Come on, don’t panic. Maybe it’s not really a place that you can afford to go to everyday if you don’t draw a six-figure monthly paycheck, but the food and drinks are so reasonably priced that you don’t have to dread going there with your partner, family or folks at least once in a while. [break]So, time to shed away that 5-star phobia and read on!
True to its name, the Mediterranean food menu at Olive Garden offers dishes from across countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, which essentially means that you can decide to be at one place the entire evening and try out a combination of foods from over a dozen countries spanning over two continents.
Maybe you can kick-start the evening with Moroccan or Pita bread that is eaten either with Hommos Bil Tahini (a spread made from cooked, mashed chickpeas) or Baba Ghanouj (made from mashed eggplant mixed with various seasonings). You have the option of choosing other varieties of spreads, too, such as Foul Madames (made from cooked and mashed kidney beans). The choice is entirely yours!
Then you can move to mezzah (hors d’oeuvres). From here on, you have the option of choosing between vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Maybe you can then order Insalata (a simple salad from the Italian region of Campania) followed by shorba, which in common lingo is nothing but soup. We opted for Escarole & White Beans with Lamb and must confess that hadn’t we seen the menu beforehand and known that there were still quite a few items to follow, we would have asked for a second serving, and probably a third one. It simply was amazing!
For us, the rich taste of the shorba symbolized the essence of what Mediterranean food is all about – extremely rich in flavors primarily because of the use of an assortment of herbs, which leaves you craving for more, and more. As per the menu and the suggestion of the restaurant’s Outlet Manager Prabhu Saran Thapa, we followed the shorba with shorbet of kiwi and lime.
“The idea of having shorbet just before the main course is to cleanse your mouth of all the other flavors so that you can completely enjoy the taste of the main dish,” Thapa said.
For the main course, we opted for Mustard Crust Salmon, which was again fabulous. One though has the option of choosing other dishes for the main course, such as Herbed Lamb Chops with Greek Khus Khus or, if you are a veggie, Grilled Tofu with Mediterranean Salad, or Iman Byaldi (olive oil foods).
So what’s holding you back? Be there between 6:30 to 10:30 pm on any day of the week and enjoy a great dinner. And if you are someone who loves drinking, proceed with the different courses along with a mug of beer or a glass of wine. That will certainly add more colors to your evening.
A word to those with bulging waistlines: Don’t you worry. Mediterranean food is considered extremely healthy. Don’t you think it’s high time you indulged yourself?
Price: Rs 1200 plus tax for vegetarian set; Rs 1500 plus tax for non-vegetarian set. Contact: 4411818
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