Mooli's

Lessons for the Virgin Restaurateur (Part 2) : The Navigator

2012-01-09T12:34:00.001Z

There are a huge number of people out here who are dying to give up their jobs to start a restaurant in London, a bar in NY, a beach shack in Goa, a coffee shop in Hackney…..

And you must do it. It is one of the most fun and creative things you could do. No doubt you will approach the project with the fearlessness and exuberance of a young puppy. You will have fresh new ideas that no battle hardened veteran will dream of dreaming. But it is out of a marriage of fresh ideas and old fashioned experience that a successful restaurant is born and thrives.

Because when you hit turbulence, and lets face it you will hit turbulence, you want an experienced hand to help you navigate. Because they have seen it before. In fact they will probably see the turbulence coming before it breaks.

I am a big fan of two young brands – Byron and Pod - that look like they will go on to become institutions in London. They aren’t doing anything revolutionary. The first serves proper burgers, and the second is a variant of Pret – just healthier and a little more interesting. Simple concepts, an improvement on the existing order, but executed brilliantly. Behind both of these brands lies the seasoned hand of Pizza Express & Pret veterans.

Restaurants are a special animal. The principles are simple (good food, good service, good prices, good location), but their operations are complex. Find yourself an experienced navigator to get them to buy into your vision. Someone who you will listen to, but not follow slavishly. And get them on board early.

We Didn't.

5 tips for the virgin restaurateur

2011-12-24T13:22:00.001Z

These are things i've come to learn, not necessarily did.

1. Choose your first location with the same attention you would use when you buy your first house*

2. Look after customers like you would welcome guests in your home**

3. Your kitchen and its team is your engine. Dont stick a Ferrari engine into a beat up old shell. And vice versa***

4. Look after your staff like you would if you were an ambitious Indian mother****

5. It is never going to be like you expected it*****

* Take a long hard look at your neighbours. You need to appeal to them as well. Gauge the volume and quality of the footfall at different times of the day, during different seasons. How much work does the site need to bring it up to your requirements? Dont buy in Chelsea unless you can keep up with the Chelsea set.

** I intentionally said guests not friends. Keep it warm and welcoming, but these are not close friends who are already familiar and comfortable being in your house. So make them comfortable.

*** High maintenance? Insurance costs? Reliability? Are you riding on slow city roads, or do you also want to crank it up for the highway? Think long an hard about the engine driver.

**** Everyday is the eve of the IIT exam. Feed them well. Love them lots but make them study hard. Ever so often you need to wear the pants.

***** The highs are higher and the lows are lower.

Senna

2011-06-26T21:57:00.001+01:00

Sam told me to watch Senna. So I did. Its a truly inspiring documentary.

And it struck me that F1 has so many parallels to business. Senna was so successful because he was a great driver. With a great team. Which had a great car. And this great driver, team and car could adapt well to different tracks and different conditions on each of these tracks. In fact they came into their own when the conditions turned rainy and slippery.

And on the odd occassion that they failed, it was because one of the key parts failed. Or they didnt know how to play politics that Prost could. Or they didnt keep up with technology that Benneton pioneered.

Its all about getting everything right. Every day. Every year.

Finding Mr Miyagi

2011-06-19T13:39:00.000+01:00

Business is hard. Yes, you will learn on the job, but sometimes you need the wise counsel of someone who has done it before. Someone who is truly independent and isnt a shareholder or a business partner.

Find yourself a Mr Miyagi.

Happy Fathers Day foks. Give your dad a hug, and seek his counsel.

Running uphill

2011-06-14T00:17:00.001+01:00

When you go for a run, what music do you listen to?

I tend to do most of my running in the hilly terrain of Highgate, so I tend to put together playlists really carefully. I try to mix it up, steady grinders from Chicane and Chemical Brothers help me on the gradual climbs.....

But when I get to really steep climbs, I call on the heavy artillery and forward to real uplifting tracks....infectious energy from the likes of Scooter.

Starting up your own business is like hill running. Some will run straight up the steepest path. They might get to the top in good time, but end up bushed and breathless. And some will speed up and tire themselves out each time they hear a really upbeat song, or each time someone whizzes past them. Some will run along the contours and get there much slower with a bit of gas in the tank, pause for a breath and then take on the next hill.

I dont think there is a right way. To each his own. Just make sure you are armed with the full range of songs so that you can change gears when you need to. And definitely have a great bunch of pacemakers in your team.

Scooter baby.

Glory Hunters....

2011-05-28T16:00:00.003+01:00

I think it is pretty apt to talk about this much maligned term. Glory hunters.

Conjures up images of swarms of people who love winning.

And what is wrong with that?

The spluttering economy needs winners. The economy needs glory hunters. Back a winning concept. Back a winning team.

The Sandwich

2011-04-28T02:26:00.005+01:00

So this week we got nominated by the British Sandwich Association for the award of Independent Sandwich Bar of the Year. It came in the same week that a descendant of the Earl of Sandwich tried to reclaim his legacy.

http://www.sandwich.org.uk/awards/2011/shortlist.shtml

At first I was thrilled. And then I wasnt. Really, are we just a sandwich bar?

But now i'm thrilled again. Acid Jazz is also Jazz no?

Letter XX: True love and Randomness

2011-04-05T14:58:00.005+01:00

Dear Son

If you are the son I would hope you would be then you will have noticed that this letter is the first with a subject title. These are two important topics I hope to expand on in this letter and others.

True love, your grandmother once said, is "when you have lost your limbs in a car accident and your partner washes your bum after a semi-solid number 2". Admittedly your grandmother was, at the time she told me this, in the thrall of her latest yogi but there is a lot of truth there that I want you to remember. I will not bore you about ditties on love, but I would just tell you to remember two things. First, read the great C19 poet, Ghalib, to understand the true meaning of the idea of love and, in his own life, the dangers of marrying young and being imprisoned. I should add that at the very least if you are hoping to find a bride from the sub-continent (I wonder if they still call it that) then have a copy of Ghalib's book in your pocket, visible to the eyes of the world. This will impress any Asian lady with an interest in history and the mughal era. Second, do not forget that any relationship you have must give you the space for the randomness of life and give you the space to dream. Some people hate this but our family has a tradition of embracing it, which is why I had to divorce your mother (I discussed this in my previous letter).

Randomness and dreaming brings me to a topic I have not touched on in a few letters, mooli's. As I write this you have just left the room for your Latin lesson, and mooli's has gone from strength to strength, with more reviews in the natonal press. Its expansion is imminent. But I wanted to share with you some ideas I had - I am not sure how concrete they are but they represent my current thinking.

I was wondering what makes mooli's mooli's. Or what was it or is it that attracted me to it and its idea. Beyond just the bond of friendships, it was the idea of mooli's. Driven by passion, mooli's was not trying to follow the party line for other food stores. That idea, for me at this moment, is key and must at some level feature in the mooli's story and growth. But how? One way would be to avoid too much standardisation. Why does every branch have to look the same? Why can't an active interest be taken in giving each branch its own personality. This may seem mad but it is not as anti-brand as it may sound. It should be possible to maintain some unity or link to all the shops without sacrificing or giving in to the chain store (even if it is just 3 or 4) mentality affecting other brands. Similarly some of the branding that has been done well must be refreshed and replaced with new ideas - some of the posters are fun, cute and random but the randomness quickly dissipates if it is displayed frequently. At core, one reason why mooli's can continue to lay claim to being a bit different is that it has not succumbed to having a big a menu - the founders should not give in to temptation here. Keeping it simple is the biggest scream that "of course we would like to be profitable but at the same time we have a philosophy of doing a few things well and here they are". Many established and growing brands can't say that.

With this I will leave you for today.

Yours

Dad

Well i'm in Mumbai and i'm waiting for the miracle

2011-03-31T18:34:00.019+01:00

28 years since we last won the World Cup. and we've really pushed the boat out for this one.

We've assembled a star cast of specials - things that we've been craving. Its looks something like this.

1. Alphonso mangoes. On their ownsome. Because there is no mango in the world like an alphonso mango.

2. Old Monk rum. Thumsup (taste the

thunder). Dash of lime. Because this is the only rum & coke I drank when I was sixteen

in Bangalore.

3. Limca. Because Limca has "isotonic salts to quench your

thirst"

4. Masala bhoondi raita. Because its nice to pretend like we're having an Indian summer and we need something to cool us down.

5. The haleem (goat) mooli. Because 3/4 of the semi finalists were from the sub-continent.

6. Aloo papdi chaat. Because it is the ultimate street food.

7. Lots of nibbles - spicy peanuts, spicy cashewnuts, chewda, sev, banana chips.

8. Kingfisher. Because we love kingfisher.

The party begins tomorrow (Friday, the 1st of April) at 4pm. If you'd like to munch on moolis while you watch the match at home - call us on 02074949075 and order a mini-mooli platter box. You'll get 15 mini moolis and dipping chutneys.

And definitely stop over after the match. Lets drink the bar dry.

Horses Running Endlessly

2011-02-28T00:55:00.003Z

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of visiting the Gabriel Orozco exhibition at the Tate. I thought that one of his installation pieces - "Horses Running Endlessly" was a very good reflection of the quick service restaurant industry at the moment.....a land grab involving the West End, City, Westfield, Canary Wharf, the East, Islington, Kensington.....and back.

"Orozco has created a variant of chess, with four colours of square on a board which is four times as large as normal. This altered game is wholly populated with knights, the only chessmen to move horizontally and vertically in a single move. With no king to capture, the conventional goal of the game has disappeared, leaving the possibility of an infinite circular dance of pieces."

Why do we do it?

2011-02-02T09:23:00.004Z

I get asked this question all the time.

"What made you do it???"

Why does someone throw up many years of education, a "good" profession in the City....to start Mooli's. At a fraction of the pay, and six times the hard work and stress.

Because its REAL. Everyday we touch the lives of 400 odd people. We make their lunch breaks a little brighter or we finish off their day with a little bit of sunshine.

"@lovelychaos Oh god I don't want to leave soho and its warm embrace and @moolis"

"@onsomuchfire Thank god for @Moolis. There is nothing a goat and cumin potato roll cannot cure"

"@helenmusic Mmmmmmmmmmmmoolis....!"

"@ndeigman I will never eat anywhere that isn't @moolis ever again as long as I live (or as long as I work in Soho... which ever ends first.)"

"@CharlesGillett Just decided upon waking up hungover, I'm getting a goat @moolis tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it so much, my eyes are bleeding"

Everyday people thank us for their mooli. And that is priceless. That is why we do it. And we now need to reach more people.

Strengths are Weaknesses. And vice versa

2010-12-30T19:27:00.009Z

I’ve spent almost three weeks back home now, travelling in Kerala, Chennai, Mumbai and Bangalore. Reminding myself of the things I love the most (and least) about Indian cuisine…here are a few ramblings

1. There still isn’t any coffee in the West that can match a well made south Indian filter coffee (kaapi). Not an espresso in Milan, not a macchiato in Monmouth, not even my beloved piccolo from Milk Bar. The South Indian Filter Kaapi is strong, yet milky. Light yet creamy. To die for.

2. There are now fast food chains everywhere. McD’s and KFC strewn around far too liberally. As are Café Coffee Day, Kaati Zone, Subway and lots of other crap. The best Indian fast food is still the chaat wallahs of the North and the Udupi restaurants of the South.

3. Most Indian restaurant food continues to be extremely heavy. Heavy on spice, heavy on ghee, light on freshness. Not many lunches have gone by without me needing a little snooze in the afternoon, one of lifes little pleasures.

4. The Old School clubs (of the gym-khana variety) set up by the British still rock. They still do some of the best tikkas, naans, chicken s’wiches and fesh lime sodas. And the service still as wonderfully laid back.

I’ve had lots of time to think about Mooli’s. Everything that we have (and haven’t) managed to achieve in the last year. When Aditya (an IIM alumnus with a soft spot for a goat mooli) kindly prepared a SWOT analysis for us, one recurring theme was that our biggest weaknesses also happen to be our biggest strengths. And vice versa. Coffee is one of the most profitable items to sell, but we still don’t serve coffee at Mooli’s because we didn’t want the distraction that would have been required to serve an outstanding cup of coffee. We haven’t yet hired a manager because we wanted to personally make sure that everything was just right. Our menu is still incredibly focused despite the demand to serve dosas, madhur vadas, poha, masala omlettes and everything that somebodys grandmother once cooked for them. We use pomegranates, green apple, spring onions, grated carrot and romaine lettuce and other fresh stuff liberally, despite protests from our more conventional customers. We wouldn’t dream of franchising, even though that would be the most obvious way to grow and conquer.

It is great to know your strengths and play to them. But in this industry, there is a fine dividing line between the two.

Know who you are

2010-12-13T13:12:00.005Z

I have been religiously reading Seth Godin's blog for a while now. His posts tend to be insightful and to the point. This is my attempt at writing a Seth Godin type post.

Some people are better than others at knowing who they are. What makes them tick, what they're good at, what they're weak at, what motivates them, what's really important to them. The increased self-awareness helps them make tough decisions, prioritise and ultimately make their lives better.

It is the same with companies. The really strong companies know exactly who they are. What they are really good at, what they won't compromise on, what kind of people fit in their organisation. This doesn't mean they aren't flexible, just that they are aware of their DNA so when faced with big decisions, they know which way to go.

Many years ago I remember having an espresso (with jaffa cakes of course) with a friend at the BCG coffee station. I was telling him how Mooli's would be great at everything. He paused and said, 'you can't be great at everything'. He was right.

Figure out who you are. What's really important to you, what you won't compromise on, what you are going to focus on.

