Restaurant Review : Cafe Churchill at Colaba, Mumbai, India

There are things and places which become a part of your life such as that book you won't lend anyone, a song which reminds you of fond childhood memories and a favourite restaurant you'll always find the time to visit when you return to a city. For me, it is to this last category that Cafe Churchill belongs to.

I first visited the Cafe (or simply Churchill as it is popularly called) over a decade back. Back then, Colaba was a trendy area not so infested with hawkers as you see it today. The then ruling doyens of the Colaba cafeteria scene continue to rule the roost today - Cafe Leopold and Cafe Mondegar's. Cafe Royal was in no-man's land with better quality steaks and sizzlers priced higher than these two eateries but still unable to build up as loyal a clientele as Leo's and Mondy's. But fortunately for them, Bill Clinton happened ( the then US president visited Cafe Royal on an official visit to India and raved about it). But in my humble opinion, Cafe Royal was never a match for Leo's and Mondy's. If they had a rival in their space, it was the 20 feet by 20 feet eatery at the end of Causeway called Cafe Churchill. It is easy to miss the place in the hustle and bustle of Colaba. You'd be better off looking out for the Bombay Dyeing shop on the opposite side of the road (next to Cusrow Baug) and you'll find Churchill on your left.

Once inside the premises, all you can call it is cute and quaint. It is a 20 seater eatery (restaurant would be a fancy term!) sans any decoration. A large board on the wall details Churchill's sandwich, pasta, continental and dessert specialties. Another relatively newer board lists the Chef's specials - Chicken Cordon Bleu, Cracker Jack Prawns etc. A portrait of Zarathustra is the only real image in the seating area apart from a portrait sketch of who else but Winston Churchill. Churchill's affable owner Dolly Mistry or her sister can be sighted often on the premises. They'll help you with recommendations and are generally cordial. The restaurant's long serving manager - Suryakant knows me well and even with my annual or bi-annual visits at best, knows my favourite dishes.

Now the food. If it weren't for the vast variety on offer, I could have boasted I've tried it all. I really have tried 70-80% of the menu in bites and side meals on multiple trips here across breakfast, lunch and dinner. Mains are priced between INR 200-400 and desserts at around INR 100 each. And yes, credit and debit cards are not accepted. My hands down favourite is the Pollo Alla Indiana which is a dish of chicken cubes sauteed with mushrooms and bell pepper cooked in a creamy curried sauce and served with steamed rice and boiled vegetables. Heavenly. I cannot do justice to the dish in words and will only goad you to try it for yourself. Another contestant for the numero uno spot would be Carrettiere. This exoticly named dish is actually a lovely mix of chicken with gherkin, capsicum, onions, sweet basil and paprika in a cream sauce and served with your choice of pasta. Better than most pastas I've had in expensive Italian restaurants around the world! The Cardinal platter with its mix of pomfret, prawns and salmon is a hit too. Long before Theobroma arrived on the scene, Churchill was the go-to place for desserts. For me, it still is. Their Kahlua Torte and Irish Coffee Cheese Cake are simply in-imitable.

Some people think Churchill is overpriced for the food and ambience on offer whilst others like me think all prices are fair to justify the spread, size and taste of all that this gourmet paradise in a matchbox offers. At the end of the day, it is not just about the food. It is the experience of roaming around in Colaba, finding refuge in a quiet corner of a busy street and digging into food which tastes consistently good year after year in a cozy setting that has never changed from the time you first walked in. For old timers, it is a place for reliving old memories and for first timers, creating new ones. Walk right in!

Airline Review : Singapore Airlines

Singapore Airlines (SQ) has been long regarded as the world's premier airline. The iconic Singapore girl has become a symbol of Singapore beyond its aviation avatar. The airline has been at the forefront of innovation in the skies including induction of the latest aircrafts on its fleet and flying an all business-class flight to the US amongst a host of other achievements which consistently earn SQ colorful laurels each year.

Whats going for the airline :
1. SQ has carved a niche for catering to style-conscious and price agnostic travellers who would not be caught dead flying budget airlines. If you seek a quiet flying experience with relatively more upmarket gentry and less raucous crowds, SQ is your airline.
2. The entire ground-to-air experience is flawless. From smooth check-in (especially at Changi SIN) to efficient seating procedure, the entire process has a Six Sigma efficiency attached to it. The crew also help you to place your bags in the overhead lockers which is not a familiar sight on other airlines.
3. Kris World in-flight entertainment system has something for everyone. A wide selection of world cinema, TV shows, music and documentaries for kids and adults will keep all entertained.
4. The Kris Flyer frequent flyer program (affiliated to Star Alliance) is a great program to be part of. Mile redemption is easy to do - for both SQ and partner airlines and the redemption super saver fares can really be a steal especially on long haul European and US routes.
5. SQ probably has the world's only frequent flyer program exclusively for business and first class passengers. The PPS Club experience is in a different league from all other business class flights I've taken and you really feel like royalty. The reclining seats which convert to fully flat beds, efficient service and level of luxury (Givenchy blankets etc) are all exceptional.
6. Routes are well charted and appropriate aircrafts have been assigned to each leg. For the long-haul Newark and Los Angeles flights, there is the customized A340-500 aircraft with 100 business class seats. Singapore-Jakarta is just over an hour's flight but is a very busy route for businessmen and finance professionals. Hence, the large Boeing 777-300. Less busier and tier 2 Asian cities are catered to by SQ's regional subsidiary - Silk Air and the budget segment is catered to by the newly launched airline - Scoot.

