Living in America........ Best and the worst meal

When you live in a town, a small town in America you tend to become a part of the town. In our case it was dearest wife Praveen, Detective An, and yours truly who stayed together in Pittsburgh for over a fortnight, while dearest wife Praveen pursued her Leadership Management (Full Bright Scholarship) at Carnegie Mellon University.


When you do something for 21 days it becomes a habit, similarly when you don’t do something regularly for 21 days it stops being a habit (profound isn’t it). Yes, I have not written for over 60 days and I have a problem getting back to it.

When the experiences are few and far, we tend to ponder, think and exaggerate and perhaps as a blogger record them. When the experiences are, varied and in fast consecution to each other, the choices then become extremely difficult.In the last two months I have passed through and visited Munich, Pittsburgh, Washington, Frankfurt, Goa, Bangalore and Mumbai. This one is about living in America. The most memorable and hyper varied experiences make it to my first record.



True to my grain, I am going to right about the salesman kind of places. Though my idiom in India Is Rs 100/-. Unfortunately, I think one has to re-calibrate in USA and call it eating under USD 8 (simply defined a burger, fries and coke at Mc Donald’s is approx Rs85-100, whilst in USA its USD 8). Will try to stick to the USD 8-10 budget. In no particular order, I am trying to capture experiences.





Most Memorable Meal:

Speaking to Sukku and Ritu (friends of my friend Rajesh Tewari our elegant host and friend from Discovery Channel), knowing my keen interest and food said, you have to try El Pollo Rico, the only place Anthony Bourdain wanted to go on visiting Washington DC. What when, where I had to do it we were leaving the next day for India. The next morning, Rajesh set the GPS for El Pollo Rico in Arlington and we were there. It looked like an ordinary diner or Cantina (Mexican) in a very ordinary parking lot.


It is famous for the Peruvian roasted chicken, that’s it, nothing else. Like India, Quarter, Half and Full Chicken with fries and coleslaw with two interesting sauces or chutneys a green spicy sauce and a pale yellow creamy cheesy sauce (can't get my finger on those sauces but delicious). Now the place, ordinary looking with a long bar and the Rotisserie behind it, with gringo like men smiling, the tables and restaurant was white light, ordinary. The main star is the chicken with subcutaneous fat, the skin charred crisp brown, the insides, meat coming of the bone though firm. I could go on and on and on…………. Using my most often used expression, the earth moved for me, it does, nearly once a quarter.


The price, we paid USD 13.50 (approx Rs 640), perfect could easily feed two hungry men or moderately hungry family of 3-4. Most amazing experience. You must check out the brief experience on YouTube (if you like. The basting of the chicken the crispness the spices and the flavors are hard to describe. I did sight a Peruvian Chicken Stall at the Ambience Mall in Gurgaon (near Delhi), but it looked like fried chicken far from the real stuff I had recently had. By the way goes great with Trader Joe’s Chardonnay (Trader Joe - a grocery/ supermarket has its own brand of wine, surprisingly well at USD 5 a bottle (Rs 240) we 4-5 of them over two days. Nice.


Most Disappointing Meal:

Pamela’s (www.pamelasdiner.com)is a Diner that everyone knows in Pittsburgh and it’s also been made famous by Pittsburgh famous visitor, Barak Obama, who has very often visited the diner for its famous pancakes. Even Pamela and Gale the owners and chefs have been invited to the White House to cook and lay out breakfast for visiting heads of states amd veterans on Memorial day. With this kind of lineage, we had to visit this place and visit we did, twice. Besides, it was well within the budget, i.e. the salesman’s budget extended taking the first world liberties of USD8-10. You can eat well, breakfast or Brunch at Pamela’s for that amount, in quantity, in quality, that’s a different story.

We were living in the Jor Bagh of Pittsburgh, called Shadyside area and the market at a stone’s throw is the Walnut street. Right in the centre of Walnut Street is the Pamela’s diner. Me and our little loving daughter Detective An (now called Cool Clouseau) decided to brunch at Pamela’s. We reached. Nice place gave my name Sam (a lot more convenient than Samil Malhotra), entered, black and white checkered tiles, apron clad wait staff.
A young waitress, what are you going to drink, we ordered coke and a pink lemon or ginger fizz. Absorbed the atmosphere, saw some caricatures of Obama. We ordered instinctively. A Hot Dog for the little one a Hamburger for me and Onion rings for us. Everything is enormous like everything in America, the wait staff the plates, the drinks, the onions in the onion rings, the steak in the burger. However it was, tasteless, even with mustard, Tabasco and pepper absolutely tasteless. Absolutely, bad experience.


Not giving in so easily, we went back, thinking it was a bad a day and a bad order, it’s a breakfast place we should order breakfast. This time three of us dearest wife Praveen, Cool Clouseau and me armed with determination. Praveen studying at Carnegie Mellon had heard great things about the place. With a 30 minute wait Sam was called. We are seated what are you gonna drink…. Etc later we order, Vegetable Omelet and home fries for Praveen and I went for the whole hog, Eggs, Pancake, Home Fries etc, the full shebang. The eggs are always four egged, it puts most of us at a disadvantage, the bacon to measly and dry, the pancakes (boy of boy, flat, neither sweet nor salted like bland wheat Chilla with no salt or sugar served with maple syrup which is another story). Cut to Praveen enormous eggs stuffed with raw uncooked vegetables, mind you she’s is used to the lovingly folded in a dainty pan by the head chef at the Taj or the The Leela, if she is eating an Omelet, kind of Omellete. This seemed like eggs and vegetables on wholesale. In America please do not repeat do not order any large, in fact most us can do with a kids meal.



