Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Thulp


Koromangala seems to be bursting at the seams when it comes to new restaurants. In the past week I have eaten at two new places featured in the latest Food Lovers magazine that happen to be at 6th Block, 5th Cross – an area that I now realise is home to a number of the cities bustling, brand new eateries.

At first I was more than a little weary venturing out of the CBD as well as my comfort zone. However, rave reviews kept me going and before I knew it I found myself buckled into my car seat, on the phone getting directions, navigating my way hopelessly, searching for street signs despite the dim lighting, all the while fighting my ravenous stomach that by this point had begun grumbling, begging to be fed.

While that ride over might just be slightly dramatised, in reality it took about 25 minutes from M.G. Road, without too much of a hassle. We found parking without any problems. In fact the perfect spot was waiting for me just opposite Thulp itself.

But India being India, or rather should I say Bangalore being Bangalore thanks to the recent political indifference and lack of governance in terms of road works and sanitation meant that the moment I stepped out the car my nostrils were overcome by that nasty, characteristic pong we all know as well ... shit!

Oh well, it would be ludicrous to say that the stench put me off dinner that evening. As soon as we crossed the road, stepping into the restaurant, that is really more of a laid back cafe in actuality, the aroma of French fries, grilled onions and bacon replaced the unpleasant smell almost immediately and my appetite was as robust as it had been moments prior to stepping out the car.

Wasting no time I scanned the menu, ordered a plate of Buffalo wings and the biggest burger on the menu – the Moo’s Your Daddy, which also happens to be their signature burger. To me the choice was simple – while an array of pasta and pizza dishes were listed out as well as sandwiches, the sesame seed buns crammed with a beef patty and pilled with lettuce, dill pickles, cheese and bacon screamed EAT ME.

Worth mentioning are their clever names using puns and references to popular media to jazz up what would otherwise be a standard menu. Three stars for being whacky and original!

As for the food – when it finally arrived it was well, simply average. It took a total of 25 minutes for the Buffalo wings to come out and they while they were satisfying – my appreciation was perhaps due to the momentarily ravenous nature of my being – leaving me without much to complain about. The burgers in all took about 35 minutes to come out – far too long in my opinion. When you are grilling mince meat patties and assembling them on toasted bread with prepped veggies and cheese, how much time is really required? Exactly – and the lack of efficiency where making our burgers was concerned made me super mad!

The taste – well, the middle of the patties were juicy, while the sides and periphery were rather dry and tough, and while one could not see the bacon, the flavour was unmistakable with every bite. The French fries were awful – this needs improvement, but the coleslaw a pleasant surprise.

In all two mighty big bloody burgers, two fountain cokes, a plate of Buffalo wings and a take-away Rocky Balboa sandwich (Philly Cheese Steak on Panini bread – that was pretty good) made for a decent bill of Rs. 700/-

So my verdict... for Koromangala dwellers – rock on down now, don’t think twice if you’re in the mood for some serious beef slapped between bread with all the good stuff in life smothered on. If you are an urban CBD resident like myslef - simply put when you have the option of going to Ice and Spice and sinking your teeth into a mother of a lamb burger with a wait of 5-8 minutes the journey to Koromangla just doesn't make sense. And if you are a vegetarian – well just don’t bother.



3 comments:

Karthik Shetty said...

I think what you've described is a one-off incident (although on burrp there were a few more people who've mentioned tardy service). I've been to Thulp at least 5 or 6 times now, and never have I had a bad experience. And also, since you're a Master of Gastronomy, I thought you'd have appreciated the fact that the burger was constructed in the perfect way (unlike in other places, including Ice+Spice) - meat on the lower half, then toppings, and shredded lettuce as opposed to one whole leaf. Since you've worked for Bangalore Mirror, I'd like to say that I'm a guest writer for them, and do restaurant reviews for them. I believe you also know Ruth Prabhu, who I'd taken as a guest for one of the reviews.

MEGalomaniac said...

Hey There!

Firstly, welcome to my blog. Appreciate your comments, but I have to stand by what I said. I think a good burger depends more on the careful seasoning of the meat, the flavour combination of the patty with the veggies and sauces, the succulent, juiciness of the burger, and I for one love that unmistakable flame grilled smokiness, rather paying attention to where the fillings are placed. But, whose to say, each to his own.

I recently made my own burgers cooked on my webber in my backyard at home in Bangalore - chicken tenders with a dijon-honey marinade on twist-bread buns with blue cheese mayo and italian herbed beef burgers with orange glaze BBQ sauce on sesame buns... both served with fresh shredded lettuce, roasted sliced tomatoes and red onions sliced and it was a total crowd pleaser. Sometimes, simplicity is best!

Varun Krishnan said...

Hii MEAGAN

I went through your blog and truly speaking was really interesting. let me introduce my self to u. Myself Varun Krishnan, Born And brought up in Goa , cooking is my passion previously working as a chef,
Started my career from TGI Fridays Bangalore, then moved on too United Kingdom for my higher studies and for international exposure in Culinary, currently working as Sr. lecturer for ACE( Academy Of Culinary Education )Goa. Traveling and exploring food culture is my area of interest. Since you're a Masters of Gastronomy, i was too looking forward in acquiring such qualification. Its pretty sad that India been been a land of diverse in food culture, there is no importance given to such education. It would be kind enough to provide me such information on such available courses.
please do mail me vgaunk@ Google.mail.com. i am also available on orkut also.