This spreadsheet is so awesome, I just had to share with my readers. Visitors and residents of Bangalore city will find it very useful. It lists all the tourist spots and places of interest, from 50 kilometers to 580 kilometers from Bangalore. It shows the distance of the spot, what type of place it is, what facilities are available there, where is the closest petrol bunk (gas station in Americanese), best times to visit and number of days needed to see the place. Totally awesome.
Here's the link: Tourist Spots Around Bengaluru
Showing posts with label Places. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Places. Show all posts
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Friday, February 23, 2007
Chennai Notes – Feb 15th 2007 – Visa-stamping Interview & Sister’s Home
My visa-stamping interview at the US Consulate was at 9 AM. I arrived there at around 8:45 AM and was let inside at once. I was lucky to have my interview in the morning – when I came out of the Consulate after my interview at around 12:15 PM, I saw a long queue on the side-walk, of people waiting to simply get inside! The head of the visa division at the Consulate mentioned that they interview about 1500 people daily in Chennai alone.
For those who are not familiar with the visa-stamping interview process, this is what happens:
On this particular day, I arrived at the Consulate at 8:45 AM for the 9 AM appointment. By the time I faced my interviewing officer, it was almost noon. My interview time was just a couple of minutes or less. The officer wanted only three things from me: he wanted to know if I am already working in the US, he wanted to see my W-2 for 2006 and he asked me where I lived in the US.
While we stood in the queue to meet our interviewing officers, a guy named Mark, who is the head of the visa division at the Consulate gave us some tips on having a good interview. The tips he gave us were very simple and can be summarized as follows:
Sounds simple enough? Yet, it’s amazing how many people don’t follow those simple tips, especially the last one. During the time I spent near the front of the queue from where I could hear the questions and answers of other applicants, I saw many people (about 50% of them) giving bad or wrong answers to very simple questions merely because they did not understand the question right. The reason for that was not anything to do with the accent of the interviewing officer or his language. The officer’s accent was quite clear and the applicants I heard were all people who knew English. It is just that due to nervousness, anxiety, or whatever, people did not understand the officers’ questions right. I could see at least one officer get frustrated for that reason. As Mark said, they interview about 1500 people per day, everyday. So, I can imagine how frustrating it must be for the interviewing officers when people who know English do not understand a question right.
After my very short interview, I went back to the hotel packed up my bags and went to my first sister’s house in Periarnagar. I had lunch there and discovered that my sister cooks much better these days than she used to when I lived in my parent’s home. Must be all the practice after being married. I managed to stay awake most of the afternoon, but when I started to nod off on the couch, I decided to go sleep on the bed. After a jet-lagged nap of almost 4 hours, my sister and brother-in-law woke me up. My brother-in-law said he would take me out. I was too sleepy to ask where, and I just went with him without even washing my face. It turned out that he wanted to take me out for dinner. But my jet-lagged system was not ready for a big dinner, after the big lunch. So, we just had some snacks, packed something to take home and returned. I stayed in my sister’s home that night.
During the rickshaw ride from the hotel to my sister’s home, and again when riding pillion on my brother-in-law’s motorcycle to and from dinner (this was in Annanagar area), I did some introspecting about my current situation. More about that in a next post.
For those who are not familiar with the visa-stamping interview process, this is what happens:
- Outside the Consulate gate, a security guy checks the visa interview letter to confirm the date and time of the interview. If the date and time look okay, he lets you inside.
- Soon after you step inside, another security person checks your bags and files, and asks you if you are carrying a cellphone or any other electronic item. Except for the wristwatch, they don’t allow you to carry any other electronic item inside. It is advisable not to carry big bags or backpacks. It is also advisable to carry all your papers in transparent folders, although that is not an absolute necessity.
- After the security check, you stand in a line to show your papers to a clerk for verification. The papers you need to show are- the interview letter, visa fee receipt, passport, visa applications (DS-156 and DS-157) and any other papers specific to your visa type, such as work permit papers (I-797 and I-129). The visa interview guidance sheet you get at the time of taking your appointment will list all the documents you need. If the clerk finds your papers to be in order, s/he will bundle the papers together and slide a rubber band around them. S/he will then hand the bundle to you and ask you to go to the next building where the interview actually happens.
- Once you are in the next building, you spend the maximum time (one or two hours, or more!) merely standing in a queue to meet your interviewing officer. If you don’t know English, the personnel there will guide you to a queue where interpreters are available for the interview.
- Finally, you have the interview itself. The average interview time is 5 minutes or less. Most interviews take 3 minutes or less.
On this particular day, I arrived at the Consulate at 8:45 AM for the 9 AM appointment. By the time I faced my interviewing officer, it was almost noon. My interview time was just a couple of minutes or less. The officer wanted only three things from me: he wanted to know if I am already working in the US, he wanted to see my W-2 for 2006 and he asked me where I lived in the US.
While we stood in the queue to meet our interviewing officers, a guy named Mark, who is the head of the visa division at the Consulate gave us some tips on having a good interview. The tips he gave us were very simple and can be summarized as follows:
- Greet the interviewing officer nicely. Be polite through the interview process, even if your application is rejected. Do not get too agitated and disturb the mood of the interviewing officer and that of other applicants there.
- Have all your papers in order. Give the interviewing officer only the bundle of papers, which were bound by a rubber band by the clerk near the entrance to the Consulate. Do not give any other papers to the officer, unless s/he specifically asks for them.
- During the interview, pay careful attention to the question that’s being asked. Make sure you understand the question right and answer to the point. Keep the answer short and specific.
Sounds simple enough? Yet, it’s amazing how many people don’t follow those simple tips, especially the last one. During the time I spent near the front of the queue from where I could hear the questions and answers of other applicants, I saw many people (about 50% of them) giving bad or wrong answers to very simple questions merely because they did not understand the question right. The reason for that was not anything to do with the accent of the interviewing officer or his language. The officer’s accent was quite clear and the applicants I heard were all people who knew English. It is just that due to nervousness, anxiety, or whatever, people did not understand the officers’ questions right. I could see at least one officer get frustrated for that reason. As Mark said, they interview about 1500 people per day, everyday. So, I can imagine how frustrating it must be for the interviewing officers when people who know English do not understand a question right.
