January 2007



In the last couple of days I went to two catered affairs in Delhi. The first was a wedding reception and the other was a wedding anniversary celebration. One of the two was clearly my favorite and thus the winner. There were atleast a dozen appetizers being passed around by servers. It was all Indian and quite good. There was Chicken Tikka and Green Pea Kebabs (which I liked very much and was unusual). There was also soup, which was quite bad I hate to say. The appetizers were hot, plentiful and provided most of the respite from hunger. By the time dinner was unveiled at the first event I was quite full but that hasn't stopped me in the past - so what was different on this day? I took a plate and started to make my way down the buffet. There were the obligatory salads which I generally stay away from except the Russian Salad which was a childhood favorite. I had to indulge in that one. All it is is boiled vegetables like carrots, peas and potatoes slathered in mayonnaise. Quite simple and not too appealing to some but for me it carries a load full of childhood memories. And how can you go wrong with anything that is slathered in copious amounts of mayonnaise?
Moving down the buffet line there were the curries - lamb and chicken and then some sauteed stuff with paneer and chicken. There was dal and some vegetables. The thing I liked most was that fresh breads were being prepared to order. Tandoori naan and parathas and missi rotis. Also roomali roti. That was quite a treat and I enjoyed that part of the meal the most.
So this buffet was done and over with. To be fair I will say that I had had more than my share of the appetizers and probably didn't do much justice to the dinner but I have taste buds and this wasn't the best food I've had.

The second was a lunch yesterday at a farm house. The setting was beautiful and so was the day. A nice sunny afternoon. The appetizers started and they were quite good and also as plentiful as the last event. There were seekh kebabs, chicken tikka, mushrooms, tandoori stuffed potatoes and more. Once again, I had to try it all and more than once or twice. This time when lunch was set I still had enough of an appetite to enjoy the lunch. I was told that the focus was on Kashmiri food. Some I was familiar with and some not. There were these meatballs where the meat was way too pulverized for my taste. Almost like a bad hot dog. Then there was this chicken curry in a white sauce redolent with whole spices like cinnamon and cardamom. The rice was beautifully cooked. There was paneer prepared on a large skillet and leg of mutton that was luscious and falling off the bone. There was haleem which is lentils and meat cooked together for a long time to form a creamy and silky concoction. They also had breads prepared to order and then these gulati kebabs, which if I am not mistaken are little morsels of minced meat cooked on a skillet. Crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. Very nice indeed.
That was the delicious lunch - far superior to the dinner of the other night. A good introduction to the caterers of Delhi that I hear are plentiful.
It is my plan to move to India some day and open a catering company of my own. I will not do too much Indian food as there seem to be plenty other people doing a good job of it. I intend on offering a variety of other cuisines and focusing on the service and presentation which I wasn't impressed with.
So that's the plan and that's the description of my two catered affairs that I attended.