Papparoti

They had a huge billboard advertisement on the Khairatabad flyover about a bun, and we were intrigued by it. Therefore we landed up in their Jubilee Hills restaurant. The plan bun costs 170 rupees. 170 rupees for a bun!! But then we came till here, so we might as well order the bun! And once the bun came, oh boy! What a fantastic taste the bun had. It was just melting in your mouth! That said, still find the cost quite high and so haven’t gone back to this place again!

Starbucks

I have been a fan of starbucks for many years, and happiness knew no bounds when they were opening up in Hyderabad. Extra Hot Café Latte and Extra Hot Vanilla Latte are my regular coffees! Even when a new variety is on offer, I will only prefer to try these out because of the refreshing feeling they bring to the mind! In addition to this, their food options are also quite good. Egg White Croissant, Egg and Ham wrap, grilled chicken sandwich – all go very well with the Latte! Hail Starbucks!

Idly.com

Haven’t been to this place but placed a lot of online orders for tiffins, on lazy Sunday mornings! Their chutney that comes along with the Idli is awesome 😊. It has the right amount of spice, that many big restaurants also miss! You should also try out their Upma Dosa, along with this chutney! In the evenings, they serve Gunta Ponganalu. Most of the times, they make them after you order, so piping hot Gunta Ponganalu on a cloudy day is the only way to heaven! 

King's Drive IN

Sambar Rice with chicken. Eat their Sambar rice with chicken! What a dish! This is basically a drive IN place (resembling a food court), where you have multiple restaurants serving a variety of cuisines. Their Dosa counter is quite good, but sometimes they use so much ghee that it overpowers everything else! Did I tell you to eat their Sambar rice with chicken?

Frio Bistro

This must rank as one of the best European places in Hyderabad (that also serves Gachibowli Fried Chicken 😝). Both their Minestrone soup and Mushroom soup are very good. The Prawn and Fish paella is my favorite dish here. You can have this along with the Artichoke and Baby Corn A la plancha. Artichoke is generally not served at many places so it was a pleasure to see this here! We had also tried sandwiches, risottos and pasta – all of them were quite good and nothing to complain about!

IndiBlaze

Never been to their place, but placed so many orders online from them, that I lost count! And I repeat just one order – Grilled Mushroom Edi Bowl! What an awesome idea this bowl is! You get all kinds of great ingredients, the right amount of spice and cream, and the edible crust! The bowl is light yet filling, and that’s the best part of it. I have also tasted their pizza and wrap, but I went back to the bowl, because like I said, what an awesome idea!

Punjab Grill

Located very close to the Jubilee Hills Check Post, the ambience of this place doesn’t resemble anything Punjabi 😉. However, the food resembles a lot of Punjabi! It would be sacrilege if you walk into a Punjabi restaurant and not eat Butter Chicken! Their butter chicken was quite tasty. The place serves buffet and ala carte, and we chose to go with the buffet. I actually found the salad options to be quite tasty and good. Starters were served on the table, and the tandoor chicken varieties tasted the best! Butter chicken stood out for me, in the main course. But the best part was the parting shot – a Pan Shot! I’d go back again only for this perhaps!

The Buffet - GVK Mall

Visited this place only one time, after a movie that ended at 9:30pm! Was actually going up to eat at Khaan Saab, only to come to know that they have closed! The Buffet was suggested instead, and the place was quite big. Their buffet menu is also quite exhaustive but nothing that stood out – there was more of the stape varieties that we get in the buffets these days! Nevertheless, one will not be disappointed if you go here to have lunch.

Burger King

Well, if it is Burger King then you got to write only about the Burgers 😉! But I have even tried their wraps, which were quite good! So you can pick any kind of burger you want or the wrappers – you will leave the place with a happy tummy! I'd definitely recommend the wrappers here in addition to the burgers! 

Smokey House

Located right opposite the Raheja IT park, the accessibility of this place to 1000s of hungry souls is quite good! Their concept is similar to the Barbeque places that have come up around the city in recent times. Their food is also equally tasty! All of their starters that they serve on the barbeque on your table taste quite good. The fish and prawns especially stand out. I also liked their grilled mushrooms a lot (ordered multiple of those!). Their main course was also equally impressive – especially their mutton dishes. In the three times I have been here, liked their mutton dish the most! In desserts, they serve a pineapple jalebi which was quite innovative (and tasty)!