After my very short interview, I went back to the hotel packed up my bags and went to my first sister’s house in Periarnagar. I had lunch there and discovered that my sister cooks much better these days than she used to when I lived in my parent’s home. Must be all the practice after being married. I managed to stay awake most of the afternoon, but when I started to nod off on the couch, I decided to go sleep on the bed. After a jet-lagged nap of almost 4 hours, my sister and brother-in-law woke me up. My brother-in-law said he would take me out. I was too sleepy to ask where, and I just went with him without even washing my face. It turned out that he wanted to take me out for dinner. But my jet-lagged system was not ready for a big dinner, after the big lunch. So, we just had some snacks, packed something to take home and returned. I stayed in my sister’s home that night.
During the rickshaw ride from the hotel to my sister’s home, and again when riding pillion on my brother-in-law’s motorcycle to and from dinner (this was in Annanagar area), I did some introspecting about my current situation. More about that in a next post.
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Buffet at the Olives Restaurant of Hotel Deccan Plaza
Hotel Deccan Plaza has a restaurant in it, called Olives. I discovered that the restaurant had a fabulous vegetarian buffet dinner for Rs. 265 (just over $6 American). I really loved the buffet. They had some traditional South Indian such as vatta-kozhambu, koottu and a drumstick-brinjal curry, along with mini-dosas. Traditional North Indian dishes included aloo-palak, paneer-makhan masala, daal, etc. , along with naans. They also had some non-traditional items such as breaded mushroom fry, pineapple tikka and salt-and-pepper-fried tinda. There was also a soup (mulligatawny today), mango juice and a flavorful, aromatic jeera (cumin) drink (it was not jal-jeera, at least not the usual variety). And of course, they had an assortment of desserts – Indian sweets and ice creams and fruits. Everything I ate tasted really good. I was told that the buffet is available for both lunch and dinner every day. I highly recommend it, if you are in Chennai and looking for a good place to eat.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Yahoo! Our City - Bangalore
Yahoo! has started a new Our City portal. Right now, it is in beta and only available on Yahoo's India site (yahoo.in) for Bangalore and New Delhi.
This new effort by Yahoo! is a great example of what a localized web portal should be. The best thing about this site is that it is a mash-up, weaving together information from a variety of sources, including and not limited to, Wikipedia, Yahoo! News, Upcoming.org (for events), del.icio.us (for bookmarks), The Weather Channel, various blog sources including Bangalore Metblogs and Flickr (for photos).
Since the information on this local portal is culled from many different sources which are constantly updated, it ensures that the portal always presents fresh information to visitors. Too bad that there is still no worthy online mapping application for Indian cities. It would have been a perfect fit here.
My favorite part of the site is Kannada World. At a time when many organizations and individuals in/about Bangalore easily forget Kannada, it is heartening to see Yahoo! put in a special Kannada section. Way to win the hearts of local people. The next step on the portal is to change all references to Bangalore to Bengalooru. :-)
This new effort by Yahoo! is a great example of what a localized web portal should be. The best thing about this site is that it is a mash-up, weaving together information from a variety of sources, including and not limited to, Wikipedia, Yahoo! News, Upcoming.org (for events), del.icio.us (for bookmarks), The Weather Channel, various blog sources including Bangalore Metblogs and Flickr (for photos).
Since the information on this local portal is culled from many different sources which are constantly updated, it ensures that the portal always presents fresh information to visitors. Too bad that there is still no worthy online mapping application for Indian cities. It would have been a perfect fit here.
My favorite part of the site is Kannada World. At a time when many organizations and individuals in/about Bangalore easily forget Kannada, it is heartening to see Yahoo! put in a special Kannada section. Way to win the hearts of local people. The next step on the portal is to change all references to Bangalore to Bengalooru. :-)
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Downtown Phoenix Lunch-hour Secrets
If we are around downtown Phoenix during lunch hour and we are looking for some place to eat which is quick, cheap, with good quality food and nice ambience, we are not merely day dreaming! There are two not-so-secret-yet-not-so-well-known lunch-hour watering holes of downtown Phoenix professionals, which definitely live upto our day dreams.
I am talking about the Coin Room Cafe and the Plaza View Cafe, both located right in the heart of downtown Phoenix. Coin Room Cafe is in the basement of the Chase Tower (formerly, the Bank One building) and the Plaza View Cafe is in the second floor of Arizona Center Two building, whose most prominent tenant is APS.
Since these are cafeterias which mostly serve specific businesses, they are not advertised or listed in the usual places where restaurants are listed. As such, they are not known to many people. Not even everyone who works downtown knows about them. The lack of popularity in no way reflects the great quality of these places. Their excellent food choices and their great dining areas are better than many downtown restaurants. And you won't even notice or mind the lack of restaurant-like full service when you consider the low prices (and no tips) and the staff, who are always nice, cheerful and helpful in both places. You can have a really good meal for around $6 or for lesser. Quite often, for lesser.
Both cafeterias offer a variety of choices for lunch: soups, salads, sandwiches, wraps, pizza, a whole array of sides and the daily specials, of course. They also serve breakfast, which changes daily! Even picky vegetarians like me can usually find something on the menu, or have the very nice staff customize something for us. Just look at their menus for today:
Coin Room Cafe:
Breakfast: Blueberry pancake.
Lunch: Chicken mushroom & swiss steak sandwich, Stuffed Deli sandwiches, Big Stuffed (1.5x meat) Featured Panini's:Fresh mozzarella & tomato, Chicken noodle soup, Vegetable soup, Chili, Spinach & portobello salad, Three melon salad, Prime rib with sides, an asian station, pizza, quesadillas, chicken tenders, wings, and more by the piece or combo, pastas.
Plaza View Cafe:
Breakfast: Denver Omelette with Ham, Green Bell Pepper, and Cheese, Served with 2 Toast
Lunch: Cream of Potato soup, Beef Barley soup, Saguaros - Tostada Grande or Super Burrito with Your Choice of Beef or Chicken with all Your Favorite Toppings, Baked Alaskan Cod Topped with Warm Red Tomato Relish Served with Rice and Fresh Vegetables, "Coachman Sandwich" - Grilled Beef, Cheddar, and Chili Served with Mexican Coleslaw.
