Foodies Road Trip

It started with a casual conversation, KJ and I were keen to take the gang to our favourite eating joints; KJ – Opal Kolhapur et moi gunning for Amantran Ratnagiri. So we decided to do both these in one road trip and for good measure stop at Chiplun on the way back. So there we were thrashing out our – foodies roadies trip. A couple of quick calls and facebook posts saw Vaibhav and Ashish join us.

Friday 9th June, saw us assemble at Siachen – Parle east. We were waiting for Santy to join us. He was coming back to Mumbai from Bhopal and on his way to Pune. To apn ke saath hi chalna tha. Usko raaste mein drop karke hum log aage jaane wale the. So we waited and waited for santy to arrive. The Siachen chefs had a disappointing day in the office.

Santy in the meanwhile was confronting a crisis of his own. Someone had walked off with his bag!! And he had the Air India staff helping him trace it.Some hectic minutes later, the guy turned up with a sheepish smile and the bag.

Santy arrived in Siachen, couple of drinks later we headed out to KJ’s place at Kharghar. By some quirk of fate, all of us were up and about by six a.m. Saturday, we were off at 6:45…

First stop was a quick cup of tea at Khargar, we hit the expressway, were confronted with some very heavy traffic at Lonavala, but got across to Khalapur for breakfast. Omlette pav for Kj, Rao and me, mendu wada for the less squeamish VV and SR. We hit pune at around 10:00 a.m., SR got off at Chandni chowk, reluctantly I must add.

Off we went; the Chandaal Chaukdi now, a small chai break at Karad, reached Kolhapur at two sharp. Took us about 25 mts to get to Opal, well they dig roads in Kolhapur too.

Opal is a kolhapuri institution, started many many years ago… ambience is strictly old time and the food is well… timeless. We had some fantastic tambda and pandhra rassa, sukka mutton, mutton fry, liver fry, chicken dry, mutton pickle, bhakri, biryani rice rounded off with ice cream. It was worth the seven hour drive, the traffic jams seemed insignificant in the wake of such awesome cooking. Opal will definitely feature in the “Best places for food” in my list. KJ got a well deserved hug from all of us on for this wonderful recommendation. Two and a half hours of sheer delight.

4:30 p.m. saw us all saddled up and ready to ride. On to Ratnagiri. We took the Amba ghat route. Another first for me and boy did I kick myself for not trying this route before. Picturesque, winding roads and very well maintained at that, pleasure to drive. We reached ratnagiri and around 8 p.m. and shacked at an apartment owned by my father in law. The long day and absence of sleep the night before had just about started to take effect. We shook off our sloth and headed on to stop 2 of our journey.

A restaurant called Amantran just next to Vihar Deluxe hotel.

Amantran conjured up a sizzling surmai fry, divine prawns tava fry, chicken masala, surmai masala, rice and aamras to finish the meal. Solkadi was exactly the way we make it at home and not the usual crappy stuff one gets in Mumbai hotels. The bombil fry was the slightly jarring point in an otherwise delicious spread. Ab sab ki jaan mein jaan aayi.. a quick nightcap followed ani mag javal javal jhopaychi vel jhaali..

And then the heavens opened up. It rained right through the night to upto 9 in the morning which was good considering we got up around that time.

Our return journey started at around 10:30 a.m first stop tea with vadapav at hatkhamba naka. Small tapri aur badiya breakfast. On we drove to Chiplun and stopped at another landmark Konkani hotel – raghuseth more khanaval. They have now started another establishment called hotel Deepak right on the highway. Prawns fry, chicken masala fry, gaavti chicken masala with hot wadas made for a meal straight from heaven. Thodi thodi drinks pun keli saglyaani.

So that was the third and final stop of our gastronomic tour, all 800+ kilometres. Some amazing conversation, great food throughout, generally a feeling of freedom aur kya chahiye. Thank you KJ, VV and AR.

