Travels for Taste

Tales of travel and food with a touch of spice

  • Home
  • About
    • In the Press, Published Work and Interviews
    • PR and Disclosure Policy
  • Food
    • Recipe Index
      • Indian
        • C.K.P recipes
        • Curry – Meat, Seafood
        • Curry – Vegetarian
        • Sides
        • Chutneys
      • Healthy
        • Soups
        • Salads
      • Quick and Easy
      • Baking
        • Desserts
      • Meat
      • Seafood
      • Vegetarian
        • Salads
      • Vegan
    • Product Reviews
    • Events
  • Travel
    • UK
    • India
    • Around the World
  • Lifestyle
    • Home
    • Kitchen
    • Restaurant Reviews
    • Miscellaneous
  • Giveaways
  • Work with me
    • Meet interesting foodie entrepreneurs here

Global Street Food Kitchen – bringing International favourites to London

January 19, 2016 by manjirichitnis 18 Comments

The first of a chain of restaurants soon to open in London, Global Street Food Kitchen has opened its first outlet in the busy mall which houses ASDA in Hounslow East.

Not to be confused with the regular multi-cuisine restaurants which often manage to serve up sub-standard food with confusing menus and buffet style dining. Global Street Food Kitchen has a well researched A la Carte menu concept backed up by a philosophy of sourcing which an emphasis on provenance. For instance usage of only the very best herb fed, free range chicken from Pilmoor Farm, in Yorkshire, similarly only organic tomatoes to go with the pizza flour and cheese for the pizza which are imported from Italy.

No wonder then that the Butter chicken was delightful not just in taste but texture and managed to enhance the robust spices used in the marination. This dish is a firm favourite with me when it comes to North Indian food. It is a very popular Indian dish and  most roadside ‘dhabas’ (little shanties that dot the national highways) serve this indulgent curry with buttery parathas – fuel for all those driving long distance on dusty roads in temperatures hitting 40 deg cel plus.

Butter Chicken at GSF
                                                                           Butter Chicken at GSF

When I first walked into GSF with my friend the first thing we noticed was the cool college canteen style look which screams ‘shack’ or ‘tapri’ (meaning a small roadside stall in Marathi, usually built with scrap material lifted off construction sites like scaffoldings and wooden planks). The rustic feel is emphasised by the functional but dhaba style furniture and wooden effects.

Unfussy decor at GSF

I especially liked the open plan kitchen and bar area.
Open plan Kitchen and bar at GSF

The wood fired oven adds a comforting warm glow to the huge open plan kitchen.

Wood Fired Oven at GSF

The massive warehouse style space which can house a large number of guests has a very welcoming vibe.

Spacious interiors at GSF

With so many tempting dishes on offer I really was at a loss at where to start sampling. I picked my top 2 fav’s – Pani Puri is my absolute favourite when it comes to Mumbai street food and I also can’t resist seafood especially Prawn Koliwada – blame it on my roots – a true blue Bombayite aka Mumbaikar and a Maharashtrian with a staple diet of fish curries – I go weak in the knees at the very sight of prawns.

Prawn Koliwada at GSF

One bite of these crispy spicy prawns and there’s no going back folks!

Pani puri shots at GSF

Clearly, consultant Chef Shailesh Deshmukh and Head Chef Sudhir Jadhav who have worked together to conceptualise the menu have found just the right mix for the various spices and techniques to perfect global street food classics. With Oriental, Indian, Mexican, British, Italian and American cuisines on the menu there is something to satiate every type of street food craving. All ingredients are sourced from high-quality suppliers and farms and the proof lies in the fresh flavoursome food which does justice to its respective cuisine.

Consultant Chef Shailesh Deshmukh brings with him a rich background of experience gained at establishments like The Dorchester, Marriott, Hyatt, Four Seasons and Jumeirah, that coupled with boundless energy and passion has resulted in the creation of dishes like this Bakarwadi chaat – presented so tastefully, to tempt even the most discerning palate. Bakarwadi is a classic snack from Pune in the state of Maharashtra India – best described as a spicy crunchy fried spring roll like savoury snack, made famous by ‘Chitale Bandhu’ – Pune’s premier purveyors of traditional Maharashtrian sweets and snacks. No trip to India is complete for me unless I queue up outside Chitale Bandhu to buy freshly made bakarwadi by the kilo 😉

Bakarwadi Chaat at GSF

To keep us hydrated we had a fabulous mocktail called Tamarind Chilli – love the way they describe it on the menu too, very entertaining! I also like the cocktail called Mr.Gatsby – potent but refreshing all at once.

