Man of simple tastes

He’s the dal-chawal kind of guy — humble, down to earth, unpretentious — so it’s not surprising that these two items were on the menu for the winners’ dinner with the PM and his dream team at the NCPA.

So, while India’s corporate powerazzi feasted off a sumptuous buffet that featured everything from salads to noodles and pasta to paneer, the menu at the security-mandated private dining area was rather more spartan and the beverages served were juices and aerated drinks.

Thinking up a menu for an eclectic and cosmopolitan gathering of a thousand people, including the PM, is never easy. Mayfair Rooms had a few other caveats to mind as well.

It was to be totally vegetarian, right down to the desserts, and there was to be no ‘live’ fire (read stoves) on the premises for security reasons. How they managed to keep up a flow of fresh rotis with that restriction is a testimony to their skills as seasoned VIP caterers!

There was an array of salads and desserts including eggless tiramisu and mousse. But the coup de resistance was a counter of Fantasie Chocolates in unusual flavours: wasabi, ginger and even chilli. They caught the fancy of the normally reticent Azim Premji, who couldn’t resist the temptation of a sweet apres-dinner treat.

Earlier, as the PM, P Chidambaram, Montek Singh Ahluwalia and C Rangarajan sat down to dinner with the winners and their families, it was a more spartan fare. The chef did some sleuthing of his own, including talking to some informed people in Delhi on the PM’s preferences and came up with a menu that was sure to please The Man.

Everything had to be cooked in Saffola, which is said to be the designated cooking medium at Race Course Road. Plenty of veggies with the bare minimum of spices were a must.

So there were a simple yellow ‘tadka’ dal, a medley of vegetables — an okra dish, a spinach item and a cauliflower preparation, accompanied by rice, phulkas and of course pickles, papad.

Though others tucked in with obvious enthusiasm, spiced with lively conversation, the chief guest had but a spoonful of rice, a single phulka and a small helping each of the okra and cauliflower. Fruits were slated as the dessert, but Dr Singh had to give them a pass as the PM’s time schedule cannot be broken — even by the PM.