I noticed a car drive up when we were hanging outside Hotel Deepak at Chiplun. Three very old gentlemen stepped out each helping the other. They must have known each other for a long time. I thought of my gang of friends and whether we will be around when we grow really old. And today I heard a beautiful song by Simon and Garfunkel – Old friends/Bookends. I think that this song somehow sums up my feelings watching those old gentlemen.. So here goes enjoy...

martins corner - the jewel of goa

three thoughts hit me almost immediately upon eating the first morsel of prawn curry rice -

1. this is exactly how 'hortes aunty' use to make this

2. i wish mandali and dadh were here - they would have freaked out

3. why the hell have i never come here before

without doubt this was the best goan food i have ever had. absolutely authentic, reasonably priced, great ambience at martins corner. i must thank vaibhav/ashish for getting us there. if the chef is reading this, please do accept our grateful thanks.

the best part was the accent on food, no taam jhaam, simple basic decor. the mandatory wandering minstrel regaled us with some great harmonica. we were down to fresh lime and breezers, marginal propensity to consume had hit us big time. in typical mumbai fashion we wanted everything to happen fast. goa mein alag pace hain.. all our frowns disappeared when the food arrived. we had kept the order simple, fish and prawn curry, rice, one prawn masala... i licked my plate clean after ages. i cannot describe the ingredients etc, but the experience was heavenly. took me back 30 years when i would have lunch at our neighbours, practically every day. aisaich khana tha. i could almost hear her voice calling out to the non existent crow,cow etc in a bid to get me to eat quickly. may god bless her soul. and may god look after martins ...

i wish busybee were around, it would be fun to read his review...

goa april 2010- ipl, bondu,goma ityaadi ityaadi

it all started around a table at greens, back in feb 2010. we decided to close the year as fast as we could and head for a rendezvous in goa. the gang of nine, this time voted to leave their better halves back home. vaidyanu got the ticketing done almost immediately which was good. that sealed it. nakita was to be our home once again. alpesh,santosh and dinya could not make it.. agli baar...

8th of april, fantastic start to our trip vaibhav's mail set the mood. dude you must write, you have a knack for humour which is the toughest art to master. we assembled at around 9 pm at rishi restaurant outside dadar tt. in the words of vv, 'pratha pramane aap aaplya gaadyanchya ani svatachya takya bharunach govya la jaycha aasta'.. dinya came over to see us off.

took the kokan kanya, spent most of the night in the corridor exchanging notes over nothing in particular. slept off to the sounds of the soft and sometimes loud snores of co-passengers;am sure they had the same complaint of us. next day saw us reach thivim at around 10. hired a car to take us to the hotel and well, stopped at the first watering hole we could see, about 45 seconds from the railway station.

we have a photo of doc with a beer can as well, which can be reproduced at the appropriate moment. all set, thirst slaked we reached good old nakita-minus chaand- in god only knows how many minutes. u see, by now time did not seem to matter. our sense of serenity inturrepted sometimes by our cell phones and kaala jamuns; the only link with the lives we lead back in mumbai.

the pool appeared like a long lost friend and we thought it only appropriate to renew old ties, in we went, feeling like kings.. since vaibhav had missed out on the gastronomic pleasures offered by o'coquerio we went over for lunch, said hello to charles and well...

a good siesta left us recharged for more kingly experiences, kamikaze and mango panna disguised as chasers; as we sat around plotting the reception for rao saheb the next morning.

and what a raosing reception it turned out be...









featured here with 'chutki' maala, needless to say the welcome drinks were chilled. off we went to madgaon for a paatal bhaji breakfast, picked up some fish for lunch from the local market and headed home. thats shiroda, for the uninitiated. brief nap over we hit the fishing grounds called 'moos'.. score was sarang two, vaidya/naik one each. the doc flirted with some crabs on the river edge, tough luck kj- surely you will be third time lucky. ashish got the fundamental of fishing right away- patience and loads of it.

after a meal at my place we headed back to nakita, pool and kings. simple life, simply done.night out at baga wandering about... baaki ka kaufnaak kissa kissi aur din. doc you are one lucky dude to have missed this one.

sunday, breakfast at infantaria, lunch at martin's corner and off to the airport.. back home.. will write about martins separately.