The above are just specials of the day, and they are all under $6! Apart from the above, each cafe has a selection of other regular sandwiches, burgers, wraps, pastas and a full salad bar, fountain drinks, coffee, tea, desserts, etc.
Bookmark the below links to check their daily menus:
While you bookmark and note the addresses, I shall race you to one of these cafes now. :-)
I am talking about the Coin Room Cafe and the Plaza View Cafe, both located right in the heart of downtown Phoenix. Coin Room Cafe is in the basement of the Chase Tower (formerly, the Bank One building) and the Plaza View Cafe is in the second floor of Arizona Center Two building, whose most prominent tenant is APS.
Since these are cafeterias which mostly serve specific businesses, they are not advertised or listed in the usual places where restaurants are listed. As such, they are not known to many people. Not even everyone who works downtown knows about them. The lack of popularity in no way reflects the great quality of these places. Their excellent food choices and their great dining areas are better than many downtown restaurants. And you won't even notice or mind the lack of restaurant-like full service when you consider the low prices (and no tips) and the staff, who are always nice, cheerful and helpful in both places. You can have a really good meal for around $6 or for lesser. Quite often, for lesser.
Both cafeterias offer a variety of choices for lunch: soups, salads, sandwiches, wraps, pizza, a whole array of sides and the daily specials, of course. They also serve breakfast, which changes daily! Even picky vegetarians like me can usually find something on the menu, or have the very nice staff customize something for us. Just look at their menus for today:
Coin Room Cafe:
Breakfast: Blueberry pancake.
Lunch: Chicken mushroom & swiss steak sandwich, Stuffed Deli sandwiches, Big Stuffed (1.5x meat) Featured Panini's:Fresh mozzarella & tomato, Chicken noodle soup, Vegetable soup, Chili, Spinach & portobello salad, Three melon salad, Prime rib with sides, an asian station, pizza, quesadillas, chicken tenders, wings, and more by the piece or combo, pastas.
Plaza View Cafe:
Breakfast: Denver Omelette with Ham, Green Bell Pepper, and Cheese, Served with 2 Toast
Lunch: Cream of Potato soup, Beef Barley soup, Saguaros - Tostada Grande or Super Burrito with Your Choice of Beef or Chicken with all Your Favorite Toppings, Baked Alaskan Cod Topped with Warm Red Tomato Relish Served with Rice and Fresh Vegetables, "Coachman Sandwich" - Grilled Beef, Cheddar, and Chili Served with Mexican Coleslaw.
The above are just specials of the day, and they are all under $6! Apart from the above, each cafe has a selection of other regular sandwiches, burgers, wraps, pastas and a full salad bar, fountain drinks, coffee, tea, desserts, etc.
Bookmark the below links to check their daily menus:
- Coin Room Cafe - Basement of Chase Tower at 201 N. Central Ave Phoenix. Closes breakfast at 10 AM and lunch at 1:30 PM.
- Plaza View Cafe - 2nd floor of Arizona Center Two at 400 N 5th St Phoenix. Closes breakfast at 8:30 AM and lunch at 1 PM.
While you bookmark and note the addresses, I shall race you to one of these cafes now. :-)
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Johnjay and Rich on KISS FM - Phoenix deserves better!
You know something is quite not right when a couple of radio talk show hosts ask listeners to call in and say what body parts they are missing, on a casual morning talk show (not a medical talk show). To my disbelief, that is precisely what happened on this morning's Johnjay and Rich radio talk show on 104.7 KISS FM, broadcasting out of Phoenix.
There was a lady on the show (someone named Michelle?), who happened to mention that her professor was missing a finger. So, Johnjay and Rich, who are bereft of bright ideas for their show, decided to have listeners call in and say what body parts they are missing, "in honor of Michelle's professor, who is missing a finger"! We know that intelligence is not an important requirement for a radio jockey's job in the US, but can't we at least expect some maturity from them? I mean, these are not 7-year-old boys who derive morbid pleasure out of handicaps and accident victims, right? Couldn't these guys come up with a better topic of discussion on the morning after a 100,000-strong march in Phoenix?
Meanwhile, "Michelle" was being a total bimbo! Some of the gems she said on radio in her high-on-sugar-teenager tone and voice:
"So, we have these people call us and tell us what parts they are missing. And then, we say, 'Okay bye'?"
"In case my professor wants to sue the station or something, I just want to say on air that she is a really good person and I don't want you guys to do this."
"If you want to make fun of someone, don't talk about my professor. Talk about my friend who has a hook for a hand. Or my friend who has to go to the bathroom in a bag." (The last friend has a medical condition because of which she is not able to "go to the bathroom" in the bathroom. She wants them to make fun of her friends and not her professor because her friends will probably not sue?).
"Stop talking about this because it hurts my stomach. I can't stand talk about missing body parts and ...(I forget what else she mentioned here) because it hurts my stomach." (So she wants them to stop their disgusting charade because it hurts her stomach. Not because it is indecent!)
"I can't stand this talk. At 10:01, I am getting out of this station." (She said this at around 8:55 AM. 10 AM is when the talk show ends. She couldn't stand the talk, so she is going to leave AFTER the talk ends?)
What was Johnjay-and-Rich's defense for their indecent and insensitive stunt? "Hey, we are just asking them what body parts they are missing and how they lost them. We are not treating them differently or anything. It is those people who don't want us to talk about this, that think these people are different!" Yeah, right!
Great going, KISS FM! You suspended Crazy Kid, just because he happened to say some bitter truths, which some hypersensitive morons thought to be politically incorrect. You totally disrespected the much vaunted and flaunted American Freedom of Speech. You trashed the Kid and Ruben show, which was smarter, funnier and MUCH better in every way. And the best you could do was give us these immature jokers, Johnjay and Rich? Come on KISS FM, Phoenix deserves much better stuff on its airwaves first thing in the morning!
There was a lady on the show (someone named Michelle?), who happened to mention that her professor was missing a finger. So, Johnjay and Rich, who are bereft of bright ideas for their show, decided to have listeners call in and say what body parts they are missing, "in honor of Michelle's professor, who is missing a finger"! We know that intelligence is not an important requirement for a radio jockey's job in the US, but can't we at least expect some maturity from them? I mean, these are not 7-year-old boys who derive morbid pleasure out of handicaps and accident victims, right? Couldn't these guys come up with a better topic of discussion on the morning after a 100,000-strong march in Phoenix?