Tamarind Chilli Moctail at GSF

We also sampled the crispy aubergine which are so morish we could have easily eaten a few more portions but there was so a tempting variety of dishes to sample we had to do justice to all of them 😉

A medley of flavoursome global street food

L-R: Mexican Quesadilla, side of sauteed spinach with shallots, onion rings, Wall Art – a world map with a difference at GSF, a juicy GSF classic beef burger served with hand-cut triple cooked chips.

I was very keen to try Misal Pav which hails from the state of Maharashtra in India, done well this dish is a absolute delight. A combination of a humble legume and sprouts curry spiced with sev and served with a soft ‘paav’ bread. At GSF they this spicy curry topped with fresh ‘farsan’ commonly known as the Bombay Mix, with a side of a delicious mystery sauce which is to be poured on the top.Finally the dish is topped off with finely chopped red onions and a generous squeeze of lime. No wonder this dish won the ‘Foodie Hub Award’ in London last June!

Misal Paav at GSF

One of the reasons this dish is so delicious is the bread that is served with it is so fresh. Like all their other carefully selected ingredients and their emphasis on provenance, all the bread served at GSF are specially made for the restaurant by artisan baker Maison Blanc.

Though I would have loved to sample their dessert menu I simply couldn’t after devouring such a feast but then we had one last treat come our way – Masala Chai served with a fabulous Bun Maska. Now folks bun maska takes me back to my days in Pune where I frequented this place called – Cafe’ GoodLuck where my friends and I spent hours drinking one cup after another of hot sweet masala chai served as ‘cutting’ -half a cup with a soft bun doused in golden soft butter and sprinkle of sugar. Winter evenings in Pune after work were so good! The same delightful treat I also enjoyed as a college student at various Irani Cafes around Matunga, Dadar and South Bombay – perfect treat for an always broke college student perpetually in need of more ‘pocket money’.

For those with a sweet tooth do take note that GSF source all their ice cream and sorbet from the award winning ‘Snow Flake Luxury Gelato’ – yet another reason why their food is so good – the focus is clear – to create and serve authentic dishes.

Masala Chai and Bun Maska at GSF

I urge you not to miss out on this simple but fabulous treat at GSF, the buttery goodness encased in a fresh soft bun is almost like having a feathery light sponge with creme’ chantilly….

Global Street Food Kitchen offers a refreshing new take on serving street food – authentic flavours, emphasis on provenance and chefs trained at some of the best establishments in the world – all key ingredients to their delicious offerings. I for one cannot wait for their new branch in Central London, until then whenever the craving for street food hits I know where I will be going.

*With  thanks to Humayun Hussain and Global Street Food Kitchen for the invite. No monetary compensation was offered for a positive review. All opinions expressed here are entirely my own.

Filed Under: Lifestyle, Restaurant Reviews Tagged With: A la Carte menu, Bakarwadi chaat, beef burger, Bombay Mix, Bombayite, British, Bun Maska, Cafe' GoodLuck, Chef Shailesh Deshmukh, Chitale Bandhu, dadar, farsan, Foodie Hub Award, Gatsby, Global Street Food Kitchen, GSF, hand-cut triple cooked chips, India, Indian, Irani Cafes, Italian and American cuisines, maharashtrian, Maison Blanc, Masala Chai, Matunga, Mexican, Mexican Quesadilla, Misal Pav, Mumbaikar, onion rings, Oriental, pani puri, Prawn Koliwada, Pune, sauteed spinach with shallots, sides, South Bombay, Tamarind Chilli mocktail

21, The Print Room, Covent Garden, London – Review (Permanently closed)

July 8, 2014 by manjirichitnis 8 Comments

On the corner of Covent Garden Piazza, housed in a beautiful Georgian heritage site is a 3 story delightful place -21 – a rustic Italian restaurant, The Print Room – a cocktail bar with 2 balconies overlooking the piazza and all the live entertainment it has to offer and the terrace located on the Piazza – a great way to enjoy the outdoors, drink in the hustle-bustle, gaze at St.Pauls – all this under the shelter of huge umbrellas and heating for chilly evenings.

1-IMG_7570 (Copy)
1-IMG_7607 (Copy)

When I first heard of 21 the Print Room at Covent Garden I imagined it to be this tiny little place with a rustic feel, when we walked into 21 I felt I was walking into a huge cave with tunnels well-lit and the aroma of melted cheese wafting around. The historic cellar vaults converted into a fab Italian restaurant have a cosy warm feel. They also proudly claim to serve the best pizza and pasta in Covent Garden – We were soon about to find out….

