MahaMondo

Vik's Chaat Corner : Berkeley & Udupi Palace : SFO

Vik's Chaat Corner in Berkeley & Udupi Palace in the Mission are no longer secrets for the residents & Indian expats of the Bay Area.

I was told to make it to Vik's Chaat Corner & Market if I was going to be in Berkely ; and it did not disappoint. Its new location still makes each order fresh as ordered using the freshest ingredients.

Udupi Palace specializes in vegetarian South Indian cuisine. I had the Dosa Chat & Uttapam with sambar & chutney for lunch today. What flavors & aromas !

I had mango lassi at both Vik's & Udupi. The latter's version actually had more of the sweet & tangy interplay along with a thicker consistency.

Another gift from Mother India : Chaat , dosas , uttapam , lassi & burfi -

Ganapati Homam : Vastu Puja

In Hindu culture , Ganapati or Lord Ganesha is always worshipped before starting any puja or homam.

Lord Ganesha eradicates all difficulties faced by an individual. Performing Ganapati Homam at the start of a new endeavor will provide prosperity ,  health , wealth & peace of mind.

Pandit Krishna Macharia from the Malibu Temple performed the homam & puja at Jorgen's     Omkar108 yogashala this morning.

He complimented the attendees on the manner in which they pronounced the mantras & slokas as well as their ability to sit cross-legged for an hour and a half .

Kheer & upma were served as prasadam / breakfast after the ceremony. Thank you for the tiffin-to-go.

Omkar108 is @ 11154 Washington Blvd. , east of Sepulveda. 

Pabla Indian Cuisine : Seattle

Pabla is my go-to Punjabi resto in Seattle.

The veggie thali is up there with that of Saravanaa Bhavan New York & India House Chicago.

They always ask what level of spiciness you   want ; and for me that means a 4 , the top of their heat scale.

After all the rain and chill Monday night this week in Seattle , it was a wonderful thing to be able to walk off the effects of the thali & mango lassi by Pike Place Market Tuesday night on the way back to the hotel.

 

India House : Chicago

I just got back from a week long business trip to Chicago , now one of my favorite cities in the US.

During these trips , it is getting increasingly difficult for me to squeeze in a led or Mysore class or a trip to the local temple as our meeting schedules have become rather busy ; and I am very grateful for being blessed with a situation like that.

I do make it a point to find a great Indian buffet or dinner in every city I visit . My French associates have also gotten into the groove of this.

India House in the River North district of Chicago is probably the best Indian resto I've been in. We had dinner there Wednesday night and the aromas upon entering the room were incredible. This place is blessed with good vibes and business as the proprietors have placed a murti of Sri Ganesha right by the entrance.

The veggie thali and naan used fresh ingredients ; the kheer with almonds and raisins still has my mouth watering as I post this. It was a good thing to be able to walk back to the hotel in the fall air in order to digest the meal.

I heard about The Chicago Yoga Center's Ashtanga & Mysore classes towards the end of my stay. Will endeavor to drop in the next time.

Kalachandji's : Dallas TX

I am in Texas this week ; Houston on Monday & Tuesday and now Dallas until Friday. Fall has arrived here and it is funny how residents here describe it as like being in Los Angeles .

During my last trip here a couple of months ago , I did not get a chance to sample the vegetarian buffet at Kalachandjis , the restaurant inside the Sr Sri Radha Kalachandji Temple on Gurley Ave.

It was a double blessing this evening as I made it to the 6:30 PM Ararti & Kirtan , then had dinner .

As temple buffets go , Kalachandjis is outstanding. The buffet had a lot to offer , including  a sald bar , but the standouts were : mung dal soup , tamarind cooler , pakoras , pappadams , chili pickles &  the best strawberry almond halawa for dessert.

The outdoor courtyard and patio of Kalachandjis is pretty nice in the evening. Worth braving the rush hour early evening traffic through downtown Dallas.

Dosa SF : South Indian Cuisine

Dosa in the Mission is my new go-to place for Southern  Indian food in San Francisco.

They serve up authentic idlis , uttapam , dosas & sambar in an Eastern minimalist setting .

When I am travelling , I find myself craving for at least 1 Indian meal . And I've been blessed to have stumbled upon several great lunch buffets in  Atlanta , Seattle , Miami and the best one in Kitsilano , Vancouver.

Dosa SF reminds me of Hampton Chutney  in New York ; reliable & delicious.

We will be having a vegetarian Indian feast catered by Govinda's as well on Oct. 2nd , the YGB benefit event date.

Mahatma : Great Soul

I was having lunch with an associate from Paris at the atmospheric Shore Club in Vancouver . It was one of those moments in between meetings where I was narrating my experience at the Venice Temple on Sunday and how the lecture re being a "mahatma " or great soul had made such an impression on me ; to the point that I was endeavoring that state as the next step to undertake in this life's journey. 

She started to laugh and commented , " Even in spirituality , you still have a Type A personality " , which was a pretty sharp insight .

The weather in Vancouver was fantastic on Wednesday & Thursday. Unfortunately , I did not make it to the Led Primary Series class at the The Practice Place near the Olympic Village. I did get to enjoy dinner at Bao Bei Chinese Brasserie , with its take on Chinese small plates and delicious vegetable dumplings & stir fried watercress.

And there was no better blessing than seeing & greeting Gurmukh Kaur Kalsa & Gurushabd Singh Kalsa on the same flight headed back to LA. Satnam & Sat Sri Akal !

Samadhi Yoga : Seattle

I have been in Seattle this week and had the opportunity to visit Samadhi Yoga on Pike St.  

" At Samadhi Yoga our aim is to share the magic of yoga to help students attain the essential state of joy or Samadhi. Samadhi literally translated means transcendental bliss. Classes may include traditional Sanskrit chants , mantra japa , pranayama and meditation as a means for realizing the ultimate state of pure consciousness, Samadhi. "

Across from Samadhi (and with an ironically located Ferrari dealership around the corner ) are a couple of my favorite restaurants in Seattle ,Plum Bistro & Boom Noodle .

Boom has the best vegetarian Shiitake Soba & Yasai Yakisoba ; I ate there everyday . Plum Bistro serves coffee in individual presses from Stumptown Coffee Roasters which I had first experienced at the Ace Hotel NYC.

The other discovery this trip was Le Panier ,the self-titled " Very French Bakery " , in Pike Place Market. Incredibly flaky almond croissants & coffee. It's a good place to drop in on a rainy Seattle day -

Maha Sadhana III : NYC

The view on the left is from a landmark building on Walker St. in Tribeca , NYC earlier this week. The weather was fantastic , almost LA -like but with amazing air clarity.

The meeting at this potential client's office was a treat as he had 4 of Andy Warhol's "Mao" series hanging on a wall ; along with several more other highly collectible artists from the golden era of 80's SoHo.

In the evening , I got to attend Adam Frei's Maha Sadhana III @ Dharma Yoga Center. Adam opened the class with a series of bija mantras corresponding with the seven chakras , then we recited the Mantra of Purification.

Citing the emphasis that Sri Dharma puts on  Uddhiyana Bandha , he then  walked us through a series of exercises for it ;  which I figured out was prep for all the balancing asanas in between sets of Surya & Shiva Namaskaras that were to come. 

Yes , Maha Sadhana III's advanced class is hi-lighted by multiple balancing asana ; Pincha Mayurasana , Salamba Sirsasana , Adho Mukha Vrksasana , Sarvangasana in Padmasana . It was challenging. Through it all , Adam spoke about focusing on the Ajna Chakra and the spiritual aspects of the practice.

He closed the class with Guided Meditation & Sri Dharma's blessing : " Be receptive to the grace of God. "

I've mentioned in previous posts that the Gramercy Park area is full of ethnic restos with flavorful vegetarian food. This trip , the big discovery was Momofuku Milk Bar ,probably the best bakery in NYC for now -

Hotel Derek : Houston

We flew out of Dallas Tuesday evening in a snow flurry and landed in a rainy and also slightly snowy Houston. 

 Houston has a bit more flavor for me vs. Dallas , and its respective citizens keep that rivalry going , which they like to compare to that of Angelenos vs. San Franciscans. Aside from being terrible drivers , our Houstonian clients ( energy & real estate sectors ) are a hospitable bunch.

Staying at the groovy but low-key Hotel Derek added to the more relaxed vibe vs. the pretentious W Dallas. . The rooms are set-up like lofts with views of downtown Houston and the Galleria District. The ricotta pancakes at the hotel's Valentino are almost as good as those at Bill's Sydney.  Another discovery was the recently opened Ruggles Green , Houston's first certified "Green" resto ; incredibly good , with tasty salads & wood-fired organic pizzas.

The other hi-light of this trip , aside from our  great client meetings, was an early evening visit to the Rothko & Byzantine Chapels @ the Renzo Piano designed Menil Collection.

And I am still not getting the popularity of " Hot Yoga " in Dallas & Houston -