Just before we left Bangalore for our Christmas break, we decided that we had to go to good ole Bangalore Bistro. We just can't seem to get enough of the place. On this visit, I wanted to make sure that I didn't order what I normally do and wanted to experiment more with the menu.

For starters, the ever forthcoming Ali told us that he would get something specially made for us and that too in beef. I don't have a name for the dish, but it was well marinated beef that was skewered on toothpicks with quartered onions and then cooked. The beef was tender and juicy and was a delight in every morsel. The presentation was great too.

A good view of the beef starter

Sudhakar stuck to the famous "My salad days". This comes with a soup and unlimited salads from an interesting salad bar. He normally doesn't take the soup, but this time round, I had a bad throat and I asked Ali to conjure up a soup that was clear and good for my throat. He brought this clear chicken soup with vegetables. And when I say clear, it was a wonderful bowl of warm peppery goodness that you could see right through the bottom.

Clear chicken soup

For the main course, I was very keen on trying a paella and so the Portabella Paella it was. This was seafood based and came with shrimp, mussels and some fish I could not identify. I am generally wary of rice dishes of this sort since they often taste pretty bah!. But this was a delight in every mouthful. Shrimp and mussels with flavored rice and bits of olives and jalapenos was an absolute delight.

Portabello Paella

The salads were varied as they were tasty. For Anoushka I asked for a simple herbed rice to be put together and a neatly presented one was brought to the table. I was very happy that she demolished every little bit of it.

A helping from the salad bar

Herbed rice for Anoushka

For drinks, an ice tea and blue curacao drink were what we had.

Ice Tea

Earlier reviews of Bangalore Bistro can be read here