21 print room 1

Image Courtesy:21 Covent Garden

2-IMG_7572 (Copy)

Hubby and I walked into the place on a very, very warm summer evening and were seated at a table perfect for a romantic date but we food bloggers need light for clicking away, so once we were moved to a new table and happily settled into a comparatively well-lit corner of our choice, we couldn’t wait to order some drinks and cool down a few degrees. Just as I thought I would melt with the heat these beauties came to our rescue – a Mango Bellini (£7.50)for me and a  Verde Flower(£5) Sine Peccato, for the husband – it means a cocktail without sin.

The Mango Bellini – a Prosecco-based cocktail was crisp, fresh, fruity, summery while hubbys Verde Flower – a combo of cucumber, apple juice, and elderflower with a dash of bitter lemon was fresh and light with lots of ice – so refreshing!

3-IMG_7573 (Copy)

Accompanied by Wild Boar Tortelloni (£7.25) – Pancetta, green beans, sage cream, and Black pepper Calamari with saffron aioli (£7.25) as starters. The batter for the calamari was a bit bulky making them a bit chewy, the tortellini was very good, could easily have eaten some more!

4-IMG_7574 (Copy)
21 - Calamari starter

Image Courtesy:21 Covent Garden

I was told that the A la Carte menu is fresh, Italian-inspired, and prepared with the best quality local ingredients – well now, I love the sound of that! We ordered the Cornish Crab Linguine (£14.25) and the Figaro (£14.95) – a Milano Salami, Parma Ham & Pepperoni Pizza for the main course but honestly if you’re doing starters then this one pizza between two people is more than enough!

1-IMG_7584 (Copy)

The Figaro is absolutely mind-blowing delicious with the 3 meat sitting there with black olives and cherry tomatoes – begging to be eaten! The goat’s cheese was nothing like I’d ever tasted before – so soft and creamy and not one bit salty. Abandon your fork and knife for this one folks, eat with your hands…lick the gooey gorgeous roasted garlic olive oil mixed with the melted mozzarella, as it drips off the sides while you devour this magnificent feast. The linguine was ignored by us for the first few minutes while we silently ate our pizza. I felt like Julia Roberts in the movie Eat,Pray, Love telling her friend to drop the guilt and just eat their cheese-laden gorgeous looking pizza when they go to Naples,err mmm only I was sharing my Pizza with my hubster 😉

2-IMG_7585 (Copy)

The linguine was good though paling in comparison to this star pizza staring at us. The crab meat was mixed well into the pasta and it was have been fun to eat this pasta slowly after squeezing lime generously over it, sipping a fine glasses red which goes with the fresh seafood taste and the chilies in the pasta. I ordered a glass of Red- the Nero D’Avola 2011 (£5.65 a glass, £21 a bottle) with my linguine. Hubster had a glass of Prosecco Brut (£6.80) to go with the mains.

1-IMG_7580 (Copy)

Needless to say the mere mention of dessert and we would have exploded so we skipped dessert. Eager to walk and help digest the generous dinner now sitting firmly inside our tummies we took a tour of the print room upstairs which is a print shop turned cocktail bar, with a lovely balcony overlooking the piazza. We then walked out into the piazza past the Terrace, to be greeted by fresh, crisp evening London air.

The Terrace at 21

Image Courtesy:21 Covent Garden

So let’s see, 21 delivered on their promise of serving the best Pizza in Covent Garden, the wine selection and mocktails on offer are impressive and  I loved my Mango Bellini. Food and Wine taken care of.Ambiance – the feeling of sitting huddled in a cozy cubby hole dating back to Georgian Times is something else, the view from the Print room is amazing, so I’d say this is a perfect place for romantic dates in the cubby hole of 21 or out on the terrace – better for warm summer evenings, a great venue for hen and stag parties and a really cool place to hang out for drinks with your friends, they seem to have got it all covered huh?

print room lights

Image Courtesy:21 Covent Garden

The photo below is of the most posh cubby hole in 21 comes with a fish tank for company 😉

The best cubby hole in 21

Image Courtesy:21 Covent Garden

It was a beautiful clear night and the piazza was just so beautiful, a spattering of tourists seated in quiet corners near St.Pauls, the bars still overflowing with beer drinkers spilling out onto the piazza and of course the theatergoers walking to their cars or trying to get a cab.

