Honey Chilli Potato

Honey Chilli Potato, at the Flower Drum, Egmore

A resounding YES, meant all of us agreed to the ordering of Honey Chilli Potato. A staple starter at any Chinese restaurant. Get it right and you are in our good books. Get it even marginally wrong, and we riot (i.e. pay the bill and walk out).

It arrived. The waiter almost began serving. ‘NOOOO!!!’ came the cry of 6 CSKians. The photo hadn’t been clicked yet (Sorry about the ruckus guys. We are usually decent). Once the pic was in, we wasted no time in devouring the starter. 

The sweetness of the honey hit us like the starting words ‘Hello, Is there anybody in there?’ from Pink Floyd’s awesome number. Then, it was the potato. It was soft enough to chew and warm on the inside. About a couple of seconds later, came the showstopper. It hit the ramp of our tongues and stayed. ‘Mmmmm’. ‘Naaaice’. ‘hmmm it’s good’. ‘Waaaw’. And, so on. It felt like…

I can't explain, you would not understand. 
This is not how I am. 
I have become comfortably numb

Well, perfect!

Next time you’re at the Flower Drum in Egmore, order this eyes closed. You ain’t gonna regret.

Honey Chili Potato

Restaurant: Flower Drum, Egmore

Cost: Rs. 188/- (+10% service charge; +4.94% service tax)

North East Kitchen, Egmore

North East Kitchen, Egmore

After months of speculation and planning, we finally made it to the North East Kitchen in Egmore. This time, we showed up for lunch instead of the usual CSK dinner outing. We wanted to see if it was possible to get a quick lunch during a work-day at the North East Kitchen; and the short answer is: No. It is definitely not the place that you wish to get in, eat quickly, and get out.

That, was probably the only downer we could find in our meal at the restaurant, which was otherwise fantastic. The decor of the place is a mix of homely and stylish - neither of which is overdone. It's quite balanced.

North East Kitchen, Egmore

The restaurant has ample parking space, as it shares its space with a complex with multiple restaurant outlets and other establishments.

The service by the waiter and the waitress was really pleasant. They readily moved tables around for us to sit together (we were eight of us); they served us with plenty of smiles, and were patient with all our questions and our drama (yes, we love drama!).

Bhut Jolokia, one of the world's hottest chili peppers, at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

They even promptly brought us a plate of dried Bhut Jolokia (pictured above), upon request, as the chili lover within our group wanted to see/try it. We frowned on the fact that the chilis were of the dried variety, and not fresh ones - and promptly sent them back.

The array of accompaniments provided with a meal at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

True to Korean cuisine, there were main course dishes which are accompanied by a range of sides (as pictured above), which is always a better sight for the eyes than for the average Indian palate. And there were complimentary afters as well, (pictured below), this time being freshly cut watermelon slices, as the fruit was in season.

Complimentary After-Meal Dessert: Cut Watermelon slices, at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

The restaurant is a low-key, yet great experience, and if you're looking for decent North East / Korean cuisine, there's no better place to head to, in this part of the city. It is definitely a must-visit for every Non-Vegetarian foodie in the city. While the variety of flavours in the dishes may not appeal to those amongst you who love spicy and chilly-based food, by no means is the food bland or under-spiced. It serves some of the best non-Continental, non-Indian beef and pork; and for that alone, this little restaurant in the heart of Egmore is worth a visit. Again, and again.

A word of advice on the quantity, though: if you're a group of eight, order for about four-five people; the quantity is more than sufficient for most of the dishes.

Here's the list of what we ordered - with our recommendations on whether to order them or not. You can click through to the individual articles to read about them. (Prices below include any and all taxes and service charges - the restaurant does not charge extra for them)

Chicken Soup

Rs. 100

Tasty

Our Review

Chicken Sticky Fried

Rs. 300

Palatable

Our Review

Okki (Pork)

Rs. 350

Palatable

Our Review

Beef Fried with Chilly

Rs. 300

Tasty

Our Review

Doenjang Jjigae (Vegetarian)

Rs. 350

Tasty

Our Review

Dakalbi (Chicken)

Rs. 350

Tasty

Our Review

Janchi Kuksu

Rs. 250

Palatable

Our Review

Pork Noodles

Rs. 130

Tasty

Our Review

Veg Fried Rice

Rs. 100

Tasty

Our Review

Coca Cola and Fanta (500 ml, PET bottles)

Rs. 50 (per bottle)

Veg Fried Rice

Veg Fried Rice at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

Considering that there were only two options from the standard Indian Chinese cuisine available to vegetarians, we went with the Veg Fried Rice option. It had a good amount of vegetables, and like much everything else at the North East Kitchen, it had good amount of flavour.

