The much awaited weekend trip to Chikmagalur finally was fulfilled. Away from this concrete jungle into the nature’s nest was bliss. When I planned for the trip, I checked on TripAdvisor to find some of the beautiful places for accommodation. I came across some eye-catching pictures of the The Grand Krishna on TripAdvisor. Those pictures impressed me and I booked the place much before the travel dates owing to lesser availability of the rooms.
We stayed with them for 2 days and 1 night. As soon as we checked in the afternoon around 2 pm and fresh up, we rushed to have our lunch. “The Spice,” the restaurant on the third floor of The Grand Krishna welcomed with their wide spread varieties for lunch. Let me illustrate the long list of the dishes we had:
Tomato Dhaniya Shorba: Initially, when I had this I felt this a bit tangy though, my wife liked the flavor. But, gradually even I fell in love with the flavor and taste. If you are tangy loving person then this is a must try dish at The Spice in your next Chikmagalur trip.
Italian Salad: It was fine and nicely garnished. The fresh vegetables just entered the mouth with crackle refreshing the palate.
Paneer Kurkure: Awesome starter! One must visit this place to try out this new fusion dish. Paneer was wrapped with Papad pieces that rendered crispiness. This is an innovative dish and one must try this as it shows the new dimension of Paneer. It was decent spicy also.
Mushroom Ghee Roast: Spicy lovers must try this dish. The mushroom was completely deep fried with a lot of ghee. It melted in the mouth leaving us longing for more. It is the replica of Chicken ghee roast for vegetarians.
Shikampuri Veg Kabab: This was mouth-watering starter with right texture and decent spice level.
Dum Aloo Kashmiri: As beautiful the name is the dish appealed eyes prior eating, When ate this with the combination of stuffed kulcha it was incredible. The Aloo was soft and the gravy had some fruits. It is mild gravy for non-spicy lovers.
Diwani Paneer Hundi: I am not again a great fan of Paneer Gravies but still I adored this Dish!
Masala Naan: Masala Naan made a great combination with the Dum Aloo Kashmiri. One must try the combo to get the exotic savor of fruits with some Indian bread.
Akki Roti: This is a famous dish all over Chikmagalur. It gives more of homely feeling. If you are looking for something homemade at the place you must savor this dish.
Veg Pulao: It was indeed good although there wasn’t spicy. Highly recommended dish for Veg Lovers.
Non Veg Dishes are something you should definitely try at “The Spice”. Although I am a Vegetarian I tempted to try out these at one point of time while my friends enjoying! I am writing the thoughts about Non Veg dishes based on my friends prospective,
Anjal Fish Curry – The dish has got a great texture, soft and delicious with mild spiciness.
Nati Koli Sukka – A Typical Mangalorean Dish and tastes like homemade style. It was presented nicely.
Chicken Pulimunchi – This Dish is also called as Kori Pulimunchi, one of the most popular dishes in Mangalore. It’s a gravy kind of dish and tastes heavenly with high spice level.
Tandoori Chicken – Although it’s a regular dish which we get everywhere, but here it was titillating and appetizing.
Pomfret Tava Fry and Fish Pollichathu are definitely prodigious with texture and portions.
Our lunch was never complete without desserts. Once again the innovation of the chef mesmerized us.
Tender Coconut Suffle: Wow! The presentation was highly impressive. The empty tender coconut shell was filled with the soft semi-liquid suffle. Taste was divine. Without this dish on your table at The Grand Krishna you will definitely lose out something.
Soon after lunch we headed to Mullayannagiri peak close by to Chikmagalur. Travel assistance was once again taken care of The Grand Krishna. The cab was booked through their travel desk we got an amazing driver who could brief the place’s history. Moreover, he was a robust driver who drove us up to the optimum level of the peak. Half the way to the peak we visited the Sitalayya temple a divine place. Our travel was followed by the visit to Bababuddanagiri to worship the Datta Peetha. After conquering the Karnataka’s highest peak Mullayannagiri we felt light physically and mentally.
Now once back to The Grand Krishna our bellies called for food once again. As we headed to The Spice, the ever smiling and attentive staff welcomed us with a variety spread of dishes for dinner.
Hyderabadi Shorba: The green soup tasted right and energized our appetite to the advanced levels. Good dish to kick start the meals.
Quesadillas: Although, I am not a great fan of Quesadillas the dish at The Grand Krishna impressed me. We grabbed the dish swiftly. The staff was happy all the time and rendered a quick service throughout.
Naukhni Aloo: This is something new for us and fell in love with it.
Baby Corn Pepper Dry: Baby corn perfectly blended with pepper to get the perfect spice levels. A started one cannot afford to miss.
Neer Dosa: One of the traditional Mangalore dish. The Grand Krishna has a lot of influence by the Mangalore cuisine and serves good Mangalorean cuisine. Neer Dosa was soft and just melting on the palate. Divani Hundi Mix and Madrasi Kheema Veg gave a perfect combination to Neer Dosa!
Veg Biryani: Without this, our meal course remains incomplete. The Grand Krishna once again served us simply superb veg biryani.
Pumpkin Halwa: A dessert made of pumpkin was yummy. The rich texture of the dish tasted awesome.
As innovation is been the USP
Chicken Malai Tikka: Dish was marinated perfectly with all required ingredients and tastes extremely good with rich flavor essence.
Chicken Kundapuri: A Typical Mangalorean Dish with rich flavors and Aroma takes you, out of the world.
Prawns Masala Fry: While touch & taste took a backseat, the aroma of the freshly fried prawns was simply delightful and appetizing.
Mutton Ularthiyathu: Very attractive meat fry and the flavor matched to color. It absolutely drools worthy.
Sear Steak Ala Mexican: As the name says, it’s a Mexican flavored dish, it was tangy, spice and little sweetish. The Bistec a la Mexicana is a popular dish all over Mexico.
Silver Fish Curry: Tastes really good and the curry is so tempting and goes really well with a glass of spicy butter milk and boiled Rice.
Madras Kheema: A dish which is something you shouldn’t miss because of the tangy and spice flavor.
These are some of the Non Veg Dishes, which my friends tried during the dinner and they got a unique experience, since all these dishes are fusion and definitely will not get in other places.
There are very few restaurants in Chikmagalur serves decent Sea Food and “The Spice” in “The Grand Krishna” is top among them!
The rooms at “Grand Krishna” are well equipped with luxury facilities. Further, the rooms are well maintained with a lot of care taken by the staff and management. Accommodation and travel desk are price worthy. As the prices are more affordable yet provide luxury amenities. If you are visiting Chikmagalur then you cannot afford to miss “The Spice” in “The Grand Krishna.”
Address: Narasingha Roa Road, Basavanahalli, Chikmagalur, Karnataka – 577 101
Phone: 082 62 230543, +91-9611951001, +91-9611971001
Email: reservation@thegrandkrishna.com
Website: http://www.thegrandkrishna.com/