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)

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)

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)

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

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)

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

Curried Noodles (Vegetarian)

Curried Noodles (Vegetarian) at the Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

The sole vegetarian amongst us wanted to 'try something new'. We ordered the Curried Noodles (Vegetarian), and he had - what was probably - the biggest disappointment of the evening. It was a soupy version of Maggi Noodles, masala flavour. We actually asked the waiter as well, as to whether they used the masala sachet from a Maggi Noodles pack - and the waiter denied it.

Either the cook used the masala sachet from a Maggi Noodles pack, or (s)he has ingeniously figured out the ingredients of the same by accident.

You can definitely skip the Curried Noodles on your visit to the Red E. Really.

Curried Noodles (Vegetarian)
Restaurant: Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet
Cost: Rs. 150/- (plus 6.944% tax)

Cauliflower Cafreal (Vegetarian)

Cauliflower Cafreal (Vegetarian) at the Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

Cafreal is traditionally a Goan chicken preparation, usually made with chicken legs only. It was good to see the Red E even attempt something such as the Cauliflower Cafreal starter. Sadly, it was disappointing to see them fail at pulling off a stunner.

There was at least one specific spice that was used in abundance, that overpowered the flavours of the dish. We couldn't decide on whether it was the pudina (mint) or the elaichi (cardamom). Either way, we'd recommend that you give this dish a miss.

Cauliflower Cafreal Starter (Veg)
Restaurant: Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet
Cost: Rs. 160/- (plus 6.944% tax)

Crispy Corn Chilli Coriander (Vegetarian)

Crispy Corn Chilli Coriander at the Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

The Crispy Corn Chilli Coriander was really good. The vegetarian amongst us was overflowing with praise - every component of the dish could be tasted separately, and it went really well with the provided chilli sauce.

If you're looking for a decent vegetarian starter, you can't go wrong with this.

Crispy Corn Chilli Coriander (Vegetarian)
Restaurant: Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet
Cost: Rs. 160/- (plus 6.944% tax)

Hot and Sour Soup (Vegetarian)

Hot and Sour Soup (Vegetarian) at the Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet

We ordered the Hot and Sour soup, and split it between the sole vegetarian in our group and one of us. It was good, with the seasoning being so perfect that there was no need to reach for the salt and pepper - even for those amongst us who always, always add salt and pepper to their soups.

With the quantity being what it was, we would definitely recommend that you order soup, if you visit the Red E Drop Zone, and split it one-by-two.

Hot and Sour Soup (Veg)
Restaurant: Red E Drop Zone, Teynampet
Cost: Rs. 80/- (plus 6.944% tax)