Then go kick some ass.

Pubescent Mooli's

2010-12-03T22:49:00.008Z

"Puberty is the process of physical changes by which a child's body becomes an adult body capable of reproduction."

I've spent so much time reading TABs blog posts, that i'm starting to write atrocious stuff like him. I just wish i was as funny. His posters have been photographed so many times that I suspect he'll get the call up from one of the big Soho ad agencies pretty soon.

But this blog has always had an uncomfortably honest streak about it, so screw it, lets talk about it.

We're at that very awkward stage. looking, acting and sounding a bit different from the babes we once were. but quite inconsistently. One day, we're dying to professionalise our management and operations, and the next day we're still fretting over whether the water jugs have been refilled. we come down hard when someone is late, and go soft over.....well soft stuff. it is so easy to be seduced by smooth talking financiers, PR agencies and landlords. and yes, everyday our mooli seems to get bigger.

"Under the influence of androgens, the voice box, or larynx, grows in both sexes. This growth is far more prominent in boys, causing the male voice to drop and deepen, sometimes abruptly but rarely over night. Occasionally, voice change is accompanied by unsteadiness of vocalization"

We're nice guys at heart, but are trying to unleash that ruthless streak that businessmen seem to need. i suspect every start-up goes through these growing pains but it must take its toll on those within close range. its great that we've got a wonderful team who are also learning to fly with us. the wind beneath.

Soup wording

2010-11-19T21:11:00.006Z

The men at mooli's asked for some ideas for the wording on the soups they are about to launch. Here are some that spring to mind. The randomness of ideas is such that I hope you too will chip in with your thoughts:

The mofo of soups*

As wholesome as the Happy days and the Cosby Show.

We never set out to make soups. But these are so tasty (and the increase in VAT) that our hand was forced. Did we already mention the increase in VAT?

If we were corny and cute we would say these soups are like a warm delicious hug.

*I have this in mind for the chicken stew

Takeaway copy

2010-11-19T00:42:00.003Z

"Please do not worry about dropping food on the floor. It will not be wasted as we will feed it to our staff."

"mooli's are so meta."

"If you find a better indian roll with delicious fillings wrapped in homemade rotis, then please do not tell us. Honesty."

"Mooli's is the ideal food for self-hating Indians and those who are unable to properly use an apostrophe."

"Don't be a door Knob, buy a mooli."

"A number of people have mentioned how they had a similar idea to mooli's. How nice."

"Mooli's: where cows, goats, chickens and channa come to die."

Chicken stew for.......

2010-11-13T14:06:00.003Z

Ok, so winter is truly here. Its cold, dark and miserable.

Mama mooli came to town to celebrate our anniversary, and i'm seizing the opportunity to sharpen up our Malabar chicken stew (Kozhi ishtoo in Kerala) recipe. Some of you got a sneak preview over Onam a few months ago, but its going to be even better.

Typical of us Syrian Christians of Kerala, its a really unusual dish. The flavours are genuinely subtle and mild - so mild that we'd eat it at breakfast with pal appams (a rice pancake that is soft in the middle and crisp and flaky on the edges) or iddi-appams (rice vermicilli or string hoppers). Yes, it is mild but its got the most gorgeous and balanced flavour - whole spices (fresh peppercorns, green chilli, cinnamon, cardamom, bay leaves, cloves) stewed with coconut milk, chicken, potatoes, ginger-garlic, shallots and celery.

There is no other Indian dish that I know of which has so much flavour and is yet so subtle. Like bullets with butterfly wings. Our antidote to the winter blues should be ready in a few days.

And just for the record, the lady in the video is not mama mooli. And the voice over is definitely not me!

We've come a long long way together

2010-11-08T22:06:00.006Z

Of course I would write tonight. In a couple of hours we will complete one full year. Many said that we would not make it.

Tonight I'd like to dwell on some of our favourite mistakes. They were mistakes, because had we known better we might not have made them. But i'm glad we made them.

1. We thought we were a better dinner product than a lunch product. LOL. Had we known better we would have opened in the City. But we would have probably ended up being just another sandwich bar in the City. Today we are Mooli's from Soho. And the City landlords are calling out to us. At last weeks "Restaurant Conference" we were named in Davis Coffer's presentation on "The Killer Brands Every Landlord Wants".

2. We didnt really understand real estate. We didnt realise that 50 Frith Street which is just 20 metres from heaving Old Comption Street was 20 metres too far. But then again, we are now mentioned in the same breath as our neighbours Barrafina and Koya. Not Tuk Tuk Noodles and £3 Veg Buffet.

3. We didnt know how much time and money and space it would take to make fresh rotis in Soho. We could have crammed in 20 more chairs, reduced our labour costs by 10% and gained a few hours of extra sleep instead of rushing down everytime Moolita acted up. But screw that.

4. We didnt realise that opening in winter would be so much harder than opening in summer. Word of Mouth marketing is slower in winter so we had to sweat blood and tears to win our custom. We learned the hard way. But we learned.

Megan's ipod is playing "Feeling Groovy" by S&G. Its been ages since I heard this track.

So here's to making a few more (favourite) mistakes. Starting your own business is also about making mistakes, and learning from them. Do come and join us for a drink tomorrow evening as we celebrate our first anniversary.

the Real Estate

2010-10-27T11:19:00.006+01:00

we've been lax. I know. ignoring the blog just because there was a real business to run.

the last few weeks, months and years, it feels like we've learned so much about Real Estate. i dont know the origins of the term, but i'm sure there is a very good reason its called the Real Estate.

foodie brands that have managed to grow, grow fast and grow well, have all figured out the real estate game. which is a real minefield. and there are some great brands with great products who are still stuttering along because they dont get it. Real Estate that is.

did you know that 20 metres is sometimes 20 metres too far? so lots of people think we have the most amazing location - 50 Frith Street. 20 metres from Old Compton, which is the most bustling steet in Soho. but it is possibly 20 metres too far. that said, despite the limited seating, the foil wrapping and our reluctance to hand out cutlery, Mooli's has become a destination now, and Frith Street is a destination street, not a drop-in street.

it gets even more bizarre. ever thought you could be on the wrong side of the street? you may have found a fab location on the best street, but if the passing trade walks on the other side because.....maybe because that is where the tube spills out, or that is where the pavement is broader....then you dont have such a good location. Can you really be on the wrong side of Fleet Street, Upper Street or Regent Street?

on a related, but unrelated point, make sure you know your product well. what is commonly a dinner product in the US, Vietnam or India, may be a better lunch product in the UK. and vice versa. burritos are far more popular here at lunch than dinner. Dim Sum seems to be becoming a dinner product in London, when it was traditionally a brunch thingy. which way will it swing for Mooli's? We're doing a roaring lunch trade from a Soho location that has never had a good lunch trade.....

and then there is the whole game of A1 v. A3 locations. and Premiums. and Extraction. Sam identified this way back when we were still writing the second draft of our business plan. I wont go into the details of the joys of A1 locations, but i suspect industry peers and hopefuls are smiling quietly to themselves.

cheers to Independence

2010-08-11T21:31:00.004+01:00

..........its been well over a year now since I quit UBS. Its been well over 2 years since Sam left BCG. Independence my friends, is certainly not overrated.

And so this weekend we celebrate Independence Day at Mooli's. I say "we" because we've been adopted by loads of homesick Pakistanis as well. Well....... the recipe for "our" Punjabi Goat could well have come from "their" Punjab. Indo-Pak rivalry is best left to the cricket pitch and politicians.

Raju has been planning some killer specials for a while now. We're having spicy & tangy papdi chaat. And a special (chatpatta) channa mooli with spicy kimchi. And if we ask very nicely, Raju might even do a mattar-kheema mooli. To flaunt our independence, we wont translate that into English English :-)

We know its Ramzan. It is flooding in Pakistan. And we're getting hammered in cricket by the Kiwis. But..... we always have someting to celebrate.

So come down and raise a toast to Independence with us. We've got the specials on all day on Saturday (14th August) and until 5pm on Sunday (15th August).

PS: We asked the bosses and they're OK with us staying open this Sunday.

PS2: Obviously, everyone is invited. You dont have to have a passport which is filled with innumerable visas and work permits.

This isnt meant to insult anyone, its just hilarious!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KsN0fM3KJI

My first post

2010-07-13T18:02:00.004+01:00

From 50 Frith St. A few more tag-line candidates:

"Don't be a door Knob, buy a mooli."

"The bargain is simple: we act friendly and show an interest in your life, you buy a mooli."

"We won't lie. We are out to get you addicted to our mwizzle*.

*in common parlance a mooli, which in turn comes from the latin, moliato."

"A mooli is the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus of the food world."

"A number of people have mentioned how they had a similar idea to mooli's. How nice."

Der Spiegel

2010-07-11T15:25:00.003+01:00

Introducing the Gandhi Mooli. Please don't eat it.

-"Marketing ideas that were rejected", Vogue, Vol 24, 2010 (Marketing special)

Mooli's aren't bad and certainly not special.

-Psychologico Reverso, Vol 1, Issue 3.

Imagine a burrito taking out a Mumbai frankie for a date, wining and dining her and then making sweet love to her against the background music of Teddy Pendergrass. But then the frankie has a little daliiance with a sashimi. It is out of that triangular relationship that a mooli is born.

Long and Winded Weekly, Issue 4.

funny how time flies (when you're having fun)

2010-07-01T06:39:00.002+01:00

a year ago, i was about to leave for the US.

"i fly to San Antonio, Texas on Wednesday in search of the perfect bread and then to Las Vegas, Nevada to play the World Series of Poker, Main Event."

that was a fun trip. we finally found Moolita. i busted out of the World Series on day 2 (but tried hard to get on ESPN by watching Phil Ivey).

a year on... fresh rotis made daily at 50 Frith Street. slow January evenings. record days in June. Evening Standard. mouth-watering Indian street food. the goat mooli. Federer losing in the quarters of Wimbledon. mooli champions. twitter. Mathew offering a discounted mooli in a gay bar (this is true). accounts (boring). German mooli (Germany should reach the finals just so we can make this - we have a killer idea). LBS. twitter. facebook. Rahul Dravid @moolis. the bobotie mooli. dal. pomegranate power (copyright Hannah Botham). mooli tuesday. 104 mojitos. twitter.

it's 6.30 fucking am. thankfully i only have the evening shift today. i was telling a friend the other day that i need a proper holiday. well, i'm in luck. this Sunday, exactly a year after i flew to San Antonio, Texas, i fly to Sicily.

the godfather.

Letter IV

2010-06-25T05:31:00.006+01:00

Dear Aristu-Jah,

My son I hope you have been enlightened by my first three letters to you. Rather than burden you with another chapter in my life and (by now) my not so implicit messages for the one you will lead as you enter your nineteenth year, I thought in this fourth letter I would focus on a small but niggling disappointment.

You have probably heard of Mooli's, the hugely popular Indian eatery. What you may not know is that I knew the owners well and witnessed first hand its establishment from a stall to its first branch in Soho, which I believe is no longer there (you may not believe it, but Soho was a trendy place at the time; the action switched to the other side of Oxford street). At the time Mooli's had a focus on just 5 mooli rolls with various tasty fillings (my favourite used to be Paneer until your mother's vegetarian ways (not to mention her all round poor cooking) put me off paneer forever).

One of my early suggestions was for a breakfast mooli to be introduced. I just thought this would be a great idea, and was sure that a soft spicy egg filling in a warm fresh chappati roll would be a winner. And importantly it did not have to be sold in the morning - it was a strength that it could be sold late in the day. At the time there were very few offerings like this. But the idea was never adopted despite its attraction. I even shared a story of my childhood about the love of egg rolls to evoke similar stories in others, even though ultimately the story featured a man who had touched me with more than his cooking skills.

The idea was politely rejected. However, egg did feature in a mooli the founders introduced for the world cup in 2010 (which England surprisingly won). It was placed in a filling with keema - nice but why do that and not have a breakfast mooli?

You may think that the above hardly merits the tag of a disappointment and given the success of Mooli's (now about 10 rolls) not worth being concerned about. Yes, but that disappointment was to reverberate in my life in ways I could not imagine my dear son.

I know that when you were young, just entering your first year at Westminster, you asked me why I always slept in the study with the maid and not with your mother or why everyone would say that Kenny (your latin tutor's son) looked just like you. Well my son, I can reveal the answer now. It is linked to the failed breakfast mooli. When your mother and I initially met (I will talk about that more in letter VI) at the Chiswick reading group I was an occasional member of at the time, sparks flew. Never before had I seen a woman who was so at ease and knowledgeable about eighteenth century women writers of fiction , beat poetry and JayZ's early B sides before he became famous. She was formidable and, please don't cringe, in possession of the most wonderful hips I have ever seen. We courted and were married quickly. But there was a nagging doubt about whether she would appreciate my creative side and passion, however small and insignificant it may be.

It all came to a head one day when, already having annoyed me by belittling my breakfast mooli idea, your mother served me a concoction of the keema from the night before with some scrambled egg mixed in (yes it was a faux kind of bobotie, the very thing that the mooli founders preferred to my breakfast mooli idea). I am sure you will agree my son that this was the kind of personal affront no person should suffer. It was the very last straw and drove me into the arms of our then maid (that turned out not be a success but for different reasons which I shall explain in letter XI). What made me finally realise the impossibility of a life with your mother was when your latin tutor burst into tears half way through what had become her regular recitation of a Catullus poem. She said it was because she felt my pain. Why could your mother not do the same?

So you see my son, from a small disappointment came something much larger. But I do sometimes wonder what would have happened if the breakfast mooli was launched.