Meanwhile, "Michelle" was being a total bimbo! Some of the gems she said on radio in her high-on-sugar-teenager tone and voice:
"So, we have these people call us and tell us what parts they are missing. And then, we say, 'Okay bye'?"
"In case my professor wants to sue the station or something, I just want to say on air that she is a really good person and I don't want you guys to do this."
"If you want to make fun of someone, don't talk about my professor. Talk about my friend who has a hook for a hand. Or my friend who has to go to the bathroom in a bag." (The last friend has a medical condition because of which she is not able to "go to the bathroom" in the bathroom. She wants them to make fun of her friends and not her professor because her friends will probably not sue?).
"Stop talking about this because it hurts my stomach. I can't stand talk about missing body parts and ...(I forget what else she mentioned here) because it hurts my stomach." (So she wants them to stop their disgusting charade because it hurts her stomach. Not because it is indecent!)
"I can't stand this talk. At 10:01, I am getting out of this station." (She said this at around 8:55 AM. 10 AM is when the talk show ends. She couldn't stand the talk, so she is going to leave AFTER the talk ends?)
What was Johnjay-and-Rich's defense for their indecent and insensitive stunt? "Hey, we are just asking them what body parts they are missing and how they lost them. We are not treating them differently or anything. It is those people who don't want us to talk about this, that think these people are different!" Yeah, right!
Great going, KISS FM! You suspended Crazy Kid, just because he happened to say some bitter truths, which some hypersensitive morons thought to be politically incorrect. You totally disrespected the much vaunted and flaunted American Freedom of Speech. You trashed the Kid and Ruben show, which was smarter, funnier and MUCH better in every way. And the best you could do was give us these immature jokers, Johnjay and Rich? Come on KISS FM, Phoenix deserves much better stuff on its airwaves first thing in the morning!
Friday, October 08, 2004
Best Eateries in Portland (Vegetarian Special)
Posted on October 8, 2004 17:47 PM EST
I am a pure vegetarian (no meat, no eggs). The following recommendations in Portland have great food to suit my preferences.
Indian Food - The Real Taste of India : The best Indian food I have eaten in Portland is not in a restaurant or home. It is from a cart (rather a small RV van) which is parked on a downtown parking lot. It is called The Real Taste of India. It used to be called simply the Taste of India. But it was so popular that another Indian food cart was set up on the same parking lot with the name The New Taste of India. So the Punju family changed theirs to The Real Taste of India. So remember, you are looking for The Real Taste of India, NOT the New Taste of India. The portions are generous. The taste authentic. The price fabulous. Most vegetarian dishes are $4.50. Max cost $5.00. Be sure to try their vegetable biriyani or their vegetarian thali. Like I said the portions are truly big and one order with a drink and sides is easily shared with a companion. This cart is located on 5th Ave and Stark St, downtown Portland. Cash only.
Curry Leaf : All the time I was in Portland, I moaned about the lack of good Indian restaurants there. All the traditional ones are your usual jaded, lifeless ones serving same old boring North Indian food. God forbid you order South Indian food in any of these restaurants. I did that mistake just once and almost cried over the horrible dosa and the vada which wouldn't break even after soaking in sambar (they did not charge us for the vada). But why talk of the bad stuff, let's talk about the Curry Leaf! Apparently this place was started by a bunch of South Indian housewives who decided to put their talent to work. The result is a place that serves awesome South Indian food in Beaverton (15325 NW Central Drive). I was fortunate to eat here during a recent visit to Portland. The South Indian buffet (after a hike in the Columbia River Gorge) was an uplifting experience, although we were filled with food upto our neck. The 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month are South Indian Buffet days, and this includes 5 kinds of mini-dosas. Eat as much as you like (I tasted all five!). The 1st and 3rd Sunday are North Indian Chaat buffet days. Should time my next visit so that I get to taste this.
Lebanese - Nicholas's : This place has fantabulous food. It is unarguably the best Lebanese (or any Mediterranean) food in Portland, may be all of Oregon. Heck probably all of the American Northwest. It is crowded during lunch or dinner times and the wait can be as much as 45 min. The important thing about this place is the food, not privacy. So, you will easily brush elbows with all kinds of Portlanders - yuppies, hippies, students, goths, execs, etc. I once met the President and founder of Tazo tea here. The food is so fresh and so yummy. They have a Vegan combo and a Vegetarian combo. The falafels are the most perfect that I have ever eaten. Fried to perfect texture and bursting with flavor and aroma. They also have a yummy peach shake (or was it juice) and yummy desserts. The portions are generous, especially on the combos. I highly recommend the vegan or vegetarian combo. Ask the waiter. S/he may be able to mix and match a few items between these combos to customize it for you. Don't miss out on the spinach pie and a dish called marakesh which are found on these combos. Located on Grand Avenue and Pine St. in SE Portland. Cash only.
Thai - Thai Pepper : Portland is a good place for some great Thai food. I really liked Thai Pepper in Downtown Portland (Front Ave and Pine St). They are certainly open for lunch on weekdays. But they seem to be rather erratic for dinner/weekends. Or may be I was just unlucky. I never found them open when I went there for dinner or during weekends. There are several other Thai places downtown, which I heard are good. You may search for them online. There is also Sweet Basil (3135 NE Broadway). This place is a bit expensive, a bit gourmet, a bit pretentious, but I liked the taste. Then there is Eagle Thai! Located on NE 8th AVe and Broadway. This is close to the place where I used to work. And ALL my desi colleagues went here without fail EVERY Friday. They just could not moved to consider any other choice on Fridays. This place is quite popular with the desi crowd, but not so with SE Asians who are sticklers for authentic Thai food. If you are not a stickler for authentic taste, but enjoy great taste, you may visit this place. If you are willing to drive West of Portland to Beaverton, there is another fabulous placed called Thai Angel (3829 SW Hall Blvd). I highly recommmend this place. Great service, better food.
