Faaso's, Ahmedabad

Faaso's
G 42, Shree Mahalaxmi Shops,
Rudra Square,
Next to Rasranjan,
Bodakdev,
Ahmedabad

+91 9099990299, +91 9099990300

After Asia Kitchen, Shakti Sandwich and RollaCosta, this is the next eatery that I have seen in Ahmedabad with a black & white mural on their wall.

Faaso's has opened in Ahmedabad, after tasting success in Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore. Sadly, they have only brought in a limited menu to Ahmedabad. They only offer chicken, egg and veg options here. No sign of the mutton, prawns and fish stuffings.

The location at Bodakdev, has a couple of tables to eat-in and I loved their yellow and purple interiors. However, on this visit, I just wanted a takeaway.

I ordered 4 different non-veg rolls today, so the person at the counter recommended that I try their offer of 4 rolls + 2 chocolate fantasy + 2 swigs for 399/- which made sense. I ordered a chicken seekh with egg, a fiery chicken tikka, chicken bhuna and BBQ chicken for takeaway. I asked for all the rolls to be made with wheat multigrain rather than maida. While I would have loved to try their laccha parathas, we try and avoid refined flour/maida for dinner. We were charged 10Rs extra per roll for eating healthy, but I don't mind. Another 10 Rs extra for the egg in the chicken seekh kebab roll. (all these charges were clearly mentioned on their menu)

The order was served very fast given my other 2 experiences today at two & a bud and W xyz at Aloft.

However, it was only after arriving home and finding that my chicken tikka wasn't very fiery, I realised they had given me a masala chicken tikka instead of a fiery chicken tikka. It was ok, but much weaker than the other 2 rolls I tasted. I enjoyed the bhuna chicken the most as it felt like it had more complex flavours and the BBQ chicken was unusual with its sweetish sauce.

I haven't yet tried the Swig (Faaso's inhouse drinks - currently only available in jaljeera flavour), but the chocolate fantasy was a huge disappointment, instead of a lava cake with a cake exterior and a melting center (as pictured in the menu and ads), what I got was a pudding - uniform wettish chocolate pudding - neither cake, nor melting.

Faaso's can't be making these kinds of mistakes just because this is Ahmedabad. They need to maintain the same standards as they do in other cities, especially since they have had ample time to get over teething problems in this city.

They have really tiny takeaway bags, so my order needed 2 bags and I was charged 4Rs for the bags - this is the first restaurant that I have seen anywhere in India charging for the plastic bags (I've been charged for containers - but after being informed) and there was no prior intimation of the same either. The amount is too insignificant to care, but I don't like being charged without being notified what I'm being charged for before billing, especially if it is a unique charge like this.


Flavourwise I still prefer Tibbs, but I'll try Faaso's again with a maida laccha paratha and egg and stuffing to do a more balanced comparison.

Rating : 3 / 5

Juice Lounge & Rollacosta, Ahmedabad

Juice Lounge & Rollacosta
12, First Floor,
Camps Corner 2, (above Raisin & Chocolate Room)
Opposite Prahlad Nagar Garden,
Prahlad Nagar,
Ahmedabad

+91 7878017629
079 30000900

Stopped here for just a quick break today as I've been wanting to try it out for awhile. I loved the interiors. The framed food quotes with puns were funny. The black and white muralled wall seems to be gaining favour among eateries here.(also seen at the new Shakti Sandwich in Prahladnagar)

We had a sweet lime juice (90/-) which was nice and fresh. I had a Lean Body Shake (140/-) with apple, pineapple and watermelon with a fat burner blend, that was surprisingly a good combination. How good the fat burner blend combination is, we will have to see on tomorrow mornings weigh in :)

They had spiced carrot cake (195/-) on special today and we had a slice of that with a side of vanilla ice cream. It was very good. Homemade style, nothing elaborate, slightly dry, more of a brownie-ish construction, but it was still very tasty.

Juice lounge and RollaCosta offers a range of milkshakes, smoothies, soups, starters, shawarmas, rolls, pastas, salads, pizzas, sandwiches, pav bhaji and some Indian mains. They are a pure vegetarian eatery.

Prices seem to be on the higher side for juices in this area. But then its the only place that has a high hygiene factor and air conditioned interiors.

They have a little shelf with a surprisingly good collection of books to browse through.

Definitely don't miss the chocolates that come at the end with the bill, they are really yum, with a lovely surprise center.

Added on 5 Aug 2014 :
Tried the Shawarmas from Rollacosta Prahladnagar on Saturday. Only ordered from here (veg restaurant) because there were very few options for home delivery post 3pm.

A lot of the food (Indian / Tandoori / meals) weren't available. The person on the phone very sweetly and apologetically explained that they only served the rolls and snacks after 3pm until dinner time. So a lot of the dishes I had hoped to order, were off the menu.

I have to confess the paneer xcelerator shawarma(140/-) was AWESOME. I'm rarely so enthusiastic about veg versions of what are essentially non-veg dishes, but this one was totally worth it. Brilliant hummus, just a little more on the liquidy side than normal, but worked brilliantly with the paneer and pita. What lovely pita bread. It was perfect. I would give this shawarma a 5/5 rating.

The corn chilli cheese express rolla (160/-) was also very good. Loved the spinach in it and it was not overly cheesy (a la Shakti Sandwich / Honest types).

The Mexican Salad (140/-) was missing the promised Tortillas, but it was light, fresh, healthy (lemon / vinegar dressing)  and spicy. We loved it.

The gobhi & Aloo Parathas (80/-) each were large sized, but had a lot more space that could have been used for stuffing :) It came with raita and pickles. since dhal and sabji weren't available after 3pm, I just made some dhal at home and it was tasty, but lacking a bit on the stuffing side.

