Your food location guide to ‘How I Met Your Mother’
Food and Friendship – The two best elements in life
Bangalore or Bengaluru as you’d like to call it is known for quite a few things to people in and outside India. The garden city. The silicon city. However for those who reside here it’s the city known for amazing food and what’s better than to explore the mind-stirring cuisine and hangout spots with your best friends, just like the American sitcom ‘How I Met Your Mother’ (HIMYM). The gang that knows you better than you know yourself, who would trade anything to see you happy, who would run halfway across the city on your blue days just to keep you going, who have seen your best and worst sides, and most importantly, who would jump into a car without a thought to create history. This truly goes to say that no journey can be legendary without your buddies (or like “Barney” Stinson, the official character of HIMYM would say legen..wait for it..dary).
Could we find real-life equivalents of the most-loved places featured in the show? Challenge accepted! Here’s a rundown of local spots in Bengaluru to create your very own ‘How I Met Your Mother’ moment.
MacLaren’s Bar-New York: Monkey Bar-Bengaluru
The dawn of new beginnings
The place where you can recreate the ‘How I Met Your Mother’ moment in Bengaluru is…wait for it…Monkey Bar. It not only looks identical to MacLaren’s but also kicks in the friendly vibes and is considered the neighborhood spot. Most people think it’s a great place for an after work drink. Monkey Bar runs a packed house on most evenings. The music is not overbearing, but if your head is pounding from a hangover, they are sensitive. Drinks accompanied with witty coasters that contain bits on being tipsy or messages on your eating habits add a cool spirit to the place. With little space to breathe on weekends, during the week the red velvet waffle topped with cream cheese and almond praline is worthy of your full attention. Also, there is house-made granola with lemon yogurt gelato to which you can add strawberries or chocolate chips. Suit up, come by with your group of quirky quintet and create pleasant and fond memories.
Must try dishes: Spiked nachos, Tamarind and masala flavoured potato in fresh buns with sev, Calcutta inspired Bhetki Fish cutlets, Brain cutlet with green chili and keema bao
Where: Monkey Bar, Wood Street, Ashoknagar
Meal for two: Rs. 2,000 approx
Other places with this setting include Plan B, The Hard Rock Cafe, Smally’s Resto Cafe and Bootlegger
Corner Bistro-New York: Claytopia Bistro-Bengaluru
My Burger… My Precious…..
While Marshall Eriksen from the sitcom ‘How I Met Your Mother’ may have tracked down his best burger in town, Claytopia Bistro is your burger place in Bengaluru where the lamb burger is often mentioned on every foodie forums as one of the best in town. Apart from the ever-popular lamb burger at Rs 175 that is a meal in itself, fast-movers are the Bistro Chicken, a hearty chicken dish made with chicken fillet served with salami, cheese and egg at Rs 170, the crumb fish at Rs 170, and the double creamy egg salad at Rs 105. There is a substantial vegetarian menu as well with roadside chaat and the ‘roadside rowdy’ burger, a spicy veggie burger.
Where: Bistro Claytopia, Koramangala
Meal for one: Rs 200
Some of the other top bites that you should check out would be Mangrove, Peppa Zzing, Smoked out Barbeque and The Black Rabbit.
Hoser Hut-New York: Xtreme Sports Bar-Bengaluru
People might not know of Hoser Hut, but Xtreme Sports Bar is one name that is surely not unfamiliar for the cricket/football lover list. Taking pride in the most ideal sports ambiance, this place will hit you with a young crowd. Chilled out, eccentric yet super fun to be at, it’s the perfect bar that’s a lot similar to Hoser Hut and does justice to letting you sport the roles of Marshall Eriksen and Robin Scherbatsky from the HIMYM. So, head down here one evening with that special gang of friends and while you hold all your inside jokes and team loyalties within you, don’t hesitate to scream out those punch lines at your friends just like Robin and Marshall did! Well, we are a cricket/football crazy nation mate! So do what you do best and just have fun, keep all the Gods of cricket/football be pleased!
Where: Xtreme Sports Bar, Bannerghatta Road
Meal for one: (“Xtreme Hours” till 8pm. A mug of draught beer @ 79, select IMFL drinks @ 99, cocktails @ 199 and a pitcher of beer @ 299)