The last time we were at Covent Garden with some friends they showed us this fab walking route to Waterloo station along the Waterloo bridge, it IS  a great walk along with the various many theatres, pubs and brightly lit restaurants of Covent Garden and onto the bridge with stunning views of the London Eye on one side and the beautiful St. pauls cathedral on the other. And down the subway and you are inside Waterloo station, cool or what?!

It was an exceptionally windy evening as well and all of a sudden I wish I had my jacket on me, we stopped to take a few photos and this one is my fav:

1-IMG_7653 (Copy)

Rushing to take cover in the warm subway, we made it to the station in under 15 minutes, this walking route is now my fav way to get to Covent Garden from Waterloo station and totally avoid the claustrophobic tubes and the slow buses crawling through the omnipresent traffic on the narrow roads of Central London…..( there … now that’s a sure shot sign that I have become am a Londoner now….when one begins to crib about the crowded tubes and moan about the traffic …and look of alternate walking routes… I think the novelty of being a newbie to this city is finally wearing off… in every way… but then the magic has settled in and just like I will always, always love Mumbai no matter what, similarly London has sunk into my being in a way that can never be reversed… safe to say…am deeply in love… with all that London has to offer – even the tubes … oh yes!)

*With thanks to 21 and The Print Room for the invite. All views expressed here are my own. I was not required to write a positive review. No monetary compensation was provided for this post.

[object Object]

Filed Under: Lifestyle, Restaurant Reviews Tagged With: 2 balconies, 3 story delightful place 21, a cocktail bar, a glass of Red, A la Carte menu, apple juice and elderflower with a dash of bitter lemon, beautiful Georgian heritage site, best pizza and pasta in Covent Garden, Black pepper Calamari, chillies, Cornish Crab Linguine, Covent Garden - a review, crisp, cucumber, Figaro, food and travel blogger, food writer, foodie in London, fresh, fresh and light with lots of ice, fresh seafood taste, fruity, Games, green beans, Italian-inspired, lifestyle blogger, Mango Bellini, Manjiri Chitnis, Manjiri Kulkarni, melted mozzarella, Milano Salami, Nero D'Avola 2011, overlooking the piazza, Pancetta, Parma Ham & Pepperoni Pizza, prepared with the best quality ingredients, Prosecco Brut, refreshing, reviews from travelsfortaste blog, roasted garlic olive oil, rustic Italian restaurant, saffron aioli, sage cream, Sine Peccato, slice of my life, sliceoffme eats London, sliceoffme recipes, squeeze of lime, St.Pauls Covent Garden, summery, terrace located on the Piazza, The Print Room, travel writer, travelsfortaste, Verde Flower, Wild Boar Tortelloni

Food,travel and lifestyle writer. Photographer.

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Categories

  • Baking
  • Breads
  • C.K.P recipes
  • Cakes
  • Chutneys
  • Cocktails
  • Curry – Meat, Seafood
  • Curry – Vegetarian
  • Desserts
  • Events
  • Featured Food and Drink
  • Featured Lifestyle
  • Featured Travel Adventures
  • Food
  • Healthy
  • Home
  • India
  • Indian
  • Kitchen
  • Lifestyle
  • London and rest of U.K
  • Meat
  • Miscellaneous
  • Product Reviews
  • Quick and Easy
  • Recipe Index
  • Rest of the World
  • Restaurant Reviews
  • Salads
  • seafood
  • Sides
  • Smoothies
  • Soups
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Vegan
  • Vegetarian

Featured Blogger on Great British Chefs

GBC_blogger-badge_150x300px    

Need a New Power Blender?

13076814_10154185434898293_7387808474266473605_n

Read Travelfortaste’s interview on Gourmandize UK & Ireland

 Sliceoffme interviewed by Gourmandize UK & Ireland

Travelsfortaste is Featured on Expats Blog

England expat blogs

Read Travelsfortaste reviews on Zomato

View my food journey on Zomato!
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
Squaremeal.co.uk - Restaurant Reviews

About me

Writer and Photographer. Food,Travel & Lifestyle, Blogger and Digital Marketer. Read More…

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • Easy Spinach and Pea Soup
  • Grenada Chocolate Festival – Festive Giveaway
  • Royal British Legion Centenary Cookbook – Cooking with Heroes
  • The Instagram Foodie Bag – Must have for all Food Photographers
  • Restaurant quality meat – Swaledale Online Butchers – a review

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT