As a food blogger, I do get invitation to attend
many culinary events, such as food demonstrations, restaurant review or potluck
parties. I like to go for such events because it gives me content to write on
my blog and I get to meet many interesting (and not so interesting) people
during these meets.
First things first…what is your idea of food
blogger?
Are they the bunch of food crazy bloggers who are
always seeking free meals in a shiny restaurant? Why do they get invited? Are
they The-last minute-save-the-face-fill-the seats-guests-that-highly-priced-paid-media-refused-to-attend?
Food bloggers like me are passionate about the
food and we like to share our love for food with our readers. We are honest and
blunt; and more importantly, we are not looking for free meals, we just want
content for our blog, a knowledge to share. We solely write for our own
pleasure. We know all about taste, presentation and the creativity of a dish.
This week I received an invitation from Rohini
Dey, to attend a cook-off for vermillion restaurant. I had deleted the first
invitation to this event from my mail box, but when I discovered that a food
blogger friend, Rushina was to be a judge to this event, my curiosity was
aroused and I wanted to attend as an audience. The second invitation came,
inviting me to two events, a ‘cook-off’ event at Indigo and ‘’meet and greet’
at IBar, (a launch of new restaurant) I willingly accepted both the
invitations.
When I reached the venue, I looked for the
hostess, Rohini Dey, to say hello. I looked for the participants who were to be
judged for their culinary talent, I looked for the cooking stations. My bad! I had misunderstood it all! We were
not invited to watch the participant prepare a dish. We were invited to watch the
judges eat!!!
This must be the most embarrassing moments for
the judges too. How could one taste food when thousand of cameras flash on
every bite they take?
It would be more appropriate if there were 2-3
extra plates prepared for the audience too and placed on separate tables for the
media to taste and click pictures if they wished and let the judges taste the food in peace.
I am still confused as to why the food
bloggers like me were invited? We could not hear the conversation (there was no
mike), we could not see the presentation (the creativity of the dish was
visible only at the judges’ table,) we could not taste the dish (it was cooked
only for the judges)
The photographers, writers and bloggers looked uncomfortable
because nobody offered them a glass of water, not before the event, not during,
nor even after the event.
I am hoping that they will pay attention to
these details when they have one more event at Delhi the next week.
After the event, I ordered a cup of coffee for my
friend and I. We waited for 20 minutes, but the coffee did not arrive. What
were they thinking???? Hello! I was willing to buy my own cup of coffee.......
In a place like Mumbai, where the distances are far
to reach, there is heat and dust, a blogger spends his/her own money to travel to
the venue, surely he/she deserve a warm welcome, no?
Truly disappointed!!!
No! I am not greedy! But I have never been treated like this. Besides blogging, I also work for the welfare of
underprivileged, mentally challenged children. Sometimes I make home visits to see the child's behavior at home.
Some of the children do not even have a chair in their home to sit. I cannot
describe the love and affection I see in their eyes. They may not have enough money to enjoy the luxuries of life, but when any guest visits them, they will always offer food and drinks,
they will talk to you and make you comfortable.
A glass of water is MUST.
I didn’t know who this Rohini Dey is, till I saw
her at the table addressing the room. The owner & Founder of Vermilion, The
women behind the Indian Latin restaurant known for its pioneering cuisine in
NYC & Chicago. A leading restaurateur! A proponent of Indian cuisine with
her unique Latin-twist indeed!
Alas! Such is the hospitality of
the person in food industry!
I made up my mind of not attending any more of such
events and sent in my email to the organizer.
HelloThis is to inform you that I won't be attending
your party on Wednesday at IBar My friends (Bloggers) and I had attended your
‘cook-off’ today at Indigo, and was quite disappointed with your hospitality
towards your other guests. NOT Even A GLASS OF WATER was offered to the guests
who attended the event. We felt like second-class citizens. If the only
important people in the event were your judges and participants, why were
bloggers like us invited??? Like fools we took pictures of the food that judges
tasted........OMG, such fools we are.... Still confused!! Pushpa
Her PR called me the next day, apologizing and
blaming the management of the restaurant for the oversight, telling me that
they were supposed to serve soft drinks and biscuits to the audience. She
requested me to attend the event and give her one more chance to show her sweet
hospitality. She promised to be good to me.
I am taking no chances; I have enough food at
home and enough money to pay my food bills.
When she insisted that I attend, I requested her
to be nice to other bloggers who were to attend the event at IBAR.
I am hoping that my food blogger friends were
treated well the next day.
Coming back to the event, there were six participants
and six judges to select a chef who would lead a restaurant at New York City
drawing a handsome salary and permit to migrate to a new city.
My best wishes to them.
All the dishes were of Latin-Indian concept.
One of the dishes was Cauvery fish platter, avocado samosa, corn cream inspired makhani.
Ingredients
for Cauvery fish
80gms Rawas (Indian salmon)
1tsp finely diced raw banana
½ tsp butter
½ tsp egg white
½ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp gram flour
½ tsp roast cumin powder
½ tsp asafetida
½ tsp lemon juice
Salt pepper to taste
Method
for Cauvery Fish
1. Remove
excess water from fish with dry cloth. Rub salt, pepper and asafetida over.
2. Make
a mixture of raw banana, butter, egg white, mustard seeds, gram flour, and
cumin
3. Cover
one side of the fish with the above mixture
4. Place
the fish on grill for a minute, then cook it in oven at temperature of
150degrees for 5 minutes. Make sure the upper crust does not turn black.
Ingredients
for Prawns
28grm of Tiger prawn with tail
1tbsp finely diced red pepper
½ tsp gram flour
½ tsp butter
Salt and pepper to taste
½ tsp lemon juice
1tsp egg white
Method
for prawns
1. D-vein
the prawn and slice it into half. Make sure the tail the tail does not
separate.
2. Remove
the excess water from prawn
3. Mix red
pepper, gram flour, butter, salt, pepper, lemon juice and egg white.
4. Roast
for 5 minutes.
Ingredients
for Samosa
1 tsp mashed avocado
½ tsp almond
20gms refined flour
Pinch of ajwain
2-3 drops of oil
water as required
½ lemon juice
Salt to taste.
Method
for Samosa
1. Mix
avocado, almonds and lemon juice and keep aside
2. Make
samosa patti with flour, ajwain, oil and water
3. Roll
and shape into triangular pocket and stuff it with avaocado filling.
4. Deep
fry
Ingredients
for corn cream inspired makhani
1/2tsp garlic paste
1/2tsp kasuri methi
500gms tomatoes
2tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp methi seeds
Salt to taste
1 tsp white butter
1tsp corn cream
1tsp ghee
½ tsp butter
Method
for Corn cream inspired makhani
1. Heat
butter and add methi seeds
2. Once
the seeds start to sizzle, add garlic paste, salt, chilli paste and stir fry
till butter separates
3. Add tomato (blanched and skinned)
4. Blend
with hand blender. Add kasuri methi and white butter, strain it through muslin
cloth, then add corn cream.
Ingredients
for Mash potato
100 grams sweet potato
1 tsp butter
1 tsp cream
½ tsp bacon fat
Method
for Mash Potato
1. Boil
sweet potato
2. Blend
it with the rest of the ingredients
Plate
Garnish
Curry leaves sautéed with mustard seeds and urad
dhal.
1 papad
Serves
one person
Creativity was used to arrange it in the dish to
make it presentable. The judges found the concept interesting but they were not
happy with the flavors.