Cajun - Le Bistro Montage : Located right under the Morrison Bridge on the Eastside of Portland (301 SE Morrison St). Must be the best Cajun restaurant in Portland. One of the few Portland restaurants open till 2 AM in the morning (Sat and Sun nights, open until 4 AM, next day). The neighborhood is not all that great. Nor is the interior of the restaurant "classy rich", but the ambience and the food is really good. This is a great place to take your date out for a quiet evening with candlelight and talk. Most of the tables are community style - a long row with chairs on either side and strangers sitting at the same table. So if the place is very crowded, the romantic talk with your date might not be quite so private. But every time I have have been there, we have had no problem finding a spot a little away from the others. I don't remember all the vegetarian selections they have. I have had the vegetarian Jambalaya over rice and they have a variety of mac-n-cheese, some of them quite spicy. They also have yummy cornbread on the side. I don't remember if this is served free as an appetizer or if it comes on the side with certain orders. But do ask for it and eat it with honey or butter.
Ethiopian - Abol Cafe : When I discovered and frequented Abol Cafe, it was let us say, quite unsophisticated. I have had an experience of being served on paper plate and paper cups here and too when I took my friends there for the first time. I am not sure if they have gotten their act together yet. Needless to say my friends were totally unimpressed and quite doubted that they had made a good decision by trusting me and coming there. But what this place lacks for finesse, it more than adequately makes up for in taste and heart. My friends' hearts and tummies were won over by the time we left the place. This is a total home setup. The living quarters and kitchen are in the basement and the sitting area on the ground level. The food is cooked by the elderly woman of the house in her own kitchen. Quite often she took the orders and served it herself. She did not calculate the dollars and portions. She just served with an open heart and hands. The food was the most delicious and authentic Ethiopian food I have ever tried. The staple Ethiopian food is the injera bread which is not much different from a thick dosa, although the flour can be sometimes more sour than the typical dosa. This bread is eaten with different kinds of curries. They have a vast selection of yummy vegetarian and meat-based curries, much like Indian cuisine. Some of them spicy, some of them mild. The traditional way of eating is for everything to be served in one big plate and people sitting around the one plate and sharing food. This is how it is served in most Ethiopian restaurants. We desis asked for and got our own individual plates. This place came up with an innovation that no other Ethiopian restaurants in Portland had at that time. They introduced the lunch buffet for just 6 bucks. I think the buffet is pure vegetarian, no meat dishes. You have to order meat separately. The typical Ethiopian restaurant serves just one curry per order. So, this buffet with a variety of curries is great, and let's you taste all the typical Ethiopian dishes. Since this place is basically a home, sometimes social visitors (relatives and friends of the owners) walked in and greeted all the customers with a friendly smile. Ethiopians don't look like the typical Africans. They look more like a mix of South Indian, African and Egyptian features. One such visitor at the restaurant was a young lady with a vivacious smile and friendly personality. She passed us by like a breeze smelling of rare pleasant intoxicating herbs, greeting us and asking how we liked the food. It must have taken all of 45 seconds. I never saw her again. I will never forget her. Mmmmm! If this place is closed when you visit, you may try Mudai Restaurant which is just a couple of blocks west from Abol Cafe on Broadway.
Italian - Pastini Pastaria : I love Italian food. But I have not visited any of the expensive Italian restaurants in Portland. In fact, the only other Italian restaurant I have visited in Portland is probably the Olive Garden chain. But don't let my lack of experience be the sole judge of Pastini. This restaurant has been voted as one of the top "cheap eats" in the country! That's right, it is called cheap eat because of the cost of food, but the food in no way lacks for quality and taste. They have so many different kinds of pasta dishes to choose from. Just see the menu here. Whenever I have been here with friends, we order different dishes and share. You just can't be satisfied tasting only one dish from the available selections. Don't let the "cheap" tag throw you off regarding the location and ambience of the place. It is located in beautiful commercial neighborhood in the Lloyd District, has a nice, clean ambience, courteous staff and frequented by office-goers and Lloyd Mall shoppers. If you like Italian food and are in Portland, you just should not miss this place. And of course, the Olive Garden is pretty good too. It was one of our favorite places to go to after a day long hike in the Columbia River Gorge and we were absolutely famished. Olive Garden in Lake Oswego is the last restaurant I visited when I still lived in Portland. Since then, I have not visited another Olive Garden at the time of this writing.
Mexican - La Carreta : I can't believe I am posting last about Mexican food, considering that this is one of my favorite foreign cuisines and Mexican must be the most eaten and dated foreign food for me in Portland. I guess I just did not think of writing about a Mexican restaurant because frankly I don't know the the best Mexican restaurant in Portland. All of the above restaurants I have mentioned, I can bet, are some of the best in their class in Portland. Don't let that make you think La Carreta is not all that great. It has a rating of 9.3 out of 10 on Portland Citysearch. So that must count for something. The food is great, the drinks are great, the service is great, they have daily specials on food and drinks. This place too has sentiments attached to it because this is the last restaurant I visited with my Northwest gf!
I have to make a special mention of the beloved Northwest bakery, Grand Central. As a kid in India, I have often bought "special bread" in Bangalore bakeries. Grand Central showed me how special bread can be.
And I cannot end this without telling you about NE Broadway Street in Portland. This is an amazing street for the variety of food choices it presents. It has everything that you can think of within 3 miles starting at I-5 in the West and going East. There are at least 6 fast food restaurants, at least 3 Ethiopian, at least 4 Thai, at least two Chinese, one Japanese, two Asian bistros, one Italian, one pizzeria, at least 3 burger-pizza-fries kinda American fare, bakeries, coffee shops, etc. Some of the restaurants I have mentioned above are on this street. It is amazing. When I was in Portland, my office was very close to this street and I lunched at a different place daily. I really really miss this place here in dry Phoenix. Just one of the many great Northwest things I miss!
For Portland visitors: Portland in Oregon
I am a pure vegetarian (no meat, no eggs). The following recommendations in Portland have great food to suit my preferences.
Indian Food - The Real Taste of India : The best Indian food I have eaten in Portland is not in a restaurant or home. It is from a cart (rather a small RV van) which is parked on a downtown parking lot. It is called The Real Taste of India. It used to be called simply the Taste of India. But it was so popular that another Indian food cart was set up on the same parking lot with the name The New Taste of India. So the Punju family changed theirs to The Real Taste of India. So remember, you are looking for The Real Taste of India, NOT the New Taste of India. The portions are generous. The taste authentic. The price fabulous. Most vegetarian dishes are $4.50. Max cost $5.00. Be sure to try their vegetable biriyani or their vegetarian thali. Like I said the portions are truly big and one order with a drink and sides is easily shared with a companion. This cart is located on 5th Ave and Stark St, downtown Portland. Cash only.