Lesson learnt; do not eat where Barak Obama eats. I was tempted to try Ray’s at Washington Dc where he hopes across for a burger or Sandwich now a red light comes on which says stay away. The Commercials….. Costs us about USD 26 (about Rs 1230), the regret is we were hungry because we did not or could not eat.

Look Out For more Living in Ameriaca, The best Of The Pitt ( Pittsburgh), Beers in America , Alternate dining in America in this series.


Question, Which Head of State did Obama take to Ray's for the Hells burger ?

So Long !

Beer Summit : London, Summer of 2009

When one is tired of London, one is tired of life (Samuel Johnson)

Obama had a beer summit in the gardens of the White House on 3oth, 2009 with Sgt James Crowley of the Massachusetts Police Department ( opted and served a Blue Moon beer), Henry Louise Gates Jr a Harward University Professor (opted and served a Sam Adams beer) and Mr President opted for the beer of the American working class a Bud Light.We had a similar beer summit in London circa 21-26 July 2009. The trio here was different (means, I shared these 9 beers in 5 days with these gents), Ranjit Kumar (my maternal Uncle, my childhood idol and aka, Samson in College and Johnny by his wife and friends now), lives in London since 52 years, truly a working class hero), Beera- My buddy from the Indian Army now a senior executive with the Lloyds bank.

My first beer in London a Carlsberg, I love the beer, a little disappointed (because, I have loads of it in New Delhi now), I was living with Johnny (my Uncle, called John) and his humorous and bundle of energy, his Irish wife Aggie with of course dearest wife Praveen and little Detective An. Promised myself to try a lot more beers.

The next day after a covering a lot of ground in London, the Salvador Dali Universe and Gallery, we reached an outdoor café within the Royal Festival Hall on Belvedere Road, on the classy South Bank, called you know what Canteen ( it was dearest wife’s choice, we went back two days later for a coffee and cheese cakes). The vivacious waitress Polly grazed my arm and offered a Helles Lager, though brought to us by a shaggy Scotsman Michael .Mmm it was light and cold and I was thirsty, the recommendation and the recommendee, both were nice. We enjoyed the beer, infact I had the beer, while dear Praveen had a lemonade and Detective An had a classic Coke in classic glass bottle with Fish and chips and dish of mashed potatoes.

I opened the fridge one day (extending the generosity of our loving hosts) and pulled out a bottle of Peroni, (my Uncle usually stocks exotic sounding east European and Bulgarian beer), this time he had gone upmarket and stocked Italian beer. Though, I have had Peroni in Nat’s restaurant Flavours in Delhi. It felt refreshing and light, it’s a pity, I followed it with yet another Carlsberg or was it a scotch, a Chivas 18 year old (which is as different and superior from its Chivas regular as cheese is from chalk or something like that) or was it a Islay of Mist, a single malt blend too evolved for my humble and broken in palette.

We had an image of an ideal pub, within an animal sounding name (like Hog in the Pound, The Horse and the Groom) and lo behold we were at Hares and Hound a lovely 105 year old pub in Osterly park. We loved it, a traditional place in fact, now owned by the Fullers Brewery waited by the pretty Louise a Fillipino who has been in and out of this pub for seven years.

Amidst ,Bangers (Cumberland sausages) and mash with onion gravy and Fried cod (fish)and chips and lots of other food had memorable pints and half pints of Fullers Discovery (pale blonde Beer), Fullers ESB and the dark Guinness. Discovery was what it promised blonde and light and pale both to look at and drink, ESB was strong and had a bite to it and the Guinness got me into a dark mood (the lady in the photo shot and ad for Guinness is not Louise the Fillipino, lest you get ideas) we went to family bar and this is family viewing blog. Is that right or what ?

Beera(sounds similar to Beer, is Berender Pal Singh the senior executive), picked me up from home and said lets go to Windsor Castle, I thought to myself Castle at night, its like asking someone lets go to Red Fort or Purana Qila. Well I said lets go with the flow. It turned out to be an upmarket bar, pub , restaurant and nightclub district, the excellent host that he is,took me to three bars, The King and Castle where I had a shy beer amidst the heavy Vodka and Redbull drinking by the Eton College boys which is in the neighbourhood. With girls from every where, and the shortest skirts on this side of Soho. We are accosted by four young girls who ask for a light I offer them a lit cigarette, one of them ,an Indian says, join us we are going to Liquid and then Vanilla. I am too old and Beera is to sober to respond. Well I forgot the beer in all this excitement. I had a fruity garden Beer Leffe out of a bottle. Nice. Fortified by the encounter, Beera decided to stick to double of Jamieson the Irish whisky for the night, I meekly followed. In two characteristic bars, the Ha Ha Bar and Grill at the Windsor station and gues what the Horse and the Groom , but more of that later, her we are talking just beer.

The Last day, I have to have some more beers, we go to the neighbourhood store called Exotic and pick up Grolsch and John Smiths. I had seen and read about Grolsch in movies and books, It was nice and not a strong beer as I thought it would be. The last one was John Smiths it come with a plastic widget in the can which I was told by Uncle John, helps it move from a canned beer to a beer from the pump. Though it promises, to be a bitter it was not that bitter, It was quite nice. That’s the Story, Three Guys Nine beers in 5days. That my Beer Summit a lot more interesting than Obama’s
So Long or is It Tally Ho !