Milan: Sure To Trigger Your Nostalgia

Posted on by Karthic Vaidyanathan

Food has some superpower which has the ability to transport us to different places, cultures, and experiences, sometimes even takes us back in time to our childhood. One such place that made me feel nostalgic and helped fill a void in Hamilton Food scene is “Milan – Ultimate Indian Street Food” located at Barton Street Hamilton. According to me, Hamilton lacked a good chat point and Milan did come as a saviour. Now, we do not have to travel too far for a good chat. This place offers some good Indian Street Food and I am sure you would have an awesome experience. Their customer service is really good that they serve all the customers with a smile on their face.

Milan Hamilton

Our Recommendations: This pure vegetarian restaurant has many dishes to offer but here are some of our recommendations.

  1. Bhakhri Pizza: This is a must try if you are a fan of fusion food. Bhakhri is a type of round, unleavened Indian flatbread made from whole wheat flour, water, and spices. The base of the pizza is Bhakhri and is topped with vegetables like capsicum(green pepper), and onion. The taste of the pizza is increased thanks to the adequate sprinkling of shredded cheese. This cheese is usually not melted. Verdict: Must Try
Bhakhri Pizza

2. Paneer Club Sandwich: Try this awesome sandwich if you are looking for some zesty, tangy and spicy snack. Layers of soft bread spread with mint chutney, overdose of Paneer Burji and combination of vegetables like tomatoes, onion, and beetroot. The paneer burji is made by marinating the cottage cheese with spices and pan-frying them with onions, adding a rich savoury element to the sandwich. Additionally, this is served with potato chips on the side. Caution, one order of this could fill a stomach. Verdict: Must Try

3. Pav Bhajji: Pav Bhajji is something that you cannot miss here. Bhajji is vegetable curry made with potatoes, carrots, and peas blended with richnesses of spices and herbs. Additionally, the Bhajji is garnished with chopped onions, cilantro, and a squeeze of lemon. Pav is soft bread toasted with butter or ghee. This dish captures the very essence of Indian street food culture and could be had for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Verdict: Good try.

4. Ragada Patties: The ragda, is a flavourful stew of white peas, is spiced with a blend of masalas. The patties refers potato tikkis which mashed potatoes coated with breadcrumbs and deep fried in oil. This is a popular street food in India and you would not go wrong placing this order. The dish is served with mint and sweet chutneys garnished with coriander. Verdict: Could Try

Bhakhri Pizza
Sev Poori
Cheese Chutney Sandwich

Other worthy mentions

  1. Paani poori – hollow, crispy puris filled with a mixture of spiced potatoes, chickpeas, and tamarind chutney),
  2. Sweet paan
  3. Vada Pav
  4. Chuntney cheese sandwich (This is lighter than the paneer club sandwich).

Areas of improvements:

Obviously, as patrons we do expect more from this awesome family run franchise. Some recommendations from us would be,

  1. Live Pani Poori Counter
  2. Paper bowls instead of plastic bowl.
  3. Add some south Indian flavours like onion masala samosa

Location: 2415 Barton St E, Hamilton, ON L8E 2W9

Restaurant Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2.

I would go there any day for a tasty food with a good ambience. Further, the friendly staff who love serving you good food makes it a even better experience.

Maharaja Bhog – Indulge in the Royal Feast

Posted on by Karthic Vaidyanathan

Maharaja Bhog located in Hurontario St, Mississauga is the place to go if you think about indulging in an absolute Indian feast and this place would probably need no promotion. This place serves authentic Rajasthani and Gujarati Thali, which will delight your taste palates with flavourful and tasty food.

This place is a newly opened restaurant in the GTA region and is located in a rather small complex. The decor and the interiors do not give you a traditional Rajasthani ambience but are rich enough. We were greeted with a smile by the staff taking our names for the waitlist. We waited for close to 45 minutes for the seats to be assigned but trust me every second was worth it. We went on an empty stomach and travelled quite a few kilometres after an intense session of Badminton, so the 45 minutes did not matter much.

More than the food, the star of the show according to me was the people who prepared the delicious food and the people who served it with no sign of tiredness despite being thronged by the crowd there. What I saw in those close to 2 hours of the visit was the enthusiastic staff who wanted to serve the patrons which according to me is an encouraging sign for a restaurant.