It was on par on both quantity and quality (and price!) with what we expected at the North East Kitchen. Again, if you're a vegetarian and you've been forced to come to this place, you will definitely need to order one of the four vegetarian options they have - and this Veg Fried Rice is 25% of those options.

Veg Fried Rice
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 100/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Pork Noodle

Pork Noodles at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

We ordered the Pork Noodles to try out at least one staple from Indian Chinese cuisine, and we discovered that it to be good, but not wow-some.

Admittedly, the Pork Noodle was competing with the Okki (pork) that we had earlier, and that was a tough act to follow, cos the Okki was off the charts. While we generally felt that this Noodles dish was value-for-money, considering the location, and pretty decent in taste, it wasn't very pork-flavoured.

It is a good Noodles dish; we just weren't sure what difference the pork made to it. While we can overlook such finer details in a standard Indian Chinese restaurant, we feel that a place such as the North East Kitchen, which prides itself to be serving authentic Korean food as well, should have gone a few steps further in bringing out the flavour and the texture of the pork, in a pork noodle dish.

Pork Noodles
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 130/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Janchi Kuksu (Vegetarian)

Janchi Kuksu (Vegetarian) at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

This is a soupy dish with noodles, that went down very well with our resident vegetarians. It was flavourful, and the texture of the noodles with the soup was really good. There was a hint of the flavour of fish detected by one person, in just one portion of the dish, but we can't be sure.

It is provided with the standard set of accompaniments, such as the Chinese cabbage, chilli sauce, etc. which is pretty normal for a main course dish in a Korean restaurant.

Again, if you are vegetarian, and you find yourself at the North East Kitchen under compulsion by your non-vegetarian-eating friends, you have only about four options: and the Janchi Kuksu is the best option.

Janchi Kuksu
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 250/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Dakalbi (Chicken)

Dakalbi (Chicken) at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

Ah yes. The Dakalbi. The dish that resulted in arguments amongst the Chennai Sappadu Kings. The Dakalbi is a slightly semi-dry gravy, provided with a bowl of rice - as shown in the picture above.

The singularity of the Dakalbi at the North East Kitchen lies in the fact that it is slightly sweet, as soon as you place a spoonful of the nice-looking, red, chicken gravy in your mouth. As you continue to eat it, though, the spiciness kicks in - and man, what spiciness. It burns the insides of the mouth quite a bit; a few of us couldn't eat it. Some of us kept thinking that it was sweet, until the spice hit us. Some of us continued to view it with contempt as a 'sweet' dish.

We cannot highly recommend the Dakalbi as a dish for everyone. But if you're the kind who likes a sleeper hit of extreme spice, please order this one. You won't be disappointed.

Dakalbi (Chicken)
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 350/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Doenjang Jjigae (Vegetarian)

Doenjang Jjigae (Vegetarian) at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

A jjigae is traditionally a staple Korean dish which is similar to a stew. The Doenjang Jjigae We were forced to order this, as there were only four vegetarian dishes on the menu - and the two vegetarians in our group concur: they would not visit this restaurant again, due to the lack of choice for vegetarian food.

The taste was decent, but nothing to get all excited about. Our bottom line would be - if you're vegetarian, and your non-vegetarian friends drag you to the North East Kitchen, you can definitely try this out, just for the sake of trying something new and different.

Doenjang Jjigae (Vegetarian)
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 350/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Beef Fried with Chilly

Beef Fried with Chilly at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

There were two fried beef starter dishes on offer, at the North East Kitchen. One, being Fried Chilly Beef, and the other being Beef Fried with Chilly. We took the latter upon learning that the other was drier; we wanted the soggier version on this occasion.

