Life of Pi(e)

I love, love, love Key Lime Pie. Actually, I love most things with lime…rum and coke with lime, limoncello, Ravalgon’s sugar-boiled lime sweets, lemon curd…the list is endless.  Today is one of those days when I woke up feeling a little blah…dragged myself outta bed, got ready, haggled with the auto dude who had the audacity to ask for Rs 80 from Eldams Road to Cathedral Road (His reason? Road le romba traffic madam! Petrol price increased madam – dude! You have an LPG vandi!). Finally reached office and sat at desk for a good 10 minutes staring into nothingness till I actually decided to get my work done.

Anyway, coming back to the point of this post, yes, my love for all things lime. I was craving something lime-ey (yes, it does qualify as a word in my uber cool, urban dictionary) and since Zara is right next to my work place, I headed there with a book in tow to spend some alone time. One starter down, I asked my steward to bring me the “only reason I am even remotely not biting someone’s head off today” KEY LIME PIE. I loved it. Loved the sweet, unfussy waiters more, and want to share the joy with you. So without much ado, here’s the recipe: 

Key Lime Pie

For the crust:

·         1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs

·         3 tablespoons sugar

·         5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For the filling:

·         1 can sweetened condensed milk

·         4 large egg yolks

·         Zest of 1 large lime

·         1/2 cup lime juice, from 5 limes

METHOD: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium bowl, stir together the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter with a fork. Mix until graham cracker crumbs are moist. Press mixture into a 9-inch pie plate or dish. Pat down the bottom and sides.

Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown. While the crust is baking, prepare filling. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk and egg yolks. Whisk until well combined. Add in the lime zest, and lime juice. Whisk well. Set mixture aside. It will thicken up as it sits.

When the piecrust has cooled to slightly warm or room temperature, pour the lime filling over the piecrust. Bake for 15-17 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a cooling rack. When cool, chill the pie in the refrigerator. The filling will set up as it cools. Chill for at least one hour before serving.  Serve cold.

Killer Combo

As most of you would’ve guessed by now, I’m a big fan of the Zara experience. Therefore, it obviously comes as no surprise when I say that every time something new is launched, be it a drink or a new menu, I’m right up there with my bunch of Zara loyalists to try, test and taste what’s on offer.

So one sunny afternoon, when the boss and I were facing frustrating times at work, we decided to go sample the new Combo lunch offer that just underwent a facelift recently. Off we trotted the two of us, with our uber sweet colleague in tow and found ourselves in the cool confines of the resto bar, which seemed like the much needed R n’ R we required.

To soothe our tired minds, the three of us opted for some refreshing mocktails (A virgin Pina Colada for me and Strawberry Coladas for them) and found bliss on a hot summer day. Perfectly blended, creamy and luscious, with just the right bite of sweet and tart, this kept us happy as we waited for the starters to come.

And then in all its delicious glory, arrived one plate after the other. First up, were the pick of the starters – Crumb-fried curry flavoured eggs served with spicy mayo (perfectly boiled and crisp-fried eggs with a curry cream on the inside that complemented the spicy, golden yellow mayo), Vegetable Quesadilla (the ideal on-the-go meal oozing cheese and crisp vegetables, offset by a tart, pungent salsa verde) and the ever popular Crumb-fried cottage cheese fingers (served with a Zara cocktail sauce).

As we waited for our entrees, the first course being polished off in a matter of minutes, I couldn’t help but notice that even on a Wednesday, the placed was packed to capacity. The main course of choice was Cottage Cheese and mixed peppers in a creamy curry sauce served with rice. Even though this was my colleagues order, much to his dismay I wolfed down most of his dish. The curry sauce was one of the best I have tasted in recent times – creamy, voluptuous, with a full flavour. Also hitting the sweet spot was the Grilled stuffed chicken breast with tomato salsa and potato wedges and the Mixed vegetable pancakes topped with cream sauce. Perfectly cooked and bursting with flavour, it is no wonder why these combo lunches do so well at Zara.

Sufficiently stuffed to the gills, but refusing to take no for an answer, us three musketeers went ahead and asked for dessert and boy! Were we happy! The Cream Caramel with coffee cream was sublime perfection, owing to its light, fluffy airy texture; a sharp contrast to the doughy, sweet, indulgent goodness of the Crispy fried apple roll with vanilla ice cream.  As we walked out with a content smile on our faces, I couldn’t help but break into song and dance...today being ladies’ night at Zara, guess who’s coming to dinner!

Salud!

Sure everybody knows that sangria is not probably the highest grade of wine. After all, it's obtained from the third press, the press that is supposedly unfit for consumption. But if you have tried, what we have tried at Zara, then my dearies, that opinion is just about to change.