Always there,

Your father.

Bobotie

2010-06-18T21:58:00.004+01:00

We were hoping to ride the wave of World Cup euphoria by launching a World Cup special mooli. It is ready. But it feels odd to launch it tonight, with England putting in one of the most dismal performances I've ever seen. Anyway, the show must go on. Ironically, Anna has just started playing Massive Attack....

So we have it. The bobotie mooli. The original bobotie is a slightly wierd dish created by the Cape Malay community of South Africa. A kind of spicy shepherds pie. With chopped apricots, sultanas, and Mrs Balls peach chutney. Or if you hail from the sub-continent, think about it as baked kheema with anda, raisins and a Gujarati mango chutney.

Wierd but wonderful.

Our bobotie mooli is filled with lean lamb mince slow cooked in a heady spice blend until that peculiar lamb smell disappears into the fire of the spices. Seriously, it is pretty hot. We've gone light on the fruity stuff, although the mango chutney and egg (both optional) takes a little of the edge off. Just a little. And its got our famous zingy salsa of tomatoes, red onions and coriander marinated in lime juice. My brown cheeks are still flush from my first spicy bobotie mooli. Rooney & Co looked like they could have done with a bobotie mooli before the game.

credits: Rohit Chugh, Jan Smit, Mrs Balls, Rob Levy, Joanna Simon, Cape Town Fish Market, James Murrell, Manisha, Paul Tosio, Keith Posh, Herman Vanderwalt....

What do you look like?

2010-06-05T12:39:00.003+01:00

A number of readers have written to me asking the perfectly relevant (some would say overdue) question, "Are you as beautifully crafted and delicious as the prose you write?". Here is a video of me from circa 1986:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=irHW4udsmTo

Another level

2010-05-28T16:36:00.003+01:00

It has been so long that I feel like a gushing bride sitting on a bed of roses atop a soft mattress on a 4 poster bed crafted by the finest Bengali* hands, all against the backdrop of a sensual hum of the sitar, awaiting the entrance of my tall (6 ft 2) tanned groom in a silk dhoti. I have not thought about this too much, promise.

One does not need reminding about the wonderful progress of Mooli's: 750 FB friends later (I remember that at inception Mooli's had around 545 or so friends), countless more followers and tweeters, reviews in the dozens, and the birth of Mooli's regulars. I was thinking what is next? How can Sam, Mathew and crew step it up even more? How can they have those queues? Does twittering and facebooking have its limits for this goal? Will I ever sleep with a girl again especially while I am in Dubai? How effective will the Evening Standard piece be? Has Sid lost weight on his you know what?

Perhaps we need to move from the virtual (and boy have they used that effectively to communicate their message) to the visual. As a brand Mooli's are more than just the 5 and now 6 beautifully made rolls. They are about the ideas and passion behind them, the passion that inspires you to cook, to want to go out and open your own place, whatever cuisine you desire, to make out that by association you also opened Mooli's and this should impress the girl you are talking to, to open a place and make sure that you are sourcing the best materials you can etc.

I am now getting sick on my own saccharine and marketing speak so let me get to my point. I think Sam and Mathew should showcase the broader canvas of their skills and passion by posting short videos of dishes they enjoy cooking and eating at home. A 5 minute quickie on scrambeld eggs with the twist of mango or chilli, the thai curry that is not thai curry, the hot cross buns that are not covered in butter but smokey peppered fish etc etc. They can even film their friends cooking their favourite dishes. I appreciate this can be time consuming but a short movie, which may not even need to focus on the face and kitchen, can be made relatively quickly. The key is for people to see the life behind the brand and to want to be part of it, to come and meet the folks who have created Mooli's and come up with cool ideas for quick suppers.

I can see the reviews right now:

"He may have hairy hands like Richard Keys or Teen Wolf, but let me tell you that man Sam can cook a mean scrambled eggs in 5 minutes." -Vogue

"He may look like a leftover from the 1960's ashram scene of Liverpool/India, but boy does he know how to rock my world with Tanzanian fish curry with an okra twist. Go try it." - Tatler

"With his sweet smile, cute dimples and little girl ponytail, I was shocked to see the way he butchered that piece of meat. But it was all worth it in the end for the Indian style carpaccio he created was simply heavenly. And so easy!" - Marie Claire

* Every Bengali I have met tells me that they are the artistic/cultural leaders of India. So that must be true.

we're here to stay

2010-05-18T12:11:00.001+01:00

a few weeks ago, on a sunny Saturday, i found myself near Baker Street. after meeting a friend in Regents Park, i walked back towards my first flat in London on Melcombe Street. i remembered the German bakery Breaco which had opened opposite my flat - they made good fresh bread and did decent coffee. they also had some yummy mini croissants (which other cafes in London should do). mathew and i had coffee there last year - we had admired some of their furniture (a standing back rest in particular which we almost ended up having at mooli's).

as i got closer to my old flat, i suddenly had this sinking feeling that Breaco was no more. there was no light on and then i saw all the unopened mail and flyers under the door. game over. all over the city, whenever a place shuts down, there is all this unopened mail.

it's a tough business, this. lots of really good places shut down in London. i was amazed to find that recently Cafe Macondo in hoxton square had shut down. when we first moved into 50 Frith Street, quite a few locals reminded us that there had been 14 different restaurants in the last 10 years at 50 Frith Street. Mark and Gavin, two brothers who have had an office in Soho (above the Nando's) for 16 years said 'we don't know if you guys will make it'.

slowly, during a very cold London winter, we realised that while our location was good, it was definitely not great. only people in the business and locals know this. Soho has so many streets and so many different ways to walk that you can miss it. and the footfall isn't amazing on Frith Street (Old Compton Street on the other hand is a different story). we also learnt that marketing was pretty tricky. unless you get lucky with a big splash in the metro/timeout/evening standard or similar, you've got a big task ahead of you. Simon Woodroffe warned us about this before we launched, but you need to experience some quiet evenings to really understand how hard it can be.

in the last six months, we've had some incredible mooli evangelists. normal everyday customers who have made it their mission to spread the mooli, much in the same way converted appple folk go on about the mac (seriously my MacBook Pro is a joy. so much so that i think the Buddha rests as comfortably in the MacBook Pro as in the petals of a flower). you could see it in their eyes - they really wanted us to make it. so that they could have mooli's of course. 'It's really getting busier now,' they would happily say.

there are so many people and stories. Mark from Hill & Knowlton (not to be confused with other Mark earlier in the post) went to the trouble to design an e-flyer for us. Joce, MD of Rushes made sure mooli's were had at lots of screenings and evening drinks - she also wrote in with some kinds words: '..the personal service and passion for the business you show and have, makes Moolis a unique experience. You know the food is great and made with passion and integrity.' Rohit, our mooli champion of the first three months, made sure he brought ALL his friends to mooli's, one by one. the countless number of customers who helped us run free promos for our local offices and made sure their colleagues came in to try one ('you have to have a mooli' they say).

without our mooli evangelists, we'd have had no chance. so thank you.

on St. George's day last month, Mark and Gavin were blasting loud music from their office and Soho was alive. Donald from the Karaoke box (who is addicted to the paneer mooli) popped by and said 'No one else in this location has generated all this buzz. Everyone is talking about you guys - I went to the Curzon and they all had mooli's.' later that evening, Mark came by for a mooli, and told us that 'it looked like we were going to make it.'

yup, we're here to stay.

Genre Bending

2010-05-16T23:50:00.008+01:00

This evening i watched Kick Ass. It took me back many years to when I first saw Pulp Fiction. Back then I knew that I was watching something very special. A new genre. A new space that Tarantino had carved out for himself. The old words and phrases just didnt do his style justice.

And so it was with Kick Ass. It felt Tarantino-esque, but it is so much more. I dont know the right words. I expect someone is creating new words to describe it.

When we decided to call a mooli a mooli, we had the same issue. The mooli isnt a burrito, or a wrap or a roll. So we created a new and catchy name. One that we could trademark and call our own.

And we dont badge ourselves "Indian street cuisine", because you will not get a mooli on the streets of India. Moolis are inspired by the streets of Allepey, Delhi, Goa...but Tokyo and London as well.

.......it took a while, but the word has caught on. On Friday we had a group of young Indie rockers. All seven of whom walked in and confidently ordered a "goat mooli" without even looking at the menu. Not a goat wrap, not a goat burrito, not a goat roll. They all wanted a Goat mooli.

SLOW FOOD, FAST

2010-05-11T19:14:00.009+01:00

Mathew and I spent our Mooli's six month anniversary away from Mooli's (well, it was on a Sunday) - at the launch party of Chipotle in London. It was a very small affair and we were touched to have been invited by Sam Patel - who we've gotten to know because the Chipotle team love mooli's and order from us a lot.

It was fitting in many ways to spend our six month anniversary at the launch party because Chipotle has been one of our inspirations. anon nyc describes Mooli's to Americans in New York as 'Indian Chipotle' and they get it. We're definitely not Indian burritos but there is a lot we share with Mexican food and with Chipotle. We loved their line 'SLOW FOOD, FAST' the first time we saw it - it captures our beef, pork and goat mooli's so well. There's a lot of love and attention to detail which goes in to all our fillings. And with Chipotle, "food with integrity" isn't just a slogan. There is a real commitment to use naturally raised meats as well as natural ingredients. And this is largely due to the efforts of their founder and CEO, Steve Ells - even after 17 years and over 1,000 stores in the US. There is also a lovely simplicity about Chipotle's approach to design and their offering which we love.

Steve showed the world that not all chains are bad. And we were thrilled to meet him on Sunday. He even made Mathew's first ever Chipotle burrito!

The whole team was incredibly warm and friendly and have offered to show us around in New York. One day Mooli's will cross the Atlantic and go to New York. It might take many years but we'll get there. With integrity and freshly made rotis with no preservatives.

It's a small world. Today, an old customer Julie Falconer (who wrote a lovely piece about us ages ago) came back with some friends and I was talking to her about Chipotle and it turns out that Steve was her neighbour in the US!

On Monday, 10 May 2010 when Chipotle formally launched their first store in London, Steve was cooking away in their restaurant on Charing Cross Road... 17 years after he launched the first Chipotle in Denver, Colorado, in a former Dolly Madison Ice Cream Store near the University of Denver campus using an $85,000 loan from his father.

That is commitment for you.

PS: I loved their tacos BUT our bread is better. :P
PPS: I got drunk on their margaritas. :-O

What a piece of work is a mooli

2010-04-27T20:43:00.009+01:00

Today was hot. 22 degrees or so. And we were worried about whether our warm and flavoursome mooli's would have the same appeal.

Well, after a slightly slow start, we were busy as usual. Aided by our sexy new look with the windows drawn back and all.

By 2:30, I was hungry and I sunk my teeth into a beef mooli. And it was good. Very Good. The peppery spice of the braised beef beautifully offset by the grated coconut, cool raita and zingy onions, tomatoes and coriander. Ahhhh, so beautifully balanced. Still loving you.

After 5 months and 3 weeks of eating a mooli or 2 virtually everyday, its great to see that we still love this little invention of ours. We may not have paid as much attention to management accounts and gross margin calculations, but i'm glad we've paid so much attention to our core product. This may look like shameless marketing, but we cant help but be proud.

What a piece of work is a mooli....

Mooli's Bite from whatlunchwhere on Vimeo.

and btw, wat is lettuce doing in my roti?

2010-04-07T00:33:00.004+01:00

Ok, we've used this blog, twitter and facebook publish lots of good things that people and reviewers have said about us. I think its only fair to also share some the bad stuff as well.

now, things i was not hapy abt..........the panner mooli is a total disaster! no words - perhaps the worst combo i ve ever tasted - sorry. who designed it and why this way? why grate a paneer to pieces! i think it totally kills the taste of paneer - have u seen people mashing cauliflower unless its in a soup say? i totally love the idea of having a paneer mooli but this combo is pathetic - i would rather have it with palak or peas or pudina or channa or mushrooms etc but adding paneer cubes and with some green chili as they go together very well. you might get some ideas here - http://www.sanjeevkapoor.com/Search.aspx?SearchText=paneer.

and btw, wat is lettuce doing in my roti? im really not sure if it goes adds to the taste rather watering down the taste of the moolis.

Make Breakfasts Happen Boys

2010-04-06T07:45:00.008+01:00

Friends and random readers, I have flirted with the keyboard, ummed and ahhed, lost some more hair, but enough is enough. It is now essential for the food market that mooli's launches a breakfast mooli that brings to the world the naked delights of an Indian omelette/scrambled egg wrapped in a fresh hot chappati. Their fears can be shot away by only serving it during the day. In my view this may be the plus point. I would, respectfully of course, urge our friends to seriously consider this. Below I have embeded some ideas for the breakfast mooli launch, all penned in an atmospheric blue. Bring it on. Please.

What is a Mooli?

2010-03-19T01:13:00.002Z

Thanks Catty!

You've got the music in you

2010-03-07T14:25:00.013Z

Sam saw it coming. The sun, the cusomers, us turning the corner.

This week people poured in to Mooli's like never before. They're trekking to Soho from Mayfair, Holborn, Croydon and Dorset. We've formed strong alliances with WhereCampEU and Asha. We look around and see folk from the Ivy, ByronBurger, Barrafina, QuoVadis, Giraffe, Chilango, Leon. The organisers of Harvest at Jimmy's want us at the festival because we are an "aspirational food" .

