I'm Lion, Strictly Non-veg

I'm Lion, Strictly Non-veg
Bavdhan

Take a drive around the city & you'd find many a restaurants claiming to be 'Pure Veg' but do you recollect of one which proudly claims to serve just Non-veg?

In a lane leading towards DSK Raanwara in Bawdhan is 'I'm Lion' owned & run by young Chef Ameya Madkaikar, Ameya has the audacity to claim that his place is 'Strictly Non-Veg'! When we asked Ameya about why is his place is named so, the quirky fellow replied 'kyunki Sher (Lion) kabhi Ghaas nahi khaata!'

I'm Lion specializes in Goan & Manglorian cuisine & does a good job at it. Sea-food is their USP & having visited the Lion's Den, as it's fondly referred to as by regulars, multiple times I've always had a great experience with the quality & freshness of the catch that Ameya serves.

The Kori Sukka, which is Manglorian styled Suka Chicken, Chicken Cafreal, Kolambi (Prawn) Masala Fry & Surmai Rawa Fry are my personal favorites in starters here.

I'm Lion does lipsmacking Seafood Thaalis with the option to choose between Pomfret, Surmai (King Fish), Rawas (Indian Salmon), Prawns, Bombil (Bombay Duck) & Bangda. The Thaali consists of Fried Fish of choice, a bowl of Prawn Curry (which is common across all Fish Thaalis), 3 Chapatis or Neer Dosa (paper thin, soft dosas, highly recomended), plain Rice & Sol Kadhi.

If you're not carrying the appetite for a Thaali, I'm Lion also serves the coastal staple of Fish Curry Rice, with the option to choose between all the above mentioned varieties of fish cooked in Goan or Manglorian Curry served with Rice. The Prawn Curry Rice & Bangada Curry Rice are my choice in this segement.

Another must try here is Kombadi/ Mutton Wade, which basically is a slightly spicy Chicken/ Mutton Curry served with Wade which is a cousin of the Poori made using Multigrain flour & a bit of seasoning; very few places manage to make good Wade, I'm Lion makes excellent ones! This is a great one-dish meal.

Mutton Keema with Neer Dosa again is a speciality of the house & a very well made dish. If you're a bit adventurous do ask for Crab Masala, this is cooked in a Konkani Masala, shed your inhibitions & get all messy with the crabs on your plate! You've to be lucky though if looking for Crabs or Tisrya (Clams) as these aren't always available.

They don't have a very extensive dessert menu & neither am I a big fan of desserts, I'm however told by my foodie-buddies time & again that they do an excellent Chocolate Mud Pie. On our last visit here we were served Lion's take on the Serradura,  though quiet unlike the classic Serradura, was a treat to the senses indeed.

What I love about the food at I'm Lion is that their food has the touch of home cooked food. All the masalas used in their preparations, Ameya tells us, are home ground. The place, though very tiny, is immensely clean & personal attention to all details & suggestions by Ameya while ordering food to suit your palate makes it a favourite eating place.

It's recomended that you call & reserve a table in advance. Being a small place be prepared to wait for your turn, the wait, I'm sure, would be worthwhile.

Please Note: THURSDAY is their weekly off.

Address: U10, 1st Floor, Navkar Avenue, DSK Raanwara Lane, near Axis Bank, Bavdhan

Phone: 020 30162247

Ambience: 3.5 / 5
Food Quality: 4.5 / 5
Service: 4 / 5
Novelty: 3 / 5
Overall Experience: 4.5 / 5

Chutney Sauce Murabba

CHUTNEY, SAUCE, MURABBA

Baner Pashan Link Road

Nachos- I don't fancy Nachos..

Nacho Nacho- I danced with glee with the first bite, Nacho!

Where: At Chutney Sauce Murabba, Baner-Pashan Link Road

What: Nacho Nacho as CSM calls it, is Nachos made with Rajgira flour which substitutes the traditional Cornmeal & powdered groundnuts, served with cheese sauce, olives & jalapeño!

How much: Rs. 150/-

The newly renovated CSM on BPLR has a few new dishes on their already innovative menu & Nacho Nacho was our dish of choice today along with our favourite at CSM, the Masala Thumps Up for me & Masala Chai for the wife..

