Critic's Review: Baner Peeps, Your Hunt For Mouth Watering Seafood Ends At Fish Curry Rice!

After tasting sweet success with their khanaval style restaurant in Narayan Peth, Fish Curry Rice opened its second outlet at Law College Road a few years back and the third outlet at Baner a year ago. According to owner Sandesh Bhat, the Narayan Peth outlet was started by his late father Sudhir Bhat who was a hardcore seafood lover. The inspiration for branching out to newer outlets comes from his father's vision to reach out and feed people some great seafood. Over the past many years now, Fish Curry Rice has evolved as one of the best places to have seafood in the city.

DECOR

Located on the Baner main road, the exterior look is modelled on a quaint Goan style house complete with a covered balcony, the orange colour scheme and of course the concrete seating facing the street. The restaurant has two floors with a small mezzanine floor of seating. The décor is simple yet elegant. As Sandesh and his family are from the theatre background, the walls are lined with posters of some of their old plays sure to get Punekars nostalgic. The moment you walk in, you will be received warmly by the courteous staff that will help you with the best suggestions on what to order according to the fresh catch of the day. 

FOOD

The menu at Fish Curry Rice is elaborate and along with numerous thali options, it also features some very unique and innovative dishes. Looking at the menu, you will notice the Goa and Karnataka influence. We started with two stellar Bombil (Bombay duck) dishes. The Bombil Thecha Fry with its spicy marinade packed a real punch and the Bomblacha Bhujna was on point and highlighted the flavour of the delicious bombil. To keep the bombil company, we also tried the popular and unique Surmai Pallamunji. The spices and marinade used in this delicious fried preparation is a secret family recipe.

Probably our most favourite dish on the menu was the Prawns Aluwadi, which is a take on the traditional Maharashtrian aluwadi that is made from colocasia leaves and besan, where the besan is replaced with mince prawns. This innovative dish is a definite must-have. We absolutely couldn’t resist the Stuffed Pomfret where the whole fish is stuffed with an aromatic masala mix and steamed in banana leaves till the fish is perfectly flaky.

Whenever you are at a seafood restaurant, the best option is ordering a fish thali. At FCR, there are various options in the fish thali. We picked the special fish thali with bangda (Indian Mackerel) which consisted of a large piece of fried bangda, surmai curry, prawns sukka, solkadhi, bhakri and rice. On the occasion of completing 10 years in Pune, FCR has introduced a Goan traditional thali which is aptly named as Fish Curry Rice. Luckily we got a chance to try this simple yet delicious dish. We accompanied our meals with multiple glasses of solkadhi along with a portion of tival, a spiced drink made from kokam.

PLUS AND MINUS

With the courteous staff, warm hospitality, comfortable seating and of course the consistently tasty food, Fish Curry Rice, Baner definitely impressed us. No wonder it has now become synonymous to seafood in Pune. Considering that it serves cuisine from Goa, Maharashtra and Karnataka, we would really like to see more options in the sweets section!

Must Try Dishes: Bombil Thecha Fry, Bomblacha Bhujna, Prawns Auwadi, Surmai Pallamunji, Stuffed Pomfret, Special Fish Thali.
Meal for Two: Rs. 1200
Address: Baner Main Road, Near Kapil Complex, Baner Gaon, Pune - 411045
Contact: 8446018133
Timings: 11.30 am – 3 pm | 7.30 pm – 11 pm.