Cranium Bolts: April 2017

Singaporean Street Food Festival at Sheraton Grand

Sheraton Grand Bangalore Hotel is currently hosting a Singaporean Street Food Festival at Feast, their all day dining restaurant.

Chef So Chai Huan and Chef Cheam Boon Yuan have come all the way from Singapore to create that perfect platter.

I was invited to an exclusive culinary class by Chef So Chai Huan. Here's a picture tour of the 'Heart of cooking' culinary class and some festival highlights...

The paper lanterns make a pleasant viewing experience...

Even the kid was trying to reach out...

Sous Chef So Chai Huan from JW Marriott Singapore instantly impressed me with his sunny character...

The first recipe was Crispy chicken which was done in split seconds. The marinated chicken was dipped in oats and seasoning and fried...

I loved the seasoning and oats make it healthier...

His next recipe was Sambal Chili Prawn...

Here's the recipe...

Toss...

It turned out to be a nice little eat to whet my appetite...

Next recipe was a very interesting one, Sweet and Sour Pork...

Here's the recipe...

I liked the subtle hints of the sweet and sour sauce which went well with the pork and peppers...

Up next was chicken soup...

With a hint of Chinese wine...

It turned out to be a tale of simplicity...

After the culinary class, I went ahead to sample the wide buffet spread. I started with the Laksa Soup, a bowl of goodness...

Bacon and spinach salad...

Chili and black pepper mix seafood...

Broccoli with sweet & sour peppers and basil...

Shrimp paste crispy chicken with braised noodles...

Very surprisingly, they didn't serve Singapore Sling. Color of the Kokum drink was almost similar to the sling...

Stir fried tenderloin with sambal...

Country style roasted potato wedges, cherry tomato and winter peas...

Stir fried Bok Choy in garlic sauce...

Maple glazed pumpkin with Parmesan...

Tenderloin with trio-pepper and red onion salad...

Gado Gado salad with prawn cracker...

Sliced lamb with curry potato...

And the three gorgeous desserts (clock-wise from top) Honey Dew Sago with melon, coconut milk and tapioca , Tau Saun, a split green gram dessert and Bubur Cha Cha, a dessert with sweet potato and banana...

The specially curated Singaporean Street Food festival will continue till 30th April 2017.

Cost:

Lunch@ INR 1545 plus taxes

Dinner@ INR 1695 plus taxes

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A bombed birding trip

Last Sunday, I set off early morning on a much anticipated birding trip to Ragihalli forest. It was the first time I was visiting this forest, and I was so hopeful of finding a lot of birds thanks to the many online reviews of the place. As luck would have it, the trip didn't go as expected and I decided to salvage the bombed trip with a wildlife safari at the nearby Bannerghatta National Park.

Here's a photo tour...

Barring a few stretches of broken road, the drive was smooth and scenic...

A green bee eater sitting on an electric wire aroused my interest...

The forest is part of the Ramakrishna Mission Ashram campus at Shivanahalli, which has a huge variety of trees said to be planted by Swamy Vishnuayananda. The forest was abuzz with chirping birds and I walk around excited to catch a glimpse of them...

Although I could hear a variety of bird calls, they were no where to be seen. After walking more than a mile, I finally saw a male Paradise Flycatcher. It was visible for just a few seconds before vanishing...

The Plumeria Rubra blooms made the walk less tiring...

Cashew apple...

And the true cashew fruits...

I saw a Greater Coucal at a distance. The bird was so shy that it flew away within no time...

Still further away I could see four Crested Bulbuls...

I walked a few more miles without much luck...

The terrain goes up and down and my pedometer reading at the end of the day showed 38 floors climbed...

I was thinking how much of a disastrous birding trip this turned out to be. I decided to salvage the bombed birding trip by going on a wildlife safari at Bannerghatta National Park, which is around 14 km from Ragihalli.

The expression of the zebra definitely pepped my mood up...