The Lalit Ashok, Food Tasting And Foodie Blogger Friends... Jab We Finally Met !

 When Deeba sent me a message on FaceBook if I had a list of Bangalore Food Bloggers, excitement shook off my post-lunch languor.  I managed to make a small list and mailed it to Deeba..she quickly put me in touch with Tinky, PR Executive, Perfect Relations, a company which is into image management . Was thrilled to get an invite to the 2nd Brand Anniversary Celebrations of the LaLit Suri Hospitality Group. This included an invite to the Golf Tournament at the Bangalore Golf Course, dinner and Food Bloggers event at the OKO, the Pan Asian roof top restaurant. The Lalit Ashok, needs absolutely no introduction, being one the oldest and very famous 5 Star hotels in Bangalore.

A meet for Bangalore food bloggers was too good an opportunity to miss. After all, not everybody can relate to food obsession and passion more than fellow bloggers can... don't you agree?? And bonding over good food, in a great setting is something, me as a true-blue foodie can never resist. Food, I sincerely believe, is the best way to bond. I was sure there were more bloggers than what I had in  my list. Madhuri of Cook-Curry Nook very efficiently provided me with the details of more bloggers and  we had a list of about 30 plus Bangalore food bloggers. All women!! (Apologies if I have missed anybody here!). Unfortunately, due to short notice and prior commitments, the majority could not make it and it was just a handful of us finally turning up. Hope to meet the rest of the community some time soon.

Having interacted only virtually so far, we finally met!!!! And what a whale of a time we had...

  

This will sound like a paragraph from of a newspaper...from left to right, that's me, Shubhada of Shubhada 123's Blog, Madhuri of  Cook-Curry Nook, Ramya of Mane Adige and Geeta of The Fragnant Kitchen.

The warm and soothing ambiance, replete with colorful fresh flowers and the fragrance of the aromatic candles made my wait for my fellow bloggers a very pleasant wait. We were all ushered to the terrace where the OKO is and we were greeted by the smiling, cheerful Chef. The view of the al fresco seating area was beautiful with the subdued lighting, the pristine comfy couches, the warmth of the ambiance taking away a bit of the chill in the air.

Looks magical...doesn't it??

The efficient and courteous staff took the orders for our drinks and we chatted away nineteen to the dozen... about food, kids and girl talk. Tinky played the perfect hostess, making sure we were comfortable. Japanese food!!  Not much of an adventurous eater,  I admit that this was the first time ever I was about to sample Japanese food. A moment of panic and we requested Tinky for vegetarian fare as all of us were vegetarians. And the Chef made sure we got some delicious vegetarian food. Thank you Chef!!

A view of the bar...

We sampled some Sushi and Assorted Mushrooms with Malaysian Spices.  We thoroughly enjoyed the Char Grilled Okra in Teriyaki Sauce and Tofu with Vietnamese Spices which was mildy spiced skewered  tofu and unabashedly asked for second servings.  Eventually we had eaten quite a lot of the starters and had to remind ourselves that the main course was still to be eaten. And we got so carried away talking away and relishing the starters, we missed the subtle hints the staff threw at us about the dinner being served. 

The elegant restaurant...

A walk down to the restaurant told us that we would have to wait for a few minutes. As it was already quite late by that time, food was served to us at the seating area near the bar. Though I was almost full, ate a few spoonfuls of the Tom Kha Phak (Thai style soup with coconut milk, flavored with kafir lime leaves). Some of the delicious Wok tossed noodles with vegetables and some Nasi Goreng and I was scared I would not be able to budge out of the seat:)).

My sweet tooth wouldn't let me skip sampling the desserts.  Sweet Azuki Bean Jelly, a selection of exotic fresh fruit and a couple of bite sized pastries satiated my sugar cravings. It was a pleasing meal, but felt that the dessert options could have been more of authentic Pan Asian cuisine. I would have hugely appreciated more of choices in the vegetarian menu for the main courses as well.

Thanks to The Lalit Ashok for inviting us, it was a lovely evening and we had a memorable time. Thanks Tinky for bringing us all together for that fun evening, looking forward to more such meets.