The meat was not very soft; it was quite firm. The taste of the dish was very different; if the Okki (pork) that we had was lighter in flavour, the Beef Fried with Chilly was pretty full of flavour. It did have a hint of sweetness, which some of us did not like, and that lent it the need for extra spiciness.

Although it wasn't as well-received as the Okki (pork) that we ordered, it was still a great dish - and you should try it to get the wide spectrum of flavours that the North East Kitchen can actually dish up.

Beef Fried with Chilly
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 300/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Okki (Pork)

Okki (Pork) at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

This was one of the juiciest and most tender pork dishes we've ever had. While a couple of us felt that it was slightly lighter on the spiciness side, we did definitely enjoy every morsel of this dish. There was no weird tanginess, no surprise hit after the first taste, no nonsense of any kind.

For pork lovers, this is heaven. Yes, you read that right. So obviously, our recommendation is that if you visit the North East Kitchen, you must definitely order the Okki (pork) dish. And then get ready for your tastebuds to thank you. Multiple times.

Okki (Pork)
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 350/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Chicken Sticky Fried

Chicken Sticky Fried at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

Overwhelmed by the amount of beef and pork on the menu at the North East Kitchen, the Chicken-lovers amongst us wanted to try out the Chicken Sticky Fried. The dish left us with mixed reactions and impressions. The meat was firm, and the masalas weren't overpoweringly strong.

While the dish was good overall, we can't say that it was exotic and a must-have or a must-order. If you're a beef or pork lover, there are definitely plenty of other dishes which could do justice. If you certainly must have some chicken, then sure - go ahead and try this dish. It's different and nice.

Chicken Sticky Fried
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 300/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Chicken Soup

Chicken Soup at the North East Kitchen, Egmore

The chicken soup was one of the simplest, yet tastiest soups we've had. It was pretty clear, and with chunks of chicken. It had a light smattering of chopped veggies, but the taste of the soup itself was the highlight.

There are some amongst us who still feel that a soup only fills us up, and while that may be true, ordering this soup at the North East Kitchen would definitely be a treat for your tastebuds.

Chicken Soup
Restaurant: North East Kitchen, Egmore
Cost: Rs. 100/- (inclusive of all taxes and service charges)

Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

Dipping Pot opened up recently in Alwarpet, right opposite the Raj Park Hotel. We, the Chennai Sappadu Kings decided to try it out and let you all know whether it's worth the fuss - the Fondue, that is.

The place looks like a cross between an upscale cafe, and a decent, local eatery. There was several hints of poshness on show - right from the Samsung Galaxy Tabs used in lieu of menu cards (yes, the entire menu is a PDF loaded onto Samsung Galaxy Tabs!) to the decent iron pot used for the Fondue Pots. Yet, the seating arrangement on the Ground Floor seemed to not be as posh. Overall, the ambience is a mixed-bag, but it doesn't feel off. It's a great ambience to partake of a Fondue.

Non-Alcoholic 'Rose' Wine at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

The waitresses were full of smiles, and it was sometimes difficult to divine the meanings of their heavily-accented words, but they were pleasant. Towards the second-half of our meal though, it became quite a tiresome task to be after them for refills of water, for the dessert menu (and the actual order itself) and then finally for the bill. They did start off quite well - leaving us wondering as to what went wrong. Perhaps it was too late for the ladies to stay behind, and the restaurant was understaffed as it grew late? No clue. Hit the place in the early evening, and you should be good.

The Fondue Pot kept hot by a tealight candle at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

Parking can be a strain, as the restaurant shares its space in a complex with a clothing store. Thankfully, we were able to squeeze our car in a just-vacated spot.

The restaurant is a good experience, and if you're looking for something different and something new from the usual Chinese / Italian / Continental / Indian fare of the city, you definitely must-visit. The Fondue Pot as the main course, though, left us feeling full but psychologically as if we've not eaten anything much.

