Colonial Life in Ooty

Voyage to India Part 2: The South
When: Jan/Feb 2014
Where: London, Mumbai, Ooty, Kochi, Aleppey, Mamalapuram, Madurai

The next stop on our foodie tour was Ooty, an old British Hill Resort where one would go to escape the searing heat elsewhere in the country.  We stayed at Kingscliff, a converted set of Bungalows from the time of the empire, furnished in colonial style with a quaint themed restaurant.

Before that it was time to travel low cost on IndiGo who really go all out with the packaging on their in-flight catering.

In the evening we had dinner at Earl's Secret the hotel's restaurant.  The atmosphere was interesting with slightly off kilter service, a singer and a lovely log fire place for warmth and atmosphere as the temperature really drops at night.  We went with food from the Indian menu which was good, but perhaps a little over priced for what it was.

Kingscliff also offers breakfast in a beautiful glass house each morning.  Unfortunately the buffet didn't live up to the building.

We had a great lunch at the Garden Restaurant in town.  Great, simple, Indian food at its best.

In the afternoon we went to the Indian version of Starbucks, Cafe, Coffee, Day.  Great fun and very surreal.

For dinner we are in town at Kabab Corner, it was quite busy and came recommended in our Lonely Planet guide.  Food was not the best, it didn't look overly clean and one of our party got sick the next day.

The Oberoi Mumbai

Voyage to India Part 2: The South

When: Jan/Feb 2014

Where: London, Mumbai, Ooty, Kochi, Aleppey, Mamalapuram, Madurai

Part 2: Welcome to Mumbai

Our first two days were spent in Mumbai, a city filled with food.  We had the privilege to stay at the fantastic Oberoi hotel and with a complementary breakfast each morning and a complementary dinner at the hotel's flagship restaurant Ziya, run by Michelin starred chef Vineet Bhatia it was going to be amazing.


We started our evening with some delicious cocktails at the Eau Bar, that our bar tender carefully smelt to make sure each and every one was perfectly crafted.  The bar however, contained all the worst elements from the bar scene in Lost in Translation.

It was then time for the main event, dinner at Ziya.  This was every bit as good as our meal at Quilon with perfectly cooked Indian influenced food all washed down with some Indian merlot.  Service was excellent.

 Buttermilk palate cleanser










Chaat three ways









Paneer and spinach

Fish Curry

Lamb Chops

 Butter Naan

 Choco Palate

Indian Flavoured Ice Cream










Breakfast was also a fantastic affair with made to order items, a buffet, fresh fruit juices and coffee.

 Fruit and Pastries from the Buffet

 Pooris and Potato curry

Scrambled Eggs, Indian Style (spicy)

Dining From the Nose

Voyage to India Part 2: The South
When: Jan/Feb 2014

Where: London, Mumbai, Ooty, Kochi, Aleppey, Mamalapuram, Madurai


Part 1: The British Airways First Class Experience

When flying first class over indulging in food and drink are a key part of the experience.  To start things off you have the British Airways Concorde Room, an exclusive lounge to wait for your flight with a private dining room, bar and relaxing terrace to enjoy a glass of champagne or three!  We had a few glasses and a delicious breakfast to get us set for a long day of travel.

 Concorde Room Menus

That first glass of champagne

 How about a second?

Full English breakfast

 Smoked salmon and scrambled eggs

Fresh croissant











After that it was time to stumble over to our flight to consume more champagne, a long lunch and some afternoon tea.

 Why not start the flight with some bubbles.

 Okay, time for some water to rehydrate.

 Nuts to start proceedings.

 Menu

 Lunch Items

 Bistro Selection, Dessert and Cheese

 Afternoon Tea and Refreshments

 Wine List

 Roast Quail amuse bouche

 Samosa

 Garlic bread

 White Burgundy

 Salad

 Lamb

 Bordeaux with the main

 Cheese Plate

Chocolate orange dessert

 Espresso











After all that food it was time to take it easy for the next few hours.  We were served some light refreshments before landing which were a bit of a mixed bag.  The patisserie was fantastic.

It was sadly time to say good bye to our seat in the nose and brave the humid Mumbai air.  For tomorrow the real food adventure began and it was going to be spectacular.