All the dishes were fantastic and filled with heavenly taste. This is a treat for Gujarati and Rajasthani food lovers. The menu in this restaurant keeps changing. Some of the standard options on the menu would be Roti, poori, Daal Khichdi, Rice, Rajasthani Dal, Dhokla, and Gujarati Dal. One of the softest and fresh Dhoklas that we have had. The rotis and pooris were served hot and straight from the kitchen. The masala chas ensured that the digestive juices kept flowing and the icing on the cake. None of the food was too spicy or overladen with masala. Here is a list of dishes we enjoyed.

Vada Dahi Chat: This stole our hearts. This is an appetizer consisting of deep-fried soft lentil fritters soaked in Dahi (yogurt) with chutneys and spices to make it a chat. This seems to be a rather simple dish but it was sumptuous.

Rajma Masala: Rajma masala is a popular Indian dish made from kidney beans, onions, tomato, herbs and spices. This is a healthy and hearty dish. This was something we repeatedly filled up. It went really well with both rotis and rice.

Rajasthani Dal: The Rajasthani Dal was packed with flavour and proteins. This was the perfect comfort food for a cool rainy day. To enhance the experience, we paired Rajma Masala with rice and a side of crunchy churmuri papad.

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Restaurant Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cost: 26.99+tax

We truly hope that this restaurant opens in Hamilton and continues to serve with the same smile and enthusiasm.

Holy Shakes: Falling in love…with Milkshakes & Fusion

Posted on by Karthic Vaidyanathan
Burger with Masala Fries
FREAKSHAKE
Steamed Chilli Momo

Ferrero Cheesecake Freakshake: As the name suggests this was indeed freaky- a milkshake that was unusual and out of the ordinary. The highlight of this drink is the Cheesecake Factory Bakery® Cheesecakes are added either on top or by the side of the drink. The drink burst with an abundance of Ferrero rocher flavour. I am a big fan of the cheesecake factory cheesecakes and this one is right on top of my list of favourites for sure. Make sure to take the jar with you, bring it back to get a 5% discount which was confirmed by the staffs. Verdict: Must Try.

Steamed and Pan-Seared Chilli Momos: Momos are a popular street food in northern parts of India and are quite popular now even in Southern India. These are also known as Dim Sum or dumplings and made from flour with some flavourful filling. This was a spicy flavour-filled momos which had less oil as it was pan-seared rather than pan fried. The filling was well cooked and the out layer was a little bit more thick than the usual. The chilli sauce on top added a touch of spice to the otherwise bland food. Verdict: Hit or Miss. Can Skip.

Roadside Burger (Chowmein): Chow mein means fried noodles. This burger consisted of mix-veg patty, chowmein and holy eatery signature sauces stacked inside sliced Brioche buns. The touch of fusion was fantastic and innovative. For someone who does not like burgers, this was something that I enjoyed eating. The patty inside the burger and the chow-mein was well cooked and juicy. The side of masala fries topped with spicy habanero sauce was a class apart.I would not mind buying them on the side. Verdict: Very Good Try

Average Price per person: $20-$25.

Address: 1299 Barton St E Unit K04, Hamilton, ON L8H 2V4

Restaurant Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️. The place was well-maintained and clean. The staff were courteous and welcoming. The only issue would be the number of seats in the location. Not a place for a group to sit and hang out. Special shoutout to Rajat for diligently preparing the delicious milkshake. I would have given them 5 ⭐️s had they fulfilled the offer that was displayed but they let us down by stating that the promotion is now closed.

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Mahal Tanjore Ottawa: Staying Rooted to its Name

Posted on by Karthic Vaidyanathan

Masala Vadai: Masala means a mixture of spices and Vadai is a fried lentil snack. So, masala vadai is a fried snack made of masala lentil dough. The lentil dough is prepared from a soaked Channa gram or Bengal gram. The dough must be coarse to ensure that the vadai is crisp. The vadai here stayed true to the description above. One of the best Masala Vadai I have had in years. I would rate it close to the vadai I have had back in Chennai. This is neither that spicy nor hot. Verdict: Must Try for an appetizer.

Kancheepuram Masala Dosai: Dosai is a fermented Indian pancake made from rice and lentil dough. Masala Dosai is usually crisp with a filling of masala gravy inside. This one was stuffed with spicy red chilli paste, bell peppers/capsicum, cabbage, herbs and spices. The cabbage was a bit of a surprise and was unusually big which did not make it a great combination. I would have personally preferred the masala to be finely chopped making it easier to blend with the dosai and not stand as the odd man out. The spicy level I tried was medium. Verdict: Out of the box but not for everyone.