Suddenly I see, Suddenly I see, This is what I wanna be

Suddenly I see (Suddenly I see)Why the hell it means so much to me

But many times in the last few weeks, it felt like we were staring into an abyss, especially when the snow bucketed down really hard. But we've been tenacious (Jonny, we still remember your early advice to us "......you need to be incredibly tenacious to survive in this industry"). We kicked down doors when polite knocking didn't work. Sent mooli's to the City, film screenings and parties when it was too cold to venture out to Soho. Got into Esquire because Timeout couldnt be asked......created some heartwarming dhaal soups and brought back sacks of goat from Finsbury Park to launch the Goat Mooli.

But when the night is falling,
And you cannot find the light
If you feel your dream is dying
Hold tight....You've got the music in you

Someday soon we'll open a branch in the City. and Canary Wharf. But for the time being we'll concentrate on Soho. I love Soho in Summer. Even Spring is gorgeous. And we'll try to take Mooli's on tour......Glastonbury, the Big Chill, WOMAD, Harvest at Jimmys .....we'd like to be showcased alongside Florence, the Zutons and Arctic Moneys. Coz we've got the music.

Don't let go, You've got the music in you
One dance left, This world is gonna pull through

here comes the sun

2010-03-02T01:02:00.006Z

or chutneys, spring and chess.

today, it was sunny. it almost felt like spring. we've had a hard winter with lots of learning but we're stronger now (thanks to some quiet evenings and lots of yummy mooli's).

in life and in business, you can often sense things. i think both mathew and i can feel the momentum. our whole team can. we're on to something here. raju, mathew and i (with a lot of help from moolita, family, friends and customers at the Sunday Upmarket) tried to create something really special and i think we are being rewarded by our loyal customers for being slightly unreasonable and going that extra distance - making fresh rotis everyday, making chutneys from scratch, slow-cooking for 6 hours. we had our best week last week and everyone's expectations (especially Raju's) are higher than ever.

this evening, after a very busy Monday lunch, here comes the sun was playing and i tweeted:

moolis here comes the sun.... that's whats playing @moolis just now. it really feels like spring is almost here....its been a long hard winter.

and then a twitter exchange with @ibzo.
ibzo @moolis bet it rains tomorrow
@ibzo no way! let's bet. if it rains, you win a goat mooli. if it doesn't, well you bring like 5 friends to mooli's!
ibzo @moolis throw in a kingfisher beer and we're talking :D
@ibzo ok done. our first bet on twitter. mathew may not be impressed!!
@moolis he'll get over it! COME ON RAIN!!

so we'll see if my gut (or my accuweather iphone app) is right. NO RAIN PLEASE. reminds me of shouting NO ACE PLEASE when you hold KK v. say AQ all in pre flop.

anyway, i'm glad to be writing on the blog again. today, shamyl, a regular customer and restaurateur who loves the pork mooli (better than the goat he says) told me twitter was great and stuff but we have to write on our blog. my uncle and aunt also reminded me last week. it's easy to procrastinate because there is simply so much to do. but tonight felt right so here we are.

the first title for this post was going to be: chutneys, spring and chess. we're holding a QYPE event on 14th March which we're very excited about. it's called Chess & Chutney at Mooli's. we're going to share some of our chutney secrets- Raju said to me last week - not the hot green one surely? but we'll be nice and spread the love. or the dry roasted red chillies with fresh green chillies and coriander.

i'm also looking forward to the chess side of things. we're going to play lots of blitz chess (and possibly even a small simultaneous).

it's a real shame that London has no equivalent to Washington Square Park (that's me hustling in New York!) or Harvard Square. maybe as the spring arrives, we'll leave that chess board outside with a clock and London will have a place to play chess (until maybe it moves to Soho Square).

the enterprising folks from London Chess Boxing have also thrown a smart prize in the ring: two ringside seats to their May event in London, complete with unique backstage access to meet competitors and organisers. now that's a crazy sport. chess AND boxing. round by round. i suspect if i beat the guy from London Chess Boxing, he's going to ask to box (or just start boxing rather). but we have a cunning plan (Eamon has offered to hold him).

so here's to spring, chess and chutneys. and mooli's winning its first bet on twitter tomorrow.

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun,
and I say it's all right

Little darling, it's been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here
Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
and I say it's all right

Sun, sun, sun, here it comes...
Sun, sun, sun, here it comes...

Going to start a Revolution....

2010-02-04T00:11:00.015Z

Working @ Mooli's today, I felt like we were at the centre of a revolution, a haven for a number of young techies and entrepreneurs. Chaitanya and his fellow Expedians (pictured above) who love their goat mooli. 18 year old James Proud swung by twice. Founder of Giglocator, he loves his chicken mooli without any apple, tomatoes or salad and spends his days negotiating deals with behemoths like [NAMES REMOVED AT THE REQUEST OF JAMES AS THEY ARE TOP SECRET]. He introduced us to Chris & Ed, the founders of Wikijob. Alick from Spotify swung by for lunch. A simple dhaal soup with roti for him. Spotify was made for me.

Jack Huang, founder of DealBunch was here with a bunch of entrepreneurs from LBS for their monthly catchup, including Carlo who started GelatoMio. As was Rajesh Chandy, Prof of Marketing & Entrepreneurship at LBS drawing all the obvious comparisons between us and Chipotle. The beef mooli hit all the right notes for him. Of course it would, he is from Kerala.

And there was Brojo, who started a mobile phone advertising company when he was 21, before most of us even had mobile phones.

We had a few more disillusioned lawyers who wanted to chat with S&M before taking the plunge themselves.....

This is Social Media Week in London, and we are priviliged to be a part of it. Thanks Bumsy, Chirdeep, Farhan, Sherene and Anon NYC for showing us the way.

In between all of this, we managed to sell quite a few mooli's, mojitos and kingfisher beers. More than any previous Wednesday.......

Twitter

2010-01-16T15:40:00.003Z

Just thought it would be fun to include a few reactions to our mooli's (especially the GO GO GOAT MOOLI) extracted from twitter. Start from the bottom...

ibzo had my second goat mooli from @moolis in three days. i'm addicted. will blog about it soon.

cr @farhan isn't the chicken halal @moolis? Gotta agree with you though Farhan, goat mooli is one to keep :D.

farhan @chirdeep @moolis Goat mooli is a must keep ;) It's the only halal meat mooli they have at the moment ;) And I'm grateful they have it! ;)

chirdeep Thinking of @moolis and the beta release of the goat mooli. Should go to approve/disapprove soon.

chaitanyakuber @moolis nom nom nom

sherenejose @moolis i'll be there to sample some this evening :D

adelecompanymag @moolis lovely lunch at moolis as recommended by my art team... next time i will remember to order the lush brownies too!

farhan http://twitpic.com/y6ghn - the goat @moolis are so yummy, I had to have another one..

vicchi http://twitpic.com/y68w9 - Trying out the goat special from @moolis on Frith Street. Delicious!

sigizmund Been at @moolis - had some great food and free mint tea just for tweeting about it. Sounds like something I can do on daily basis!

kreidekreis Great lunch today @moolis (50 Frith St) - fantastic food, friendly staff - well worth a visit! ... http://schmap.it/G8mqDm?a

chaitanyakuber Best mooli yet! Try the goat mooli @moolis. #soho #londonfood

cr RT @moolis @cr described our masala chai as christmas in a drink! - its like mince pies and mulled wine. Mmm!

ibzo oh my goat. had a goat mooli from @moolis earlier. it was an absolute triumph, well done to the great guys there. go get one soon

TheBuddhaSmiled @moolis - what's this I hear? Proper goat meat, here in Central London? Have I died and gone to foodie heaven?

helenmusic mmmmmmmm the new goat mooli is delicious, i can confirm. another triumph for @moolis !!

tloghal The goat at @moolis is only there for a month (poor animal). So goat in there (sorry).

abiCompanyMag Love @moolis - the best lunch in soho!

TanitaM new favourite place for lunch @moolis Go there now!!

anilmathew @londoneating Just has the goat mooli @moolis - tasted amazing. Definitely my favourite mooli now!!! Worth trying out :-)

LambshankRdmptn @Screenjabber Slow roasted, unapologetically spicy. In a sandwich. A winner from @Moolis

Goodforlunch @moolis never done goat! I'll have to stop by

LambshankRdmptn Ok world. I've got to be in Soho for a film at 1:15. Anyone fancy a goat @moolis around midday?

Moolis Gemma I think Soho is about to GO GO Goat

GEMMA I THINK SOHO IS ABOUT TO GO GO GOAT

2010-01-12T01:02:00.008Z

To : Gemma <gemma@gemmamasseypr.co.uk>
cc : Sameer Singh <sameer@moolis.com>;
cc: Raju Rawat <raju @moolis.com>;

date: Tue, Jan 12, 2010 at 1:01 AM
Re: Metro

Gemma,
This evening Raju made a batch of goat mooli's for Sam, Fran, Vrinda and myself. I dont have the words to describe it. But I must because we promised to send you some info about it so that we can send it to the journalists and food bloggers.

I think we have it. A mooli to melt the last remnants of snow. A mooli to entice the shoppers from Oxford Street, the clubbers from Old Compton Street and the bankers from Fleet Street.

The recipe is Sam's grandmothers. She wishes she could be in London to see Mooli's in action. She called to remind Sam that the meat needs to be braised together with bones, and that it in addition to the smoky flavour of dry roasted red chillies it needed the fiery kick of fresh green chillies. Sam nodded in agreement. He has been making this dish for many years now and it is legendary amongst the Rhodes scholars of Oxford. And Raju has made it even better than the real thing.

So why does Mooli's want to do a goat mooli? Because goat is the meat we Indians cook best. Much better than any Carribean goat curry. Goat meat is leaner than chicken and has more protein than beef. And I haven't even mentioned the medicinal properties of the turmeric.

The meat is succulent and bursting with flavour from the dry roasted cumin, coriander, cloves, chillies and cinnamon. Flavours that are distinctly Punjabi. The potatoes sauteed with dry mango and cumin are the perfect foil. Red onions, tomatoes, fresh coriander and lime juice add a dash of zing. All of this cocooned in lovely wholemeal rotis made at 50 Frith Street by Moolita. GEMMA I THINK SOHO IS ABOUT TO GO GO GOAT.

The goat mooli is best accompanied by our newest cocktail - the pomegranate and chilli mojito.

Did someone mention winter blues?

Cheers,
Mathew

PS: thankyou goat anon

Concerning moustaches and other facial hair growth

2010-01-06T06:43:00.005Z

As a young, precocious and, some would say, beautiful child on the South East Essex junior debating circuit, there was a question that always fascinated me. Why were all (or many of) the poverty stricken people that were on TV (documentaries etc) not sporting beards, given the food retaining abilities of facial growth in times of hunger? I returned to this question recently as I began to ponder the advantages and disadvantages of facial hair. For your correspondent, there are only advantages.

Snack nestling

I have mentioned this benefit already. Consider this everyday scenario. Your have just fought your way through the queues to find a cramped place on the tube. Partly through boredom, partly through the unintended effort of getting on the train, you are suddenly in need of a snack. Even if you have a quaker bar in your purse or man-bag, you are too cramped in the tube to reach for it. Perhaps you are a bit embarrassed to eat a whole bar in public. Perhaps the last Rolo (TM) in your pocket has become squashed and the caramel is now hard. The solution is a quick shuffle of the tongue away. In your lovely beard there nestles a bit of the muesli from this morning. Fantastic.

The relationship enhancer

Many women will tell you that a beard is off-putting. That is understandable given that no one (except my ex ex ex) really wants to kiss a bristly surface (although there is a solution to this: use conditioner on your beard). But there is an indirect benefit in entering a relationship with a beard. You see, a true sign of the evolution of any relationship is not just being nice and good to each other but also knowing you can be frank, ask for things and even argue. Of course if one can have a soft disagreement rather than a hard one, then the breakthrough to this more mature relationship can be negotiated happily. What better way to make this breakthrough than let your young lady request that you shave? Much better than having to argue or being told you are fat, too flirtatious etc.

The best short term slimming pill in the world

With a properly contoured box beard (or goatee), your face is effectively elongated. And this provides a slimming effect, which you can profit from whilst you get down to actually losing some weight.

Grrrrrr

For the perennial wimp or wimp looking person, there is no faster way to add a veneer of hardness or mystique than to, yes you have guessed it, grow some facial hair. I can't explain why facial hair has that effect. Perhaps it is the instant message it gives: " if he can't be bothered to shave and is such a deviant may be he is capable of other more dangerous things".

I do hope that our friends at Mooli's recognise these advantages and regularly give away a free mooli to the important constituency of facial hair growers.

The Mooli's disloyalty card

2010-01-03T21:38:00.009Z

London has recently benefited greatly from a coffee revolution. You can now get a great cup of coffee, and hence I no longer crave the glorious South Indian filter coffee that I grew up on in Bangalore.

Today, I had the pleasure of drinking a Gibraltar at Tina, we Salute You in Newington Green. It was fantastic. Even better, was the discovery of the Disloyalty Card. If you go and drink coffee at 8 interesting, quality focused cafes in the East End then Gwilym Davies himself (World Barista Champion) will make you a free cup of coffee at Prufrock Coffee.

And it struck me. This could be a great way to pay homage to some great restaurants and cafes that have inspired Sam and myself as we walked and cycled the streets of London planning Mooli's.

If you have eaten or imbibed at all of the following then come in and have a mooli on us, anytime this week. We arent going to print disloyalty cards, but will take your word for it.

