaven for a North Indian residing in Bangalore. The food is 'Lajwaab' in short.

The restaurant is a bit on the expensive side. Drinks and food for two will cost anywhere around 800.00INR to 1200.00INR depending upon one’s appetite.

Please beware the servings are quite generous and if you are not that hungry. Think twice before ordering multiple dishes. Food should never go wasted, there are millions of people starving to death on this planet.

Our (As we are two now) two favorites dal makhani with naan was delicious and chicken was fabulous. The ambiance is good on the ground floor. However on the first floor towards the other end of the floor, some tables are too close to the toilets and some old furniture is piled up in full view of the customers. This looks quite shabby and is not expected from a restaurant of such a repute.

Tip: Like any other restaurant in Bangalore, while going for dinner on weekends – PLEASE BOOK IN ADVANCE.