I began the afternoon with the Saku Bliss - Hibiscus infused tea with Bacardi and shaken into a sour - quite the refreshing drink and good one to get the palate going. My first dish was the Peruvian Fresh Vegetable Tostada - Assorted pieces of avocado, cucumber, broccoli, grapefruit and edamame served on toasted tortilla with wasabi lemon cream with parmesan slivers. This truly is like a fresh garden salad, with some choice premium ingredients. The wasabi lemon cream and the gentle hit of bird's eye chilli bring this dish together very well.

My second drink was the Mariachi's Song - Fresh blueberries and sage shaken with Don Angel's Tequila. Going with this was the Grilled Chicken with Anticucho sauce - a white meat variant that gives you a completely different feel and flavour of the sauce.

We began with the Sambal Cheese Toast - I mean, come on, the description had me at sambal! I am all for nice spice - I am the one who can eat Priya Pickle sandwiches in the middle of the night. And so I am a sucker for all things sambal and its ilk. This black plate of happiness is the N&M blend of Sambal, Cheddar and Parmesan cheese toasted in sourdough, with wild arugula and spiced tomato relish. Its crisply toasted, well balanced with all the textures and tastes coming through very well. A perfect was to start breakfast and wake up all those sleeping taste buds.

Now what breakfast would be complete without some eggs. And so up next was Thai Style Eggs Benedict which is poached Eggs on a bed of sourdough, chicken ham, topped with Tom Yum Hollandaise. Its the laced hollandaise which makes all the difference and by the time this dish came to the table, I really wanted to know where N&M gets its arugula from. Its so fresh and punch-filled with every bite. And oh yes... those eggs run very well when sliced down the middle.

Synonymous to street snacking in Asia is the Singapore Kaya Toast - generously slathered with coconut jam. So here at N&M the jam is made in-house. Its nice and sweet and perfectly sandwiched between two slices of toast that don't have their edges on them (just the way I love my sandwiches). But considering I am not too much of a sweet-in-the-morning kind of person, I had to ask for sausages on the side.

The N&M Big Breakfast puts together some of those individual choices on the menu to give you a nice and heavy start to the day. - Choice of two eggs prepared with the goodness of arugula, sautéed sausages and Kaya toast. That's quite a plateful and you will be a very happy diner post it... especially if you pair this with the Iced Milo Shake that you see below.


Ice Blended Milo Shake - Now this is one of those drinks that will take you racing back in time - just about the same way Anton Ego did in Ratatouille. Its all sorts of good, happiness inducing and delicious. Think a thick Milo shake with crushed ice topped with a generous sprinkling of Milo powder.

And because the spice fiend in me couldn't help it, I needed to end on the Triple Decker Corn Fritters, with cherry tomato, wild arugula and and balsamic glaze on sourdough bread. This one hits the spot well and can be a complete breakfast dish in itself. Make sure to slice all the way through the deck, pick up a bit of everything (do not forget that argula and make sure to save some for the end)

And finally breakfast ended with Kopitiam Teh Tarik literally translating to Pulled Tea. It takes a bit of getting used - its looks like your average good cuppa but has a more pronounced flavour. But it is something that will make a great beginning or end to your breakfast.

Breakfast begins early here at 8.00AM and only on Sundays goes on till 11.00AM every weekend. An average meal for two is around Rs 1200 if you are really generous with what you order. If you time yourself well, you can get straight into the regular menu which is quite a treat too. And do not forget to dive into the bowl of XO that comes to the table.

Address: Nasi and Mee #974, 4th Cross, ST Bed, 80ft Road, 4th Block, Koramangala
Phone: 080-41513456
Cuisine: Thai, Indonesian, Malaysian, Asian
Cards Accepted: Yes
Wallet factor: Rs 1500 for two on average
Parking: Valet

The bar menu is quite an extensive one and we did have a significant number of drinks that day. Clockwise what you see is the - GinSing made with Ginger and Lemongrass and definitely a nice mild one to begin on. Iced Milo Milkshake- is exactly what the name says. Takes you back to your childhood, but this one is ideally meant to finish your meal on. The Sriracha Blush; Cocky Rooster - The description of  Bird's Eye Chilli, Tomato juice, celery salt with a pint of beer thrown in had me at first go and this was the drink I began with. 