Lantana Cafe, Timeout's pick for the Best New Cafe of 2009. Thank you Shelagh
Taqueria, because Dodie makes fabulous corn tortillas
Fernandez & Wells, for giving us the stumpy
Monmouth, need we say anything?
Hummus Bros, I would never have given (Chick) Peas a Chance. Christian you've been incredible

Maoz, for being the only good on-the-go food option on Old Compton Street
Milk Bar, for being even better than the original Flat White
Benitos Hat, thanks Ben for proving that lawyers can cut it

Tony Montana gets interviewed for a position at Mooli's

2009-12-31T18:45:00.003Z

happy new year

2009-12-31T16:21:00.004Z

have a really good one. :D

if you're around Soho, we're open till very late so come say hi and get your last mooli of 2009 or your first mooli of 2010. we're also going to throw in some champagne on the house.

S&M

you got to be on top of everything...

2009-12-30T21:20:00.004Z

that's what Christian (who started Hummus Bros) told me earlier this year. i also remember seeing a video of Simon Woodroffe (the founder of Yo Sushi! who we've also met a couple of times) where he said the key was to always keep doing things quickly so that your lists never went out of control.

we've been open more than a month and i've only now realised how important it is to be on top of everything. being efficient, organising stuff like a demon, checking supplier prices, making lists, rotas, keeping track of VAT receipts, replying to mails, excel, acting on things quickly, setting up things, opening the mail (!?) - that's the name of the game, or at least part of it. who would have thought. i guess we did some of this in our previous jobs but i find this much harder. especially as we need to make sure that our customers get the best possible service with their amazing mooli's.

we all have our strengths and weaknesses. we also have patterns which are hard to break. i recently read Victoria Coren's new book "For Richer, For Poorer: A Love Affair with Poker" - one of the chapters is called 4am. i read that and laughed out loud. how many times have poker players played way too long into the night? so this rather uninspiring blog post is about breaking a pattern of being (slightly) disorganised and inefficient.

as newspapers, websites, magazines, and even food bloggers prepare their lists for 2009, my early new years resolution is to be super organised, efficient and fast. both at mooli's and at home.

Inspiring things

2009-12-28T15:17:00.004Z

During the break I have come across little inspiring things I thought I would share.

1. http://www.pizzaturnaround.com/

There is a funny Dudley Moore movie, Crazy People, in which he plays an ad exec who has a nervous breakdown. The ads he makes during this breakdown are brutally honest and are mistakenly printed to great success. While not in that league, Domino pizza's decision to share the very negative criticism they have received about their cardboard crust and tasteless sauce is a brave one. The link takes you to their campaign to respond to these criticisms publicly by changing their pizzas. Brave or stupid?

2. http://www.rasikarestaurant.com/

When one thinks of really cool, well designed websites, the sites of indian restaurants do not spring to mind. BUt the website of this DC restaurant, popular with Rahm Emanuel no less, is, I think, beautifully designed and warms the heart (if that kind of thing does it for you). All the information is on a big page (like a menu perhaps), with a camera like device which takes you to the selected spot. Play with it and admire.

3. http://www.weinsteinco.com/#/film/a_single_man

Forget A Serious Man and any other movie of 2009, go watch A Single Man. Yes Tom Ford can direct, write and produce a movie as well as being a much lauded designer. Colin Firth's George gives a beautifully restrained performance of a man coping with his loneliness after the death of his lover (played by the very good Matthew Goode). A beautiful love story. And the clothes, car and props are fantastic. I want those glasses.

It is not just fusion, stupid

2009-12-24T13:54:00.003Z

I do hope one day that S and M (and perhaps R) can transfer their passion to the printed page in the form of a cookbook. Their much commented upon passion and enthusiasm would be brilliantly showcased if they were to share with everyone the many recipes friends and family have enjoyed over the years. So it would not be a Mooli's receipe book, but a book of recipes by the Mooli's founders.

The great thing about any such book would be its wonderful reflection of the varied interests, identities and influences that animate the work of S and M and many others who are interested in cooking and look upwards for inspiration. The book would not be Indian as such (or from any region from India), and would not fall in one of the traditional categories. Unfortunately it may be called Fusion, but that word has awful connotations of people bringing cuisines together for the sake of it, rather than just reflecting what they love, admire and have been brought up with. Perhaps one can defy even the fusion lable by the sheer number national cuisines that influence S and M and all of us when we cook.

So, bring on the kimchi and.....?

Noses and Some Ideas for the New Year

2009-12-19T20:17:00.005Z

Ladies and gentleman, your correspondent has made a breakthrough on matters of charming the opposite sex and at the same time selecting the most compatible companion, long or short haul. It is simply this: at the first opportunity during a party, dinner or simply coffee, you must seek to touch the said opposite sex on the nose. It must be a quick flick. Lingering too long may be interpreted in the wrong way (although once I had a major breakthrough on this front. But that was a unique case of a young lady who had a rather complicated upbringing that made her partial to nose touching: her mother was one of the leading nose ring persons of her generation; and her father was a nose surgeon).

I digress from the main message of this post: some ideas to consider for the new year.

Being free in different ways

The success of the mooli give-away to different constituencies is nothing short of genius. More than just a simple give-away its more creative delivery is "at one" with what mooli's should be about. I wonder whether there should be some alternative give-aways, perhaps in the evening. And taking it out to night club queues, announcing it before hand of course.

It's all about apps baby

We are in a world where apps are big. It makes sense given the technology that is part of our lives and the expectations we have of it. Mooli's is very much a modern brand in the way it has embraced fully the different e-mediums out there. There should be a specific useful mooli's app or something like it. But it should not be just for the sake of it - that would not be the mooli's way. My suggestion would be an app/tracker type thing that keeps you updated on mooli give-aways for example.

Don't forget what you remembered to leave out

I have discussed this principle before. Miles davis had it right and S&M have reaped great benefit from their sensitivity to not only what is visible and tasteable (as it were) but also what is not there. This must not be forgotten. Every addtion must be angonised over, because even it appears to make a profit there is the larger brand issue. Mooli's are not macDs, Burker King or even Pret.

Breakfast mooli repackaged

Saying the above, I still believe in the breakfast mooli idea. I understand that the morning is not an option, but who said a breakfast mooli can't be eaten at night time. I didn't. I think it would work.

The wall! The wall!

Another brilliant idea was the holding sign on the wall for new artists. But this must be filled soon otherwise it begins to look like a gimic, out of which no one benefits. There is plenty within the Japanese aesthetics tradition that chimes with India, and that can be an inspiration for an image. The propective artist would do well to take this as a starting point:http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/japanese-aesthetics/ (showing how Japanese art is characterised by certain features including: mono no aware (the pathos of things), wabi (subdued, austere beauty), sabi (rustic patina), yûgen (mysterious profundity).

Happy new year to everyone. Here is to 2010, the year when moolita gained a sibling.

tell your closest friends about mooli's.....

2009-12-15T23:39:00.004Z

Dear friends,
We are now well into our sixth week @ Mooli's. Raju and his team have done a fantastic job of knocking out consistenly great mooli's and this has helped us to develop a really loyal customer base.

But it would be great if we could introduce more people to the mooli revolution going on at 50 Frith Street.......below is a little blurb about Mooli's.

Please do help us spread the word by email, facebook, twitter....go crazy!

Mooli Madly Deeply

S&M

Mooli's
Mooli's is the latest edition to the thriving Soho food scene. Located on the trendy Frith Street, Mooli’s brings a new concept in dining, serving fresh and zingy authentic Indian street food with a new spin (and it’s exceptional value for money).

Perfect for on-the-go or dine-in, Mooli’s is set to change the way you think about Indian cuisine. With a chic interior design, delicious mooli’s*, freshly made Mango Lassis (with a hint of ginger), creamy kulfis and Lychee Mojito’s (divinely refreshing), it’s the new hippest place in Soho to kick back and soak up your surroundings

*What is a mooli?
Mooli’s are warm flavoursome fillings, zesty salsas, vibrant chutneys & crunchy salads all rolled in a fresh homemade roti. The wholesome fillings have been created by former Benares Chef, Raju Rawat, and are made using dry roasted spices and carefully sourced ingredients; they include Keralan Beef, Goan Pork, Chicken & Apple, Asparagus & Cumin Potatoes and Scrambled Paneer.

A video of Mooli's in action
http://moolis.blogspot.com/2009/12/moolis-in-action.html

Some rave reviews
http://www.wallpaper.com/lifestyle/moolis-london/4120
http://www.viewlondon.co.uk/restaurants/moolis-review-61751.html
http://www.qype.co.uk/place/1064776-Moolis-London
http://www.coolography.co.uk/2009/12/moolis/Wesbitewww.moolis.com

Website
www.moolis.com

need a little patience, yeah

2009-12-13T21:37:00.003Z

it's a quiet Sunday night at Mooli's after a busy Friday and Saturday night. times like this make us nervous. while we're really happy with how things have gone in the first month (especially the number of regulars we have), the rent in Soho is high and we have bills to pay. we'll have to do higher numbers in the new year.

a gentleman walks in and asks for 2 mini mooli's and a limonata. in 45 minutes it will be closing time. Abdullah Ibrahim's jazz continues to play...

a lot of people have asked us about our expansion plans. Dos Hermanos writes: It is obviously a place, which has been created with the words “Roll Out” stamped all over it. we didn't think it was that obvious but we are pretty honest about our plans: we want many many mooli's (maybe even one in tokyo!) and we want every mooli's to make fresh bread and to serve good, super tasty mooli's. but that is not on our minds now. it's about making Mooli's at 50 Frith Street work. it's only been 5 weeks and we know we have to be patient. like in war, poker or even life, it's bloody important. sometimes its hard to wait though....

suddenly, 5 students come in. beers & beef mooli's. they were here yesterday and loved it so much, they are back. Cheers! they say happily.

we're getting used to this- people come back to Mooli's a LOT.

we'll be patient. and we'll be OK.

2009-12-09T22:55:00.007Z

A few more reviews of Mooli's......

QYPE

...........fresh Indian fillings and vibrant salads are served in generous measure in rolled Indian breads. The whole package is filling but deceptively light. You know how some spicy meals leave you bloated and feeling like you're moving through treacle? A Mooli lunch will leave you energised and nourished. Mind you, that could just be the unapologetic spicing: this probably isn't a place for the sensitive of tastebud. But if you like heat and big flavours, you'll find this properly portable, properly zingy Indian food very much up your small connective passage.

The lunch deal - a sandwich, lovely roasted poppadums and some eye-popping chutney, a drink (and the mango lassi with ginger is superb)- is a fiver. It's about the best way of spending a small blue one in the area.

View London

You might think a mooli is a large, white radish but now there’s a new definition of the word. According to two young entrepreneurs, it means warm, flavoursome fillings, zesty salsa, vibrant chutneys and crunchy salad, all rolled in a fresh, homemade roti. That’s a pretty fair description of what they’re turning out on the site of defunct Soho Italian cafe Piada, and it could just be a tweak on fast food that’s destined to go big.

*************

Excellent wraps. Not 'authentic' Indian street food but yummy fusion. The pork mooli is crave worthy, the paneer in the paneer mooli is like a paneer bhaaji and excellent. My favourite was the asparagus mooli even though normally I don't like asparagus!

Wallpaper

The recent opening of Mooli's in London's Soho burgh, though, has us especially humming with pleasure. Putting a new spin on a cuisine that’s normally (if stereotypically) associated with ghee-laden curries and heavy breads, this street food-inspired eatery dishes out tasty roti rolls with wonderful fillings.

Dos Hermanos

.....The lassi was excellent stuff, creamy, thick and delicious tasting fresh and full of fruit. The foil twist containing the Mooli was of impressive proportions and opened to release a pleasing whiff of spices. The warm roti needed more colour for eye appeal, but was well made, light enough not to sit like stone in your stomach later, but doughy enough to soak up the juices from the filling.

The Mooli was a bit sparsely populated by the main ingredient, but what chicken there was, was moist and its spicing subtle. Perhaps a little too subtle and the killer was lost beneath the filler of a slightly incongruous salad containing lettuce and apple. Fortunately, they also offer complimentary tubs of sauces to spice up your meal and mine was much improved by the removal of some of the excess lettuce and apple (lettuce and apple, really?) and the liberal addition of a fiery chill coriander chutney.

Editors Note : Dude, go for the beef or pork mooli next time !

......Mooli offers a fresh and welcome addition to an already crowded market. They’ll do very well.

Mooli's in action...

2009-12-03T10:27:00.007Z

Moolita is making fresh bread at 50 Frith Street

2009-11-28T11:51:00.003Z

taken minutes ago...

mooli's are good for you.

Dennis

2009-11-27T01:40:00.003Z

This is Dennis. He thumps me on my shoulder every morning as he drops off our post (mostly invoices and bills !). He has a million dollar smile and a heart of gold. He brightens up my mornings even more than my daily piccolo fix at the Milk Bar.

I have so much to say about some of the incredible people we've had the pleasure of meeting ever since we opened doors @ Frith Street....but I need to get some sleep.

PS: Today was really good. Seeing a customer return for the third time in 24 hrs was heart warming.

CRAZY Mooli’s deal for students

2009-11-19T23:41:00.009Z

We’re offering all students a crazy deal after 4pm, eight days a week: any mooli AND beer for just £5.00. Mathew prefers the Kingfisher, I like the Asahi. Either way, just show us your student ID. We're going to run the deal all through November.

www.moolis.com
50 Frith Street, Soho

Opening hours

Sunday – Wednesday 12pm – 10.30pm
Thursday – Saturday 12pm – 11.30pm

shiny happy people

2009-11-18T21:54:00.004Z

our free mooli lunch was a big hit (thanks to all those who re-tweeted us all day!). we were totally swamped but kept the line moving. our star rollers marius and royce rolled faster than ever, vio at the till couldn't stop smiling, raju made sure that moolita kept making fresh perfect rotis, mathew and i went up and down the line giving free mango lassi (with ginger) and papad bite tasters.

but what made the day for us was the outpouring of support on twitter, email and people even coming back in person to thank us. here are just a few of those tweets and emails:

girlnextshore @moolis Thank you for my super scrumptious lunch today. Big big big fan, see more of you & your lovely staff!!! =)

Barnster RT @moolis: @londoneating thanks for the re-tweets. lots and lots of happy people with free mooli's. :D amazing moolis we loved them!!

