Murder Most Foul...

My neighbour's dog has been killed...

Brownie was an affectionate and loyal mongrel who was sheltered, fed, vaccinated and lovingly cared for by our neighbours who found her whining outside their home one day about 5 or 6 years ago.

Brownie repaid them with all the love her doggy heart could give, wriggling like a puppy when petted, running to fetch sticks and guarding all our houses with fierce determination. She'd queen it over their pedigree dachshund and over the other street pooches and lie on the dusty road leading to our houses and give everyone the once over before letting them past.

I guess this was her downfall because the local petty thieves seem to have their activities greatly hampered by her presence. Some cruel bastard (who will surely rot in a special hell for ever and ever) had poured boiling water on poor Brownie!! Her yelps of pain had awakened my neighbours and although she was rushed to the vet and given every possible treatment that money could buy, she died soon after.

Being scalded to death is something I wouldn't wish on my greatest enemy and I shudder to think of her wordless sufferings, her blistered skin, the relentless infection and incessant pain. I can't imagine what sort of horrible person would deliberately inflict such harm on a helpless animal.

RIP Brownie...

We miss you...

Munching-munching I

For those of you who don't know... I lo--ove food. Specially stuff that is salty, fried and totally unhealthy. The only things I actively avoid are beef and seafood... so you can happily invite me for dinner and rest assured that I won't nick some of your hot butter cuttlefish. :)

Anyway, last month has been one of gastronomic delight as I've frantically tried to make up for a year of semi-starvation. Darling stifles sighs and images of being on the parental dole as he reaches again and again into his wallet... his credit card has melted around the edges from being swiped so many times... (cheesy grin - he thinks I love him more when well fed!)

Sunday Brunch at the Taprobane

This was Darling's "hurray you finished internship in one piece" treat. Did I mention that I *heart* buffets? This one certainly lives up to expectations and is a tad better than the same-old-same-old wedding buffets you usually get at the Cinnamon Grand. It goes on from 11.30 am till about 3.00 pm, which means you can nicely start with bacon, eggs, sausages and baked beans and then sashay your way through soup, salad and the main courses before turning to polish off the desserts.

So they have action stations with mutton kebabs, crab-and-seafoody stuff (greeted by Darling with cries of delight), a pizza oven where this guy in a tall hat would bake you a pizza of your choice and a pasta station, with a choice of toppings and sauces. The paneer pakoda was a real let down though... the pieces were too big and the batter on the bland side and the sauce sucked.

Soups on offer last Sunday were roast eggplant soup and hot and sour chicken soup... both really good. They were also The salad bar is very well stocked and once again heaven for seafood fans with shrimp cocktail, mussels, crab meat salad, smoked salmon, sushi and sashimi, seafood terrines and the like. People like me can happily ignore all of the above because of the mmmmm.... potato salad, pasta salad, vegetable terrine, honey glazed ham with pineapple (to die for), coleslaw and loads of cold cuts. They have this really good thousand island dressing as well, which was generously drizzled onto everything and then topped with bacon bits and freshly grated parmesan. Bliss!

We both unanimously decided to ignore the traditional main courses on offer - rice, noodles, chicken masala, brinjal pahi and the like. I'm sure they're really good, but we can have rice and curry any day no? Instead we tucked into roast turkey with cranberry sauce, roast pork (a tad on the tough side) with apple sauce and pasta. They also had yummy oven roasted potatoes and steamed vegies that were nicely done, colourful and crunchy and a good accompaniment to the meats.

Even though we were feeling full-ish, neither of us wanted to ignore the desserts. To my delight, they had waffles and these were much better than the ones at Coffee Stop - thinner and crispier and with great difficulty I limited myself to a single waffle drenched with chocolate topping and butterscotch sauce. Chocolate biscuit pudding, baked chocolate pudding, apple strudel, cheesecake, velvet tarts, fruit trifle, strawberry panna cotta, ice cream, fresh fruit salad, tiramisu - did I mention that we were spoiled for choice? The only thing I don't like is that they serve the trifles and panna cotta in those fancy little shot glass thingies... and the spoons are too wide to really dig in and finish the last remnants of dessert. Oooh, and I almost forgot... they also flambe fresh fruits in caramel sauce (it was pineapple this week, and banana last time) which is totally divine!

And for those of you who like to finish of in style, they have a decent cheeseboard. The Camembert was especially good.

The restaurant was quite packed when we got there, so it was a good thing we made reservations. The atmosphere was very Sunday-morning-laid-back with lots of people chilling with the sunday papers and families with little kids running about. Our seat had a good view of the goldfish pond and the pool beyond. Actually that's not much of an advantage as overweight suddas in abbreviated bathing costumes don't really promote a healthy appetite... :)

Not that it stopped us.

The tab was 1990/- net per person, which I think is a pretty good deal considering the choice and quality of food, and the fact that it's a five star joint.

Well - I'm off to have lunch... stay tuned for more!

New pet, old pet.... slimy and cold pet

So I'm back at my mum's place, enjoying a lot of pampering in peace and quiet. Happily munching away at home made hoppers, I notice two beady eyes staring at me from over the edge of the table.

I glare back.

Fellow slithers off with a flick of a speckled tail.

Apparently, that's my mum's new pet. We're not even sure if it's "pet" or "pets" because they don't stick around when we come to investigate! But every night without fail, mum leaves some hopper fragments or noodles or a bit of thosai on the table. Every morning it's been polished off.

Pic from here.

He only comes to share our dinner though.

I guess he doesn't like takeout for the other meals!