I loved the idea of Nacho Chips made with Rajgira Flour though I had my share of apprehension at the time of ordering the dish. But a bite of the Nacho & all apprehensions vanished in thin air!

Personally, I'm not a member of the 'I eat only health food' brigade but the idea of Nachos made with Rajgira flour & crushed groundnuts did intrigue me & later when Dinesh Maheshwari, the man behind CSM, mentioned that the chips were not fried but roasted on a tawa, further elevated my interest towards the dish.. The Nachos were very tasty, had a nice crunch to it, the light flavor of groundnut added to the taste of dish..  the Cheese Sauce got the dish together with a generous helping of black olives & jalapeño.

If you're around BPLR or near Blue Ridge, Hinjewadi and feel like grabbing a bite, do walk into CSM & grab a plate of Nacho Nacho. And while you're there do try their newly introduced Pav-Bhaji (have it & see if you can notice the healthy twist to this all-time favourite), Indo-Thai Curried Rice, Curritos which is CSM's take on the Burritos or the Kheemadar Paratha served with home-made Murabba!

Flying Duck

Baner- Pashan Link Road or BPLR as it's called has become a hub of great eateries & having tried a few of them have found them to be good & unique at their offerings.

Flying Duck is a (not so) new kid on the block which serves oriental cuisine, to an extent unique by not serving the Chindian favourite Manchurian-Chilly Chicken kind of stuff.

What I found interesting about the place was:
a) the portion size- it is kind of good for one, if shared between 2 you can order multiple dishes & not be stuffed to your gills.
b) the plating/presentation of every dish- they tend to make every dish look attractive in-spite of minimalistic dressing-up

Flying Duck is run by two youngsters; Minakshi & Alakesh, who don't have a background in the food industry but are passionate about food & this shows in the food that they serve.

Coming to the food, we ordered:
1. Basil Chicken: we had a sub 5 year diner with us & on Alakesh's recommendation we ordered the Basil Chicken as it was low on spice. With prominent flavor of fresh Basil & spice level to her liking, this was a perfect dish for our young friend.

2. Vietnamese Caramel Chicken: This had a nice punch of chilly & caramelised sauce; a treat to the senses.

3. Pork Chops: this is Flying Duck's signature dish & having heard so much about it from friends & fellow foodies, this was a must have & needless to say it did live upto the expectation! The chops were melt in the mouth, meat sliding off the bone like a hot knife thru butter & the taste, oh so divine! This one is a *NOT TO BE MISSED AT ANY COST* dish at Flying Duck .

In main course my fellow diner of the evening, Mugdha, ordered for a Chicken Khow Suey, this came with the plethora of accompaniments & was a visual treat. Alakesh had mentioned that they make the best Khow Suey in Pune & Mugdha did assure us that this was by-far the best Khow Suey she's had!

My friend Shreyas ordered another highly recommended dish at FD, the Quail with Special Sauce served with Buttered Rice. This took a slightly longer time to arrive & Shreyas was a tad edgy as everyone but him had food on the table! Once the food arrived, the gentleman was totally engrossed in his food & at the end had an extremely satiated look on his face which goes on to say a lot about the food on his plate, the way it was cooked, the taste, the flavours, the presentation, everything! Since I'm not too fond of Quail, this was the only dish which I didn't try.

Anuja ordered for a Chicken with Spicy Sauce; the dish was, as the name implies, SPICY, but unlike other places where the spice overrides all other flavours this was a mighty flavourful preparation.

I ordered for a Skewered Pork for me. Alakesh offered to make this with Pork Belly which allowed the meat to stay succulent. The pork meat again was extremely well cooked & made for a wonderful meal.

The Quail, Spicy Chicken & Skewered Pork all came with Rice, veggies & a fried Egg on top & made for a complete meal; one which after three starters between four adults & 1 kid we were barely able to finish!

The food along with Iced Teas cost us Rs. 600/- per head for 4 adults.
* On their Signature menu they have Spicy Chicken (Ghost Chilly) which is made using the hottest chilly in the world, from Nagaland, the Bhoot Jolokia! Do try it at your own risk if you have it in you!
* Flying Duck is a small but extremely popular place, hence do have the patience to wait for a table, once seated the food will surely blow your senses!
* Tuesday is their weekly off, plan accordingly.