Restaurant review - Thikana, Hinjewadi

Ambiance - ****
Menu - ***
Service - ***
Taste - ****

Overall - ***1/2

Located on the busy Hinjewadi road, near the flyover, it's in the same building as Absolute barbecue and Tarsh. The building as enough parking and valet service is also available - though on weekends, even that parking maybe full.

Tuesday to saturday, they have special evenings - girls night, guy's night etc. You can check on their website. Also, they have many offers ongoing on drinks usually. They are not Zomato Gold members though.

Outer smoking zone is quite good, though you will smell the smoke a bit even if no one near you is smoking. Inner non-smoking zone is small because of the presence of the bar and also the dance floor. It's beautifully decorated though. Seats are quite comfortable as well.

Menu options are quite limited. But whatever they serve is quite good. Of all the things we tried there, drunken vegetables was the best. Almost all the dishes that we tried were either good or better. No complaints on that front yet. Service is also quite prompt. Also, you don't have to wait for the same steward to come to you to place your next order. Billing was also prompt.

The biggest NEGATIVE about the place was that when we went there, there was no water in the washroom. Despite letting them know multiple times, nothing was done and we were handed over the bill immediately because I suppose they feared we won't pay the bill as we were complaining about the water. It was girl's night and there was a big crowd. Having no water in the washroom for the entire evening on such an evening is not just wrong but really unhygienic. Not done.

Review - Don't startup - Karthik Kumar

Verdict - *****

This seems like a wrong place for a book review. But many of the foodies who will read this blog would've thought about starting up their own food joint at some point of time. Fears of failure, not having enough money, etc. Are always the factors holding us back.

This book does not give you a rosy picture about starting up and doesn't tell you to go for it just because your heart wants it. It starts with the basic question and makes you think of... Why you want to start something in the first place. And goes from stage to stage of the experiences of a start up based on his Karthik's own experiences.

It gets you to analyse your thoughts about the start up at every stage. It tells you some points that are counter intuitive but make sense when think about it. Best part is, it let's you decide whether or not to start up based on the analysis you do and also gives you suggestions on how to handle the steady state.

A must read for anyone who has ever thought of starting up their own venture - food related or otherwise.

The most structured, realistic and thought provoking book on starting up.

Restaurant review - Flechazo, Wakad

Ambiance - ****
Menu - *****
Service - ****
Taste - ****

Overall - ****

Went to Flechazo for lunch on a saturday afternoon. It's in a new building near the wakad flyover and hence there's no issue in parking. Valet parking available and tips are not allowed. The ambiance of the place is good. Well let, well decorated, comfortable seating. The only eyesore at the moment is that since the building is still new and lot of work is still going on around, the view is a little... unclean outside. But the restaurant itself is quite nicely decorated. Loved the sun.

There's buffet for approx 700 and 600 for non-veg and veg and kids plate is about 100. It's quite reasonable. There's a bar as well but drinks need to be ordered separately and not part of the menu. The options of starters and main course are quite good. There are live counters for some chat items and small shots, pizza and pasta, and kulcha with kheema, etc. Jalebi with rabri and Nitro ice cream is also served at a live counter.

The taste of everything was amazing. Prawn were the best. Main course was also good. Crab was good as well. Dessert options are standard that you generally get in any barbecue restaurant (this is not a barbecue restaurant). Only two issues that we found with the food was that the mutton shorba had too much garam masala and less salt, so the taste of mutton was not coming out. Also, the kulfi ice cream was, well, quite bad.

Service was good. They keep asking you if the food was good - which sometimes gets a bit irritating. But it's all good. Birthday celebrations are also done there, with the stewards dancing to a remixed happy birthday bhangra song. It's funny but cute.

Overall 4.5 out of 5. Half a star reduced for the problem with the two dishes.