With over 15 new starters and different varieties of sangria and cocktails to choose from, this one's a veritable treat. The starters are varied and if you thought that Spain had nothing to offer except the usual paella, sausages and omelettes, then think again. From the delicately flavoured cilantro chicken to the robust chickpea salad, it's a delight all the way. There is also the heavenly grilled chicken with basil mozzarella and tomatoes and the honey garlic prawns, which should feature high on the priority list. And the Spanish have also gone a long way in establishing that it is not only the Swiss who make excellent cheeses. Don't believe us? Then try the manchego cheese platter and your opinion will change faster than you can say moo!

When it comes to the sangria, Zara did, for a brief period did have an extensively crafted Sangria menu which had everything from winter woodiness to tropical tastiness. I really wish they would bring it back though!  However, I do recommend the red wine sangria very very strongly. Two glasses and trust me, I’m a happy child! The white wine sangria is also extremely refreshing, with the wine used having a slightly citrusy, sharp note…that plays off beautifully with the crisp chunks of golden fruit. When it comes to cocktails, the highballs (90 ml of alcohol is used as opposed to 45-60 ml which is the usual measure) such as Long Island Ice tea and Bullfrog are definitely worth a shot!

Though Spain is not particularly known for its vegetarian fare, we are pleasantly surprised with the choice of starters on offer. While the Cajun spiced corn kernels is nothing to shout about, the cheese stuffed jalapeno peppers,, served with chunky salsa is a clear winner. Also worth a mention is the mushrooms in red wine and pimentos. Delicately flavoured with garlic and rosemary, this subtle dish is quite strong in flavour.

When we are talking tapas, can chorizo, beef and tenderloin be far behind? Do try the grilled beef tenderloin with potato mash, which is rare, but rendered to perfection. Another hugely popular dish is the Spanish chorizo and baby potatoes. Robust and rich, this one is full of flavour, spice and all things nice. If you are stuffed to the gills after this fabulous feast, then do not despair. Just wash down your meal with yet another heady glass of sangria, and see the world drift by in slow motion. Salud!

Spanish sojourn

There is nothing ordinary about Zara. Not the ambience, not the staff, not the music, not the drinks…and most definitely, not the food. Food, did you hear? Yes, you heard right. While the popular restobar in the city has the crowd ooh-ing and aahing about their delectable, yet affordable cocktails, one service that hasn’t got its due is their delightful food.

Armed with an appetite and a determination to discover more, my colleague and I set off one sunny afternoon to try out the tapas and more at Zara. It’s my friend’s first time here (yes, I know shocking!) and needless to say, she is charmed. “Reminds me of the pubs I used to haunt in the UK,” she quips. I somberly remind her that my club experiences have been limited to the Indian map, but if this is what UK pubs are like…then I’m sure, I will like!

Not wasting any time, we decide to tackle their lunch combos. We pick the sangria as our weapon of choice, a refreshing white one for me and a heady, sweet, red one for her. With crisp, juicy chunks of tropical fruit, the sangria not only soothes my frazzled nerves, but is a revitalising start to the meal. For the starters, our pick is the crumb fried cottage cheese fingers, the Mexican fried spicy chicken wings and the chicken sausages tossed with soy and ginger. While the cheese sticks were simple and subtly flavoured, the sausages were zingy, spicy and complemented our drinks very well. The dipping sauces come in the form of salsa, an interesting spicy mayonnaise and a smooth and piquant tomato sauce.

Slightly stuffed but in the mood for more, the main course brings us to a plethora of choices, but mostly of the Mexican, Spanish, Italian lineage. While the garbanzo beans and mixed vegetables cooked in spicy tomato gravy, reminds me of our very own chhole, the vegetable and bean burrito, passes muster. However, the curried cottage cheese with Alfredo sauce and cheese was a mouth-watering treat, as was the batter fried fish, topped with creamed spinach and cheese.

With no place in our stomachs for even a single morsel more, my friend and I decide to take a rain check on the desserts. However, the next time around, the crepes with orange glaze and ice cream is surely going to be a must have on my list.

The food choices at Zara keeps changing once a month, so as to ensure that the menu is always fresh and updated; something we rarely find at restaurants nowadays. The very healthy portions and affordable prices do not compromise on the quality of the food and this is where the Tapas bar scores way above its counterparts. Salud!

Livin’ La Vida Loca

 

When David Villa and his band of boys took home the Holy Grail of football thanks to some brilliant footwork by Andres Iniesta’s 116th-minute strike, the entire stadium erupted in cheer with the vuvuzelas blowing loud and clear. Yes, it was the night when the Dutch dream was shattered and Holland cried orange tears.

Far far away, in a land littered with clichés of being called ‘the mystical place of snake charmers, Kamasutra, sadhus and slums’, and further down south in seemingly conservative Chennai there was one quaint little place called Zara Tapas Bar which was celebrating the victory of Spain. Why you may ask? Well, though they don’t really need an introduction, Zara is India’s first Tapas bar and probably one of the best pubs in Chennai. 