Curry Leaf : All the time I was in Portland, I moaned about the lack of good Indian restaurants there. All the traditional ones are your usual jaded, lifeless ones serving same old boring North Indian food. God forbid you order South Indian food in any of these restaurants. I did that mistake just once and almost cried over the horrible dosa and the vada which wouldn't break even after soaking in sambar (they did not charge us for the vada). But why talk of the bad stuff, let's talk about the Curry Leaf! Apparently this place was started by a bunch of South Indian housewives who decided to put their talent to work. The result is a place that serves awesome South Indian food in Beaverton (15325 NW Central Drive). I was fortunate to eat here during a recent visit to Portland. The South Indian buffet (after a hike in the Columbia River Gorge) was an uplifting experience, although we were filled with food upto our neck. The 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month are South Indian Buffet days, and this includes 5 kinds of mini-dosas. Eat as much as you like (I tasted all five!). The 1st and 3rd Sunday are North Indian Chaat buffet days. Should time my next visit so that I get to taste this.
Lebanese - Nicholas's : This place has fantabulous food. It is unarguably the best Lebanese (or any Mediterranean) food in Portland, may be all of Oregon. Heck probably all of the American Northwest. It is crowded during lunch or dinner times and the wait can be as much as 45 min. The important thing about this place is the food, not privacy. So, you will easily brush elbows with all kinds of Portlanders - yuppies, hippies, students, goths, execs, etc. I once met the President and founder of Tazo tea here. The food is so fresh and so yummy. They have a Vegan combo and a Vegetarian combo. The falafels are the most perfect that I have ever eaten. Fried to perfect texture and bursting with flavor and aroma. They also have a yummy peach shake (or was it juice) and yummy desserts. The portions are generous, especially on the combos. I highly recommend the vegan or vegetarian combo. Ask the waiter. S/he may be able to mix and match a few items between these combos to customize it for you. Don't miss out on the spinach pie and a dish called marakesh which are found on these combos. Located on Grand Avenue and Pine St. in SE Portland. Cash only.
Thai - Thai Pepper : Portland is a good place for some great Thai food. I really liked Thai Pepper in Downtown Portland (Front Ave and Pine St). They are certainly open for lunch on weekdays. But they seem to be rather erratic for dinner/weekends. Or may be I was just unlucky. I never found them open when I went there for dinner or during weekends. There are several other Thai places downtown, which I heard are good. You may search for them online. There is also Sweet Basil (3135 NE Broadway). This place is a bit expensive, a bit gourmet, a bit pretentious, but I liked the taste. Then there is Eagle Thai! Located on NE 8th AVe and Broadway. This is close to the place where I used to work. And ALL my desi colleagues went here without fail EVERY Friday. They just could not moved to consider any other choice on Fridays. This place is quite popular with the desi crowd, but not so with SE Asians who are sticklers for authentic Thai food. If you are not a stickler for authentic taste, but enjoy great taste, you may visit this place. If you are willing to drive West of Portland to Beaverton, there is another fabulous placed called Thai Angel (3829 SW Hall Blvd). I highly recommmend this place. Great service, better food.
Cajun - Le Bistro Montage : Located right under the Morrison Bridge on the Eastside of Portland (301 SE Morrison St). Must be the best Cajun restaurant in Portland. One of the few Portland restaurants open till 2 AM in the morning (Sat and Sun nights, open until 4 AM, next day). The neighborhood is not all that great. Nor is the interior of the restaurant "classy rich", but the ambience and the food is really good. This is a great place to take your date out for a quiet evening with candlelight and talk. Most of the tables are community style - a long row with chairs on either side and strangers sitting at the same table. So if the place is very crowded, the romantic talk with your date might not be quite so private. But every time I have have been there, we have had no problem finding a spot a little away from the others. I don't remember all the vegetarian selections they have. I have had the vegetarian Jambalaya over rice and they have a variety of mac-n-cheese, some of them quite spicy. They also have yummy cornbread on the side. I don't remember if this is served free as an appetizer or if it comes on the side with certain orders. But do ask for it and eat it with honey or butter.
Ethiopian - Abol Cafe : When I discovered and frequented Abol Cafe, it was let us say, quite unsophisticated. I have had an experience of being served on paper plate and paper cups here and too when I took my friends there for the first time. I am not sure if they have gotten their act together yet. Needless to say my friends were totally unimpressed and quite doubted that they had made a good decision by trusting me and coming there. But what this place lacks for finesse, it more than adequately makes up for in taste and heart. My friends' hearts and tummies were won over by the time we left the place. This is a total home setup. The living quarters and kitchen are in the basement and the sitting area on the ground level. The food is cooked by the elderly woman of the house in her own kitchen. Quite often she took the orders and served it herself. She did not calculate the dollars and portions. She just served with an open heart and hands. The food was the most delicious and authentic Ethiopian food I have ever tried. The staple Ethiopian food is the injera bread which is not much different from a thick dosa, although the flour can be sometimes more sour than the typical dosa. This bread is eaten with different kinds of curries. They have a vast selection of yummy vegetarian and meat-based curries, much like Indian cuisine. Some of them spicy, some of them mild. The traditional way of eating is for everything to be served in one big plate and people sitting around the one plate and sharing food. This is how it is served in most Ethiopian restaurants. We desis asked for and got our own individual plates. This place came up with an innovation that no other Ethiopian restaurants in Portland had at that time. They introduced the lunch buffet for just 6 bucks. I think the buffet is pure vegetarian, no meat dishes. You have to order meat separately. The typical Ethiopian restaurant serves just one curry per order. So, this buffet with a variety of curries is great, and let's you taste all the typical Ethiopian dishes. Since this place is basically a home, sometimes social visitors (relatives and friends of the owners) walked in and greeted all the customers with a friendly smile. Ethiopians don't look like the typical Africans. They look more like a mix of South Indian, African and Egyptian features. One such visitor at the restaurant was a young lady with a vivacious smile and friendly personality. She passed us by like a breeze smelling of rare pleasant intoxicating herbs, greeting us and asking how we liked the food. It must have taken all of 45 seconds. I never saw her again. I will never forget her. Mmmmm! If this place is closed when you visit, you may try Mudai Restaurant which is just a couple of blocks west from Abol Cafe on Broadway.
