It is often quoted that one is as old as one thinks. An axiom, if I may dare suggest, is that one is as old as one is perceived to be. This perception is entirely upto the entity to create and disperse. Delhi is many things to many people. To my grandfather, Delhi is not what it used to be; to my father, Delhi has changed a lot and become expensive; to me, Delhi is home and catching up fast with the West; and to the generation I see coming, Delhi is old-school.
And yet Delhi remains the same — mostly criticised, sometimes credited. It sure has its share of flaws but it also has its inherent heartiness, but most of all, Delhi has a tradition of food, one that isn’t entirely local but one that, like the many million habitants of this metropolis, has found safe refuge and acceptance here. Since then, everything has managed to stay fixed and yet fluid and even the most constant of gourmet statements have a certain dynamism about them. A good example would be how Paranthewaali Gali still does their traditional fare but uses technology-enhanced packaging to wrap them up for you for take-away purposes.
And then, at the other end, entirely new concepts are continuously coming in and adopting Delhi as their new home, even as they adapt to their new abode. Wasabi has for long been the reference point for Japanese and now Megu will join the ranks, showcasing something unique and rare. Le Cirque was my breath of fresh air last year as they redefined fine dining for Delhi: my only ire however remains that people don’t dress up for it — polos, tees, and jeans are not the atmosphere-rendering imageries to savour Foie Gras.
Indian Accent managed to do single-handedly what no other chef was willing to attempt: redefine Indian cuisine in its birthplace, and with much success. A small restaurant, it needs only a handful of clients and Chef Manish already has more of a fan following than your average rock band.
Flipside café is another star in the new casual coffee shop and you will be right at home no matter how you dress. In two words: awesome cakes! Elma’s Tea Room is high-brow and yet low-key, very discerning and very peaceful. TLR, their older, sister concern is a great unpretentious place to hang in Delhi for all ages with some great live acts.
Dining today has evolved from the role of mere feeding to encompass evening entertainment: the more meaningful the better. As the next 100 unroll for this amazingly youthful (even if often brash) city, I only wish to stand by armed with fork and knife, witnessing the panorama even as it unfolds.
I guess one can say that often what marks a memory isn’t the quality of a dish but its consistency. And the company: a lot of these were places my parents and family took me, or I went with friends after pooling in our pocket-money. Nothing I’ve cited even remotely alludes to fine dining, something I indulge in almost every second day in the best of settings with the most acclaimed of chefs all over the globe, and yet, I miss all these too, and reach out to them whenever time and schedule permit. I hope they stick around forever to give me, and the generations to come, our periodic fix of what I can only describe as “homegrown soul food”.
The writer is a sommelier