Tim Tai

True to their attractive name, they also offer an attractive menu of Asian cuisine. The Tom Yum soup here is as good as it can get for us 😊.  For starters, their steamed fish wrapped in banana leaf is one of their best dishes. The Dimsum platter (both veg and non-veg) are super light, and tasty too. Similar to Calamari dish, they have tempura squid too. I’ve had the Thai Chilli Basil noodles and Khao Pad rice during one visit. Nothing to complain about 😊. However, what stood out in a later visit was the Thai Massaman Curry and Malaysian Rendang Curry for the main course! These dishes were again as good as they could get!

Dhaba Estd 1986 Delhi

Sudden lunch plans are always good. Been to this place with colleagues after hearing from it from others! This is a small place in Kondapur, and they offer limited but a tasty buffet. Starters are served on table, and we ordered multiple servings of their Tawa Fish! It was very tasty. In their main course, Butter Chicken was quite tasty, and their desserts of phirni, gulab jamun etc were also quite good. Their ambiance has the typical notice boards we would find in a dhaba, and there was a flash dance that the waiters did too! Been here only once though. 

Cafe Eclat

One fine morning, friends in a whatsapp group were talking about Bagels. And then I got into the desperate mood to eat a Bagel. And the only place that came to my mind was Café Eclat! Their bagels – plain sesame, pizza, sea salt flakes bagel – are as good as we get in the Western countries too. Not just this, am also a fan of their Sourdough Bread too! Infact, the Cheese Jalapeno Sourdough bread is even better than their already awesome Sourdough Bread. Infact, the Seedy bread is even better than their already awesome Sourdough breads! 

Also had their Four Cheese Pizza and I would highly recommend this too. I had their Tiramisu too, but didn’t like it as much. This place has good sandwiches and burgers too, and is worth a visit. 

United Kitchens of India

True to the name, this restaurant serves food from various states of India . They have a very diverse menu, and it is preferable to go in larger groups so that more variety can be tried. Their Chapala vepudu, kodi pakodi, cheese corn lollypops, Bhetki fry, and Tangdi kabab stand out in the starters. For main course, pretty much everything we have tried over multiple visits have tasted quite good. From Gongura Mamsam to Mutton Pulav, from Luchi with Macher Jhol, From Butter Chicken to Sambar Rice, we have enjoyed all their dishes. For the variety they offer and the location that they are in, their dishes are quite reasonably priced too! 

The Grand Trunk Road

While trying to go to another place, we had to take a detour. The traffic was horrible and we chanced upon this place. It looked good from the outside, so we figured we will stop here and eat! Turns out, the decision was quite good 😊. The ambience of this place has been designed to give a dhaba feel. They come close to it. The best part of this place is their chat section. The live counters dish out extremely tasty chat options – pani puri, dahi puri, cutlet, pav bhaji etc! Infact the pani in the pani puri is just awesome!

Their buffet spread is also equally good but is the standard fare that you get anywhere. I have been to this place a couple of times and each time liked their chat section more! This place is also good for large team lunches too – is quite spacious and on a warm day, we will like the atmosphere too! 

Mama Goto

This place serves very good Asian Buffet! The wait time to get the first starter served is also quite less. I found their momos (both Veg and Chicken) to be quite light and very tasty. Their fish and prawn starters were also quite good, but their soup did stand out in its taste! For the main course, they had a cariety of Thai and Chinese dishes – all of which tasted quite good. At some places, the stomach feels heavy after eating only a little fried rice. Not here! The cost is decent too – I would recommend this place anytime 😊

Mirchis

This newly opened place serves telugu food primarily, and Chinese food as backup 😉. Their ambience is also good – they have filled the restaurant with plants and also give you free seeds to take home!

Like their concept, the food also is quite good. The experience of eating a good Gongura mamsam with piping hot white rice cannot be easily described! These folks come close to making you have that experience! Infact, we ordered their Thali and additionally ordered Gongura mamsam to complete the meal 😊. They serve nice chitti garelu with awesome coconut chutney with the thali too, something that many restaurants don’t do! Before I forget, do try out their Godavari Prawns fry for starters! 

The Wonton

It was an unexpected dinner plan because of which we landed here. I was so impressed with the place, that I took few more colleagues back the very next day!

What stood out was the Tibetean Thukpa – basically a noodles soup! This is a staple diet in many places in Tibet and China too. The broth is something to come back repeatedly for! I had both the Chicken and Vegetable broths, and I liked the Chicken broth more (Surprise :P).