What could do with some help :
1. Service - This used to be a hallmark of SQ irrespective of class of travel. In recent years, the overall standards have dipped significantly and the gap between the current business class service (decent at best) and economy class service (close to awful) has never been wider.
2. Food and Beverages - The choice is limited and the food tastes quite bland. Airline food is semi-cooked before loading and cooked on-flight in microwave ovens. Of all airlines' dishes, SQ's seems to taste the most uncooked. Choice of spirits and wines is limited. These are economy class grouses and you won't encounter them in business and first class. However, I've seen Emirates and KLM do a better job with F&B in economy class which is really disappointing considering SQ's panel of star chefs.
3. Aircraft maintenance - On my last 3 trips, I've encountered problems with headphones, volume control and TV screen angles. I'd put it down to poor aircraft maintenance which was unheard of with SQ till a few years back.
4. In-flight magazines - Silver Kris travel magazine offers seemingly cursory information on destinations and things to do. With Singapore's undisputed reputation for being a shopping paradise, the Kris Shop magazine for inflight shopping is quite a disappointment - both in terms of products and prices. The items on offer change very infrequently and there is an overdose of cosmetics being sold.
5. Customer support : The new SQ website seems like an unnecessary expenditure. The earlier website was more user friendly and stable. In week 1 of the new website's launch, there were numerous glitches which left passengers frustrated. Things have improved since then but still the new website is a sore spot with SQ loyalists. The quality of phone customer support has also come down several notches with hold time being abysmally long and huge difficulty communicating in English with the predominantly Mandarin speaking staff.

Overall rating : 8/10. I've been flying SQ as a default option for the last few years. However, since the past couple of years, I've started flying more of Emirates and KLM (for European and US flights), Jet Airways for the India leg and Air Asia for the tourist hotspots in Asia. Till about a couple of years back, the SQ experience was significantly superior to what other carriers offered albeit at a premium. Over this period, while competitors like Emirates, Jet Airways have significantly improved their offering, SQ's service standards have dipped. As a result, the SQ fare premium does not seem justifiable any longer. I feel other airlines offer more bang for the buck.

Restaurant Review : Legal Seafoods at Park Square, Boston, USA

You would have it figured out by now. My love for sea food, that is. On a recent trip to lobster heaven - Boston - I had to do just that. Enjoy as many lobsters as I could. The options are endless and I tried quite a few places. Legal Seafoods, Boston's largest seafood chain, was the most obvious choice and was saved for the final day. After much hemming and hawing (recommended places never live up to the hype, chain restaurants don't offer the authentic flavour etc etc), we finally made our way to the outlet at Park Plaza. Compared to the other more popular outlets at The Prudential Centre and Copley Place, Park Plaza is the least noisy and most exclusive Legal outlet in Boston.

Reservations are recommended and you can make them online. As we entered the massive premises braving our way through heavy snow fall, the restaurant's center-piece - a two storey cascading fountain caught our eye. We landed at our appointed hour to be shown most graciously to a quiet table by the window overlooking the theatre district. Zoey was our attendant for the evening and she was wonderful. She was happy to give recommendations and didn't push us to order expensive items on the menu. 

The menu started off with 'Today's Market Catch' which comes with two side orders. The fresh catch (USD 19-28) offers variety ranging from Sword Fish, Tuna, Faroe Island Salmon to the more popular Mahi Mahi, Rainbow Trout and Haddock. Side order sizes are generous too and you can choose from amongst brown rice, broccoli and cheese, mashed potatoes, onion strings, seaweed salad and a host of others. If you prefer not to go for one big main, you can settle for the 3 course fresh meal which that day started off with the aptly named cocktail 'Fish House Punch' and was followed by an appetizer (USD 6-8) and choice of 3 entrees (USD 17-30) and dessert (USD 6-8). And finally, my eyes settled on the Raison d'etre for our visit - steamed lobsters sold by weight 1.25 lb to 2.50 lb (USD 28-50). I settled for the steamed lobster (but of course) and had no complaints whatsoever with the juicy meat from the crisp cold waters of North Atlantic. My better half settled for the hugely popular Wood Grilled Assortment (USD 28) that offers choice of three fish and two side orders. We didn't have any appetite for the famous New England Clam Chowder which Zoey informed us is a mainstay at every US Presidential inauguration for over 30 years now. Almost all tables around us ordered the thick and creamy chowder with enormous chunks of clam in it and I regret being unable to taste it. Next time.

Legal Seafoods has the distinction of having Boston's second largest wine cellar which features across an expansive 40 page wine list. The wines are quite affordable and even the selection of wines by the glass is pretty decent. Going by the full house, it is evident Legal Seafood does roaring business. Their motto is 'If it isn't fresh, it isn't legal'. Judging by our dining experience, I do not doubt the authenticity of this claim. Moreover, Legal Seafood has a lengthy mission statement which aims amongst other things to provide a 'value' wine list in America and provide a good meal in a nice atmosphere with prompt service and cater to special needs and allergies. They genuinely seem to make an effort to live up to their mission statement which was evidenced by the experience of the table next to ours' whose entire meal was replaced when the patron disclosed he has shell fish allergy.

With my biased view of chain restaurants and prejudices against them, I am happy to have been proven wrong in the instance of Legal Seafoods. If it is quality seafood you seek in a nice ambience with attentive service, make a beeline for Legal Seafoods. Americans might find the chain expensive and Bostonians might discourage you for the place being a has-been, but I beg to differ. Considering how much one pays for quality seafood in a similar place in Asia (Jumbo Singapore comes to mind and their service is no where close to Legal's), I found Legal prices quite okay. I am sure there are better seafood places in Boston, but that does not mean Legal is any less worthy of your business. It will justify your time and money spent here. Go for it.