The annual Beer & Burger Festival returns to Woodside Inn for the fourth time, where brew from different countries - Mexico, Ireland, Holland, Belgium - is paired with a burger inspired by that nation's cuisine. Among the new buns making their debut this year is one Shitake mushroom patty with pickled ginger, inspired by Japan. bpb convinced the boys over at Woodsie to share a recipe ahead of the festival that starts on July 15 and goes on through July 31. How? We added some maska to taste.

Shitake and Soya Bean Burger with Pickled Ginger

Ingredients

For the patty

50 gms shitake mushrooms, 20 gms soya bean, 20 gms mashed potatoes, 5 gms fresh sweet marjoram, 5 gms fresh basil, 10 ml oil, bread crumbs to bind, salt and freshly crushed pepper to taste.

Chalice Chor

The Never Ending Glass of Sangria - it sounds like a biblical miracle but it's really the new happy hour at Salt Water Cafe, Bandra. And yes, it's as good as it sounds. Basically, you get to drink an unlimited amount of sangria for Rs 390 (+ taxes), so long as it's between the giant time window of 9 am and 7 pm. Never ending indeed. So technically, you could get there in the morning and drink a gazillion litres of the wine cocktail before sunset. Seriously? Seriously! We checked thrice - once at the restaurant, then with the manager on the phone and finally with the PR person.

And considering one glass of sangria (options are white and red) at the restaurant usually costs around Rs 350 (+ taxes), you don't need us to tell you that this is a great deal. Loot that fruit!

Getting there: Salt Water Cafe, Rose Minar Annexe, 87, Chapel Road, Bandra (W), call 26434441, valid from Monday to Saturday only, Rs 390 + taxes.

Waiting for Go-Dough

First we saw a candy-coloured sign board that said ‘Love Sugar Dough’ and wondered when the shutters would go up. Next, we scored a number, made a call and waited again. Then, there was an extended launch date, followed by some more waiting. After over a month of doing would Samuel Beckett would advocate, we finally found what we were waiting for - Go-dough!

A new snackery / bakery in Khar, Love Sugar Dough opened with a private tasting last evening, and bpb was there to judge whether it had finally arrived.

What: Freeman & Baker deli and sandwich counter, opposite Palm Grove Hotel, Juhu Tara Road, Juhu, sandwiches start at Rs 200.

Why: Stocking Japanese quail, rabbit meat, Chilean bass, Vietnamese chicken and other exotic meats, this upcoming deli will be a carnivore’s heaven. Quail Mary! Besides retailing cheeses, oils, finishing sauces, spreads and breads sourced from across the world, they’ll also have a counter where you can build a sandwich from scratch.

When:  Deli for your belly releases next week. Stay tuned for the full bpb review.

bpb gets Bonobo (Bandra) to share its two-minute recipe for the supremely spicy Jalapeno Olive Martini. And you thought this sex monkey could never be tamed.

Jalapeno Olive Martini

Ingredients

2 slices of jalapeno (3 if you like it spicy), 3 Olives, 15 ml lime juice, 15 ml sugar syrup, 50 ml vodka.

Method

Muddle the jalapeno and olives. Add the lime juice, sugar syrup and vodka. Shake with ice. Double strain into a martini glass.

Cheers!

Getting there: Bonobo, 2nd floor, Kenilworth Mall, Linking Road, next to KFC, Bandra (W), call 26055353. 

Celine Mathew makes a mean chicken curry but let’s also give credit to Mr Mathew, who carts back spices from business trips to Kerala three times a month. They probably won’t have you over for dinner, but you can get a taste of this Kerala curry at On the Go, a new Bandra multi-cuisine restaurant opened by their son Thomas, who studied hospitality management at NYU.

Tray Bien!

bpb dropped in for lunch yesterday to find that On the Go has moved into the tiny space (holds about seven tables) previously occupied by Smokin’ Joes. It didn’t look very hygienic from the outside, but the interiors here are cute and clean with neon serving trays pasted on the walls and techni-coloured glass lights hanging from the ceiling. We didn’t care too much for the table tops with pop culture quotes, but on film dialogues we propped our elbows and began ordering.

The well-priced (nothing costs more than Rs 220) six-page paper menu here overwhelms, featuring paninis, salads, sides, rolls and plated dishes from across the world, but a wide-smiled  manager navigated us through it easily.  Carnivores will be disappointed at the lack of meat selection; all non-vegetarian dishes come with chicken.

Yesterday, upma was quite ordinary. A South Indian semolina snack usually taken for granted at the Indian breakfast table. Today, it sits smugly at the center of the food spread at this season's television finale of America's "Top Chef Masters." Mumbai-born, New York-based chef Floyd Cardoz’s version -- wild mushroom upma polenta with kokum and coconut milk - won him the US$100,000 first prize.