Italian - Pastini Pastaria : I love Italian food. But I have not visited any of the expensive Italian restaurants in Portland. In fact, the only other Italian restaurant I have visited in Portland is probably the Olive Garden chain. But don't let my lack of experience be the sole judge of Pastini. This restaurant has been voted as one of the top "cheap eats" in the country! That's right, it is called cheap eat because of the cost of food, but the food in no way lacks for quality and taste. They have so many different kinds of pasta dishes to choose from. Just see the menu here. Whenever I have been here with friends, we order different dishes and share. You just can't be satisfied tasting only one dish from the available selections. Don't let the "cheap" tag throw you off regarding the location and ambience of the place. It is located in beautiful commercial neighborhood in the Lloyd District, has a nice, clean ambience, courteous staff and frequented by office-goers and Lloyd Mall shoppers. If you like Italian food and are in Portland, you just should not miss this place. And of course, the Olive Garden is pretty good too. It was one of our favorite places to go to after a day long hike in the Columbia River Gorge and we were absolutely famished. Olive Garden in Lake Oswego is the last restaurant I visited when I still lived in Portland. Since then, I have not visited another Olive Garden at the time of this writing.
Mexican - La Carreta : I can't believe I am posting last about Mexican food, considering that this is one of my favorite foreign cuisines and Mexican must be the most eaten and dated foreign food for me in Portland. I guess I just did not think of writing about a Mexican restaurant because frankly I don't know the the best Mexican restaurant in Portland. All of the above restaurants I have mentioned, I can bet, are some of the best in their class in Portland. Don't let that make you think La Carreta is not all that great. It has a rating of 9.3 out of 10 on Portland Citysearch. So that must count for something. The food is great, the drinks are great, the service is great, they have daily specials on food and drinks. This place too has sentiments attached to it because this is the last restaurant I visited with my Northwest gf!
I have to make a special mention of the beloved Northwest bakery, Grand Central. As a kid in India, I have often bought "special bread" in Bangalore bakeries. Grand Central showed me how special bread can be.
And I cannot end this without telling you about NE Broadway Street in Portland. This is an amazing street for the variety of food choices it presents. It has everything that you can think of within 3 miles starting at I-5 in the West and going East. There are at least 6 fast food restaurants, at least 3 Ethiopian, at least 4 Thai, at least two Chinese, one Japanese, two Asian bistros, one Italian, one pizzeria, at least 3 burger-pizza-fries kinda American fare, bakeries, coffee shops, etc. Some of the restaurants I have mentioned above are on this street. It is amazing. When I was in Portland, my office was very close to this street and I lunched at a different place daily. I really really miss this place here in dry Phoenix. Just one of the many great Northwest things I miss!
For Portland visitors: Portland in Oregon
Monday, October 04, 2004
Portland in Oregon
Posted on October 4, 2004 15:39 PM EST
Wow! You are so lucky to be in Portland. And that too FOUR days. I wish our places were exchanged right now, despite what you say about being busy at this conference most of the time and having only evenings free. Here are things to see right in Portland:
Portland - Downtown and surrounding
Pioneer Square Area - this is the very heart of downtown. There is a cute little open square. People hang out here all day long. Starbucks in one corner. Hippies and goths closeby playing chess, ball, etc. Pigeons, fountains, etc.
Pioneer Place Mall - Mall right by Pioneer square. Typical downtown mall spread across several blocks, connected by underground and overhead path ways.
Downtown Library - beautiful place. Beautiful building. Saturdays and Sundays they have events going on. I think Saturday 3 pm is Jazz time every week. Free show. Very nice.
Downtown area has numerous restaurants and shops of all kinds. Just walk around and see. All of the above places are within five min walking distance of each other.
From downtown, you can walk/take bus to Pearl District. It's just 5-10 min away. This place has many nice arts shops. Kinda like the yuppie living quarters.
10-15 min away from Downtown is the NW 21st and 23rd Avenues. This is a busy hippy-yuppy area. It's fun to just walk up and down these streets, check out the various stores and restaurants. I really love places like these. Hawthorne is another similar street in SE Portland. It is 15-20 min away by bus from Downtown.
Right by downtown is the Willamette River front park. Nice place to walk, run, watch people. It's especially great to hang out here on warm weekend afternoons. During the warm season they have numerous events and festivals and gatherings happening here. May be something might be going on right when you are visiting.
Saturday Market - Closeby the waterfront park is Saturday market. It's a bunch of temporary stalls put by local artists and craftsmen. There's food and music and lots of interesting stores. IT's on every Saturday and Sunday, day time hours only. They close it down during the winter months, but it is definitely on now.
If you happen to go to Hawthorne Street in SE Portland (I suggest you do), there is a little treasure that almost no visitors and even most residents don't know about. Very close to intersection of Hawthorne and 12th or 15th street is a residential neighborhood where the streets kind of spiral around a very special rose garden. It's beautiful. Many different types of rose planted on a plot of land in the middle of the neighborhood. I once spent better part of an hour or more walking around this garden in moonlight, smelling the roses with a date. It is not easy to find this garden. Go to Hawthorne and 12th street and ask somebody at a store or a passing local. They might direct you to it.
And of course there are also the beautiful Portland bridges. Drive up and down all of them. Walk if possible. Each one is a different structure. Gives awesome views of the city and the Willamette river.
Max Train - Portland and neighboring towns are connected by the Max train. It's a two car train. Very convenient for locals. It's fun to ride this train up and down. From downtown the journey to the last stop on the East is about 1.5 hours and a similar duration for the last stop on the West. So, you could drive by car close to a park-and-ride stop towards either end of the train line (suggest the Gresham end) and then ride the train up and down. Nice timepass for 3 hours, watching all the different kinds of local landscape and local people. The train goes through suburbs and downtown and across river. Some beautiful views of the city and Mt Hood (if you are luckY) and the river. There was a time when I used to travel this train everyday. Every time I go by this train and it crosses the Steel Bridge over the Willamette, I get my favorite view of the bridges across the Willamette. I put all my thoughts aside and have a zen moment just taking in the beauty of the river, the bridges, the open sky, the city.
