Cafe Reboot - Hyderabad

This was always coming up in the nearby feed on Zomato and after planning about 5 times we finally decided to go to Cafe Reboot. I was expecting it to be a small roadside Cafe but this place is WOW! The ambiance is just perfect to have a chat with your bunch of friend(s). I went there at about 2PM on a Sunday when the temperature must have been a good 40 degrees but it was all so cozy and calm inside. The volume of the music just right. Coming to food, I think it is way better than what I had expected, much better than all the other cafes in the vicinity. They did have some veg options and a budget Lunch meal as well. For a meagre 225 you could get a main course with a choice of mocktail/dessert. The pizza I ordered was amazingly done and it tasted very fresh. The Cappuccino was alright, but then I will definitely go back to the place just for the decor. They had a huge open seating space as well but I am sure that would remain unused in the days. Highly recommended though!

Taste buds yell: Yum!
Pocket shouts: Depends on your choices
When I look around: Calm and Soothing
Waiting time for tummy: Decent

Keep Gorging!
- Foodie Panda

Cafe Coffee Day, Gachibowli - Hyderabad

Well, I am a coffee lover and a CCD fan. There’s no point reviewing the coffee from CCD as we all know it is the  best and the no. of outlets it has across the nation bears a testimony to that fact. So I would rather write about other finer aspects of the service, like ambience, service quality, preparation, staff etc. To be frank I have been very disappointed with the experience specially in this outlet and the other one in Gachibowli. I usually go in around 9:30 after office hours and although it is mentioned in zomato that it is open till 11:00, I have never seen it open beyond 10:00 PM. Infact right after 9:30 they would start saying that it is closing time and they would only be able to take orders for takeaways. I like to drink my Coffee relaxing and in leisure, not with someone sitting on my head and constantly giving me a reminder that it’s their closing time. This has caused me to look for other options in Hyderabad for Coffee, even though my favorite still remains CCD. Coming to the recommendations, I think nothing can beat their Cafe Frappe, Chocolate Fantasy, Sizzling Brownie and Cappuccino (only when they are prepared right). Many a times they screwed up the Frappe, but they were courteous enough to do it all over again once I made the point, which is definitely good. The seating is good and mostly  full, but it could have been more spaced as people sometimes just bump into each other and cannot have a private conversation. My love for CCD restricted me from giving it a less than 3, but it deserves less for sure!

Taste Buds: Coffeeee
Pocket Shouts: Slightly Heavy
When I look around: Vibrant, but be more professional
Waiting Time for Tummy: Quick

Keep Gorging!
-Foodie Panda
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Ziti Bar & Kitchen - Hyderabad

Went to this place for lunch on a weekday. A friend recommended and a group of 8 people headed to have a sumptuous meal. Considering it was a weekday, there were hardly any customers there (as expected) so I would not penalize them for that and give them a benefit of doubt. Coming to food, the vegetarian was below par, actually way below par. We tried the vegetarian Grilled Pizza, Hara bhara Kebab and Classic Arrabbiata Pasta and none of it is worth mention. The non veg items like Chicken Steak and another with sausage was good though. What I really liked about the place was the presentation of the drinks. They did it really well, and both cocktails and LIT was pretty good. The ambiance was nice and dark, giving it a club like feel, the bike and the Pool table lending some quirky flavor to it. The service however was very slow. i wonder what would have happened, had there been more customers!

Taste buds yell: Blah!
Pocket shouts: Slightly Heavy
When I look around: Quirky and Grunge
Waiting time for tummy: Might start a quick eat counter near it

Keep Gorging!
- Foodie Panda

A Foodie dying a million deaths each day!

It is probably an in-thing to join the Eat healthy bandwagon. For the last 2-3 years I have been turning a blind eye to this revolution. But not very long could I sustain it! Gone are the days when the poor hostel mess food used to starve me enough to compensate for the junk I consumed on a chance visit to the mall. Gone are the days when the routine walk to and fro class through the hilly terrain of the campus itself used to compensate for the heavy gorging on brilliant range of non-vegetarian items served everywhere around. Now that I am working to earn money, things have changed. For days together I went on piling up, with no time, with nothing to compensate for it. One day I realized I just cannot afford to bloat like this and it had to stop.

Hence was the start of life, the healthy way. And simultaneously was the start of stabbing the foodie in me, right on the face. Then started the never ending craving for junk, Chinese, Chaat, Cheesy, Exotic and on and on and on. And above all, I needed to ensure that the craving never got satiated. Not just the type of food I will die for, I have to keep the quantity in mind as well. I literally treat myself one day a week, by eating very simple ‘ghar ka khana’, but quantity-no-bar. Imagine!

