Pita Stop

Got an invite from Vishal Fernandes(The Calorie Misfit) for a tasting session at Pita Stop, Gachibowli on a Wednesday evening. When I reached there , Vishal was already waiting and he promptly explained me the reason for the gathering and how the menu has been curated. The place itself gives a feel of a tiny cozy bistro with some witty caricatures and graffiti adorning the walls. The menu is pocket friendly, but I really cannot judge how much will be the average amount that you need to spend here. I guess it depends on how hungry you are! The portion sizes are commensurate with the pricing - thats what I felt.

We were served a virgin mojito, which felt more like limesoda - I would pass it off. The first serving of pita chips came by and along came 5 types of dips - hummus, cream cheese chilli garlic, tomatino and olive twist. I really liked the hummus. It wasn't laden with tons of olive oil, was a bit dry and very slightly coarse, but tasty nevertheless. The second best dip that evening was the olive twist which had a lingering after taste. The cream cheese felt more like mayo. The tomatino - salsa? nothing really special about it.

The pita chips came in three flavors - plain, parmesan and garlic. All were decent, but they could have been slightly softer. The parmesan had a very slight scent, the garlic tasted more prominent and better.

Virgin mojito

Pita chips

Then came spicy fries and cheese bombs to our table. The fries were spicy, but were salty as well. I would say it was just about average if I compare it with fries I have had at many a good places. The cheese bombs were something that surprised me. They really had great flavor, crisp on the outside, just about the right consistency inside. Though it was served with packaged tomato sauce, I found it tasted better with the olive twist and chilli garlic dips.

Spicy Fries

Cheese bombs

Next up on our table was grilled chicken and I would say it was done well. I began thinking if I could pair it up with a Mediterranean dip again, but left the idea as it tasted quite good all by itself. If ever needed, I guess tomato sauce would suffice. The bbq wings on the otherhand hardly had any bbq flavor in it. One bite and I could feel the intense taste of tomato cause dabbed all over it. Feedback to them - they could try a balancing act between bbq sauce and tomato sauce to bring out a decent flavor.

fiery grilled chicken

bbq chicken wings

The Prawn samosa that came next was kind of a mixed bag. The crust was crispy, less oily, but the prawn filling inside felt more like spicy minced meat with lot of masala. It was difficult to get a feel of prawns in this. I would say it still is a good dish to try out if you like spicy food. Most of the dishes that followed after that were quite average in taste and nothing great to write home about. The chicken shawarma had intense onion flavors and flat taste of chicken. The falafel was something which I wouldnt say bad, but I didnt like it either. Pretty deep fried with the outside being almost burnt color, and the inside still raw at places. This one needs improvement. The chicken-rice dish had the same flat tasting chicken, though the gravy accompanying it was something that made better the taste of everything combined.

Prawn samosa

Chicken shawarma

falafel

falafel sharwarma

chicken rice

The desserts were a mixed bag as well. The icecream over brownie tasted good. The brownie was more like a thick cookie(dry and crisp) but it was soft enough to break with a spoon and so I felt it was okay. The other dessert - pita chips dipped in chocolates would be more suitable for kids. I didnt find anything interesting in it.

Even though it has been a mixed bag, I would probably recommend this place for the pocket friendly pricing they have. The dishes are from average to good, so I would mostly be ready to make a stop here once in a while if I am on that stretch of road.


-Tasting session.