Venue: P.C. Chandra Gardens
Event Duration: 16-17 Dec 2017, Sat-Sun, 12:00 noon to 10:00 pm
Having missed the earlier editions of The Enchanted Garden aka the annual grand open air exhibition of ‘Luxury Fashion, Delectable Food and Potent Drinks’, I was quite determined to check out the mega fair this year and chose last Sunday’s evening to do the same.
Q: What are the chief characteristics of a well curated mega fair?
A: Easy and prestigious location, ease of entry, exit and movement, valet parking, large number of stalls, quality and creative decor, good and upmarket collection of wares and last but not the least, the occurance of real commerce i.e. real time recurring transaction between the visitors and present stalls.
The Enchanted Garden 2017 comprised of all the aforesaid characteristics.
In fact, I could also spot a couple of clad-in-black bouncers at the entry gate, as well as, inside the venue!
For my vegetarian munchings, I selected 3 vegetarian foods brands known for their authentic preparations, current age fusions and international style presentations.
These food brands were –
-To Die For – a small cafe cum bakery owned by a young but well trained chef known for churning up delectable dishes,
– Basil – the catering service known for it’s good taste and fabulous presentations, and
– Hakuna Matata – the upscale restaurant known for it’s amazing fusions and artistic platings.
My gourmet vegetarian munchings comprised of –
– Beetroot Risotto from To Die For: My food journey had already exposed me to the following types of Risottos -Mushroom, Pumpkin, Asparagus etc. But Beetroot Risotto was new to me. Hence, I ordered the same.
What arrived was, a black disposable plate full of super hot (read scalding) creamy Risotto hued in the beautiful beetroot color, topped with mascarpone cheese.
It tasted very nice. Temperature wise, it was the hottest dish that I have ever had till date, which was a blessing to my the then sore throat.
– Rösti and Bun Chola Kulcha from Basil: The former comprised of two thick square shaped (like big brownies) Röstis, served in a boat shaped disposable bamboo colored plate. The Röstis were topped with big dollops of vegetable salsa comprising of sweet corns, olives, peanuts, tomato etc. and further garnished with chopped coriander leaves and dry burnt garlic pieces.
The dish was tasty and filling.
The latter actually comprised of two relatively thin wraps and not buns, filled with Chola preparation, served on a bed of cooked Cous Cous, garnished with a big dollop of cream, burnt garlic pieces, chopped coriander leaves etc.
The Chola Kulcha wraps tasted nice, but nicer in taste was the soft and light preparation of Cous Cous along with all of it’s decorative garnishing. The whole dish tasted quite good. It was served in circular bamboo colored disposable bowls.
– Passion Fruit Iced Tea, Manchurian Vada Pav, Baati Chokha Shot from Hakuna Matata: Having always associated the Iced Tea with Peach, Lychee, Green Apple and the likes, the flavour of Passion Fruit was a new one to me. Served in a medium sized transparent and disposable glass, wrapped with a red ribbon around the rim, carrying Hakuna Matata’s tag, the Iced Tea was diffetent, nice and soothing.
As per it’s name Manchurian Vada Pav was a fusion of Chinese and Indian Cuisine. Served as two Mumbai style Vada Pavs, in the similarly styled circular plate as mentioned above, the Pavs were custom made, in accordance to the size of the small Manchurian balls. Each pair of Pav slices came stuffed with a solitary semi dry Manchurian and assorted sauces. The buns were kept together with a toothpick and garnished on top with some sauce and Chanachur. They tasted spicy and tangy. It was an interesting combo.
Baati Chokha Shot was served in a shot glass filled with Aloo Chokha, topped with Baati around the rim, which was further topped with some Chokha and greens. The shot glass was placed on a disposable circular plate (same as above). The dish tasted nice. The quirky presentation was interesting.
#vfr192 #kolkataexhibitions2017
Vegetarian Food And Reviews 