Glocal Junction
For a food lover, perhaps the greatest challenge is to satisfy his/her own taste buds. We ourselves decide which restaurant to visit based on what food we like. Today, I may feel like having Thai food and so I would home in on a restaurant that serves amazing Thai food. Tomorrow my palate may crave for some lip-smacking local food; considering my current location it could be Andhra, Hyderabadi or other regional cuisines for that matter. Eventually, this alternating process of choosing between local and global cuisine reaches a point of inhibition and then you wonder- what next?
A couple of days back my good friend Leo asked me if I wanted to join him for a pre-opening slash corporate bash of an upcoming bar at Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad. He told me it was an invite-only party and that if I was interested he would add my name to the guest list. I wasn’t sure and so I told him to give me some time to think it over- in case any plans come up. Meanwhile, I checked around with my friends from the foodie community if they had heard or been invited for such a party and was surprised to learn that none of them were- they haven’t even heard about this bar. I checked with my wife Herwin if she was willing to come along with me; she agreed and so I decided to go for it.
On the day, prior to the event, I had a flair bartending work shop organized by Zomato at Sheraton Hotel featuring the famous Ami Shroff. After the event, I quickly pulled Nazeef and my wife Herwin from the crowd, hired an Uber and we arrived at the event.
The first thing that caught my eye was the logo- the Hindi alphabet ‘क’ replaced ‘C’ in the name Glocal Junction. I also noticed the glass-wall at the entrance which spans from the ground floor all the way up to the first floor- it was visually appealing. The ambiance of Glocal Junction is uncommon and elegant; there are two bar counters- each on the ground and the first floor. There was also sufficient seating space for customers who would prefer to dine-in rather than chill by the bar counter. Glocal Junction also houses amazing acoustics and I must say that there was some uplifting EDM music being played by an out-of-town DJ. Leo introduced me to his friend John who in turn introduced me to Isha Sharma and Preeti Awate; Isha is the marketing manager for Foodlink– the parent company that owns Glocal Junction, India Bistro and China Bistro (I had visited this restaurant for a #bloggerstable event a few days back). Together, Isha and Preeti explained the concept of Glocal Junction wherein the whole idea was to introduce dishes that featured on the global stage but, with a local twist. We spoke briefly and they even invited me for the grand opening which was to be held the following day. Well, since then I have visited Glocal Junction on more than one occasion and it was during the #bloggerstable event that I got a chance to experience their array of cocktails/mocktails and the interesting food on their menu.
Glocal Junction has a by-the-day and by-the-night menu- since it was a bloggers table event, dishes from both the menus were served. The concept of global cuisine with a local twist is something to experience, but at the same time the menu also featured classics such as the Risotto, Lasagne etc.
We started of with some cocktails,
The cocktails were amazing and they were served in quirky, out-of-the-ordinary jars or vessels. Let the pictures do the talking- I cannot help but tell you how long we spent clicking countless pictures of these things. My favourite amongst the cocktails was the Mirage- served in a golden coloured Pineapple-shaped container, I found it to be very refreshing and amply potent at the same time- a must try guys! This was just the beginning of an awesome experience- we were about to be blown away by the food! Here are the starters and the main course dishes that we were treated to-
- Hot Tenesse Barrrahh- succulent lamb chops cooked in a sweet and spicy sauce- nailed it.
- Disco Anda Fry – in plain terms omelette-pav, again very soft and delicious.
- LGBT Prawn Skewers – Ok, #punintended, but this was Lemon grass, Basil and Turmeric marinated Prawn skewers- lip-smacking indeed, the combo of spices.
- Orru Kodi Pulusu – a popular Andhra dish with a twist- I thoroughly enjoyed this.
- The food was extremely delicious and packed with flavor; but my personal favourites were-
A special call out for the chutneys that were served with the dishes, they were nothing short of brilliant.
Finally the desserts,
The name of the desserts was an indication of how prepared Glocal was to stick to their core concept- besides having the local twist to dishes from the global stage. Pan flavoured cheese cake, Phirni- which is a popular dessert served especially during the month of Ramadan is mixed and matched with Creme Brulee making it a Phirni Creme Brulee and at last but far from the least, with the most epic of names- the Masala Chai Panna Cotta served with Parle-G biscuit crumbs (Wow, now that is crazy!). I had to meet the Chef behind these nomenclatures and the dishes themselves and so- heres to Chef Gaurrav Gidwani
I must admit that I was introduced to Gaurrav on the very first day and we spoke for hours especially when we discovered a mutual liking for Psy music. Gaurrav has already been featured on several magazines and why shouldn’t he be? The food he cooks is brilliant and is only matched by the way the dishes are named on the menu. He is extremely chilled out, has an amazing taste for music and above all- has the ability to deliver a top notch food experience. It was an honour to meet you, Chef Gaurrav! #respect
Glocal Junction brings the first-ever all-day dining and bar concept to Hyderabad after running successfully in Mumbai. It is also the perfect solution to the dilemma I spoke about earlier- when in doubt between global cuisine and local cuisine, go Glocal! With its exceptional cuisine, extensive bar menu, stylish interior décor, uplifting ambiance- accelerated by good choice of music- this place definitely has the potential to be the next big thing in town. Also FYI, Glocal Junction is coming soon to Bangalore as well and so long story short, Glocal Junction is here to stay! Just what the city needed.. Thank you!