One of the absolute highlights of the meal was the Black Pepper Lobster. It took me back to the night market of Bangkok at Ratchadaphisek, where after a particularly long day we had some grilled lobster at a shack. The lobster was cracked open, the meat scooped out and tossed with onions, garlic and those secret sauces that the people are so famous for, stuffed back in and grilled. This one here reminded of me of that, with its garlic, spring onions, portobello mushrooms, cilantro and black peppercorn filling. A hearty dish, I would go with a beer with this one.

The Half a Dozen Satay is an interesting idea where you get to choose a half dozen portion of satay from the options given, with a choice of sauce. We had here the Portobello mushrooms with peanut sauce, chunky cucumbers and onions.



Chicken Kaprow - with some great aromatics, basil, chilli and loads of minced chicken. This flavourful dish can be the perfect accompaniment to just about anything - from steamed jasmine rice to a heavier noodles or along with a set of other stir fries.

Kung pao calamari - I loved the way the calamari was cut up for this dish. A good Kung Pao sauce, and again an addictive dish, with some added textures from cashews, spring onions and dried chillies.

Desserts were the Vietnamese Banh Chuoi Nuong - the classic baked banana cake; The 5 Spice Creme Brulee and the Tender coconut cheesecake all of which can make the end of the meal a good, whether you order one of them or all of them.

Shizusan has a massive menu on offer with equal options for vegetarians and those who eat meat. It can take you a while to get through the menu and figure out just what to make a meal of. The ambience is lovely especially the semi outdoors and there are a lot of opportunities for selfies too - some fantastic backgrounds and light play going on. The space invites you to sit down and spend some leisurely time with friends, family and some good food. The average meal for two is around Rs 2700++. The one hitch in the restroom department is that you have to use the mall loos which is no fun.

Shizusan Shophouse and Bar
Address: Level 2, Phoenix Market City, Mahadevpura, Whitefield
Cuisine: Pan Asian
Serves Alcohol
Phone: 080672 66655

And while I can't get the official name of this meal in a box - it had Basil Fried Rice along with bokchoy, mushrooms and cashews and was wrapped in a leaf that imparted a lovely fragrance (pandan maybe?)

I had read about the extensive sushi offerings at PaPaYa and heard of  Sushi Tree (though the Sushi Boat is what I am going to order only for me next time) is something I wanted to try. Perhaps chef read my mind because that is what came out next. An eight piece set of sushi, ideal for two people.





Next up was the Prawn Hargao in a green curry prawn farce - Again a delicate hargao that did not take away from the filling in any way thanks to a great casing. The green curry was subtle, packed with flavours that are very reminiscent of our recent Asian holiday. Do remember to eat these as soon as they hit the table to be able to enjoy them at their best.



 Next up on the table was the Chorizo Takoyaki with Negi Tare and a Parmesan Tuille - an Asian style tapas dish if you may - this was a grilled octopus and chorizo takoyaki, made in a unique pan of its own, with a crispy parmesan tuille, and mayo. The idea is to pop the whole ball in your mouth in one go. Each element of the ball reveals itself slowly making this a dish you will truly enjoy.



Vegetarians don't have to worry because the menu does offer you a lot of interesting options. One among them are the Edamame and Chickpea sliders that are served to you on a miniature jeep, along with some homemade potato chips. Never really thought of Edamame and chickpeas coming together but they make quite a nice textured patty. Topped with a mix of Asian mayos, the home made crisps provide that necessary crunch to the dish.



 This last one, I wish I had the tummy real estate space to pack it all away. This beautiful plate came with Pork belly over which is poured a Yuzu buerre blanc, beautifully drenching the blanched greens over it. The quail scotch eggs were quite a crispy on the outside, soft on the inside deal and the potato tubes carried a sauce that complemented the meal very well.