On May 9, 2014 we went to “The Naga Kitchen” in Koramangala (Koramangala club road) thanks to a friend who treated us for her b’day. I was all excited of course and hoping to taste the Bhut Jolokia (Ghost Peppers) which is one of the hottest chilly in the world with 1041427 SHUs (Scovile Heat Units). Lets not get too technical now. I was also excited about their rice beer which i was really looking forward to. In fact the first naga restaurant was rejected because they did not have this.
We started off the party with rice beer and some lovely smoked pork with bamboo shoots. These shoots add an amazing tanginess to the food they are part of. The smoked port was well cooked and tender and had a burst of favor, enough to order my second glass of the beer. Feast your eyes on them 🙂
The beer itself was fresh and very rich and filling with a starchy aftertaste with every gulp and I guess its an acquired taste for many. It wasn’t intoxicating or potent like local liquor. It is sold for Rs 60 a glass. Here is a video that shows how to make rice beer at home with yeast. With the smoked pork it made for a lovely combination.
We didn’t really want to waste too much energy and time on more starters and went in directly for the main course. Rice is the base of choice for almost all of the North Eastern cuisine and almost all of the curries we ordered were only justified with rice. Pork is another common meat which they are really good at preparing and found in these restaurants and cuisine. We went in for fresh pork with Anishi (dried yam leaves) and Chicken with bamboo shoots along with some boiled veggies sprinkled with salt.
The pork with Anishi had a beautiful texture and flavor which was just right and not too heavy on the palate and an excellent combination with rice.
The chicken with bamboo shoots on the other hand was just about ok. Not in league with its porky cousins. Not thats just “foul” I say.
The Akuni (fermented soya bean) chutney again is an acquired taste and is not everyones’ cup of tea. It has a very strong smell ( aroma to me ) that can shock some to the core. The taste on the other hand was delightfully nice on the taste buds. It was a tease on the tongue due to its roughness as well as an uncanny pungent taste . It’s like they say for cheese, the worse they smell the better they taste :D.
Yeah, coming back to the Bhut Jolokia, unfortunately it wasn’t in stock.. Sigh !!! Next time FOR SURE !!!
Desserts there isn’t much to talk about and nothing that they market either. Overall I think we had a very grand time without it being very expensive with very simple and homely kind of food. The food did not taste commercial or cliched. Yeah we packed some rice beer of course(not one for the road of course). The total for 4 of us came to about Rs. 1800 which I think is a steal…..
Hats off to them eh…
In case you do visit the place let me know how your experience was….Cheers Hic !!!!
Tht was indeed a nice evening..
bhoot jolokia reminds me of home. We used to make pickles out of that and just one drop was enough to eat the whole meal. Loved your review. I wish I had tried it when I was there. And I could have brought bhoot jolokia for you from home 🙂
next time let me know in advance when u coming. it will be en eternal gratitude if u can provide me those chillies 🙂
When you do get to taste Bhut Jolakia, let me know. Would want to call you right away, when your eyes are streaming 😀
even if they are it will tears of happiness no doubt 😛
Sounds like an evening well spent and food looks and sounds yummy. Never heard of rice beer though.
The Thaalis are also a very good sampler off all of the above and good for first time sceptics. Ofcourse after eating one becomes a convert!
Your post suggests you had a good time there even without bhoot jolokia 🙂
Wow. thanks for sharing this. Next time in Bnglre, I ll definitely visit!
Wonderful…but a bit of a waste about the Ghost peppers! next time for sure!
Very interesting cuisine regarding which there is not much publicity… visit the Nagaland Stall in Dilli Haat when in Delhi…
In assam this rice beer is known as HAJ. And this rice beer is also need in hokam(religious event made by the assamese people) whitout this this hokam can’t be completed. Rice beer is an important local drink that found every where in North East place and it is better than the alcohol. In haj (rice beer) no chemical ingredients is used. It made up of full natural ingredients.