Panthi - Menu. It is beautiful inside as well!
Panthi is a small restaurant recently launched near Tathawade Garden in Karve Nagar, Pune. The place is really small but their menu is quite good and preparation is excellent. We tried quite a few dishes and almost everything was delicious.
We reached there on Sunday evening and predictably the place was almost full with a big family of 8-10 people occupying most of the outside space. Luckily for us, three of us were accommodated at a small table meant for two people. Their menu is beautiful, not only for its presentation and the dishes that they offer but also the way it starts - The Road Is Life (Panthi means a traveller, as I was later informed by its owner) and its subtle humour! They offer Ghee Bhalla, but not Teja & Robert!
Talking about the food - we ordered Spaghetti Napolitano, Penne Arabiata, Greek Farmer's Salad and Risoto. Both pastas arrived quite quickly and they were indeed mouth watering. I especially loved the Arabiata sauce, one of the best I have ever had. Napolitano had a tinge of sweet taste, but otherwise it was rather spicy and our 6 year old, who otherwise loves pasta in any form, found it difficult to eat. When we mentioned it to the owner, he quickly offered to add more white sauce to it and it was presented in a new clean plate almost instantly. Our 6 year old finished it off happily!
Greek Farmer's Salad requires special mention here. Not only it looks extremely attractive, but it tasted much better than many restaurants charging more than double the price Panthi charges for this salad. The veggies were fresh and crisp, and the dressing was adequate. The quantity is more than sufficient for 2-3 people. It is definitely a must-try dish here, though it took some time to arrive and we had almost finished all the pastas by then.
Risoto looked sumptuous and tasted equally good with all the cheese and liberal spread of bell pepper, zucchini and mushroom.
We finished this delicious dinner with Blueberry Smoothie and Mojito. Blueberry smoothie was prepared in yogurt with vanilla ice cream and our kid just loved it. Mojito however, was not up to the mark and tasted more like a 7-Up/Sprite with few crushed mint leaves. But otherwise, we really loved everything that we tried on our first visit here and already planning to visit here often!
Greek Farmer's Salad
Spaghetti Napolitano
Penne Arabiata
Risoto
Mojito
Though it is a self-service restaurant, we only placed our orders at the cash counter and later we were served at the table by owner himself and by a lady who seemed to be his family member.
I had a chance to talk to its owner Mr. Prabhas Dekane and he seems to be quite an interesting guy himself. This small place supports short-film club and poetry circle as well. I am curious to see how do they actually support these activities what kind of eat-out it eventually turns out to be!
This is definitely a must-visit place if you love this kind of food - I'd highly recommend their pastas and salads!
Food - 4.5/5
Service - 4/5
Ambiance - 3/5
Value for money - 4.5/5
Overall - 4/5