Arigato23 @moolis thank you for my free lunch! i love my pork mooli will definately be back again to enjoy your moooooooooolliiis!

PeterHoffer Peter ♥ @moolis Yumyum!

absolutehype Have to say, I was very impressed by my free lunch @Moolis, can definitely see myself visiting again - http://bit.ly/43OIWN

Lee: I must say that it is the best thing I have tasted in a long time! The food is authentic and I wanted it to last forever. The chutney reminds me of my grandmother’s chutney, to which nothing has ever come close to up to now. I am coming back when the free rush is over. I would choose this over a prêt wrap any day! Thank you for bringing something different to Soho!

we're a bit tired but very happy. thank you all. and goodnight.

Mojito Sunday @ Moolis

2009-11-18T01:24:00.003Z

.......... in the midst of all the excitement about the free mooli @ lunch tomorrow, I've had time to reflect on one of the most fun afternoons of the last week. Mojito Sunday.

Jonathan Shaw, ordered 4 Guava Mojitos @ 12:25 on Sunday afternoon. Completely unprepared I racked my brains to remember Sam's carefully crafted Mojito recipe and cobbled them together. I think they went down pretty well as we had sold another 25 Mojitos (we also do Lychee and Orange Mojitos) over the next couple of hours. Classic Rock anthems banging on in the background.

So Sunday afternoons are officially Mojito Sundays @ Mooli's. Yes, we'll keep on rockin' in the free world.

PS: a special thanks to Maria and Costas from the Arts Theatre Club downstairs for the cocktail making lessons and helping us source crushed ice !

FREE MOOLI!

2009-11-17T18:38:00.003Z

18 Nov ' 09. Free Mooli for anyone who walks through our doors @ 50 Frith Street between 12 noon and 2 pm. Tell your closest friends.

this one is for our first week regulars

2009-11-15T12:42:00.007Z

it feels surreal - we've been planning this for so long and now it is real. very real.

every day, Moolita and R2D2 make batches of fresh wholemeal rotis/chapatis. No E22, no preservatives period. just fresh bread. that's why our mooli's are so light - of course, the salsas, apple, mixed salad all play their part but without fresh bread, a mooli wouldn't be a mooli. it also explains why on a Saturday morning after eating mooli's all week, both Mathew and i wanted to eat a mooli rather than go to PRET. i remember Phil saying 'mooli's are finding it difficult not to eat all the stock themselves.'

sometime last week, seeing the rotis puffing up at 50 Frith Street made me think of the people and the places which got us here. Dodie Miller (Cool Chile Company, Taqueria) who first gave us the idea (through Lupita RIP), inspired us and showed us it could be done. Richard Gonzalez (BE&SCO) who went out of his way to make me chapatis in San Antonio, Texas and help us develop our recipe. the countless artists who make roomali rotis in Delhi and Lucknow every day. Swami ji at the BAPS temple in Neasden who was kind enough to let us see Moolita's sister. Jack Sharkey at Vision Kitchens who managed to find R2D2 for us. And, of course, Raju our head chef and mooli master who makes amazing roomali rotis himself and who reassured Mathew and me that we could do it (he now says that R2D2 and Moolita would give any Michelin starred chef a real run for his or her money).

we've had an incredible first week. there have been many highlights but the most amazing thing for us has been how quickly the locals have adopted us. and how often they are coming back for mooli's (and yes, mooli's are liberal with their use of apostrophes). a big thank you to all of you. we are really touched. amidst firefighting (building issues, credit card machines, broadband, the beef didn't come today! etc.) and accounting, it is good to be reminded what mooli's is about. good food.

so this one is for all our regulars (i'm sorry if i forgot any names or people - this week has been a whirlwind): our neighbour from Tapestry who has eaten 3 chicken mooli's, the Jersey boys who come every single day before the show starts, the vegetarian motorcycle courier guys (thank you Alan!), Andy who came in Thursday 5pm, Thursday 9.30pm and Friday 2.30pm, David from Bincho Yakitori who loves the paneer mooli, the hairdressers from Fordham Soho on Greek Street, the guys from Karaoke Box and many others whose conversation we have enjoyed and whose faces we remember.

First Reviews

2009-11-12T14:43:00.003Z

I am not sure how many eateries can boast reviews within a few days of opening, without the assitance of a well-connected PR agent. Well here are 6 on Qype, reflecting the views of the consumers that count. They vindicate a number of decisions made by S&M on: fresh bread, design, kulfi, lassi, explaining the apostrophe and papads.

"The most important thing to note is that this place has cheep and filling down pat!
I had a beef filled roti and it was succulent and fresh and served fast. I can see the new owners are finding their feet, but are more enthusiastic and open to customer feedback than I've seen in a while, which will only work in their favour.
Definitely worth a visit- you'll only pay a fiver for a drink (I recommend the fresh lemonade) a mooli, and poppadoms. That's the whole deal for very little money, can't go wrong."

"Funky little joint just joined the Soho scrum and there's something decidedly likeable about it - whether it's the minimal, fresh decor, the clean fast-food-but-sort-of-fresh-and-more-home-made-looking wrapped up wraps or the eager friendliness of the owners - it's just a fun place to pop in. They had a meal deal for £5 (yess, a new addition to my credit crunch lunch guide - http://www.qype.co.uk/lists/405106-The-credit-crunch-lunch "

"Although i'm quite partial to the odd ruby murray or 5, i'm always on the look out for more authentic Indian food. With Mooli's opening on Frith St i now have somewhere other than Govinda's to go to for Indian in Soho. As Rob said these guys are really passionate about what they are doing, and it shows in their food and attention to detail. The wraps are really tasty, without being so heavy that you'll fall asleep at your desk, and kulfi are delicious - worth making the trip alone!"

"Great new Soho lunch spot serving up a version of 'Indian street food' which translates as roti wraps with fillings like chicken coriander and mint, asparagus potato and cumin, paneer and tomato chutney, beef and coconut, and (my choice) pork with pomegranate salsa.

Lighter than a burrito, these wraps really hit the spot, and it means you still have room for a 'kulfi' the conical ice cream dessert. I was given the pistachio version on the house (opening week offer) and it was really really good, even on a wet autumn afternoon. They'd be doubly good on a hot summer's day.

Quick tip: it's worth paying a little bit extra for the chutneys and poppadoms to go with your lunch, they are really good. The green, spicy chutney is really moreish.

Having had a quick conversation with the guys who own the place, they're really friendly, eager for feedback, and obviously very passionate about what they're doing.

I can see this becoming a regular lunch spot over the next few months."

"Great little spot for a bite to eat! i had a fantastic spicy pork wrap which was to die for freshly made bread with some good fresh veg and some lovely pork followed up by some home made mango yogurt just what the doctor ordered! prices are fair and the service is genuine. give it try!!!!!"

"Just tucking into my first ever Mooli. Spicy shredded beef with fresh salad wrapped in a fresh roti. At £3.95 not cheap, but better value than the Pret a Manger wraps. Love it.

Today was their opening day, so there was a free taster of very tasty lassi as we walked in, then exceptionally fast service. The moolis are served via a rack like you get in Muccy d's. As it was their first day we also got a free drink (I took a full sized mango lassi - Yum) and a very tasty brownie.

Definitely go again to try a different flavour. An indian workmate who came with me had the asparagus. He has roti wraps at home frequently and said that it was good.

Con: the ungrammatical apostrophe in the name.

Pro: Very fast and friendly service, tasty food."

we're open for business

2009-11-09T00:06:00.007Z

walk right in....

i'm typing this late on sunday night. today, we were getting ready for monday and even had a sign saying opening 09 november but a few people dropped in anyway and bought quite a few mooli's. we made them some lychee mojitos on the house which went down quite well. they really loved their mooli's, ordered a few more and saw moolita and R2D2. Terrell (hope i got your name right) and i discussed In & Out burger at some length. Juan Paulo from Grenada popped by from Ronnie Scott's and wished us luck.

tomorrow, at 12pm on Monday 09 November 2009, we open our doors @50 frith street to the public. mathew, raju and i are excited. we like to think we're all cool customers but we're a bit nervous. if you're in London, drop by and buy your first proper mooli. tell your friends too. :D

...as I walk through the valley

2009-11-08T11:06:00.004Z

I wont pretend like I am not nervous. As I brace myself for the most insane few weeks and months, everyday I will try and remember to do three things that I learned from yoga.

1. Keep my feet firmly planted on the ground, physically and mentally. It is incredible the strength you can give yourself from firmly planting yourself on terra firma.

2. Keep my mind calm.

3. Draw your stomach in and keep your core engaged and strong.

.............and of course enjoy the joyride :-).

Bring it on baby!

and our signage is up!

2009-11-05T17:28:00.004Z

Our menu

2009-11-04T00:46:00.001Z

remember two things

2009-11-02T23:51:00.002Z

it is beyond hectic now. there are unexpected things which pop up every day @50 Frith Street. BT cancels broadband, the wrong coloured chairs are delivered, a bureaucratic issue with the alcohol license, the drain is blocked, is the roof leaking??? ...but we're solving these problems, making quick decisions and getting ready for the 9th.

just a few days ago, i recieved a lovely message on facebook from my uncle BC's close friend Mark who lives in California (he who was the first person to tell us that mirrors are essential for a smallish space). i'm taking the liberty of posting it on the blog (without asking him).

I'm so looking forward to your adventures on Frith St. Your uncle and aunt have been keeping us posted (so to speak). Sure wish we could attend your opening celebrations. But we'll be there in spirit for sure! No matter what, and I mean no matter what!, remember two things: 1) to have fun; 2) to breathe. Very little else matters.

All the best my friend,
Mark (and Jo sends her love)

2009-11-02T00:50:00.002Z

If we've been silent, its because we've been beavering away @ 50 Frith St.

We've had a number of people drop in randomly and chat and check out Moolita. If you are in the area, pop in and say hi we might have some bread, moolis, wine or cocktails for you to sample....

Right now the place looks sleek and minimalist. Like an art gallery. With a stainless steel food pass. Tomorrow we get our Jamaica bar stools and Eames chairs. How exciting.

Mooli's stories

2009-10-28T04:18:00.003Z

We all have one, at least. With the opening date nearing we are all even thinking about it right now or relaying it to friends over dinner or coffee somewhere in NYC, India, Switzerland, Sweden, Paris, Germany or another time-zone. It is your own mooli story: the time you were there when the apple was added, the decision on postcards made, the name change, the near-investment, the near-partnership, perhaps even the envy, and what it has stirred in you whether short term (what you will cook that day) or more long term (for your own future).

When two people decide to take a step aside from the usual path and realise their dream on the scale that they are about to (this is not an opening in Redbridge, but Soho), it is difficult not to be touched and, as I said, stirred. The objective achievement can be celebrated later, let us now focus on our very own mooli story.

For me there are many to choose from, but perhaps the few that stick in the mind (for now at least) is the the day it became clear that Sam was ready to channel his energy and drive into realising his dream of opening the kind of indian on-the-go concept he had been dreaming about. My realisation came when I visited him at his Baker street flat. There, with the lovely Fran, Sam unveiled his initial vision, Tikkas. The name may have been ditched but the discussions that day made it clear that he was abolsutely determined to do this.

Another story arises from the initial design meetings, where we discussed the identity of mooli's. I remember quite well that I opted for a design which was wild to say the least and totally out of keeping with what now seems right. It was more skateboard shop than old delhi meets tokyo. I must thank Sam's cousin for pointing this our forcefully and reminding me that I would have caused the death of mooli's before it even began.

The next story is really of Mathew's introduction. Until that point the menu had been focused on tikkas and the more conventional fare, which would have been great, but in retrospect it did not quite reflect the originality and freshness of what Sam wanted to bring in his initial vision. Neither did it reflect Mathew's vision, and with his involvement the menu took a different direction, one which we will soon be enjoying and which truly reflects the ideal of both men. It just seems so right that we can safely forget the tikkas etc of before. It also reflects the great partnership they both have.

Both of them have co-authored the story in a way which makes it compelling and bloody tasty. Roll on 9 November 2009.

if you believe, they put a man on the moon

2009-10-26T00:07:00.003Z

another bread post and this one is a really happy one.

on her debut, on a late Sunday evening amidst lots of sawdust, Moolita (with some help from Raju) made the best rotis ever. Raju made around 30 dough balls (each weighing exactly 70 grams - the dough ball machine which looks like an over-sized R2D2 will be tested from Tuesday) and Moolita just churned 30 10" thin rotis out... perfectly. it was incredible really. Mathew took lots of pictures (i was careful not to sniff the bread this time) and videos. Christian from Hummus Bros stopped by.

i cycled home around 9.30pm (via Waterloo Bridge), cooked some saag paneer and ate that with Moolita rotis which Raju had so kindly packed for us. and wow. it was SO yummy. best decision we ever made... to be unreasonable. No E22, E*^^, just fresh homemade rotis.

collateral

2009-10-24T22:52:00.007+01:00

we have a launch date... 09 November 2009

2009-10-23T22:55:00.002+01:00

Mooli's: Good for lunch

2009-10-20T16:08:00.003+01:00

and also good for tea, drinks and dinner.

http://www.goodforlunch.com/news/12911

A Sandy Epistle

2009-10-18T18:54:00.005+01:00

Sunday, 18 October 2009

Dear Diary

I have been a bad correspondent, I know. The burden of expressing my thoughts has weighed on me heavily. I shall now download freely, as there are a few things to convey.

