May 3rd, 2017

Shangri-La – where one need not Die but merely Dive … to go to heaven !!!

Dive in for a Dive’ine experience and realize that heaven is not necessarily up there but can also be found in the depths of the ocean.

Shangri-La is defined as the fictional earthly paradise … but it’s namesake, the opulent star hotel here in Bangalore, makes the definition a reality and actually transports us to Paradise on the first Wednesday of every month, with Lobster Night at the b Cafe restaurant.

After having missed the invitation a couple of times, I made sure to clear my calendar this time, to claim my bit of Nirvana.

The scent of the ocean greets you as you enter the restaurant and the place is aflame in gold and brown and greens and multitude of hues, with these vibrant lobsters lurking in every nook and cranny. Creatures as big as 3 kgs rest indolently on huge trays set on ice. All the sections of the buffet, namely the Asian, continental, the cold salads etc serve their relevant versions and even the dessert counter has a large, ornamental lobster head guarding the ‘all chocolate’ pirate ship.

They also have an innovation by way of the the Cold stone lobster station, where the chef uses the cold plate and tosses up a creamy and succulent lobster cocktail, using techniques that are a cross between cold stone ice cream and Teppanyanki theatrics without the flame 😀 Playing with pre steamed lobster meat, he blends in cocktail dressings of the guest’s choice, which include yuzu, spicy mustard, chilli garlic and such.

Before beginning the meal, the chef gave us a little brief on the various types of lobsters which included the differences in appearance, taste and texture between those sourced from the cold waters of the Northern oceans and the tropical waters of warmer oceans.
While they usually serve the Canadian lobster here, due to some issues in procuring, we had the ones that came in from the Andamans.
On an average, they serve upto 75 kgs of these gorgeous monsters on Lobster night.

Apart from the cold stone lobster which was my favorite of the night, I also tried out the Laksa with lobster, which was good, the grilled lobster and the Stir fry with spicy sauce from the Asian section. The latter was a bit tougher than the rest due to the double cooking involved.

I missed spotting the Lobster Thermidor and did not see the Lobster bisque too because I was not focusing on the Continental section.
I also had a bit of the seafood salad that was served in a huge lobster shell.

Desserts were ‘beautiful’ but I just had no place left in me to even taste them. My companion however, went in for the home made Fig and honey and also the Kesar ice creams and turned poetic 😀

The pricing and schedules at the b Cafe restaurant are as follows –

1st Wednesday of the month Lobster night – 1990++
Thursday Seafood night – 1600++
Friday Meat night – 1600++
Saturday Bollywood karaoke – 1600++

At such prices, this unlimited lobster buffet really does not pinch the pocket or cost an arm and a leg. And though it does pinch the pincers off and costs the lobsters their claws … I am sure all lobster lovers will agree, that it is for a good c(l)ause !!!

May 3rd, 2017

For more pictures see My Facebook – Shangri-La-Lobster Night