Podi Idly: I call Idly the friend of a lazy man. Idly is a savoury rice cake prepared by baking fermented rice and lentil batter and is very popular in South India. I am not a big fan of Idlis but I would have this podi Idly any day. The idly is cut into small pieces and tossed with spicy ground lentil condiment called Podi. This podi was well done and you can taste the flavour of coarsely grounded podi in every bite of the idly. Verdict: Good Try.

Chilli Parotta: Chilli Parotta is an Indo-Chinese cuisine and is usually a spicy, and delicious dish made by frying parotta cutting into usually square pieces and cooking it with various spices, onion & capsicum. Chilli Parotta is a fast food that I love having in restaurants and love to make it at home as well. The chilli parotta was crisp and tasted very good. Verdict: Go for it.

Kothu Parotta: This is a famous South Indian cuisine I have enjoyed in shops/restaurants along the highways in Tamil Nadu. Kothu means shredded and parotta is a flatbread made from all-purpose flour or wheat flour. The kothu parotta is tossed with either vegetables or egg usually. The taste was very similar to what I would have had on the highway dhabas back home. The crunchiness of the parotta and the vegetables make the dish even more enjoyable. Verdict: Good Try.

Podi Idly: I call Idly the friend of a lazy man. Idly is a savoury rice cake prepared by baking fermented rice and lentil batter and is very popular in South India. I am not a big fan of Idlis but I would have this podi Idly any day. The idly is cut into small pieces and tossed with spicy ground lentil condiment called Podi. This podi was well done and you can taste the flavour of coarsely grounded podi in every bite of the idly. Verdict: Good Try.

Chettinad Masala Dosai: Chettinad masala dosai is another variety of masala dosai. The stuffing has potato masala along with special masala paste applied over the dosai. The uniqueness of the paste is the black pepper as the ingredient which makes it a touch spicy. Verdict: Out of the box but not for everyone. Verdict: Out of the box but not for everyone.

I also tried their Mango ginger and Virgin Coconut Mojito which was really good.

Final Verdict: Good South Indian spread in Ottawa. You might feel that this is a touch more expensive if you travel from the GTA region. But worth it.

Average Price: $20-$25/person

Restaurant Rating: ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2 Considering the previous bad experience I would rate this place a 3.5. The staff were pleasant and served us with courtesy. The food tasted awesome but if you are in a hurry, this is not your place.

Location: 108 Third Ave, Ottawa, ON K1S 2J8.

Twisted Indian Wraps: Indo-Mex with an Awesome Twist

Posted on by Karthic Vaidyanathan

Location: 1508 Upper James St Unit 245, Hamilton, ON L9B 1K3

Verdict: Good Value for money, must try.

Average Price: $12-$15/person

What did we try?

Super Bowl: Indian version of Mexican burrito bowl. You can choose basmati or brown rice with 3 vegetable curries. I chose Rajma, Masala Paneer and Channa. We chose to top the bowl with Salad(kachumber), Pickled Onion, Jalapeno, Coriander, carrots, purple cabbage and their custom sauces. Verdict: Must try.

Aloo Tikki Burger: Two potato patties smashed and served on a pretzel bun with, kachumber choice of specialty sauce & served with chutney. I did add-on other toppings to the burger. I am not a big fan of burgers but this one tasted really good. I will definitely give it a try again. Verdict: Good pick.

Naan-wich: We tried the paneer naan-wich. It is probably a new item on their menu and we loved it. As the name says, it is a sandwich made with naan. We filled the inside with paneer masala, spicy sauce and kachumber. As per the staff, this was one of the best items on their list and was indeed worth it. Verdict: Must Try.

Masala fries: Wanted to try this as a side to our bowl. I would rate it not so high. Verdict: Skip

Dessert: We tried their Gulab Jamun and Mango Kulfi. They had the offer to go review them on google and Facebook check in to get a free dessert. Verdict: Gulab Jamun – Good pick, Mango Kulfi – Skip

Restaurant Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2 The restaurant was clean and well-maintained. The staff were very courteous and helped us pick a good option with patience and care.

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2