Tag Archives: Indian cuisine

Ruchi Belconnen Southern Indian dining for a #CBRTweetUp Shout out @Sister_Ratched

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Last year I blogged a couple of times about the food at Ramas in Pearce. I have enjoyed the food there and the company on the occasions we dined there helped make the evenings memorable. After blogging about Ramas a Canberra Twitter friend, viz., Jude @Sister_Ratched commented (via Twitter and on my blog) that she thought there were better places in Canberra and Sydney for Indian cuisine. She suggested she could introduce me to such places. I was very happy to be introduced to new dining experiences.
Jude is lovely, she avidly comments on my blog and given the amount of food I post on Twitter and Instagram, Jude has shared her thoughts. At times this has been a concern for the quantity and quality of food I would post. I believe in some ways, the recent changes in my diet have been influenced by Jude’s comments about cholesterol, the importance of fresh ethically harvested produce and the health benefits of salad :-) Jude is a Registered Nurse and currently practises in gastroenterology. I respect her opinion.

On Friday night Jude organised a Canberra Tweetup. I regret not taking names and Twitter handles because I’ll offend some new friends if I don’t mention them. Suffice to say this is not the last #CBRTweetUp I will attend. It was a most enjoyable evening and it really is great to meet tweeps in real life and get to get to know them a little better. One of my favourite Canberra bloggers was also there. T1 from InTheTaratory fame. T1 has been prolific recently on Twitter as part of the #LikeCanberra campaign for the Centennial celebrations of the Australia’s capital city.

We all met at Ruchi Belconnen. Ruchi specialises in Southern Indian cuisine. Jude recommended I try a Thali. A Thali is a tasting plate made up of a selection of various dishes. The food is served in small bowls on a round tray. In the middle there was bread and plus a piece of flesh (fish in my case). I asked for the Ruchi Special Non­‐Vegetarian Thali for $24.50. This consisted of Chapatti, channa curry, Kerala chicken, beef vindaloo, pickles, thayir pachadi, rasam, and boiled rice. When the food was being served I heard the waiter say “special non-vegetarian Thali” and I assumed it was mine. It turned out not to be what I asked for but it was a Mysore Maharajah Non-­Vegetarian Thali which consisted of Meen porichadu, chapathi, boiled rice, sambar, Mysore chilli chicken, daal, lamb korma, rasam, thayir pachadi, pickles, and a coconut dessert. This dish was considerably hotter in terms of spices than what I was expecting. It was not at all unpleasant, on the contrary it was delightful. I really enjoyed this tasting plate of Southern Indian delights. The company was great and in the end it was not a late evening but it was certainly a very enjoyable one. The next #CBRTweetUp is being organised. I’m looking forward to it.

Ruchi special non-vegetarian thallis #cbrtweetup

Mysore Maharajah Non-­Vegetarian Thali

The menu can be downloaded from http://www.outincanberra.com.au/files/client-menus/Ruchi-Menu-August-2012-Dine-in-menu.pdf

I would definitely recommend Ruchi Belconnen. I’ll be returning.

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Friday was made even better with a Mavi Breakfast wrap which meant I didn’t need lunch.

#breakfast Tongue of bacon in my Mavi breakfast wrap #yummy

A beautiful tongue of bacon.

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This afternoon. I enjoyed a pastry treat from Ricardo’s Cafe at the Jamison Plaza.

The Peanut Paste #yummy

This is the Peanut Butter. It contains a very subtle peanut paste flavoured mousse with a heart of caramel resting on a delicate chocolate crumb biscuit base. It was lovely.

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Ruchi

Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/JB0q2


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http://www.outincanberra.com.au/ruchibelconnen

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Ramas
Google maps http://goo.gl/maps/aE655


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Digress Restaurant and Lounge (and a language warning)

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Last night Bron and I went to Digress Restaurant and Lounge on a recommendation from one of her work mates. When first described I was a little puzzled because Digress boasts a fusion Italian and Indian cuisine. I was thinking fusion food earlier in the week (see my last post) but this dinner was something different. They publish a menu online but what is not available is specials. The specials are seasonal. The wine and dessert menu is available online.

