Thai Ban

Ok, I will start with a wierd observation. Chinese people add a "san" at the end of your name, if they are calling you with respect. I am assuming "ban" stands for the same in Thai :D. ok ok, let's get back to the saner world ;-)

This small place tucked away in the line of buildings opposite Brand Factory on Banjara Hills Road No.2 is simply awesome! That's it. That's the word. The Tom Yum soup is much better that other thai places in the city, and maybe the chef's hand is really good! We ordered a chicken cooked with a roasted thai paste (I don't remember its Thai name L ), and though it was spicy, it tasted very good. I think the key point here is that we have to eat it slowly over some time and not just grab it and eat it (old habits die hard, u see ;-) )!

And people, it will be a sin if you don't eat their Khad Pao, a specialized Thai rice. Believe me, I have eaten in some places which supposedly serve this, but this one was way too good and most probably is the authentic version of the original dish. We ordered prawns along with this, but I guess two spice items don't go well together. Next time, we should maybe take something mild that will go well with Khao Pad.

Sandeep bhai wanted to try a salad too, and we ordered the Papaya salad. We were actually expecting he will get papaya's :D, but the look of the dish surprised us. The taste surprised us too, in a good way! I must say, Thai ban is surely going to be a place that we will frequent more from now on.

Location: Banjara Hills Road no.2, Opposite Brand Factory

Cuisine: Thai (of course ;-) ), Chinese

Cost: Rs. 600-800/- for two persons

Dhaba Chulha/Baba's Chulha

This place was right opposite my apartments, and I did not know about it for about an year! Ok, that was a little exaggerated. Somehow, the ambience of this small place did not appeal to me, and hence I never ventured to try food there. Finally, I thought we should atleast give it a try. And boy, did I regret not going there for so long! This place is essentially for take away food. Mutton Dakhin Curry, Mutton Rogan Josh, Chicken Butter Masala are my favorites here. Have them along with Nan and Steamed rice, and I guarentee you that will yearn for more. This place also makes rolls, which are needless to say superb!

Tangdi Kabab is a must eat at this place, no arguments about that. These guys have recently shifted to the basement of Neeru Silks (where Dosaz used to be there).

Location: Neeru Silks, Raj Bhavan Road

Cuisine: Indian

Cost: Rs.200 - 400/- for two persons.

45, Jubilee Hills

The first time I went, I decided not to go again. And then I was taken there a second time, in unavoidable circumstances. The unavoidable circumstance being that vegetarians liked the food very much! And they had good reason too. The second time, I only had veg and realised that it was actually good!

However, if you are interested in non-veg, you can safely avoid this place. This guy puts in a lot of chilly powder in non-veg dishes making them all taste the same and also very spicy too. You cannot enjoy the taste of non-veg at all ! The salads and the desserts are very good.The red coloured theme is quite good, but the picture frames are a little wierd. For me, I don't think I will avoid this place further, even in unavoidable circumstances!

Location: Road No.45, Jubilee Hills, beside Balakrishna's house :D

Cuisine: Continental

Cost: Rs. 199/- lunch buffet

Sweet Nirvana

Ready to put a BIGGG hole in your wallet? Rather in your friend's wallet ;-) ? Then Sweet Nirvana is the place you would want to go! The food is different and good, undoubtedly. But the pricing is what will stop me from going back there. Just for two of us it cost 1200 rupees. And we had 1/2 soup, one starter, one main course and some fish fry. We had chicken pasta with red and white sauce, and that dish was very good. Even the chicken soup was very good. I don't recollect the starter we had but that was also good! Fish fry was ok, because it didn't have any spices in it. This place is apparently famous for desserts, but we didn't have place in our stomach to accomodate further!

Location: State Art Gallery, Madhapur

Cuisine: European

Cost: Rs.1000 - 1200/- for two people!

Swathi Tiffins

This place has almost been like a second home to me! Right beside my apartments, I have even lost track of the number of times I must have gone here. Idli, Masala Dosa, Onion Dosa, Uthappa, Set Dosa, Puri, Chapati, you name it, I had it! Meals, roti, nan, curries, again you name it, I had it! If you get a chance, don't miss this place. Worth trying stuff here.

Location: Rajbhavan Road, Opposite CMR Mall

Cuisine: Tiffins, Veg

Haiking

Another famous Chinese restaurant. An old one in the city too. And super food too :). Though a little costly, this place is worth visiting for its exotic tastes. Cantonese soup, Hot and Sour Soup are ideal to start with. Chicken 65, and drumsticks are good choices for starters. Prawns and Fish dishes are good for main course along with any choice or rice and dal. This place has not lost its golden touch for a very long time, and hope it will continue to do so!

Location: Himayathnagar

Cuisine: Chinese

Cost: Rs.1500-2000 /- for 4 people

Narmada Biryani

Well, the name suggests what you have to eat there! So, I will not delve into the menu. What else can we talk about then? ;-). Let's suffice it to say that you will not come out disappointed from this place.

Location: Himayathnagar

Shanbhag

This along with Kamat, is the Grand Old Hotel of Hyderabad :D. Once my favorite tiffin place, this has become just another place I would go just because it has been a while since I have been there. Nonetheless, all tiffins are good here, especially the onion dosa and the rawa dosa. This has changed location three times and now even the name has been changed to Samarth Shanbhag. But for us, it will always remain as Shanbhag!

Location: Near Nagarjuna Circle, Panjagutta

Cuisine: Tiffin

Kamat

This, along with Shanbhag, is the Grand Old Hotel of Hyderabad! The best item I like here is the Button Idly, and upma. Dosas and puri is also good. Well, other than that, I don't know what to write :)

Location: Beside RBI, Lakdi-ka-pool. Also in Secunderabad

Cuisine: Tiffin

Tandoor

Only once have I been to this place and the food was very unimpressive. The look from outside and the ambience inside is very regal. Only if the food matched the regal nature of the ambience, would it have been a super hit. And quite surprisingly the buffet had very few "tandoor" items! This junction has much better food places, and this one is something you can safely avoid.

Location: Beside Lifestyle building, Begumpet

Cuisine: Continental