RESTAURANT REVIEW |
Hotel Shreyas
Complete and wholesome
Over the past few years Pune, the pensioner’s paradise has emerged as a haven for an entirely different lot of people. Today one finds gourmands coming to Pune especially to sample the delicious fare available here. The options available would have your taste buds tingling with anticipation. You can choose from Chinese, Italian, French, Mediterranean, or do you prefer the Indian palate? Try your hand at the lovely dosas or idlis at the various udipi joints. If authentic Maharashtrian food is what gets you going, the one stop shop for your tantalizing taste buds is Hotel Shreyas.
The first of its genre in Pune, at Shreyas alcohol and non-vegetarian stuff are absolute no-no. Though it started off as a lodge with rooms alone, the kitchen was added on for the benefit of the lodgers and their families. And the decision to go the non-alcoholic way was based on the fact that the lodge was extremely popular with families. Today though the restaurant’s fame has spread far and wide. “People regularly drive down from Mumbai for a meal at Shreyas. The expressway has made it possible for people to come down to Pune quickly and Mumbaites make the most of it ” says owner Dattatreya Chitale.
The restaurant is one of the few that serves authentic Maharashtiran cuisine because though Thalis as a meal option are popular, Maharashtrian Thalis are few and far between. The staff at Shreyas makes it a point to keep alive dying recipes as well as the taste buds of their patrons. Its not surprising then to find stuff like Pangi - a kind of a pancake with cucumber as the main ingredient or Kulache Pohe - pressed flakes of a grain popular in the Kokan region of the state, on the menu. Or maybe you would like to try your hand at Saadana that’s like a maharashtrian corruption of the Gujrati Dhokla.
The restaurant also organizes a food festival every year during the Ganesh Festival where connoisseurs can enjoy rare recipes and seasonal specials. But with Shreyas around one need not wait around for the Ganesh festival to savor the delicious ukadiche modak. (A dish similar to the Chinese momos but with a sweet coconut based stuffing that’s bound to have every one drooling). Add a generous helping of fresh home made clarified butter (ghee) to the modaks and you are looking at a dish that would entice the gods themselves. It’s not without reason that modaks are purported to be Ganesha’s favorite food item.
On any given day Shreyas puts up a fare that would truly challenge the most insatiable of eaters. The typically Bramhin fare includes an amti (dal), a dry vegetable, one gravy based vegetable and a koshimbir, that’s a salad. You can choose from an array of sweets to complement the meal. Chaturthi is a special occasion at Sheryas and people come from everywhere to enjoy the sumptuous meal. They also have an upvas (Fasting) special thali that caters to all their pious customers.
The complex that houses the restaurant also has a hall for small functions and can be rented out with catering services from the restaurant. If you plan on staying in one of the well-furnished rooms in the hotel better check with them first as a severe room night crunch in the city has ensured that every hotel worth its salt is jam packed. Ranging from Rs. 650 to 1250 a night the hotel rooms offer comfort without ostentations.
The thali is priced t Rs. 85 and a few extras are charged for your choice of sweet dish. One can opt from an array that includes Shrikhand/ Amrakhand, Basundi, Fruit Salad, Puran Poli, Gulab Jamun or the ukdiche Modak.
The ambiance is ok, if the staff can dress up in a truly maharashtrian attire and the background music can be marathi instrumentals it’ll give that added zing to the food.
For special occasions, on prior information, the hotel will also serve food in special Silver ware for that Peshwai feel.
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Needs work |
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Just forget about it, let’s go someplace else. |
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