Even the vegetarian options in the starters were quite good. “Cauliflower with Pineapple and Celery” was such a refreshing change from the Gobi Manchuria we always have on the menu! The Stir Fry Chinese greens were also tasting good and were light on the stomach too! Both the veg and non-veg dimsums were yummy too! We also had the Five spiced lamb, which was good. For main course, the main dish I had was the Tibetean Thukpa. However, tasted a bit of Thai Green curry too, and it didn’t disappoint either! 

Sheraton

Thanks to some office meetings, I have been here quite a few times for all the three meals of the day! I love their breakfast and lunch buffet options! Both their Indian and Western dishes taste quite good. Their parathas and dosas in the breakfast are quite good. The fresh fruit juices induce some freshness into your day too! They have a good spread of breads and cheese too (And these are not the regular mozzarella stuff we get outside!)

Their lunch options are equally good too. I generally become a fan of buffet the moment I see something like Baba Ganoush and Hummus! Added to this, some nice fish items that satisfy the palette are like an icing on the cake! Speaking of cake, oh boy, their dessert options are also awesome! You must keep some place aside to check out the multitude of options!

Absolute Telugu Buffet

By far, the largest buffet which has almost all of telugu land delicacies! Since I am a big fan of our food, I found this place fascinating! Almost every item is very good in their menu. What stands out are there – mamsam pappucharu and pappucharu Annam. All the other items are quite tasty too – will not describe all of them here J - Suffice it to say that you can visit them once and decide for yourself! However, during my latest visit, I saw that they changed the pot bowls in which they serve to common steel bins. The pot bins were one of their chief attractions. I hope they bring them back! 

Update: Unfortunately, this place is now closed!

Habanero

I had this sudden yearning for Mexican food. The last place I remembered eating was Tex-Mex, some years ago! Did a quick search and found Habanero! Went here for lunch on a hot afternoon – ordered the Holy Guacamole (I am a die-hard fan of anything made with Avacado. I wanted to return to Habanero some other day, so I called them enquiring if Holy Guacamole was available. They said no – so I didn’t go!). The other starter we ordered was Jalapeno poppers – which was quite yummy too. We also ordered a Fajita, Quesidilla, and Salads – all of them were very good and as flavourful as you would expect them to be J. And their Mojito drink was sooo soothing – a perfect drink for the hot afternoon! 

Palamuru Grill

Whatay place J - truly bowled over! Quick service and very very very tasty food! Gongura Mutton with Pulkas, Fish Pulusu with pulav rice, Chicken pulav, mutton chops for starters, chicken wings for starters, ragi sankati with pachi Pulusu – the list is just endless. 

In 2017, they have added "Kunda biryani" to their menu. This is cooked in a clay pot, after you place the order. The taste is simply fabulous! This doesn't have an overdose of biryani masala, that sometimes spoils our taste buds! Pot Biryani with a spicy curry will transport you to heaven! 

Just go there, have a bountiful and go back to relive the experience! The pan we get outside is also quite good J. 

Bombay Duck

The name sounds different, but there’s nothing Bombay about it J. This has two sections – French and Italian on the ground floor; Continental (Indian and Thai) on the first floor. We settled in the ground floor J - too lazy to walk up you see! Though we were told the menu was French and Italian, it had the utterly delicious middle eastern BabaGanoush J. Ordered it without any hesitation – it comes along with nice soft Pita bread. For main course, we had their speciality chicken and fish dishes. The fish was deep fried (which we didn’t know – just assumed it would be grilled), so didn’t enjoy it much. The chicken was quite good though – tasty and filling. I forgot my debit card here – the manager kept it safe till I went back the next day. 

Tansen

Another place that has a superb ambience! This place serves Hyderabadi and a few North Indian cuisines. We had their fish platter for starters – the choice of fishes the chef used, was simply superb. They were very tasty and were melting in the mouth J. We had the Sirmal (a different type of naan) which was very heavy on the pallete J - but the taste was very good, when eaten with their Dum ka murgh curry. A live music performance (table and violin) was a refreshing change from the same old “restaurant music”. 

7 Biryanis

Like the name suggests, they have 7 biryanis on their menu! Raju gaari kodi pulav has been had else where – so we didn’t try that (2 varities of the same – mutton and chicken). Dum Biryani has become boring, so didn’t try J. Rajamundry Ajantha Biryani was simply superb in taste! It comes with two leg pieces and a spicy curry on top of the pulav rice. When I am going back to this place, this will be the first dish I will order J. We had the kheema biryani too – no complaints! They also serve nice starters – we had Bangla Kodi – chicken wrapped in a Alu slice and deep fried J - this is a must try in their chain of restaurants. They do have curries too – but when you go to a place named 7 biryanis, why should you bother with eating curries? ;)