There's upma for every budget in Mumbai, from humble to rip-off, narrowed down and noted down. Because you never know, Parisian poha, bok choy bhel, or some other humble Indian snack, could suddenly become the next big thing in the culinary world.

Read the whole story on CNNGo.com

Ramashray, Rs 14

At Rs 14, upma at Ramashray is probably the cheapest option in the city. Prepared the traditional way with semolina, onions, ginger and curry leaves and served with coconut chutney, regulars swear by it. If you want to skip the perennial long waiting lines here, rise early and make a 5:30 a.m. breakfast trip. It will be worth it, promise.

Bhandarkar Road, Matunga (E), +91 (0) 22 2414 2623

Café Madras, Rs 25

The upma at Café Madras commands almost double the price of the one at Ramashray. Stick to either the ordinary version at breakfast or try the tomato upma for dinner. Served with chutney and sambhar, this amazingly easy dish can be supplemented with the fiery rasam that the eatery is so famous for. End with filter coffee served in steel mugs.

38 - II, Circle House, Matunga Circle, Matunga; +91 (0) 22 2401 4419

Dakshinayan, Rs 60

Hour Glasses

Hard as it might be to imagine, hiding amongst the throngs of shoppers, screaming kids and neon lights that overrun Phoenix Mills every evening is a relaxing, delish happy hour. It is cool here, and pleasantly dark, with peacocks shimmering on the walls, guavas gracing martinis and "Naaninis" on the menu. You can put your feet up, shrug off the difficult meeting or nerve racking shopping bout you've just endured, and pretend like you're not sitting in the center of the most chaotic building this side of the Sea Link. After all, at Veda's new evening hours, many things you didn't expect are possible.

Belly of The Yeast

Did you, for instance, imagine that whiskey could taste this good with Lassi? Or a childhood drink of guava juice and chaat masala could be this boozy? If not, order either (or better yet both) along with small plates from the new, well-priced (under Rs 225) tapas menu, and you're bound to be pleasantly surprised.

Dishes include tiny naans or "naaninis" studded with tandoori chicken; paneer tikka wraps, chicken kurcha quesadillas, vegetarian crispies. These are satisfying but not too heavy, perfect for a pre-dinner snack or to fuel up on before catching the early show at the Comedy Store.

Statue Warning

If you go, you should know that the gloomily sexy interiors at Veda feel like a night in the Meat Packing district even at 3 pm, and are extremely conducive to day-drinking. Plus, that Guava Chatka martini is ridiculously addictive. So if you find yourself walking out of Veda in the evening on feet that are a little unsteady, remember this: You had been warned.

Getting there: Veda, Palladium Mall, Phoenix Mills Compound, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, from 3 pm to 7 pm, start at Rs 150 for a dish.

A Wolfgang with a Bang

As we drove to the opening party of Amadeus, the city’s brand new Mediterranean restaurant, we were reminded of these peals of laughter - high pitched and ear-piercing, emitted by an on-screen Mozart in the Academy Award-winning film Amadeus. What amuses his bouche so, we wondered. And what would amuse ours at chef Farrokh Khambata (the man behind pan-Asian restaurant Joss’s) latest venture? We were told a certain Gambas al Pil Pil would be particularly entertaining.

With a Sip in Our Step

Housed at the NCPA, Nariman Point, we found that the 6,000 square feet space (formerly Sidewok ) is panelled in wood and hung with black and white pictures of performers like Zubin Mehta and Zakir Hussain. While the dining section is quite plain, the lounge area is jazzed up with a stage (for weekend live acts) and a bar made cool with Dali-inspired melted bottles. It is here that we went through refreshing pomegranate bellinis and a displeasing whisky and green apple concoction, too puckerish for our liking.

Starting Out

bpb loves the sushi and Thai curry at Joss, so we were expecting a great deal from the Spanish food that had begun to circulate around the room. Non vegetarian appetisers were notches about herbivorous offerings of unremarkable tangy potatoes and mushroom caps with goat cheese. The exception was delicious bunches of corn topped with green chimichurri parsley sauce and a lemony zing.

What: Amadeus, new Spanish restaurant at The National Center of Performing Arts (NCPA), NCPA Marg, Nariman Point.

Why: Farrokh Khambata, the chef behind Joss, opens his new Spanish-Mediterranean restaurant next week, lined with photos of flamenco dancers and full-swing orchestras, lit by antique chandeliers and fitted with a long bar. The menu will offer dishes like lobster with grain mustard, Saratoga lamb rack and Joss’s awesome chocolate soufflé (yay!). Look out for the full bpb review!

When: Curtains up on July 7.