Pune 14 — Restaurant in Pune

Sunday brunch is one of the latest emerging trends in the city. So I think it’s about time I ask you guys ‘Have you been to any Sunday Brunch?’ If yes/no, you should definitely go to the Brunch at The Café , Hyatt Regency. They are hosting a Turkish food festival till the 14th of October and trust me it is definitely worth a visit. Merhaba Tuerkiye is the name of the festival and it includes all things Turkish. From Turkish starters to Turkish desserts , you name it and it’s there! I attended their Sunday brunch last Sunday and from start to end, I was more than amazed with the menu curated by Chef Muzaffer Yaman who has travelled all the way from Istanbul. So when I think about Turkish food , Shawarma and Hummus comes to my mind. And yes , that is definitely the first thing I had here. There was a shawarma live counter which was giving me the feels of being on the streets of Turkey while it was being prepared in front of me. Along with the Shawarma counter , they also have a Falafel counter. They are serving Falafels in a Bagel. Something definitely worth a try. Hummus is one of my favorites things to binge on and the best one to be served in this brunch was undoubtedly the unique pomegranate hummus. Slightly pink in color having the perfect pomegranate taste. Definitely a recommendation from my end. Now what is brunch without some live counters? There is also a live counter with all types of fish and various marinations of chicken. The best part about this live counter- you need mot wait! The food will be prepared and served hot at your table while you enjoy some other starters. Another good part about this brunch is that they have curated the menu with respect to different people and their different taste buds. So just in case you don’t like anything Turkish, you can always go for something Indian or Asian. This was the first time ever I tried the Sushi and my my , I was delighted! I tried the Prawn Sushi and it was so well made. I also tried the salmon roll which was a fresh piece of salmon on sticky rice. Along with the Sushi, there was something else that I tried for the first time: LOBSTER!! It was mind-blowing! There was a wide variety of Indian and Turkish desserts: Chocolate Fountain – Every child and adults delight. What’s more? You have macaroons and marshmallows to dip in the fountain. Baklava – Baklava is a traditional Turkish dessert. Unfortunately, I couldn’t have it as I am allergic to dry fruits, but my friends had it and they claim that it was the best that they have eaten. So definitely tops the suggestions. Coffee Tiramisu – It was served in the cutest way but it lacked the perfect taste. I could feel the coffee granules from within. Something that can be avoided. Baked Yoghurt – I personally loved this dessert. Rather I loved the presentation and the taste. Turkish Ice Cream – They have a live counter where you can have some fun while you are TRYING to catch your ice cream cone. ( exactly how it is shown in the videos on YouTube, check for : Turkish Ice Cream ) Here are a few things you must have in the buffet: Adana Kebab - hand-minced meat kebab mounted on a wide iron skewer and grilled Shish Taouk - traditional marinated chicken shish kebab of Middle Eastern cuisine. Bagel Falafel – as explained above Variety of Hummus ( must must try – Pomegranate) Gosht Dum Biryani – the mutton pieces were extremely fresh and cooked to perfection. Shawarma – traditional Turkish style Shawarma Turkish desserts – as explained above Lamb Sauté – one of the main courses which you have to try! There’s one last thing I will be mentioning, and that is the brilliant Live Music! It just adds to your dining experience!

There are a lottt of other things to try , I’m sure! But I think you guys should go yourselves and experience them instead of just reading what I had. I’m not even surprised if you have not started drooling. My verdict would be to definitely go and try this festival at The Café , Hyatt Regency. Lunch : 1099/- +...

EDITED as on 29th May.

Dawat-E-Awadh @ Cafe Hyatt. So Be A Nawab (Dinner Buffet till 12th June)

Truthfully speaking when ‘Awadhi Rasoi’ is formed in your City and professional ‘Bawarchis’ are preparing some significant, superlative and scrumptious dishes that go beyond elegance of ultimate essence and aroma, you need to be a Nawab and get pampered yourself and have a treasured highlight etched on your mind as you take pleasure in your Cuisine Journey. In the very start Kudos to Chef Karan Thakur and Amrick Singh!

Subtly seasoned with Cardamom with a touch of sweet smell of Rose-water, ‘Rajma Galauti’, is a Hallmark of ‘Awadhi’ Cuisine that melts away in your mouth. Conventionally meant for elderlies, do begin your meal with this Best Starter and experience the melting upshot.

Exactly and accurately spiced up, leisurely cooked tender ‘Raan-E-Awadh’ has been my much-loved dish that you could literally eat with a spoon. And this itself verbalises the distinctive character supported by immense taste and flavour. It was without a doubt ‘out-of-the-world’.

‘Lagan Ka Gosht’, from the legendary ‘Rasois’ of ‘Oudh’, to ‘Bawarchikhanas’ of Lucknow infamous for ‘adab’ and ‘tehzeeb, today LKG is known as a speciality from Hyderabad that is traditionally cooked in ‘lagan’ pot. The taste was mind-blowing with luscious and succulent meat pieces slow cooked on fire giving that melt in mouth texture to it. I purely loved it.

