Candlelight and Surprises - Grasshopper (Bannerghatta Road, Bangalore)

I really wanted to hate this place. I wanted to turn up, eat there and then call peoples bluff on it. Give people fancy, mastercheffy, pretentious food and they all go gaga over it, just to avoid being called pedestrian. After eating out in *insert any five star restaurant* the squiggle of reduced Modena balsamic vinegar on that white plate or the lego-like placement of grilled meat over asparagus spears over celeriac mash, was frankly getting boring. And here I was, heading to a place that exalted in doing just that. Why? Because I am a seeker of truth. (Yes, the profoundness of it all boggles my mind as well!)

Live Blogging for Social Media Week Bangalore 2014 @ Fava (UB City, Bangalore)

Bangalore played host to Social Media Week (#SMW Bangalore) this year and it was definitely an honor to be a part of it! The FB page states that “SMW Bangalore is where we make progress in regards to how humanity and technology come together”. Taking place in eight cities simultaneously from February 17-21, 2014 it is truly an amalgamation of the best social media mavens in the world. #SMWBangalore is powered by Nokia India & Hosted by R Square Consulting, and I was invited to take part in the Live Food Blogging Session at Fava. I also spoke in a panel discussion about Social Media and its impact on the restaurant industry, but I will focus my efforts on taking you through the live blogging session. 

Let’s be honest first off. It is super difficult to eat, listen, interact and finally blog at the same time. Especially when people like me are attached to their DSLR’s like conjoined twins. My Samsumg S3 takes fairly good pictures compared to other mobile phones but it really cannot do justice to the food presented. So in all fairness, the blogging that happened at the event was restricted to my FB page. I could not however deprive you of the beautiful pictures from the lunch at Fava and so this post materializes!

All that glitters is not... Azure @ Taj Vivanta (Yeshwanthpur, Bangalore)

Generally I avoid being the bearer of bad news (In ancient Rome you were killed for it). So I write this review unwillingly. We were invited by Taj Vivanta, Yeshwanthpur as part of the Bangalore CaL Bloggers table, for a night of drinks at Shimmer (their new lounge bar) and dinner at Azure (their Mediterranean restaurant). I had sampled the wares at Azure just a week before and was mighty pleased with the experience. Unfortunately this time the Food Gods did not shower their blessings on Azure. Forget shower – there wasn’t even a drizzle of benevolence.