Loved the roll and shawarma, so will definitely be ordering home delivery from here more often. I only hope that they will send some of their complimentary chocolates home with home home delivery orders too. Upgrading their rating from 3.5 to 4 / 5

Upgraded Rating : 4/ 5

Cafe Transtaafl, Ahmedabad

Cafe Trasntaafl
IIMA Old Campus
Ahmedabad

Cafe Transtaafl is one in a row of eateries at the IIMA old campus. Transtaafl stands for "TheRe Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch", but at their prices, the food practically feels free.

Sample this : 2 boiled eggs for 15/-. Tell me which laari in town can give you this rate? Grilled chicken cheese sandwich - 3 slices - bursting with chicken for 60/-, double egg bhurji or omelet for 30/-.

And the taste is wonderful. The chicken frankie for 40/- is one of the best frankies I have had in Ahmedabad. I was also told that their tea (8/-) is excellent.

The only sad part is that you need jugaad to eat here, the security guards at the gate don't take kindly to visitors saying "Cafe Transtaafl" in response to "kidhar jaana hain?"

Fanoos, Bangalore

Fanoos
17, Hosur Road,
Near Johnson Market,
Richmond Town,
Bangalore
080 61344898


What can I say about Fanoos? It has been a favourite for over 20 years now. 20+ years back it was all we could afford half way through the month. 15 years back, it was the only place open in the middle of the night, once the pubs had closed down and we needed to eat something greasy and filling, so we could get to office in the morning, without a pounding headache. Now, when I return to Bangalore on trips, I just HAVE to stop here and at least eat one roll, even if I have have back-to-back breakfast/lunch/tea and dinner appointments/meetings.

What started out as a tiny roadside joint on a stret corner of Richmond Town has now been upgraded, as I saw on my last trip to Bangalore, but the taste remains as wow as ever.

Their beef rolls are the fastest selling item on the menu. In the 'upgraded' fanoos, they have seperated the beef and non beef sections, although it is the beef section which continues to do the most roaring business.

The beef sheekh, chicken sheekh and mutton mince are old favourites of ours. But everything else on the rolls menu are also great including the liver roll (trust me it tastes better than it sounds). I haven't tried too much of their non-rolls menu, nor have I bothered with their shawarmas.

On my last trip here, we ordered a sambo roll just for kicks. The amount of meat in it, has to be seen to be believed and all for the price of 135/- its practically a meal for 2. The sambo roll has about 6 times the meat of a normal seekh roll (35/-).

This isn't just a nostalgic favourite. My kid sister is 11 years younger than me and Fanoos is a favourite among her friend circle too.

Rating : 4.5 / 5

Bawarchi Kolkata, Agartala

Bawarchi Kolkata
4 Mantribari Road
Agartala
Tripura
Ph: 94361 2322

Bawarchi is a small restaurant that specialises in Calcutta style street food. The entry way was piled with mountains of onions, so I was a little wary about entering the unseen restaurant alone, but the moment I entered, I knew I had no need to worry.

The decor is faded and peeling, but the staff is very courteous and helpful. On discussion with the waiter, I ordered a mutton biryani (140/-)and chicken handi masala (160/-) for lunch. The food arrived hotter than anything I have been served recently.

The biryani was fragrant and tasty, but the mutton was just a piece of meat that had been boiled in a broth. The potato in the biryani was much tastier. Coupled with the boiled egg served atop the rice, the mutton was completely irrelevant to the biryani. It would have been better if it hadn't been inserted into the plate at all. The Biryani was Calcutta style and hence no masala in the actual biryani.

The boneless handi masala chicken had a thick gravy with a melange of spices that complimented the biryani perfectly.

With a bottle of water and a soft drink, the total bill was just 340/-

Bawarchi serves all the Bengali street food staples like kathi rolls and chops and I'd have liked to try some of them, but I was already too stuffed. They have a street food type counter on the outside, which was the long onion and dough filled corridor that I had walked through. It seems that in the evenings, they do brisk business selling rolls & other Calcutta style street food snacks.

This is a place I'd definitely recommend if you are visiting Tripura.

Khan Chacha, Delhi

Khan Chacha
Flat 50, Middle Lane
Khan Market
Delhi
+919810804114, +919811152722, +919810671103

Khan Chacha was an institution in Delhi until some legal, and rental problems forced him to shut shop about a year ago. Recently Al Bake (the New Friends Colony institution) opened a shawarma take away at the same location, which made many Khan Chacha loyalists apprehensive about the future.

Then Khan Chacha reopened about a month ago in a new location (opp Big Chill in the Middle Lane,opp Happily Unmarried). This is a first floor outlet with seating, but its still self service with a few "improvements". You order your kebabs/rolls at the counter, pay your money, you are given a number. You hang around, hoping and praying for a free table. Then your number flashes on the screen at the counter, so you go and collect your rolls. If you are lucky you sit or else you stand and finish your rolls. If you leave your tray on the table, you will be very politely requested to throw your trash in the designated dustbins and leave the trays on top (a la McDonalds)

The kitchen is spotlessly clean and soot free :)Prices are higher than what they were, when they closed, but then inflation has affected us all.

Some old timers of this joint, say that the taste isnt as good as it used to be. Since I have returned to Delhi after 7 years, I don't feel qualified to comment on that statement. But the taste is still good.

The chicken tikka simply dissolves in your mouth. I found the tikkas better as a plate of kebabs than inside the roll. I also expected the mutton sheekh kebab to be softer than it was. I'm hoping this is just initial teething problems for the staff and they will soon settle into a routine to give us the outstanding quality of kebabs that Khan Chacha is famous for.