Here's the list of what we ordered - with our recommendations on whether to order them or not. You can click through to the individual articles to read about them. (Prices below are exclusive of 4.944% service tax, a 2% VAT and a 7% service charge)

Bruschetta (Vegetarian)

Rs. 180

Tasty

Our Review

Buffalo Wings (Chicken)

Rs. 180

Palatable

Our Review

Masala Omelette

Rs. 80

Palatable

Our Review

Dipping Pot Veg Cheese Fondue (for two) (Vegetarian)

Rs. 650

Tasty

Our Review

Dipping Pot Non-Veg Cheese Fondue (for four)

Rs. 850

Tasty

Our Review

Chocolate Fudge Cupcake

Rs. 75

Tasty

Our Review

Red Velvet Cheesecake

Rs. 120

Palatable

Our Review

Blue Lagoon

Rs. 110

Tasty

Our Review

Nutty Fruity Surprise

Rs. 120

Tasty

Our Review

Vanilla Milkshake

Rs. 100

Tasty

Our Review

Café Choco Blast

Rs. 135

Tasty

Our Review

Café Choco Blast

 Café Choco Blast at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

If you're the kind who like a shot of pure coffee (quite similar to an Espresso), with some nice Chocolate-y milkshake-y portions thrown in, then here's the drink for you. It's the only coffee-based, cold drink that we tried, and the coffee-lovers in our group were more than happy with the drink.

Order it, if you're into coffee. Definitely.

Café Choco Blast
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 135/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Vanilla Milkshake

Vanilla Milkshake at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

Erm... It's Vanilla Milkshake. Done the way it's supposed to be - tasting just perfect, and not overly-sweet like how some restaurants do it.

Judging by this one trial, we can safely say that any milkshake at the Dipping Pot should be a great experience.

Vanilla Milkshake
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 100/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Nutty Fruity Surprise

Nutty Fruity Surprise at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

We really didn't know what to expect when we ordered this, but we definitely were not disappointed with what we got. It had cut fruits slathered in a chocolate sauce, with layers of chocolate and vanilla ice cream, and some nuts thrown in as well.

Except for the strawberry pieces, which were extremely sour, and not to our liking, this dessert was pretty good. We wouldn't recommend it as a must-order, but you can try it if you like fruits and ice cream.

Nutty Fruity Surprise
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 120/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Blue Lagoon

Blue Lagoon at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

One of the members of the Chennai Sappadu Kings is a huge fan of the Blue Curacao drink/flavour. So when we saw this drink/mocktail on the menu, we simply had to have it. And it didn't let us down at all - it met and exceeded all our expectations.

Every one of us loved the drink, and we would gladly order it again on our next visit to the Dipping Pot. And so should you.

Blue Lagoon
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 110/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Red Velvet Cheesecake

Red Velvet Cheesecake at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

This would be the first-ever Red Velvet Cheesecake any of us has ever had. Sadly, it wasn't very great. We're guessing that the greatness of the Cheesecake was undone by the cheese-y part having gone a little sour; we're not sure what it was, but the cheese-y layer wasn't as fluffy or as tasty as we were used to eating, in Cheesecakes.

The Red Velvet bit was good, though. But we'd still recommend that you pass on this delightful little dessert - unless the Dipping Pot changes the way they make/use the cheese-y bit in this Cheesecake.

Red Velvet Cheesecake
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 120/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Chocolate Fudge Cupcake

Chocolate Fudge Cupcake at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

The Chocolate Fudge Cupcake was exactly what it professed to be - and then some. It was a pretty decent chocolatey flavour, with the added benefit of a nutty strain. This was due to the addition of peanuts/peanut butter to the mix. This lent the Cupcake an extra flavour that elevated it above just an ordinary Cupcake.

If you like peanut butter and chocolate, you should definitely try this. It's good.

Chocolate Fudge Cupcake
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 75/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Dipping Pot Non-Veg Cheese Fondue (for four)

Non-Veg Cheese Fondue (for four) at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

So, here we are. The pièce de résistance of the Dipping Pot. The Cheese Fondue. There are multiple variants at the Dipping Pot: There's a basic Cheese Fondue, and the upgraded Veg Cheese Fondue and Non-Veg Cheese Fondue. And the Fondue can be ordered as a two-person Pot, or as a four-person Pot. We went with a two-person Veg Cheese Fondue, and a four-person Non-Veg Cheese Fondue - for seven of us. Disappointingly, the only difference between the Non-Veg and the Veg Cheese Fondue orders are a few pieces of Chicken Nuggets and Fish Fingers.