The Digress is located in civic and you need to walk down some stairs to the main areas which are broken down into two sections. The lounge and the restaurant.

The decor in the restaurant is mainly Indian and at one end of the restaurant is a large screen television playing Bollywood and Indian talent shows. I wonder if in the Summer if they will show cricket. The tables and chairs are comfortable and the ambiance inviting. I would prefer cloth napkins though.

The service is very good. The owner comes out and greets the guests and asks how we are after each course. She does it in a good way and is in no way annoying. The other wait staff are delightful. She informed us that our choices were interesting in that they weren’t common requests but in particular the mint naan was her Mum’s favourite.

For an entrée we chose Mozzarella and Paneer Fritters (A blend of two traditional Indian and Italian cheeses infused with roasted cumin and fresh coriander brought together with egg and breadcrumbs – served with a spicy jalapeño aioli) and Mint Naan (Naan bread filled with a combination of fresh mint, Spanish onion, and a selection of spices – a naan like no other!). The aioli was magnificent for dipping the fritters and bread. The entrée was a great start.

Cheese fritters

Mint naan

For main courses Bron chose a spicy steak (New York strip steak marinaded and cooked low and slow and covered with Indian spices and served with a salad) from the specials menu and I chose Penne Al Salmon (A blend of succulent salmon, chunky tomatoes, baby spinach leaves and shallots tossed in a creamy white wine sauce – a delight!). Both meals were delicious. That said, Bron felt the steak could also be described as having a Mexican flare to it.

Spicy steak

Penne Al Salmon

For dessert Bron chose the Punjabi Kulfi (Mum’s traditional home-made ice cream cooked on a slow fire with added pistachios and cardamom powder) and I chose Gulab Jamun with Gelato (Golden-fried dumplings soaked in rose syrup served with a scoop of pistachio-flavoured gelato, garnished with desiccated coconut). Mine was very rich and Bron’s was served around a chop stick. Both were delicious.

Bron’s dessert on a chop stick

My dessert

I would highly recommend a dinner at Digress Restaurant and Lounge. I want to return and try something different.

 

I felt very full because earlier in the day I attended a work lunch to say goodbye to a friend. We went to the Asian Noodle House in Phillip and I had a duck laksa with tofu.

Duck laksa

Okay so now an apology for those concerned about bad language. On the menu at Digress they serve Penne Arrabbiata (A traditional Italian pasta dish with fresh ripe tomatoes, roasted onions & Digress’ signature spicy chilli sauce – try if you dare…) which made me think of Eddy Izzard and the Death Star Canteen.

Menu with Penne Arrabbiata

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Rama’s Fiji-Indian Restaurant

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Last night we ate at Rama’s Fiji-Indian Restaurant in Pearce. This is one of Canberra‘s most popular restaurants. Last night was our first taste of Rama’s Fiji-Indian cuisine.

The Inside is pretty open and they have some tables outside as well. The service was very friendly and efficient. We weren’t left waiting and were well attended.

The menu is available as a PDF at http://www.ramas.com.au/Dine%20In%20Menu.pdf or in html.

We enjoyed a mixed entrée of Vegetable Samosas, Fish Pakoras, and Bhajia. It was pretty good, especially the Samosas and the Bhajia. The Pakoras were a little over cooked.

Then we asked for a couple of dishes from the specials list, viz., Aamm Chicken (Mango Chicken) [Boneless chicken pieces cooked in fresh spices and a sweet mango sauce] and Fijian Pork Curry [Cubes of pork cooked with capsicum, onion and coriander leaves in a tangy, spicy sauce]. Both of these were delicious. They were both spicy but not painfully hot.

I want to go back and try more food there. After the meal we went and had dessert at Bron’s. She made chocolate truffles and ice cream.

Ramas Restaurant on Urbanspoon

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