‘Gobhi Musallam’, a great veg adaptation of widely held ‘Murgh Musallam’ where ‘Musallam’ means ‘whole’ that has rich, creamy and buttery texture due to ‘Makhani’ gravy was undoubtedly brilliant.

In Indian Breads, apart from usual assorted ‘Nans’, and ‘Tandoori Rotis’, one must try instead Avadhi ‘Khameera’, ‘Sheermal’ and ‘Itri’. They go so very well  with ‘Dum Ka Murgh’, ‘Murgh Sunaheri Seekh’, ‘Dal Mughlai’, and ‘Jaituni Tikka’.

In dessert famous Persian ‘Sheer Birinj’ aka ‘Muhallabia’, simply known today as Phirini (Fereni), the slow-cooked sweet pudding tasted incredible with obvious presence of saffron, cardamom topped with nuts’ shaving.

And yes… I did try two tiny portions of special beverages ‘Dil Afza’ and ‘Thandai’ which did infuse energy in me. Wonderful again.

Certainly since there is supposed to be a cyclic menu, it obviously generates repeat value and worth for ongoing ‘Dawat-E-Awadh’. Perchance one visit is not adequate. To me it’s once in a lifetime experience and I look forward to be back.

To conclude, there is also a usual Big Spread that comprises Continental, Oriental and Indian Cuisine and a Big Dessert Station to pamper your sweet cravings.

Thanks to entire Production and Service Team.

I would like to mention here exclusively ‘Daroga-e-Bawarchikhaana’ Chef Hardeep for organising the event and supervising tastes and flavours with his entire Brigade of ‘Rakabdars’ especially Tauseef, Pushkar, Laxman, Ram Chandra and Tanya  who unquestionably did a superlative job individually as well as collectively.

And yes… thanks to the entire brigade of ‘Khidmatgars’ in the Dining Room also specially Gaurav, Alpesh, Rochan, Sandeep, Nirmal, Shubham and Yugansh for his pleasant and perfect creation of cocktail ‘Brown Man’.

Let yourself be delighted by a delicious Dawat-E-Awadh. Do visit as I look forward to repeat my Culinary Journey too. Yummyliscious!

It was undeniably an experience to be...

#WanderDriveEat - FOOD - The buffet at The Cafe, served Indian, Asian, Middle Eastern fare, which was fantastic, along with special Spanish and Peruvian specialties like Ceviche, Tacos, grills and delicious Pallela.

To start with I binged on the excellent Sushi, which could probably only be beaten by Shizusan, Phoenix. I had to have some flaky-buttery Pistachio Croissants, some amazing cream-rose donuts, which made happy like a child!

The appetizers like Salt Crusted Chilean Sea Bass Charred Onions Vanilla Beurre Blanc were awesome. Savoury, creamy herby fish on a crust of crispy potato and sauce. The Scotch eggs and Patata Bravas (Potato balls in spicy tangy tomato sauce) were excellent too.

Time for some Ceviche! Raw fish and scallops cured in a delicious tangy lime juice based sauce. It's a very typical Peruvian / South American dish which, if you like sushi, you will love! It was a bit low on salt and I would have loved for it to be a bit more tangy, though.

The cold cuts - Ham, Salami Napoli and Cured Salmon were melt in the mouth delicious.

Time for the Grills - Juicy Sea Bass, Squid, Prawns (with the shell) and chicken in a creamy herby sauce grilled to smoky perfection! It was so good. I had two plates by myself. It was again a bit low on salt, but you can always add extra from the salt and pepper grinders on every table.

The tacos were mini hard shell tacos. They were quite nice. The salsas and accompaniments, though, could have been more flavourful.

MAINS - I just hogged on the delicious Lamb Pallela! I've tried Pallela many times before, but never found a really good one, until now! This was creamy, rich (almost like it had ghee in it!), the rice was soft and fluffy with loads of saffron. It tasted really soul satisfying. Helped massively by the succulent, fall off the bone lamb! So flavourful, meaty and subtle! Really nice!

DESSERTS - These were excellent too! Normally in Buffets or Sunday Brunches, even in star-properties, the desserts are average or good but never great! Not here! I absolutely loved them! The dense, gooey dark chocolate cake with cherries was sinful! The Black Forest Cake was literally the best I've ever had. Loads of cream, cherries and just the right amount of chocolate sponge and topped gloriously with heaps of high quality chocolate shavings! So soft fresh and creamy! Perfect.

The Fried Banana in cinnamon mousse was incredible! So tasty like the Banoffee Pie from Zeta next door! The Indian desserts like rasgulla, cham-cham etc were nice too!

This was a seriously special Sunday Brunch! Absolutely amazing food, kudos to Chef Anirban Dasgupta and his team. The KetelOne Vodka cocktails were amazing and overall it was...