It was a bright and sunny day and we had a lunch date with a dear friend and a much loved niece. We had to decide where we were going to eat. The friend is adventurous about food but her daughter – the afore-mentioned much loved niece, henceforth to be referred to as MLN – is not. We know she likes pasta and vegetables, so we suggested that we meet at Diggin in the Santushti Complex.
Alert readers will recall that I’d had a great meal some years ago at Diggin in Anand Lok. I loved the place not just for its food but for the funky and cheerful décor. It was humming with joy and was brightly lit.
The new Diggin at Santushti is equally charming. There is an open air sitting area and the restaurant indoors is nice and cosy. You get a warm feeling in Diggin and I suppose that has something to do with the smiling and helpful staff and the very happy bistro-like interiors.
I looked at the menu and found that it had many of the dishes that the old Diggin is known for. I remember I was really happy with my first meal there – which was an all-pork affair.
A leopard doesn’t change its spots and a pork lover sticks to what he loves – in one word, pork. I found what I wanted the moment I opened the menu – an all pork sandwich (₹455). My wife asked for a ham and cheese sandwich (₹425), the friend ordered a pan-seared river sole (₹565) and the MLN wanted fettuccini pesto (415).
A fare offered at Diggin
Generous helping
The helpings were huge, and the food was delicious. My sandwich was superb, packed as it was with bacon, ham and pork sausages. It came with fries and a side salad. I had a bite from the ham-and-Swiss cheese sandwich, too, and found it cheesy-gooey and filled with ham. The friend enjoyed the fish, which came in a tangy lime sauce with a green salad on the side. And the MLN loved her pine nut-filled pasta so much that she was uncharacteristically quiet while she ate.
We ended the meal with a smooth and chocolaty tiramisu that we shared, and cups of hot cappuccino. We would have liked to have dawdled over our coffee but people were queuing up. We had booked a table in advance and would advise everybody to do so, too.
Diggin has some special dishes of the day, which are mentioned on a blackboard outside the restaurant. I think they had some grilled rosemary chicken the day we were there.
The salad section has quite a few dishes that actually make you want to go off entrées. They have, for instance, a smoked salmon salad, a citrus chicken salad and an artichoke, baby corn and fennel salad. The vegetarian pizza section has toppings of artichoke and mushroom; goat cheese and grilled vegetables and there’s something called a farmer’s fresh veg pizza. But I know what I want – it’s called porky pizza, and consists of mozzarella cheese, pepperoni, ham, bacon and salami.
But that will be after a while. Right now I have to tend to a heart that has been misbehaving and arteries that don’t want to forget the rich food I had been eating all these years. But one day, soon, I shall say oink to the porky pizza.
