11 am dates/outings are not exactly my thing-to-do on a weekend morning but I was in for a pleasant surprise at Koel Cafe and Gallery. Having been there for lunch and dinner, yet the morning experience was really quite pleasant. I like to eat and talk in fairly empty places and this was just perfect!
When living in Malaysia, I used to drink bottled tamarind juice almost every day. It's supposed to be a great way to beat the heat and for your skin too! What a delicious way to stay beautiful! The tamarind cooler at Koel had a desi twist to it with some roasted zeera thrown in and a mint leaf. When I first saw the zeera floating in the drink, I imagined that horrible 'kala namak' taste that many of us feel MUST be used in fruit drinks. However, the drink had none of that horrible taste - it was sweet and tangy at the perfect temperature! Priced at Rs 150, I wish the serving was bigger though! Firstly, because you can never have too much of it! Second, because it's really cheap to make.
The waiter told us that besides the regular menu, there was breakfast available as well - pancakes and some seven types of omlettes! But we opted for a fun salad to share instead - the Tangy Green Salad with Chicken.
So many colors, so many flavors, so many textures! So much love! I love trying new salads so this was definitely a great idea! The toasted sesame added flavour and texture. The oriental-ish chicken chunks were hot and sweet at the same time. It took me a while to discover the water chestnuts - for some reason the chicken was on one side of the plate and the water chestnuts were on the other side. The peas didn't quite fit into the whole scheme of the salad but what the hell, it was a beautiful Saturday morning and I was feeling particularly good. The dressing was sticky sweet and lacked a bit of kick that I feel is important to an oriental salad - some crushed chilli perhaps? Priced at Rs 350, the serving was huge and more than enough for two people.
All in all, Koel on a Saturday morning was a great idea, especially with a good friend and a reasonable soundtrack. However, we could do with better music. The cool shade of the leafy canopy and the big fans kept the temperature under control, especially outdoors. I have a feeling my mother will love Koel. Next weekend, perhaps?
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| Tamarind Sherbat |
When living in Malaysia, I used to drink bottled tamarind juice almost every day. It's supposed to be a great way to beat the heat and for your skin too! What a delicious way to stay beautiful! The tamarind cooler at Koel had a desi twist to it with some roasted zeera thrown in and a mint leaf. When I first saw the zeera floating in the drink, I imagined that horrible 'kala namak' taste that many of us feel MUST be used in fruit drinks. However, the drink had none of that horrible taste - it was sweet and tangy at the perfect temperature! Priced at Rs 150, I wish the serving was bigger though! Firstly, because you can never have too much of it! Second, because it's really cheap to make.
The waiter told us that besides the regular menu, there was breakfast available as well - pancakes and some seven types of omlettes! But we opted for a fun salad to share instead - the Tangy Green Salad with Chicken.
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| Tangy Green Salad with Chicken |
All in all, Koel on a Saturday morning was a great idea, especially with a good friend and a reasonable soundtrack. However, we could do with better music. The cool shade of the leafy canopy and the big fans kept the temperature under control, especially outdoors. I have a feeling my mother will love Koel. Next weekend, perhaps?
This looks really yummy! Great food blog, and I'll definitely keep an eye on it. Would love your thoughts on mine as well (ambreenali.wordpress.com). I enjoyed speaking with all of you yesterday!
ReplyDeleteAmbreen Ali
Washington, DC
USA