Coconut Grove, coastal cuisine for the diehard

With the month of September, when fish eating commences as per tradition, already into its 4th week our family was yet to break its fast in this regard. So to celebrate my wife's birthday we headed to Coconut Grove for dinner couple of days ago. It is located in Mangalwar Peth, opposite the Ambedkar Bhavan in a building occupying 4 floors with ample seating, including an open air rooftop section for the serious tipplers. There is sufficient parking in the compound of the adjacent building, at least in the evenings when I have usually visited, very important considering the location.

As usual we were early, reaching before 8 pm and quickly got down to ordering. In seafood we opted for the Surmai Tawa masala and Prawns Sukha, accompanied by Chicken Gassi, Veg Stew and fresh Appams to go with them. All the items turned out to be excellent, the surmai coated with reddish spicy masala and the prawns were finger licking good while the stew and chicken gassi in coconut based curry were ideal for soaking up the appams. And to mop up the gravy we called for a portion of plain steamed rice which helped settle the meal.

The Solkadi as appetizer cum accompaniment was at the right temperature, spiced just to the right extent and serving its purpose as a coolant. Still, to end on the right note we went in for the chocolate ice cream, a truly satisfying end to a great meal.

The service was quietly efficient and reflects the effort and attention of the management towards sustaining the standards of this restaurant which otherwise maintains a low profile and is mainly frequented by the diehard fish eater.

Going by the usually (high) pricing of sea food eateries Coconut Grove appears reasonable and our meal for 5 cost us Rs 2200, inclusive of the desert and without alcohol. I definitely plan to visit this place at least once more during this season and the next time would probably be more adventurous on the fishy side of the menu !

Shivsagar, JM Road, something for everyone...

When in a group which cannot decide on the type of food, except that it be vegetarian, and looking for quick service on a working day, then head to Shivsagar. They have two outlets in Pune - on JM Road and in Aundh - and it was to the former that we headed last friday.

The range on the menu card is truly one of the longest - apart from pav bhaji and other street food it ranges from south Indian and north Indian to the local avatars of chinese, italian and mexican followed by a wide choice of juices, shakes and sundaes. Extremely popular with the family crowd in the evenings and all types during the day, the Shivsagar JM Road outlet has been around for two decades now (I think, maybe longer..?). Its still going strong and holding its own on what is now "eat street" in this part of town which sees stiff competition that has affected the fortunes of quite a few joints over the years.

On this occasion we decided to skip the traditional favourite - pav bhaji - and opted instead for the (north) Indian fare. A word of caution, if you have actually lived and eaten in the north then don't expect this to be anything similar. However, those used to eating the moghlai/north Indian stuff churned out by the Shetty promoted vegetarian joints in western India would have got used to their cooking and taste and Shivsagar scores well on this count.

We began with their veg spring rolls for starters followed by the paneer capsicum bhurjee and dal tadka accompanied by aloo parathas and tandoori roti, ending with jeera fried rice. Most of these were our regular favourite items and we were happy to see that the quality and taste had been maintained. However, the aloo parathas which we were ordering for the first time were a pleasant surprise with a nice homemade feel about them.

Service was prompt and efficient as ever and we were soon off to our respective engagements. Of course, we chose to reach the place early, before 1 pm on a friday and with the crowd yet to pick up the staff was not really stretched. But when the place really gets packed and sunday 9 pm being the most extreme situation, the waiting can be quite painful and if possible do try to avoid such days or time slots !
Unless ofcourse you are in a vegetarian group and can't agree on where to go...