Every order of Fondue is accompanied by a glass of non-alcoholic wine; since we were ordering for six people, we were provided with three glasses of the non-alcoholic wine. We chose to take one glass of white non-alcoholic wine, and two glasses of the red. The white non-alcoholic wine was far better than the red non-alcoholic wine; but neither became a hit with the alchohol-drinkers or the teetotallers in our group.

The Non-Veg Fondue Pot is accompanied by a plate of Chicken Nuggets and Fish Fingers, in addition to the standard basket of toasted bread cubes and a plate of cut vegetable pieces - which is provided for the Veg Fondue Pot, minus the Black Olives. We'll skip discussing the Veg items in this order, since we've covered that in our Dipping Pot Veg Cheese Fondue (for two) article.

Six Chicken Nuggets, and six Fish Fingers. We're guessing it probably took about thirty seconds for these twelve items to get over. The Chicken Nuggets were fairly easy to dip in the Cheese and eat, but the Fish Fingers required a bit of practice - if we dunk the whole Fish Finger in the Cheese, it becomes too heavy and slides off our forks into the Fondue Pot. There was quite a bit of fishing around in the Pot for our pieces of meat and vegetables, but all in all, it was a good experience.

The most disappointing part was that the Non-Veg Pot basically had almost everything the Veg Pot offered, and just a few additional Non-Veg pieces. We definitely need more Non-Veg pieces in the Non-Veg Pot - in quantity and in variety.

Coming to value-for-money, the four-person Pot is decent value-for-money, but the two-person Pot seems a little steep. At the end of the day, you'll have to decide whether it's worth such money for the experience. 

Dipping Pot Non-Veg Cheese Fondue (for four)
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 850/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Dipping Pot Veg Cheese Fondue (for two) (Vegetarian)

Cheese Fondue at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

So, here we are. The pièce de résistance of the Dipping Pot. The Cheese Fondue. There are multiple variants at the Dipping Pot: There's a basic Cheese Fondue, and the upgraded Veg Cheese Fondue and Non-Veg Cheese Fondue. And the Fondue can be ordered as a two-person Pot, or as a four-person Pot. We went with a two-person Veg Cheese Fondue, and a four-person Non-Veg Cheese Fondue - for seven of us.

Every order of Fondue is accompanied by a glass of non-alcoholic wine; since we were ordering for six people, we were provided with three glasses of the non-alcoholic wine. We chose to take one glass of white non-alcoholic wine, and two glasses of the red. The white non-alcoholic wine was far better than the red non-alcoholic wine; but neither became a hit with the alchohol-drinkers or the teetotallers in our group.

The Fondue Pot is accompanied by a basket of toasted bread cubes and a plate of cut vegetable pieces - which included plenty of brocolli, carrots, baby corn and black olives.

The bread went really well with the Fondue Cheese; it was probably the best accompaniment for the Cheese. Of the vegetables, the carrots were too hard to really soak up the cheese from the Fondue, but the baby corn and the brocolli did really well, slathered in cheese. The black olives were, erm, different. We couldn't quite make up our minds as to whether we really liked them dipped in cheese, but we did enjoy eating the remaining black olives plain - without dipping them in cheese.

The four-person Pot seems to be real value-for-money, but the two-person Pot seems a little steep. At the end of the day, you'll have to decide whether it's worth such money for the experience. 

Note: The image used in this article is of the four-person Pot received with the Non-Veg Fondue. The two-person Pot is roughly half in volume, with lesser accompaniments (bread and vegetables).

Dipping Pot Veg Cheese Fondue (for two)
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 650/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Masala Omelette

Masala Omelette at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

So to satisfy the egg-lover in our group, we ordered a Masala Omelette. This was a slight disappointment, since the Masala Omelettes we're used to, usually come with a side of cut vegetables and some crisps (potato chips or fryums). At the Dipping Pot, as you can see above, the Masala Omelette had only two slices of tomato and the standard tomato sauce-based sauce to accompany it.

On top of this, the Omelette was a little overcooked for our liking, and we would have rather preferred it to be less-cooked, and more fluffy. So, the Masala Omelette is something that you can definitely pass, if you're at the Dipping Pot.

