Olivia @ Olive Downtown, Kochi

Olivia @ Olive Downtown, Kochi

 

 

Review & Photographs By Lt Col D Purushothaman Pillay (Retd)

Great Buffet Choices At The Newest All Day Diner In Kochi.

Kochi has a brand new entrant in the ‘All Day Dining” space that too located right in the heart of town at Kadavanthra. I would like to share a wonderful new food-discovery experience in “Olivia” at the recently opened Olive Downtown Hotel.

We as a family were pleasantly surprised by the multi-element food spread that we stumbled upon during a Sunday lunch we enjoyed at the Olivia Restaurant. A buffet for me personally is a remarkable way to explore different cuisines and discover new tastes. At  this lunch we were privileged to sample a mix of  Thai, Mexican, Kerala, Bengali, Punjabi, Creole, Continental and Chinese dishes in the elaborate spread of soups, salads, proteins, vegetables, starch, carbohydrates and desserts selected by the knowledgeable Executive Chef Faisal Basheer, for the day.

As a result when the guests line up to choose their food from one serving station to another, they are spoilt for choice, given the variety paraded for consumption. I had also noticed very subtle little things that had been kept in mind in the layout of food on the easy access central food island. Like for instance, the multiple plate and bowl stacks placed intermittently, that also got attentively replenished as and when they depleted, then the first stop in the food line housed the cold cuts and as one meandered to the last few stations adjacent to the seating area, one found hot foods in covered food warmers thereby ensuring that one walks to the dining seat with a plate full of appetizingly warm food.

I shall now touch upon the menu in some detail. For soups there were two options the delicately flavoured Chinese Talumein Vegetable Soup and the Mexican Hot Pot. For Salads the wide selection included Spicy Carrot Salad, Mexican Coleslaw, Creole Green Bean Salad and the basic Raw Vegetable Salad. Non-vegetarian salads had Thai Beef Salad, Chicken Noodle Salad and Tomato & Egg Salad.

The main course had exciting meat options like the Kottayam Chemmeen Curry (Prawns), Erachi Ularthiyathu (Beef), Adivasi Kaada Chuttathu (Quail), Laal Maas (Lamb) and Schezwan Chilli Fish. The vegetarians had some wonderful dishes in Bengali Dal Tadka, Paneer Kurchan, Aloo Mutter Curry, Khajur Ki Tikki, Achinga Mezhukkupuratti, Kadhari Vegetables, Terrano Belando, Baked Vegetables In Mustard Sauce and Crispy Fried Vegetables.

The Rice/Pasta/Breads included Steamed Basmati Rice, Shandong Vegetable Noodles, Penne Arabiatta, Kashmiri Pulao, Roti, Naan, Kerala Porotta and Appam.

Finally the Desserts section had Walnut Chocolate Brownie, Kiwi Cream Flan, Burnt Sugar Custard, Blueberry Cheesecake, Vanilla Gateaux, Assorted Parfait, Sugar-Free Apple Trifle, Parippu Payasam, Semiya Payasam, Milk Peda, Gulab Jamun and Shahi Tukda. The food was delicious and stood out for its freshness and distinct flavours.

In addition to the breakfast, lunch and dinner buffets, the restaurant also has an elaborate selection on offer in the á la carte menu. They even have an exclusive children’s buffet spread. The restaurant imbues an elegant ambience and one is also impressed by the impeccable and attentive service provided by the smart waiting staff. This value for money buffet is a great bargain priced at just Rs 599 excluding taxes. That variety of food at that cost in such an aesthetic setting is a really good deal.

The tall, polite and well-spoken F & B Manager Sankar V Nair and the very experienced and confident Executive Sous Chef Faisal Basheer, who jointly lead the efficient Olive Culinary Team are the brains behind this Olivia experiment and richly deserve our compliments and encouragement. I firmly believe that if Olive can maintain this price point for the delectable fare they offer at Olivia’s multi-cuisine buffet, that is an eclectic assortment of diverse food styles, then it will soon gain the reputation of being the best buffet restaurant in town. We are looking forward with excitement to their soon to be opened specialty restaurant called "Afghan" which would be serving Middle Eastern delicacies. On the basis of what this super food-team is already providing, that would definitely be one menu worth exploring.

Here I am reminded of a wise idiom I had learnt in school which says “Well begun is half done”. “Great Job” Team Olive. I wish this new enterprise that has been launched with a promising start, the very best for a successful and prosperous future.

Hotel Olive Downtown

28/286, KP Vallon Road,

Kadavanthra Junction,

Kadavanthra,

Ernakulam – 682020

Kerala

Website : http://www.olivehotels.com/olive-down-town

Facebook Page : https://www.facebook.com/olivedowntown?fref=ts

Reservations Call – 0484-4222333

Wow! Momo

Wow! Momo

A Momoteria with Many Choices!

By Lt Col (Retd) D Purushothaman Pillay

"Momo" is a stuffed dumpling, which is a traditional delicacy of the Tibetan and Nepalese cuisine.  They are very popular in the frontier regions of Bhutan, and the Himalayan borders of India including Sikkim, Leh-Ladakh, Darjeeling, Arunachal Pradesh and any other location with a significant Nepalese Diaspora, like Delhi, Assam, Shillong, West Bengal etc. It is similar to the Chinese 'Baozi' & 'Jiaozi', the Mongolian 'Buuz' or the Japanese 'Gyoza' steamed buns.

“Wow! Momo”, is a rapidly growing brand of Quick Service Restaurants that was born in Kolkata. It is an awe-inspiring, five year old success story, starring two, still in their 20s, enterprising, 'Non-MBA', commerce graduates from St. Xavier's College, Kolkata, named Sagar J Daryani and Binod Kumar Homagai.