Dubai continues to intrigue me. Today I chanced upon a restaurant that serves japanese and italian food. There were so many things to celebrate about it. The phillipino chefs may have been playing the role of authentic Japanese chefs, but in terms of their creativity they were anything but copycats. They along with the rather charming waitress spent some time talking with me, no doubt attracted by my singular presence and joie de vivre. The waitress, who was of Arabic (rather than usual indian) descent, rather confirmed my suspicion that only the veil prevents your correspondent from conquering the salons of the Middle East.

I then ended up having some so-called fat free frozen yoghurt and began to reflect upon the related notion of "Mooli's are delhi meets tokyo". What does this mean? All those in the immediate orbit of S&M appear to understand this mantra, and they are so confident of its meaning that it has become a pithy description of who they are. Yet I wonder if it is so clear given the fact that Japanese cuisine is not really reflected in the food. It can only mean the things that claim the hearts of the mooli's founders. The Japanese claim must, presumably, refer to all the things usually associated with (how we perceive) Japan, probably more specifically Tokyo: simplicity, quirkiness, inventiveness, symmetry and an obsession in big things and small. It is not just an aesthetic but (almost) a way of life. These are all alluring qualities, alluring certainly to our friends.

My mooli's friends have of late regularly mentioned their disdain for glow in the dark tikkas and other foods/items usually identified with the average "indian restaurant". They are right to distinguish themselves and be driven to save the term "indian food" from some of its more unsavoury associations. But I hope that we do not in the process forget the great contribution the restaurants did make; without their work the market mooli's is entering would be very different. And the contribution of these old establishments can only be understood when one appreciates that in so many ways England is the unlikeliest of places to fall in love with the rich, spicy almost heady mix that is indian food. Yet the fact that it did is something to celebrate.

I must now leave and download in a different way. I shall return.

it's finally happening

2009-10-18T18:44:00.006+01:00

I don't remember the exact day when Mooli's (at the time it was Aloo's!) was thought up. It was sometime in the winter of 2003 in cold Oxford.

Mooli's Ltd. was formed in July 2008 with one director (who was also the company secretary). We've come a long way since then. Mathew is the best business partner I could imagine, we have a really talented and committed chef in Raju, some great investors and let's not forget Moolita.

In that post about Mooli's Ltd., Mathew commented and said 'i'm mooli madly deeply about different coloured chairs around a table!' End of this month, those chairs will be around the tables. I spoke to anon nyc last night - and he said it was going to be unreal coming to London and buying a mooli. It's all finally happening. Two weeks from now the soft launch will begin and hopefully we launch properly around 6 November.

The blog has been great for Mathew, TAB and me. It's been fun and it's given us focus. Thank you all for reading this blog, leaving comments and lending your support.

We'll see you soon at Mooli's @50 Frith Street.

Sniffing bread

2009-10-17T15:17:00.002+01:00

.......at times like these i have second thoughts about my business partner....

Chef Raju in action

2009-10-16T02:22:00.003+01:00

Barista training @ Union Hand Roasted

2009-10-14T02:25:00.002+01:00

free mooli

2009-10-11T23:59:00.009+01:00

when we launch, every day at 12pm sharp we will announce on our blog (obviously), website, facebook and twitter who qualifies for a free mooli. like our blog, it'll be pretty random (from wearing yellow to being bald to wearing baseball caps!). this was Fran's idea and we love it. so there. at mooli's, there IS such a thing as a free lunch. :D

AND you can earn/win a mooli too in the afternoon (and have a lovely hot chai) if you pop by 50 Frith Street. but before i tell you how, i feel like rambling (it's been a long day and a ramble is in order).

i've completely stopped playing poker now and it's strange. just a few months ago, i was in Las Vegas playing the World Series of Poker.

not playing poker is a bit like how i felt when i stopped playing much chess years ago. but chess might be coming back, sort of. i was going through some old photos and found some of me playing chess in Washington Square Park (NYC) and Harvard Square (Boston). it's a pity that London doesn't have anything similar.

both times, i broke even (they usually play for $2-$5 per blitz game) though i was playing a bit relaxed against the old chess master. which reminds me of an interesting story. Jonathan Rowson (the author of many an insightful comment on our blog including my favourite - 'screw being reasonable' or something to that effect) who is a strong Grand Master, 3 time British Chess Champion, author of tons of books etc. was studying at Harvard and one day while he was passing through Harvard Square, he was asked to play a game by a seasoned regular (guys who sit there playing all day - that's how they make their living). Jonathan declined but was asked again so he thought what the hell, i'll play one game. he won quite easily. as is often the case, the seasoned regular asks for a re-match. at this point, Jonathan feels a bit guilty (being a GM and all that) and tells him who he is. the seasoned regular says 'yes, but this is my job. lets play again'. this time its a real tough fight but Jonathan wins. you got to respect that guy though.

which brings me back to winning your mooli. most afternoons, you can come by and play yours truly for a game of blitz chess (3 minutes each) and if you beat me, you win a mooli of your choice. you can only win one mooli a week though - we need this restriction otherwise Jonathan might be there pretty often (he likes the Asparagus and Potato Mooli a lot).

Are we Indian?

2009-10-08T00:34:00.009+01:00

As we firm up our viral marketing campaign, one that is set to take Soho by storm, we’ve been forced to answer one recurring question. Just how Indian are we?

Sam and I are both Indian, Raju our head Chef is Indian. Our beef is Keralan. Our pork is Goan. Our chicken can be found on kitchen tables in most (non-veg) North Indian households in India. Our paneer has a distinctive achari and panch phoran flavour. And our potatoes are cooked in geera and is served with raita and tamarind chutney. Sounds pretty Indian to me.

And yet, we shy away from any overt “Indian” associations in any of our branding, our communications, our decor. Mooli’s is a pretty Indian name, but only to Indians.

Is Mooli’s ashamed to be Indian ?

ABSOLUTELY NOT. We are proud of our incredibly diverse and exciting culinary heritage. If I was to choose my last meal it would probably be appam and Malabar chicken stew.

But we wash our hands of the cuisine that many mis-informed Londoners commonly identify as being “Indian”. The sludge that is served up by some of the curry houses of Brick Lane. That is not Indian, and if it is perceived to be, then we don’t want to be a part of it.

Mooli’s are not glow in the dark tikka masala.

Mooli’s don’t use ghee or cashew nut pastes in any of our dishes.

Mooli’s are all about dry roasting our spices.

And we’ve gone beyond the traditional. While our beef is a distillation of different recipes from 5 Keralan families, we’ve been bold enough to serve it alongside a cucumber raita, a tomato salsa and mixed leaf lettuce. On the plantations of Kottayam, the tatta kadda’s of Cochin and even in the Chandy household, only whisky is considered good enough to be served with Keralan beef (or olathi erachi as it known).

Mooli’s serves a pomegranate salsa with our pork; We’ve added the crunch of apple to our chicken. And elevated the simple geera aloo with the addition of crisp asparagus.

Many years ago, bucket loads of cream, coconut and sugar was added to classic Indian dishes to make them more palatable to local tastes in Britain. Similarly, some might unfairly accuse us of selling out. I think we’ve just taken our favourite Indian flavours and added a dash of zing & zest to them.

I hope you will agree. Only weeks to ago.

mooli's are pt 2

2009-10-03T19:45:00.007+01:00

mooli's are nothing to do with moolis.
mooli's are all about moolis if it makes money.
mooli's are not in essex. yet.
mooli's are all about small caps.
mooli's are alpacino in scarface.
mooli's are partly funded by auctioning a space-moon vintage rolex.
mooli's aren't going to lick your arse to get your custom.
mooli's are all about testing their food in the sunday upmarket.
mooli's are an iphone that has sex with you and makes you food.
mooli's are all about single-handedly reviving the pomegranate market.
mooli's are not about to go all poofy and speak to you in childish patronising tones.
mooli's are sometimes going to try things which don't come off. So what.
mooli's are not going to have a hole in the floor toilet.
mooli's are definitely planning to take over the world.
mooli's are david bowie in the 70s.
mooli's are amitabh bachchan in sharaabi (especially in that concert scene with jaya prada).
mooli's are in love with the bank of baroda.
mooli's are about the give the world blueberry kulfi.
mooli's are indebted to mummys and daadees.
mooli's are so glad they were not called tikkas.
mooli's are paying rent to the greek orthodox church of cyprus
mooli's are loving the handmade t-shirt chandy is wearing in legalweek.

Mama mooli

2009-09-30T19:37:00.004+01:00

The arrival of Moolita @ London Heathrow has been overshadowed slightly.

My mom has just landed as well. She is an outstanding cook, especially her Keralan beef, Goan pork and Chicken (e)stew. Some of you reading will know from Benson Town sessions and are probably nodding your heads in agreement.

Many of our dishes have their origins in her recipes (although we have exercised considerable creative licence).

Will we pass the test ????????

मूलिस अरेंट फुच्किंग wraps

2009-09-25T02:46:00.003+01:00

Blueberry kulfis @ Mooli's

2009-09-24T11:03:00.005+01:00

Thrilling news. I might be jumping the gun here, but we might have managed to source blueberry kulfis to sell @ Mooli's. This will be in addition to the usual mango, pistachio and malai flavours. We've talked about using a non-Indian but delicious and exotic flavour in our kulfi's for months and now it looks like it might happen.

Gostoso.

The chutneys have it

2009-09-21T23:20:00.006+01:00

Our mooli's are being photographed tomorrow by Mowie at Shilpa's place !

I spent the afternoon with Raju preparing for the shoot. We've made a really beautiful array of chutneys (beetroot, carrot, tamarind, coriander, mango, tomato, cucumber raita). The colours are all natural but just out of this world. And I re-discovered an old favourite - gunpowder.

We aren't just about tender braised meats, fresh homemade roti's and zesty salsas. The chutneys have it. I ate roti with just chutneys for dinner (but all seven of them). TAB you were right.

Stories from the Toilet Pt 2

2009-09-20T16:09:00.004+01:00

Some would say it is an obsession, I just like to call it a fascination in something we all do and love doing and are very relaxed while doing it. Yes poo. I have mentioned its crucial role in the pre-mooli's launch. Now I want to take up the subject in relation to the toilets in mooli's. There will be two toilets in the first mooli's store. How should they look? Convention of course dictates a plain, no frills toilet which is easy to clean and does not reflect badly on the premises and its food. There are two problems with convention.

First, toilets are havens and should look the part. As a 16 year old I thought up my my first path-breaking piece (The causes of the First World War (for a GCSE essay)) in my toilet. I am not alone. Gandhi, Nelson, J Priestley, Kant, Wittgenstein and Teddy Pendergrass. All of them, yes all of them, had their big ideas while sitting on the loo.* So it only makes sense that the mooli's toilet should be more than just comfortable; they need to be a destination in themselves as it were.

Secondly, the convention prevents mooli's only chance to pay some respect or homage to an indian institution which may go out of fashion. The hole in the floor. Why not have one of the toilets as a good ol' fashioned hole in floor of the kind that still exists right across india and pakistan? I can just imagine the headlines or write-ups in the magazine: "if the sumptuous fillings don't knock you out, then visit the loos where you will find London's only hole in the floor toilet. Homage indeed".

*unverified but its believeability must make it true or true enough for it to be a persuasive example

It is Sunday again...

2009-09-19T15:42:00.005+01:00

...the Keralan beef returns @ the Sunday Upmarket along with our new hit - Cumin potatoes & Asparagus with a tamarind chutney. As usual, you can go green with a really fresh and fiery green chutney. Raju and I are cooking together so this time the chutney will be even better.

We're in Ely's Yard which is the outdoor section of the market - opposite the Rootmaster Bus, at the corner of the yard close to the Big Chill bar.

Some colourful pictures from the market last week:

we got the keys!

2009-09-15T22:27:00.007+01:00

9.35am, Tuesday, 15th September, 2009... Mathew opening the doors of Mooli's new home: 50 Frith Street, Soho.

There was no coconut smashed on the floor but exciting nevertheless. Mathew brought coffees and we got to work immediately! What's Nick writing there?

A chuckle while another photograph is taken and we are back to discussing our favourite subject in relation to the build: loos (more on that later, perhaps by TAB).

On Yoga and Desserts

2009-09-13T16:46:00.005+01:00

I. Bikram Yoga

At last I can now sit at a dinner table and inspire a moment of intrigue:

Anybody (pref girl): Wow, your job as a lawyer sounds cool, firefighting battles across the globe. How do you relax and keep yourself fit?

Me: Yes, but please don't forget that it is lonely being a leading international lawyer and author of path breaking articles on C18 English legal procedure in the court of common pleas. That aside I like to relax through Bikram Yoga. It really helps me realign my chakras.

....

I completed my first Bikram yoga class (or hot yoga as some call it because it takes place in a heated room). It was nearly like all the stereotypes I had in my mind before entering the class. Almost everyone was lithe, beautiful, including the oldies who all looked like they survived on seeds and had never had ice cream in the hundred years they had lived. The elegance of their contortions were there for all to see since all the men took the 90 minute class without a t-shirt and almost-there shorts (women had sports bras). I knew this was the usual way but I hardly wanted to stun them with the full glory of my body. The instructor, who shouted at me throughout the class every time any pose was out of kilter, at one point said "Tariq [she had memorised the names of the newbys) the temperature is very hot so feel free to take your shirt off; don't be shy, all the other men have; and after all we are all friends". Momentarily- just momentarily- I had visions that this was the cue for a mass orgy that I had imagined such things could be (when I was 10).