Masala Omelette
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 80/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Buffalo Wings (Chicken)

Buffalo Wings (Chicken) at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

Buffalo Wings is an American dish. What was served as Buffalo Wings at the Dipping Pot tasted far more like something out of the kitchen of an Indian Chinese establishment. Don't get us wrong - the taste was good.

However, if you're looking for near-authentic, spicy Buffalo Wings, you'll be sorely disappointed. Dipping Pot also loses points for not providing the traditional cheesy dip with the Wings. The tomato sauce-based dip that was provided seems to be their standard fare for all appetizers.

Add to this the fact that the Wings tasted slightly over-burnt, which left an undesirable burnt after-taste in our mouths until the next day, we would recommend that you stay away from the Buffalo Wings at the Dipping Pot.

Buffalo Wings
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 180/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Bruschetta (Vegetarian)

Bruschetta (Vegetarian) at the Dipping Pot, Alwarpet

Bruschetta, or what is popularly known to the Pizza-devouring culture as 'garlic bread', is an excellent starter when you're eating non-Indian food.

The taste of the Bruschetta was a little off, because there was an alienating tangy taste to the topping (the vegetables between the bread and the cheese). And the vegetables were really prone to falling out of their breaded homes. Apart from that, the dish was pretty good.

In hindsight, though, considering that the Dipping Pot serves a cheese fondue which comes with toasted bread as accompaniments, you may want to skip the cheesy, toasted bread for the appetizer.

Bruschetta
Restaurant: Dipping Pot, Alwarpet
Cost: Rs. 180/- (plus 6.944% tax and 7% service charge)

Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

The Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

So, we dropped into the Red E Drop Zone for dinner, and we were pleasantly surprised by this joint that the city of Madras seems to have forgotten. On a Tuesday evening, the entire place was empty for the duration of the 2+ hours that we spent there for dinner.

Ambience, at the Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

The service was okay; nothing impressive. Cold water is something that they don't serve (unless of course, you buy a bottle of bottled water) - which could be an issue for some people. Extra Pudina chutney, though, was given freely - without protest or comment - when asked for.

Table Cards that bring down the ambience levels at the Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

The ambience was nice; we wouldn't have put such a low-key joint to have the levels of ambience it did have, However, the paper table mats, and the place cards on the table brought down the level of ambience quite a bit. Changing these could improve the ambience of the restaurant by quite a bit.

The quantity was more-than-sufficient; we ended up taking home enough to feed another 3-5 people. If you're going as a group, you definitely would want to tone down the quantity of your order.

A few of the dishes we ordered at the Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet
(See below for the full list)

Here's the list of what we ordered - with our recommendations on whether to order them or not. You can click through to the individual articles to read about them. (Prices below are exclusive of 4.944% service tax and a 2% VAT)

Hot and Sour Soup (Vegetarian)

Rs. 80

Tasty

Our Review

Manchow Soup (Chicken)

Rs. 90

Tasty

Lung Fung Soup (Chicken)

Rs. 90

Tasty

Our Review

Crispy Corn Chilli Coriander (Vegetarian)

Rs. 160

Tasty

Our Review

Cauliflower Cafreal (Vegetarian)

Rs. 160

Palatable

Our Review

Andhra-Style Chicken 65

Rs. 215

Tasty

Our Review

Deep-Fried Crispy Chicken

Rs. 215

Tasty

Our Review

Fish Fingers

Rs. 240

Tasty

Our Review

Egg Pepper Dry

Rs. 125

Taste It, Maybe

Our Review

Egg Bhurji, with Phulkas

Rs. 80 (Egg Bhurji)

Rs. 80 (2 plates of 2 Phulkas each)

Palatable

Our Review

Curd Rice

Rs. 95

Tasty

Our Review

South Indian Chicken Curry, with Steamed Rice

Rs. 215 (South Indian Chicken Curry)

Rs. 100 (Steamed Rice)

Tasty

Our Review

Ginger and Garlic Fried Rice (Chicken)

Rs. 140

Palatable

Our Review

Curried Noodles (Vegetarian)

Rs. 150

Taste It, Maybe

Our Review

Nasi Goreng Fried Rice (Chicken)

Rs. 135

Tasty

Our Review

Kolkatta Mutton Biriyani

Rs. 225

Palatable

Our Review