The plight does not end here. Breakfast, which I had been skipping consistently, is the only meal which won’t add to body weight. Scientifically, metabolism is at its best and hence, you can remain assured that all that you are stuffing will get shed off. Next is lunch, which has to be fiber and protein loaded. Did anyone ever bother; there is no mom around to pack such thoughtfully loaded lunch box. Forget it. The caution does not end here. Say no to whites, only brown. This implies a big NO to even simple steamed rice, even khichdi. Phulka, that too only to the count of 2-3 is permissible. Comes the snack time. It is the most terrible part of the day. This is the time you are expected to sip in tasteless green tea. Even a cup of hot brewed coffee, will add on to 180 calories. It might surprise you, but believe me 1 month into such regime, and you will have the calorie count of almost every nibble you chew down in a normal day. Coming back to snack –time. Does not matter if you see onion pakodas getting fried on a pleasant evening. All you can have at this time is a piece of the much in vogue- high fibre oats and ragi biscuits. By this time you would feel so bloody frustrated that, towards the last supper of the day you will become almost numb. Yes. Best you get numb. Else the salad, with zero carb, will simply break your heart. They say, dinner has to be lightest as no physical work leads to increasing fat coagulation in the body. Damn it. But what about the night owls like me, who, if not physically, are mentally most active throughout the night. Salad, which once used to be a non-compulsory item of your meals, today has become an entire meal. The enthusiasm to get in right shape will initially be so high that, the salad will go down. But soon enough you will have to turn to oats or similar substitutes, which will have minor damaging impact.

All I can say is, if God had to create a Foodie, genes had to be coded to keep the mortal body healthy as long as he/she is breathing. Otherwise, life is hell on earth for a foodie forced to fit in a healthy lifestyle. You don’t need to die to experience hell!

Keep Gorging and Let people gorge!

- Foodie Panda

Hazzel - Hyderabad!

However I have frequented the Gachibowli branch more often than the Jubilee one considering it’s closer to my place but this one doesn’t disappoint either. The main reason I visit this is the fact that it is probably the only joint open at 2 in the night and that is when I crave food the most. The amazing chic-o-holic sizzler is just a plus! I would have preferred the Classic Vanilla Sizzler more, as that was how we originally tried it in form of CCD’s Sizzling Brownie but the Vanilla Ice cream is not that great and so I have no choice but to go for the Chocolate one. The Fries are decent and the Cappuccino is strong and nice. The Rich Cold Coffee is definitely not worth your buck because it’s rich only in Sugar and hardly any Coffee. I am looking forward to having the Sugarfree Mango Scoop but both the times I went to try that, it was over. Probably I need to be there before 2 to try that ;)

Taste Buds: Sweet
Pocket Shouts: Slightly Heavy
When I look around: Blue, Yellow and Vibrant
Waiting Time for Tummy: Quick

Keep Gorging!
-Foodie Panda

Habanero - Hyderabad!

 

There was a lot of buzz about the new tex-mex themed restaurant in town. So was raring to be there for quite some time now. The name itself interested me a lot; Habanero, and on entering, the hot round peppers making the logo itself, raised my expectations on authenticity of the dishes. The décor was also very lively with subtle yellowish paintings making the foodie excited. There was an amazing warmth and cheerfulness to the place, perfectly complementing the cheerful company I had.

The menu was so huge in size with a huge habanero inviting you to flip through. We went for chicken wings with ranch sauce. The otherwise normal wings simply went a notch above with this sauce. Chili cheese fries also surprised us as the molten cheese evenly spread over the fries and beans. Going with the décor, oh that yellow fresh ripe Mango Margarita was simply heaven!! As per the manager’s suggestions we went for Burrito rice bowl with Grilled chicken. I had some complains about the way all of the constituents were mixed and served. I somehow felt, the grilled chicken could not retain its flavors and crunch. And of course the fresh salad did not feel that fresh. However, the soft taco shells with paneer filling were great. Again, the way it was served, I could clearly distinguish the filling from the tortillas, beautifully blend by the cream and the green sauce. The red Mexican rice kept waiting by tortilla’s side, with that exquisite color bestowed by tomato, can be savored in silo. At least that is how I approached my platter. 

The most awaited was the time for dessert and Tres Leches Cake just nailed it. Utterly soft cake served with shot of vanilla essence, milk and raspberry jam, was as luscious as it looked. The pomegranate and the sprinkled orange pulp went very well with the sweet treat. It was so sweet that the chocolate crumble cake tasted extra dark and just failed to compete.

Done with the food, I feel that the staff could better help the guest on the wonderful menu.

Taste buds: Over-joyed

Pocket shouts: Very heavy

When I look around: Beautifully yellow

Waiting time for tummy: Little long

Keep Gorging!

-Foodie Panda

Spice N Ice - Hyderabad

As they say, girl-next-door, I will say Spice N Ice is an eat-out-next door. The name might be a little misleading. There is nothing very spicy or icy about the place.

On a serious note, if you are craving for simple Ghar ka khana, you can probably hit this place. The simple dishes like aalu gobi matar, jeera aalu etc. are things I will recommend most. They serve thali as well, which comprises these simple dal and seasonal veggies. As it happens with me, might be happening with most of us. After heavy dinners and lunches on every crazy Friday and Saturday night, Sunday is the time to detox with something just filling and to our surprise the simple dal tastes heaven. This is the right time for Spice N Ice. The welcoming Owner and staff serve with utmost dedication and take the feed-back of every item served very seriously. I will again reiterate that, that top layer of oil, which is inevitable in any Indian dish is just not there, with spices not at all going over-killing the simple dish. They serve snacks and Chinese as well, needless to say, in their Indianized version of course.

If you are an Odia, I think you were waiting for Spice N Ice to satiate all your cravings for those simple dishes, which unfortunately, nobody even understands outside Odisha. If anything special from your mother’s kitchen is teasing you for quite some time, you can make a request to the kitchen, even off-menu and get the special dish specially done up for you.

Taste buds yell: Simply happy

Pocket shouts: Very very light

When I look around: Just eat your food and get going

Waiting time for tummy: Not very long

Keep Gorging!

- Foodie Panda