The FPD Quickie: Drinks and Dimsums @ Yauatcha (M.G. Road, Bangalore)

This restaurant has been spoken about in hallowed hushes and reverent tones ever since it opened its doors to us poor Bangaloreans. The branch of a Michelin starred restaurant from London? Here? To grace us? *gasp, stutter, swoon*. Take a second - breathe. Now hear me out. For all the brouhaha – Yauatcha does not claim to be some super sexy, high-on-a pedestal brand. What it does claim to be and rightfully so (considering its pedigree) – is a contemporary dim sum teahouse offering an international experience. You would not wince to spend $70 on a nice meal for two abroad with the same quality of ingredients, similar setting and almost ditto execution of the dish – so why flinch now?

Of Picket Fences and a Lavender Door - Cafe of Joy (Whitefield Main Road, Bangalore)

Now ‘quaint’ is a word that is loosely used with a lot of cafes in Bangalore - a practice that must stop, after visiting the Café of Joy. This café can now claim monopoly of the term, with its picket fences, an all white theme with lavender accents and the most interesting knick knacks! If not for the in-your-face-signage of Bhagini restaurant next door, I could almost imagine that I stepped into a gorgeous café in the German countryside. And I’m not saying that because of the cute figurines of the German baker couple, or the little white cow milk pourers, or the cow butter dishes, or the fact that the board says Brot.Gateaux.Biscotti. (Ok, that is very German :P) But I’m game for a little round of active imagination and if their desire was to transport me to a European café – game well played!

We heard that apart from cakes, artisanal breads, and baked goodies (produced at their on-site bakery) they also serve lunch. So on Saturday, a really talented baker friend and I, went to check out the café. Story goes that ‘the said friend’ is such a bread fiend, that she hatched a little ploy to steal the starter yeast from a famous bakery in Pune! Well, we weren’t planning any such heist at the Café of Joy and so this was just going to be a casual visit ;)

Breaking Bread at Lavonne (Domlur, Bangalore)

Now anyone who knows me well enough will know that I shy away from baking bread. All attempts of bringing forth a glorious loaf of bread or a soft buttery croissant have always yielded the opposite result. The kneading is another killer exercise that my arms do not want to do. So why would I bother going to a baking class? The dishonest answer would be ‘to learn how to bake a good loaf of bread’. The honest answer would be ‘to massage my ego’. I just wanted to witness the making of a loaf myself, so that I could find some secret ingredient that the baker added into the dough. Then I could console myself that a failed loaf at home was a result of  the omission of that ‘secret ingredient’! Was this too harebrained a scheme to work? Well last Sunday I learnt a few lessons!