Zoo, Arboretum, Rose Garden & Japanese Garden
We of Portland is the zoo, arboretum (just a big park with many different kinds of trees), Rose Garden (diff from one described above) and Japanese Garden. You could spend an afternoon-evening checking these out. The arboretum is a nice place to go for a walk. This whole area is set on the Portland Westhills. There are some places from which you can see Mt Hood and other in the distance. The effect is such that you feel as if there is no sprawling city between there and the far off mountains. It's wonderful.
Outside Portland
Multnomah Falls - Almost anybody who visits the Portland areas goes on a pilgrimage to Multnomah falls. It is by I-84 East, around 2 hours out of Portland. This falls is in the Columbia River Gorge area. The whole Gorge is a paradise, especially for hikers. You probably don't have enough time to check it all out. If you visit Multnomah Falls with time on your hands, I suggest hiking upto the top of the falls. It is just a mile one-way, I think. You get a sample of the kind of hiking trails and views the gorge has to offer.
Canon Beach - About 2-3 west of Portland. Beautiful beach. Beautiful little beach town. A little to the North of Canon Beach is Seaside. Another nice beach and cute little beach town.
That's just a few suggestions. I have left out scores of other places. This hardly does justice to the place nor to the feelings and sentiments I have associated with each of them.
Must see pics: http://www.oregonscenics.com/
Next weblog: Best Eateries in Portland (Vegetarian Special)
Wow! You are so lucky to be in Portland. And that too FOUR days. I wish our places were exchanged right now, despite what you say about being busy at this conference most of the time and having only evenings free. Here are things to see right in Portland:
Portland - Downtown and surrounding
Pioneer Square Area - this is the very heart of downtown. There is a cute little open square. People hang out here all day long. Starbucks in one corner. Hippies and goths closeby playing chess, ball, etc. Pigeons, fountains, etc.
Pioneer Place Mall - Mall right by Pioneer square. Typical downtown mall spread across several blocks, connected by underground and overhead path ways.
Downtown Library - beautiful place. Beautiful building. Saturdays and Sundays they have events going on. I think Saturday 3 pm is Jazz time every week. Free show. Very nice.
Downtown area has numerous restaurants and shops of all kinds. Just walk around and see. All of the above places are within five min walking distance of each other.
From downtown, you can walk/take bus to Pearl District. It's just 5-10 min away. This place has many nice arts shops. Kinda like the yuppie living quarters.
10-15 min away from Downtown is the NW 21st and 23rd Avenues. This is a busy hippy-yuppy area. It's fun to just walk up and down these streets, check out the various stores and restaurants. I really love places like these. Hawthorne is another similar street in SE Portland. It is 15-20 min away by bus from Downtown.
Right by downtown is the Willamette River front park. Nice place to walk, run, watch people. It's especially great to hang out here on warm weekend afternoons. During the warm season they have numerous events and festivals and gatherings happening here. May be something might be going on right when you are visiting.
Saturday Market - Closeby the waterfront park is Saturday market. It's a bunch of temporary stalls put by local artists and craftsmen. There's food and music and lots of interesting stores. IT's on every Saturday and Sunday, day time hours only. They close it down during the winter months, but it is definitely on now.
If you happen to go to Hawthorne Street in SE Portland (I suggest you do), there is a little treasure that almost no visitors and even most residents don't know about. Very close to intersection of Hawthorne and 12th or 15th street is a residential neighborhood where the streets kind of spiral around a very special rose garden. It's beautiful. Many different types of rose planted on a plot of land in the middle of the neighborhood. I once spent better part of an hour or more walking around this garden in moonlight, smelling the roses with a date. It is not easy to find this garden. Go to Hawthorne and 12th street and ask somebody at a store or a passing local. They might direct you to it.
And of course there are also the beautiful Portland bridges. Drive up and down all of them. Walk if possible. Each one is a different structure. Gives awesome views of the city and the Willamette river.
Max Train - Portland and neighboring towns are connected by the Max train. It's a two car train. Very convenient for locals. It's fun to ride this train up and down. From downtown the journey to the last stop on the East is about 1.5 hours and a similar duration for the last stop on the West. So, you could drive by car close to a park-and-ride stop towards either end of the train line (suggest the Gresham end) and then ride the train up and down. Nice timepass for 3 hours, watching all the different kinds of local landscape and local people. The train goes through suburbs and downtown and across river. Some beautiful views of the city and Mt Hood (if you are luckY) and the river. There was a time when I used to travel this train everyday. Every time I go by this train and it crosses the Steel Bridge over the Willamette, I get my favorite view of the bridges across the Willamette. I put all my thoughts aside and have a zen moment just taking in the beauty of the river, the bridges, the open sky, the city.
Zoo, Arboretum, Rose Garden & Japanese Garden
We of Portland is the zoo, arboretum (just a big park with many different kinds of trees), Rose Garden (diff from one described above) and Japanese Garden. You could spend an afternoon-evening checking these out. The arboretum is a nice place to go for a walk. This whole area is set on the Portland Westhills. There are some places from which you can see Mt Hood and other in the distance. The effect is such that you feel as if there is no sprawling city between there and the far off mountains. It's wonderful.
Outside Portland
Multnomah Falls - Almost anybody who visits the Portland areas goes on a pilgrimage to Multnomah falls. It is by I-84 East, around 2 hours out of Portland. This falls is in the Columbia River Gorge area. The whole Gorge is a paradise, especially for hikers. You probably don't have enough time to check it all out. If you visit Multnomah Falls with time on your hands, I suggest hiking upto the top of the falls. It is just a mile one-way, I think. You get a sample of the kind of hiking trails and views the gorge has to offer.
Canon Beach - About 2-3 west of Portland. Beautiful beach. Beautiful little beach town. A little to the North of Canon Beach is Seaside. Another nice beach and cute little beach town.
That's just a few suggestions. I have left out scores of other places. This hardly does justice to the place nor to the feelings and sentiments I have associated with each of them.
Must see pics: http://www.oregonscenics.com/
Next weblog: Best Eateries in Portland (Vegetarian Special)
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