all in all a great trip; ipl will definitely not be the same again....when the music plays....

dusseldorf diary - wish list

now that i have seen snow fall, thought it will be a good time to list down some other aspirations:
1. visit times square
2. sky dive
3. drive through leh ladakh - ab thund seh sakte hain hum...
4. get an article published in hindustan times - the sunday brunch
5. write a song, get it into a film
6. 'the last resort' - goa beckons
7. get janaki to submit her tax declaration on time (at least once)
8. learn a new language
9. complete the walk - pune to pandarpur
10. weight loss - 10 kgs...

will keep you posted........... LOL.....

dusseldorf diary - the state of being constant

the more things appear different, the more they are the same. Shopping malls all over the world exhibit the same behaviour: exasparated men holding onto a motley of bags and their dear life, children running around ignoring fervent pleas to pipe down, teens huddled together speaking in hushed tones that seem to be the perogative of the young, young couples with children checking the prices tags, wistfully putting back items they cannot afford, grandparents escorting kids with the caution of a mother hen.....

dusseldorf diary - sunny days

the sun has come visiting us. its still cold though. yesterday it snowed. scene straight from black. zindagi ki ek khwaish puri huvi. i saw snow fall. this has been a unique vacation. not much of sight seeing but more an experience of a different way of life. everything here is treated with respect, watching garbage being collected was a fascinating experience. the machines actually work. I saw a road being dug and relaid, only two people were doing the job. they had a small cement mixer in their truck itself. I saw beer being delivered to the pub downstairs. again just one person driving the truck did everything. Minimum effort, maximum result seems to be the mantra here. more later...

dusseldorf diary

spent the week end watching marathi films, watching zizou gambol around and generally doing nothing. I have renewed admiration for all those who come to a foreign land for work. It is tough dealing with this sense of being uprooted, of having to start all over again. simple things like walking on the road seem so strange. It is instinctive for us to turn left when faced with someone bang opposite us, here they walk to the right. Complete chaos i tell you.

The good part is that everything is very organized here. No conductors in the tram; u punch your ticket, the voice in the tram guides you to the right destination. Signboards work, things are designed for self service and convenience; thoughtfully and very logical if i may say so. Today we went to the government office to complete our registration(Avanti and i are here on dependent visa). It was the complete opposite of any government office back home. We went to an information desk, explained our purpose got a token. Minutes later our number was called, lady at the counter completed the formalities with Janaki. Avanti and i decided to stroll around a bit. So we see this photo booth, self automated. next to the booth was another machine which dispenses change. Point is take the change, get into the photo booth and get your photos. Simple, effective and well thought out.

The weather has eased out a bit, it was sunny through the day today. I have got into a good routine now. I get up early morning, surf the net, exchange mails, lexulous - crossed 1700 points, see the missus off, play a bit with zizou, watch her being fed, then she and maie go off to sleep. Time for me to catch up on a bit of reading. then we wait for the missus to come back home, dinner at 830 pm, bed time at 10. Also catch some movies (online) along the way.

Feeling quite peacefull now. I guess i have overcome my fear of being absolutely annonymous in this place. Sometimes its fun being alone ...Sometimes its fun having to learn everything all over again.. Its good to be out of one's comfort zone...

records created, airways blocked

missed the 200. i hope the naysayers will finally shut up and rise in tribute to his genius. only the world cup (ODI) has eluded the master. i am sure if this form continues they may as well send the trophy to india. thank you Sachin for making us believe that impossible is merely a word, that the basics will always prevail, that it is important to acknowledge the role played by others in one's life and that the good guy can also succeed.

i had a bad attack (as if there are good ones) of asthama yesterday. For the first time in years travelled without all my medicines. Luckily the hospital is close by. A visit to the same got me acquainted with theopylline. am much better now.

this is a quite town, duesseldorf is. No honking, no crowds milling the streets, everything seems to have a well thought out place for itself. The people strike me as disciplined, the area that we stay in looks like a set straight from 'the truman show'. The roads are fantastic, no holes even the paver blocks are laid out in the way they should be, separate lanes for cycles, footpaths that one can actually walk on. More later....

