The Rice Bowl - Southern Star Hotel

Some of Namma Bengaluru’s charm also resides in the restaurants that have been serving people way before there was social media, and Instagram and Zomato. Where word of mouth was more important than anything else, and only good food outlasted the test of time. The Rice Bowl is one of those good ‘ol places that has been around, and moved a bit, and is now a part of the Southern Star Hotel on Lavelle Road. Quick Recap of the meal:

Location/Ambience:

This place is situated on the bustling Lavelle Road near Spice Bazaar, and just before Bangalore Rotary Club. They have valet parking, so car parking is not a problem. As you enter this place, you get a feeling that this place is somewhere which your parents would definitely like, and is also perfect for quiet semi-formal kind of corporate parties as well. This place is as old-school as a place in Bangalore can get, and that is hard to find these days. Peaceful, calm with a low hum of music in the background, the setting is perfect for a quiet, tasty meal.

Food:

Since this was a review/bloggers table, we got to sample most of the menu, and boy did we have fun (and a full stomach to boot). Here’s a breakdown and some of my favorite items from the day:

Appetizers/Starters

Lemon Coriander Chicken Soup: Refreshing lemony goodness with a beautiful chicken stock and the freshness of coriander, this soup set the stage for the perfect meal.

Veg. Spring Rolls: Crispy of the outside, with a beautiful light filling of veggies, the spring roll was pretty good.

Chili Pork: Superbly cooked, succulent pork pieces in a spicy coating, I really liked the chilly pork here.

Crackling Spinach with Chicken: Spinach is not something that I like too much and hence, this dish, served with crispy spinach and lovely chicken pieces was not something that really appealed to me.

Prawn Siu Mai: This dimsum variation was pretty good, and being a fan of dim sums, I really liked this one. Served with a spicy sauce which served as the perfect foil to the Siu Mai.

Mains

Having had a huge variety of starters, we were almost full by the time these arrived, but we braved on.

American Chopsuey: Probably a crowd favorite at most places, super-crispy noodles(chopsuey) served with a tangy and slightly sweet gravy and a fried egg of top, this was pretty decent.

Triple Schewan Fried Rice+ Cantonese Chicken: A Chinese classic, this combo never ceases to amaze me, and Rice Bowl’s version was pretty delicious as well.

We did have a noodles and another mains dish, which I don’t recall, as I was already mentally preparing myself for dessert.

Desserts:

They didn’t have any typical Chinese desserts on the day of our review, but we did try a few non-traditional ones, and they weren’t too bad.

Apple Pie: A nice thick crust and a lovely slightly sweet applet filling, this was my fav. dessert of the night,

Mango Cheesecake: I somehow hate artificial mango flavoring, and while the cheesecake itself had almost a mousse like consistency, the strong mango-flavoring put me off.

Tiramisu: This was a decent attempt, and the slightly bitter coffee flavor was nicely offset by the sweetness.

Post Meal Refresher:

Jasmine Tea+Chocolates+Macarons

After such a heavy meal, it was only natural that we craved for something to soothen our palate. The Jasmine Tea was a treat to have, and the lovely macaroons and white/dark chocolates capped off a perfectly fun meal.

Verdict: The perfect place for a family dinner or semi-formal parties at reasonable rates. And a shoutout to F&B Manager Brian for his warm hospitality.

Food Quotient: 4/5
Ambience Quotient: 4/5
Service Quotient: 5/5
Unclichéd Quotient: 2/5

(Being an old-school place, this was bound to be low, but again, this isn’t a quirky place, it’s a good 'ol Chinese restaurant with the focus on good Chinese food and great service)