Overall the class was great, despite the feeling that I was way out of my depth. I shall return. I want to be like them.

II. Sweet Mooli

This rather neatly brings me to some mooli business. Recently, we were asked for some suggestions on what desserts mooli's could serve. I saw somewhere that the classic indian sweets were suggested. I am not sure that mooli's necessarily has to have indian sweets. The beauty of the mooli's brand is that it is beyond classic categories/labels - it is indian going on japanese, italian, mongolian or anything its founders love. So with that in mind here are two suggestions, inspired by paris but with a mooli twist.

(a) Choco Mooli- a warm chapatti filled with the nutella spread. This apes the nutella crepe, but may even be tastier, because the dryer almost salty chappati (I think) may be even more complimentary with the nutella. I think this could be a hit.

(b) Semi- Frozen macaroons- Not only are they so tasty but they are an aesthetic dream-perfectly shaped little round desserts in bright colours. The twist is to have them semi-frozen so they retain the usual taste with coconut tones, but also give the sensation of ice cream without the mess. I tasted this recently at a dinner party, where the host had forgotten to defrost the deserts for the time recommended. The host's mistake was a hit with the guests.

09/09/09

2009-09-09T11:55:00.004+01:00

today, Nick (one of our fantastic architects - more on him and Kevin in another post), Mathew and I were sitting in Cafe Macondo in Angel and after our now usual ramblings on furniture, we started to talk about builders and costs so I took my MUJI notebook out. i was writing the date when Nick said, today is 09/09/09. there was a real sense of Déjà vu.

my mind was really all over the place. Mathew and i had just sampled 3 single origin coffees and the monmouth espresso blend at the monmouth roastery (our experience deserves a whole new post which i think mathew should write - he was like a kid in Willy Wonka's chocolate factory looking at the dark roasted beans being cooled in this huge mechanised pot). so the moment passed until I saw emails from Badri and Sachin in my inbox later this evening. and then it all came flooding back.

Law School Tutorials (LST) was conceived exactly 10 years ago to the day in Bangalore in an auto. there were four of us in that auto (Badri, Sachin, Dev and I) and by the time we had finished dinner at Casa Picola, we just knew that as a business idea, this was as good as it gets. how could it not work? the next 3 years were exciting. mamta joined us, dev left (but we saw him enough in the hostel :)) we worked hard, worked with very little (and around college) and somehow created a business. there are so many memories (carrying truck loads of printed materials, Badri watching Sachin and me fix a flat on the old 800 - in fact taking pictures of us, waiting for our website to be hit after our TIMES OF INDIA ad). i foolishly sold my stake too early but it was one hell of a ride. sachin took the business to another level after 2002 and now LST is in 60 cities across India (as i told Sachin a few years ago when he generously gave me an ipod, where the fuck is my car??)

a year trekking and traveling, 2+ years of mucking around in Oxford, 2 years at BCG, a year of poker/getting things ready for Mooli's and now finally, it's happening again.

mathew and i are working hard but there is a real buzz. i think we are both nervous but excited and confident at the same time. and sometimes, i think to myself just as i did in 09/09/09 how could it not work?

we've got a vision and we can't wait to get there but know each step is going to be tricky. if for some reason, it doesn't work we'll probably put up our hands and tell you that we didn't execute well enough. that's the name of the game now.

ps- the food at Cafe Macondo was outstanding. Mathew, especially was in love with his Chipotle Chicken.

Ice Cold Beer

2009-09-07T10:32:00.002+01:00

I met a friend over the w/e. His family runs a Mexican restaurant in NY and he mentioned that they have phenomenal beer sales, aided by the fact that the beer is served very cold. Just above freezing. Apparently New Yorkers love their beer ice cold.

Will this fly in London, given our cold weather and the fact that many people seem to like warm beers? We'd love to hear from you.

Alien chappati !

2009-09-03T10:13:00.007+01:00

We got much better as the evening progressed, but our first roti's turned out quite scary looking !

An improvement ...........

And this is how it should be done......

Mooli aesthetics: "I always listen to what I can leave out"

2009-08-29T12:32:00.010+01:00

On a recent extended visit to London, S&M invited me into their daily lives and it was, I can confirm, what we all feared: that yes, all our professional pursuits are unlikely to compare to the exhilarating life of an entrepreneur almost moments away from seeing their ideas being realised. From Mr Yau's love of the beef to the long meeting and discussions on design, I enjoyed it all. The design and its evolution was very interesting, not least because, guided by S&M, I was able to see, feel, eat and capture what the current competition and the fast food market is about. How much should we speak? Should we plaster pictures everywhere? Is our design too simple? Is tab really sexy? To what extent should we sacrifice our design/aesthetic ideal for commercial reasons, if at all? These are difficult questions, because the impulse is to shout and scream about all the wonderful things in the store and so many brands seem to achieve success by constantly speaking to their consumers.

It struck me that against this strong impulse, which will pull again and again pre and post mooli's launch, it is important to have a counter-impulse, one which increasingly seems to represent the S&M vision: there is no need to scream or place pictures everywhere. We will let the customers do the screaming; our story will be there if they wish to look - it will be conveyed but not in a jarring way.

Perhaps the best description of this kind of impulse is be found in the words uttered by Miles Davis, which pithily also sums up his greatness: "I always listen to what I can leave out". Taking the conventional fast-food concept as a base, this is what S&M are doing.

fuck monday is a bank holiday!

2009-08-27T18:25:00.007+01:00

... that's what popped into my head today. its all happening and we are so excited we just want to get on with things. staying on top of everything is a challenge but good fun too. google calendar/tasks/docs. muji notebooks (i'm on number 6). reminding each other. and soon the iphone.

i know what TAB is saying (with sarcasm dripping like chutney) to himself when he reads this post. 'yeah sam that's really interesting'.

Painting the fence this Sunday

2009-08-24T10:48:00.002+01:00

We are probably going to have to change our name

2009-08-22T11:09:00.007+01:00

..... if we ever go to the US or Italy.

New Ad 2 (Usain Bolt's trainer)

2009-08-20T14:01:00.004+01:00

Salads @ the Upmarket

2009-08-18T20:56:00.014+01:00

Our salads were really well received. One of our customers described them as - "delicious salads, with a real zing". We couldnt have described them better (we had tried all morning).

And they were pretty.

We sold out quite early, so I caught sunset and a few quiet moments on the Heath afterwards. Just me and my bike.

but the beef is my favourite

2009-08-18T01:21:00.018+01:00

For some reason, tonight I feel like writing in normal case. It is 12.47 and I am listening to Sigur Ros again. TAB is staying the night here - we experimented with dinner today (a gazpacho with an apple & coriander sorbet and an Italian pan seared tuna being the highlights) which was fun.

I almost wrote this post at about 3.30 on Saturday night after cooking 5 kgs of beef in our newly acquired Presto pressure cooker (more on that later) but for a change better sense prevailed and I caught 5 hours of sleep before we sold salads at Sunday Upmarket.

On Friday, Jonny kindly organised a tasting with Alan Yau. We made all 5 mooli's with our proper fresh bread (made beautifully by Raju - soon they will be made by moolita - she is on her way from San Antonio, Texas). It was a big day for us and as Mathew said, a day we are likely to remember. The order was - potato & asparagus with tamarind chutney, keralan beef mooli with our fresh salsa, paneer with Raju's secret tomato chutney, chicken and peppers with our coriander & apple chutney and finally Mathew's seriously fiery Goan pork with pickled cucumbers. Alan genuinely seemed to enjoy the food. At one stage (I think after he had either the paneer or chicken), he said 'the chutney with the potato was amazing... but the beef is my favourite'. He then went on to talk about the beef and while he was talking I was telling myself remember this Sam but of course I forgot the exact words. It was something along the lines of... the attention to detail is incredible and the flavours are delicately balanced, the salsa goes really well with the beef (that was Mathew's idea). After tasting the pork which he also liked he asked us how we get the meat so tender. Slow cooking. And here's how we do it:

Our brand new 23 litre Presto Pressure Cooker which my dad carried from California! It even has a proper dial and all. Dodie Miller and her head chef at Taqueria (best Mexican food in town) know how to slow cook meats and they've tried all the pressure cookers out there (including Hawkins!) and are convinced that Presto make the best ones. We simulate around 7 hours of slow cooking. A few months ago I wrote a post titled 'Being Heston Blumenthal'. We've come a long way since then and the attention to detail has become a religion. The red chilies are always dry roasted - and we know the exact number (from a particular brand) which we use for different quantities. The ginger is weighed. It's what my friend James calls 'spreadsheet cooking'. Under the influence of a neuroscientist girlfriend and the demands of a fast-casual restaurant, I've reined in the cooking by andaz style. Watching Heston Blumenthal on the telly showed me that coming up with the detail still needs passion and creativity. And that science can be good.

Today, at a tasting at Linklaters, Mathew said it's kind of nice that most people have their own favourite mooli - it is a sign they really like it. I oscillate between the pork and the beef though suddenly the potato & asparagus with tamarind chutney is in the running too. For some weird reason, I wonder which one Usain Bolt would pick. He clearly likes nuggets. Check out this nice interview on Top Gear.

Our first Ad!

2009-08-16T23:15:00.005+01:00

We are very lucky to have secured the services of one of our favourite indian composers, Mukesh Kanapathapillairajni III.

I wanna be like you

2009-08-14T12:37:00.004+01:00

We've written before about a restaurateur that we are BIG fans of. In 2 hours and 15 minutes we are doing a tasting for him and are also hoping to learn the secret of this man's red fire.

How exciting ! Wish us luck.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9cWkUhZ8n4

We're Back

2009-08-13T08:58:00.017+01:00

We're back this Sunday (16 August) @ the Sunday Upmarket - the market 'for fashion and flavouristas'.

We're in Ely's Yard which is the outdoor section of the market - opposite the Rootmaster Bus, at the corner of the yard close to the Big Chill bar.

We're selling the Keralan Beef salad and the Paneer salad. The lovely flavours of the beef and paneer are enhanced by the freshly tossed endives, vine tomatoes, cucumber, pomergranate seeds, grated carrot and pine nuts (with a squeeze of fresh lime). They will be delicious, Ottolenghi-esque we hope.

बे गुड

2009-08-11T11:52:00.033+01:00

We’ve reached a stage where most major hurdles have been crossed and opening our doors sometime in October has started to look very real‍. Sam and I keep saying to ourselves that we’ve been extremely fortunate to get to this position given the current economic climate. Luck aside, Mooli’s has had an incredible amount of selfless help from well wishers and we have been especially touched by some incredible acts of kindness from virtual strangers. I feel compelled to thank at least some of them.

I met Springbok Jon Shaw for the first time over a delicious lamb tagine at Cat’s place. He had already heard about Mooli’s through Jan, a common friend of his and Sam’s. He unwittingly offered to help us out, and we unashamedly took him up on the offer. We peppered him on a daily basis with questions about tax reliefs under the EIS scheme (which has been an incredible help in raising external equity), many of which required time out from his busy City schedule to make calls to HMRC and research cases. Last night he filed our application for clearance under the EIS scheme - a letter with a copious number of annexures, something even our accountant was loathe to undertake. For nothing.

I have a special affinity for other things South African. Its been five years since I rolled around with Whitey, since Tiger poo'ed & pee'd on my shoulder, since I swam with Jessica. Five years since I tasted that divine Bunny Chow in Durban and chicken with pap in Jo’burg. Since I heard the infectious beats of Mafikizolo.

Google is now very big, but they have stuck to their original philosophy – be good। Barring some silly privacy concerns, they have been very good to most of us। Yes we all know that they raised the bar several notches for internet search, email, maps etc – but they have also made life easier and cheaper for bootstrapping startups like Mooli’s. This blog is hosted for free by them. As is our mooli’s email. We use google calendars, google tasks, google docs, picasa. Follow this link for a street view of 50 Frith Street , courtesy of google. It feels odd to thank a juggernaut like them, but it is hard to imagine a world without google.

Dodie is a lovely woman. Of Cool Chile Company and Taqueria fame. Sam has eulogised before about her excellent corn tortillas and harbanero sauce. Having heard about and empathized with our frustrating quest for real bread, she invited us over to try to make rotis on El Monstro. She had balls of chappati dough ready and waiting (we were, as usual an hour late, but that is about to change soon) and ran an entire production line for us. For nothing. As she only supplies gluten free corn tortillas, commercially supplying us with wheat chappatis on El Monstro is not an option for her. And she then gave us a free run to poke around her kitchens at Taqueria, quiz her chefs and sample some delicious tacos. Her thumbs up to our Goan Goat and Punjabi Paneer was a great endorsement for us.

I could go on – Bing Bong who stayed up nights and weekends drafting our shareholders agreements (but at least he had the misfortune of knowing us for many years); TAB who writes outrageously funny stuff and understands the Mooli's brand better than us (but at least these might help to make him famous or find a mate. And of course he is also no stranger); Edair who runs my local Oz Café and who taught me to make coffee and gives me a few hours of experience behind his counter every week (his words of advice have been simple but invaluable – "....always always clean, always always good food, always always take girl who speak good English, then always always people come"). There are many more.

Starting Mooli’s has been as exciting and challenging as I expected and wanted it to be – and we are truly grateful for the help that we have got from these Good Samaritans. I compare you to a kiss from a rose on the grey.