Ratnagiri and in between

The conclusion of my extended leave found me getting re-acquainted with long winding empty roads, soulful music playing on the stereo and invigorating conversations. Mahesh had to drop off his daughter Anyushka at their "native place" - Ladghar. Daddy had some work in Ratnagiri. The Konkan beckoned and off we went, our merry band of 4. Started off at around 6:45 a.m.; driving on empty roads in Mumbai is a rare treat. Zipped past Vashi and other assorted suburbs to reach Panvel in a good 90 minutes. Breakfast halt at "Shanbar Vishranti", a shade prior to the Karnala Bird sanctuary. After demolishing some "mendhu vadas" washed down with tea, we proceeded to Mangaon.Halted at a smallish tapari for some bhajiya pav, after a failed attempt at finding tea at what turned out to be the local bar. Man, people were downing bagpiper at 9:00 in the morning. We made our way to Dapoli (roughly 160 kms from Mumbai) accompanied by some truly moving Marathi bhavgeets. the songs made even more memorable with Daddy reminiscing about musicians, singers and poets of an era long gone by.

There is something infinitely peaceful about a long drive (out of the city); believe me nothing better than this to take your mind of the daily grind. I must thank Daddy and Janaki (my better half) for having me learn how to drive a car. I must also thank them for getting me acquainted with the Konkan region. It is a fantastic combination of surf, sand, clear blue skies and sea food. I have traveled to Goa (my home town) many times without ever saying hello to this wonderful place. Bachpan mein, bus mein baithe around 4:00 p.m. got off in Goa around 7:00 a.m. next day. The Konkan would speed by during the night, unnoticed, silently.. I guess I am making up for lost time; I have explored various parts of the Konkan in about 7-8 trips in the last four years and have always returned exhilarated.

Cut to the journey, Ladghar is about 8 odd kms. from Dapoli, a newly reinforced bridge appeared like a sentinel zealously guarding paradise. Over the bridge, just beyond the local school, an almost invisible turn off the main road and a rakish one thereafter found us at the ancestral home of the “Bals”. Mahesh’s moms place, now tended to, by her brother. I am pretty sure that 99% of all people polled would choose “mama” as their favorite relative.

It’s a typical Konkani “kawalaru” house, built some 60 years ago, surrounded by coconut and supari plantation. The sheer hard work put in by mama and his family has indeed borne rich fruits. We proceeded to filling our stomachs with an absolutely delightful meal. Daddy and mama got along lke a house on fire, exchanging thoughts on mango cultivation and some serious politician bashing. Mahesh and I spent the afternoon lazing in the aangan watching some ladies thresh rice and anyushka gambol about with the house cat. Cutting through the plantation, we made our way to the beach just about a stone’s throw away. Caught Daddy in a reflective mood, quite easily photo of the trip...

Mahesh and I visited the local school. Pretty neat, portraits of the only heroes we have adorned the walls. Bahar baith kar (always the outstanding kinds), we had a long chat, the longest in years, caught up on a lot of things and still had more left. Dinner beckoned as it got pretty dark, rapidly as it does in rural India.

Next day we proceeded to Ratnagiri, got there in about 3 hours, just in time for lunch at “Amantran”. Just next to hotel Vihar Deluxe, Maal Naka. Heavenly, ghar jaisa khana, highly recommended for sea food though the veg section is pretty good as well. We shacked up at Daddy’s place. Shyam ko thoda marketing kiya, Mahesh took time off to catch up with relatives. Dinner at Amantran, uske baad Mahesh and I had a long shaayari, old songs session. Really felt like old times, missed the cutting chai at NIASA though.

Janaki and I have known Mahesh all our adult lives. We have managed to remain in touch with each other despite our jobs, transfers, multiple residence changes, the traffic in Mumbai. I guess you make a lot many acquaintances in life and very few friends. We are indeed lucky to have Mahesh inhabit the latter category.

