The taste of tapas
YOU www.bangaloremirror.com/you
INTHEPAN
EL TABLAO
I
Manu Prasad
bmfeedback@indiatimes.com
f ever, depending on your inter-
ests, a Salvador Dali or Penelope
Cruz or Enrique Iglesias or
Fernando Alonso has set your
heart racing, and you would like
to go beyond that and reintroduce
Spain to your heart via your stomach,
you must consider dropping in at El
Tablao. Specialising in Spanish cuisine
and providing an ambiance that goes
with the theme, this restaurante sure
delivers a hearty meal.
GENESIS: El Tablao is a unit of
Esaren Hospitality, owned by
Sachin Nair who was introduced to
Spain while in England. With El
Tablo he’s tried to recreate the
flavours and ambiance of his
favourite Spanish restaurant of his
London years. The restaurant start-
THE2-MINUTEREAD
ALL YOU NEED IS A SPOONFUL OF SUGAR TO FIGHT INFECTIONS
JUST A spoonful of sugar can impart that
killing edge to antibiotics against infec-
tions. Researchers found that glucose and
fructose —- types of sugar found in plants
— make deadly bugs behind chronic infec-
tions more vulnerable to drugs. Sugar can
improve the effectiveness of antibiotics
against infections, say researchers. Such
infections often occur when bacteria ‘shut
down’, making antibiotics ineffective
against them, reports the journal Nature.
Over time, the bugs, known as ‘persisters’,
return to life, causing patients to relapse,
according to the Daily Mail. Boston Univer-
sity scientists tested the effects of draw-
ing the bacteria out of their hibernation
using sugar. They found stimulating the
bugs with sugar renders them vulnerable
to antibiotic attack. Testing the strategy
ed operations three months back.
SIGNATURE DISH: Gambas al Ajillo,
Tortilla Espanola, Croquetas de
Champinones among others.
COST: For ` 1,500, you can share a
meat starter, a veg tapas, seafood
Paella and a chocolate cake. Though
not exactly wallet friendly, the
uniqueness of the cuisine and the
ambiance do justify it.
Paella de
Mariscos
on Eschericia coli (E. coli) bacteria, a com-
mon cause of urinary infections, the re-
searchers were able to eliminate 99.9 per
cent of persisters in two hours. Without
FAHEEM HUSSAIN
Tortilla
Espanola
PARKING: No valet parking for now,
but “coming soon”.
ALCOHOL: El Tablao boasts of a
wine bar with red and white wines,
champagne and, of course, there’s
Sangria.
VENUE: El Tablao, Lotus, 612/1, 80 Feet
road, Koramangala, Bangalore - 560034
Phone: 41410124
sugar, the drugs they used had no effect.
The team now plans to examine if sugar
additives can help fight tuberculosis.
IANS
BangaloreMirror
FOODIES'FEEDBACK
(from l tor) Mumtaz Jaganathan, Aliyeh Rizvi, Rafael Garcia Monserrat
Amigos: My guests for the evening were
Aliyeh Rizvi and Mumtaz Jaganathan,
both of whom work with Janaagraha
and Rafael Garcia Monserrat, who be-
longs to Madrid and is working in Ban-
galore as a business advisor.
All Espanol: The only way you’ll realise
that you’re still in the concrete clutches
of Koramangala is if you’re sitting on
the glass-ed side of the restaurant that
overlooks the 80-feet road. Tastefully
done, the restaurant’s interior is stylish
and has a colonial tone that comple-
ments the theme. Under the shadows of
chandeliers and torches, you can catch
glimpses of matadors, bull fighting and
the paintings of Spanish masters as you
listen to the Gypsy Kings, lounging on
benches whose hardness is mercifully
minimised by the usage of cushions.
The Armada: Despite starters, with many
vegetarian options and a smaller ‘Char-
cuterie’ section, the menu focusses on
tapas. There are more than 30 dishes on
that front, spread over seafood, chicken,
meat and vegetarian options. There are
a few salads to choose from, and then
there’s Paella. In addition, there is also a
‘South of Border’ section consisting of
Mexican dishes. The clear numbering
ensures that you don’t have to wrestle
with the Spanish pronunciations.
The Conquistadors: We began well with
the slightly spicy Piri Piri potato wedges,
served with garlic mayonnaise and
tomato salsa dips. Rafael was complete-
ly in love with the Seleccion de Embuti-
dos Curados — slices of Serrano ham,
salami and chorizo. The Brocheta de Pol-
lo con Pimientos y Cebolla — marinated
chicken breast served on skewers was
delicious too. The fluffy Tortilla Espanola
— Spanish omelette with potato and
EDUCATION SLOWS AGEING
GOOD EDUCATION is the key to staying
young and healthy, a study has shown. In
contrast, people who leave school with no
qualifications age much quicker, reports
express.co.uk. Scientists made the discov-
ery after looking at the DNA of 450 British
civil servants aged between 53 and 76.
They had widely different CVs, some with
no academic background and others with
degrees. There was a difference in the
chromosomes of those who had studied
for A-levels or gone to university. These
people tended to have longer telomeres —
the caps on chromosome ends that pro-
tect them from damage and were found to
be ageing more slowly.
Study leader professor Andrew Steptoe, a
psychologist at University College London,
| FRIDAY, MAY 13, 2011 24
onion was a favourite. But the hit of the
day was the Paella de Mariscos, the
seafood paella with squid, king prawn,
mussels, fish, green beans, asparagus,
peas, red peppers, made extra special
with the rice that seemed to have been
cooked in fish stock. You’re informed be-
forehand that the Paella takes a mini-
mum of two to tango and requires about
40 minutes of waiting, but it’s worth it.
Rafael said the only thing it lacked was a
squeeze of lime, but that was remedied.
Los mas flojos: The Paella de Carne
could not match up to its illustrious
seafood counterpart, and proved to be
a bit bland. The dessert section was
quite a disappointment, especially
since most of the options were among
the commonly available set.
Service: A tad careless to begin with,
but they soon redeemed themselves
with their promptness. We dined on a
lean weekday evening, and Sachin
could be found visiting every table and
graciously enquiring about the service.
Verdict: The next time you want to cele-
brate a Nadal or Real Madrid victory
with a taste of Spain, you know exactly
where to drop in. A distinct cuisine set
in a wonderful ambiance ensures that
you’ll have a great dining experience.
Buen provecho!
The writer is a brand consultant, who is
always on the look out for a restaurant
that serves him right.
FOOD
AMBIENCE
SERVICE
Bangalore Mirror reviews
anonymously and pays for meals
said: “Education is a marker of social class
that people acquire early in life. Our re-
search suggests long-term exposure to the
conditions of lower status promotes accel-
erated cellular ageing.” IANS