In Aug 2008, with a borrowed capital of Rs Twenty Thousand from Daryani's father, and the fortuitous arrival of an expert Momo cook from Homagai's hometown in Nepal, these two 22 year olds, established their first outlet, at a 36 sq ft kiosk at Spencer's, in Tollygunge, Kolkata. That venture, has since grown, to become the first Pan-Indian branded Momo chain, under the active mentoring, funding and venture support of primarily, The IndUS Entrepreneurs (TiE) and Indian Angel Networks (IAN) among others. These two visionaries must be acclaimed for their foresight and credited for making the humble street food - 'Momo' into a winning business proposition. By September 2011, the brand attained a whopping turnover of Rs 2.4 Crore, from a chain that had expanded to more than 25 outlets.

The first couple of years were invested in the hard work, of perfecting the production, distribution and operations front. This phase also witnessed a double digit proliferation of outlets in Kolkata. Thereafter in 2011, enriched with the precious lessons of the Kolkata experience, expansion and consolidation, these industrious and ambitious entrepreneurs, felt adequately equipped and encouraged, to venture out into newer markets. The brand 'Wow! Momo', first moved out to Bangalore, and then further onto Pune, thereafter it quickly added Chennai and Coimbatore, to its growing network of cities. Now courtesy two enthusiastic foodies, Haris and Rizwan Ali of M/s Sulfyaz, the first Wow!Momo outlet in Kochi, was successfully started a few months back, in the Food Court, at the Lulu Mall.

The expansion to newer geographies made experimentation a necessity. Their Momos evolved into different shapes and styles, and introduced newer fillings, over time, including Prawn, Pomfret, Chicken & Cheese, Chicken & Capsicum, Paneer, Corn-Spinach and Mushroom.

In the Kochi outlet, one is offered the option of 9 different types of fillings. It is further sub-divided into 5 non-vegetarian options, that includes Chicken, Fish, Chicken Capsicum, Prawn and Chicken Schezwan Momos and 4 vegetarian options, that includes Veggie, Paneer, Mushroom and Corn-Spring Onion Momos.

These are always served with 2 distinct types of sauces, ‘The Red Chili Dip’ a flaming hot sauce and another sauce with an Indian twist ‘The Green Coriander Dip’.

The Momos are presented in a staggering 6 different forms, namely - Steamed, Fried, Pan Fried (With a further 2 variants i.e. Schezwan Sauce and Tomato Garlic Sauce), Sizzler Momos, Momo Burgers (Momburg) and Dessert Chocolate Momos.

 

A serving or plate denotes a total of 5 number of Momos. The per plate pricing of various types of Non-Veg Momos are between Rs 95-110 for Steamed, Rs 105-120 for Fried & Rs 115-135 for Pan Fried ones.

The per plate pricing of various types of Veg Momos are between Rs 80-95 for Steamed, Rs 90-105 for Fried & Rs 100-120 for Pan Fried ones.

Other than the Momos one also has the option of trying out two variants of Thukpas, a kind of mildly flavored soup with noodles, vegetables and optionally meat. They are substantial and quite filling. Chicken Thukpa is priced only at Rs 95 a bowl and the Vegetable Thupka is Rs 90. My word, this warm broth, is a special treat for the palate, that serves as a perfect briny, appetising fluid that lends a welcome warmth to the gullet, in this blustery, cool, rainy monsoon weather.

The Sizzler Momos are priced between Rs 175-205.

The Momo Burger (Moburg) is priced Rs 45 for Veg and Rs 55 for Chicken.

The very innovative, melt in the mouth, dessert Chocolate Momo costs Rs 40/Momo or Rs 120/Platter of 4 Momos.

In addition to the above there are value options at Rs 145-155 for a Momo+Thukpa+Pepsi or a Rs 165-175 Momo+Thukpa+Moburg+Pepsi. There are other mini-value, flexi-combos priced between Rs 25-55 to choose from.

This 11 AM to 11 PM snacking option, is comparitively modestly priced and with the accompanying wow-flexi deals, is a good value for money offering, when compared to the other less exciting and pricier choices the Food Court currently affords. The momos we tried were all very tasty and well stuffed, cooked and presented, except for the Prawn Momos which we occasioned to have, they were grossly under stuffed and hardly had any prawns. Be warned that, that there are no credit cards accepted and no home deliveries yet. However, the service was prompt and efficient and the staff courteous and helpful. One other pertinent observation made, was that this outlet, was most certainly much neater and more hygienic, than all the other Momo joints that we had eaten in, elsewhere in town. We all quite enjoyed our experience and would certainly return for a quick bite, in our future forays into Lulu Mall. The energy and the bustle, in the common seating area must have also contributed to our feeling of pleasurable satisfaction.

Thanks to Wow! Momo, if one hasnt tried Tibetan Momos as yet, one can sample this new cuisine, without having to travel out of town or having to hunt out nondescript, hole in the wall joints, trudging through dusty by-lanes, map in hand. One can now also enjoy different variants of this wonder dumpling, in the comfort of an airconditioned mall, in our very own Kochi!

Wow! Momo

Food Court, Third Floor,

Lulu Mall, Kochi

Contact Person - Owner Haris B.B. or Store Manager Sameer – 09746586365

Email - info@wowmomo.co.in

Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wow-Momo/165456736798479

Website - http://www.wowmomo.co.in/

National Head Office:-

Yo Foods India

29A/2E/1, Near Sulekha More, Loknath Mandir, Raja S.C. Mullick Road. Jadavpur University, Kolkata - 700032

Landline - 033-24292473

Mobile   - +91-9432649983