That brings us to the 24^th of May. After a quick breakfast, we purchased some fruits, collected some stuff from Mahesh’s relatives and started back to Mumbai around 10:30 a.m. Daddy stayed back. It was fun coming back, I have noticed that the journey back home always seems shorter. Since we did not have any fixed plan in mind, took a short detour upon spotting this bridge. Snacks at Chiplun, followed by an unsuccessful attempt to get some lunch at a charming restaurant just by the river. Do not know the exact spot though. We reached Nagothane at around 3:30, stopped for a quick bite and then did the home stretch to reach home around 6:00.

The best part about the trip was as always the journey, frankly the destination is immaterial. Got to renew a long standing friendship. Will always remember Mahesh singng Caravan Guzar gaya, made even more sublime by the pitch darkness and absoulte silence of the night in which it was rendered.

Goa - Lagin 2007

It all started sometime in November 2007; Dinya informed us of his bro deciding to tie himself in a knot of the matrimonial kind. Their parents (god bless them) had decided to have this ceremony in Goa. So off we went, sah kutumb sah parivar, into the land where time is irrelevant. Konkan railway ke madhur safar ke baad, we stepped into a cosy resort at Calangute.

Well our better halves had actually met for the first time; all our feeble attempts at arranging a get together prior to this trip had come to a nought. So formal introductions over, we did the most natural thing one does upon spotting a pool... dive right in....

Ok introductions for the uninitiated; Kj with kid Ashmit, Alpesh with KJ, Dr. Prafulla with son Maitreya.

L-R Priya (alpesh's better half, maitreya, Arushi (alpesh ki beti), Sharmilee ( dr. ki MD), amita (KJs better half) holding ashmit and KJ (just in case you did not recognise him with his clothes on)

Not sure whether food followed drinks or vice versa, which is how it was for the rest of our stay. It was great, the only thing we had to decide was where to eat and drink. Time as i said earlier is irrelevant in Goa. The soul simply chills, its in the air.. take it from a true blue Goan. Now for the wedding. Traditional style, simple ceremony followed by lunch. Dinya was all over the place (basically apna bhi kuch jamta hain kya), the ladies had stepped out in style as had all the kids...

(majhi mandli, 2nd from left)

Post this all the guys assembled at "O Coquerio"; the restaurant where Sobhraj was finally nabbed. We had managed to give the wives and kids the slip. The conversation was as sparkling as the beer which seemed to flow endlessly. Called up the two stragglers Vaibhav and Santosh who were to join us but had got caught up in work at Mumbai. Back then to the resort, dinner was at some place close to the beach. Featured below Kj ani mi...

Dr. was busy photographing everything in sight.. Hari you will love these photos.. surreal man...

Next day was devoted to adventure sports....

aur bacchho ko manana...

Whatever we did seemed to work, the kids really enjoyed themselves soon after.....

As for us we kept it simple, decide what to eat
and..... well.... these guys would turn up all by themselves...

Next day heralded the arrival of vaibhav, aryan and santosh.. Simply great on their part to come even if it was for just one day. 6:30 a.m. while the land slept, we greeted them with two cans of very dilligently chilled beers (courtesy doc). Mein dinya aur uske dad ke saath gaya machli bazaar. Quick breakfast and off we went to my hometown.. Shiroda.. machi ghar par rakha and took the gang to the river for a round of fishing...

Kj fed the fishes like never before, Aryan enjoyed himself, I caught one actually so did Santosh... par photo mera hi hain... What followed was a great gastronomic experience at my place, Vaini had outdone herself. Various types of fish in curries and fried avatars truly transported us to a "Vaapas nahin jaaoonga main" kind of state....

Uske baad next day breakfast lunch ke baad, alvida to the most wonderful time we had...

Follow up party in Mumbai followed around Christmas time where the ones who could not make it namely Mugdha, Rucha (santosh ka family) aur Smita (she who has to bear the vaibhavisms all the time) caught up on all the action.....

For me this trip was all about deepening friendship; looking forward to Dinya's marriage now. ladki koi bhi ho, shaadi Goa me icch hone ko mangta hain..

Finally my favorite konkani song... only song i ever heard my father sing... enjoy and "dev barem karu"