As I sat at the pub on a muggy evening watching the finals, nestling my tall glass of sangria (that is my way of supporting Spain, apart from drooling over David Villa) a thought suddenly struck me! As a resident of Chennai and now well into my drinking prime, I have probably spent many a night at this pub drinking, talking, dancing and simply ‘sitting’ night after night with friends, strangers and just about every body. Such is the charm of Zara. Not once will you feel out of place, not once will you be asked to leave, unless of course you beat up the manager (I wouldn’t advise this because he has personally spoken at length with me about his fitness routine).

Truth be told though, if there is one reason I keep going back to Zara, It is probably because I personally think they have the best tapas, cocktails and food. Their Spanish sangrias, which come by the pitcher or glass is made with a combination of chunky tropical fruits and wines, dances like a Spanish chica doing the salsa in front of me. The starters range from the ever popular nachos, to interesting dishes like the jalapeno stuffed with cheese, spicy chicken and cheese, cottage cheese and potato nuggets, shredded crispy lamb with peppers, mushrooms and pimentos in a red wine reduction…the list just goes on!

I have said this before, and I’d like to reinstate that for me, if there is a bar in Chennai that really just lets me ‘be’, it would have to be Zara. The place has become a friend in need of sorts- Monday blues, Tuesday musings, Girl’s night on Wednesdays, retro Thursdays, or the Friday-Saturday weekend partying, there is something for everybody at Zara. It’s like a one size fits all…sigh, if only clothes were like that!

Take in the Tapas

When you enter a bar/pub/nightclub, you seldom look for anything to wolf down when the munchies strike late...and that’s probably because most pubs, in most cities hardly have what you would call a bar menu. And especially in Chennai, when the ‘snack items’ solely consist of peanut masala, and potato chips, one longs for something that fills the stomach and doesn’t burn a hole in the pocket!

I’ll agree and tell you straight off that I’m a big fan of Zara, the tapas bar in Chennai, but honestly, I have always gone here more for the alcohol and ambience…with the food usually taking a backseat.

So, after a particularly long night of drinking, and being hung over so bad that I swore never to drink for the next six months, I found myself cluelessly sitting with a bunch of friends at Zara on a Saturday night. Unfortunately, while they are wining (read wine-ing), I’m reduced to whining and cribbing about the demerits of alcohol (these phases come once in a blue moon, otherwise I’m out protesting every TASMAC strike).

With nothing better to do, I decide to do a quick dekko of their fancy bar menu and settle down comfortably after ordering a couple of tapas; I’m going to get high on food you see! What hits me as I order is how everything seems strangely ‘foreign’, which must mean they are authentic right. The manager quickly explains to me the concept of Spanish finger food and even throws in some unpronounceable names for my benefit.

Mighty embarrassed, I decide to start off with something they call pinchos. Simply put, pincho is the blood relative of a bruschetta (flat pieces of crisp toast with a host of toppings). Trying to figure out what the actually difference between the two was, I approached Sebastian (their bartender who is a native of Espaniol) and he sat me down on what seemed like an education lesson; of course the fact that he gave me food to stuff my face as we spoke only made it better.

Pinchos (spelled pintxos in Basque) in Navarre, the Basque Country, gets its particular name because many of the tapas in this region are held together with a pincho or toothpick through them. The toothpick is used to keep whatever the snack is made of from falling off the slice of bread it is attached to and to keep track of the number of tapas the customer has eaten. While I much preferred the regular tomato and basil one, my friend couldn’t stop raving about the crab and prawn meat version.

Now armed with a mission to try all things that sounded alien to me, we ordered a host of other tapas like prawns and pasta salad, chorizo and chick peas, lamb meat balls and mushrooms in red wine. Now that I have been educated, I must tell you that 95% of the dishes on this menu are extremely true to its Spanish original. And that’s why the food stands out. Because you will find no chicken tikka masala, chilli chicken type nonsense on this menu.

While I’m not a big fan of beans, the way it was combined with the tart chorizo really made me beg for more. The mushrooms though, were by far my most favourite dish – succulently cooked in a red wine reduction and laced with garlic and pimentos, I was so taken by this dish I threatened the management for the recipe. There are certain things on this menu that are absolute fan favourites – like the amazing Manchego cheese platter, which is served with toast and olives; or the prawns with chilli flakes and olive oil – quite a crowd pleaser because it comes in the same pot it was cooked in!

Like I said before, I’m a huge Zara fan…that being said, I also know that there are things on the menu I won’t probably try again, but it was worth a shot the first time around. Suitably stuffed and extremely satisfied I turn to my drinkers friends and sigh!  How I would kill for that perfect glass of sangria now! Aperitif anyone?