Familiarity breeds contempt, they say. But surely not in this case! For 12 years in a row, Regency Madurai by GRT Hotels has pulled it off in the month of August with its same-themed and long drawn food festival – “Taste of India” over 10 days.
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Is it something to do with the patriotic feeling that sets in automatically during this period and attracts people to festively feast here and script the success story of the annual festival? Food & Beverage Manager Subash Kumar.S confirms majority of the feedback forms filled up by the guests seek the return of this particular festival from among so many others the hotel lays out round-the-year.
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Well, perhaps it is because you just cannot get bored with Indian food. And with this year’s tagline: “One country. A million flavours”, you sense what with a wide range of dishes and styles available for the chef to experiment with, why would one want to lose the opportunity to sample India’s spicy and saucy, sweet and sour, earthy and bohemian tastes?
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The team behind the Taste of India festival has come and gone over the years but each time it has delightfully upheld the flavours of freedom, the aromas of Indian kitchens and the tastes of authenticity. You can never get enough but only relive the taste of earlier years or the joy of tasting somebody else’s interpretation of Indian food.
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So this year, it is Executive Chef K.Andavan and his team’s culinary skills on display. The warm welcome at Ahaaram starts with the traditional drink chukku panakam. With the pungent taste lingering in the mouth, you can stop at the North Indian chaat counter and gulp down a few paani-puris , those ubiquitous deep fried shells made from wheat or suji and filled with boiled potato and chickpeas but it is the sweet and sour tamarind juice that makes it worth it. Those who love dahi-bhallas and paapri chaat need not despair.
To get more than bite-sized, you can move to the live counter and take your pick from neer dosa (the batter made with raw rice and coconut water) and mutton paya or my favourite, the Bengali roll. Try it to know it!
I usually skip soups at such feasts because they hardly work as appetisers. By some coincidence there is more of Bengal on my day of visit and I find the mutton biriyani doing full justice with the big pieces of marinated potatoes going well with the chunks of mangsho (mutton) in the much flavoured and coloured basmati rice. As always there is no dearth of choice. On a cake of Idiyappam I pour a ladle full of Karaikudi kanavameen thenga vathakal (squid marinated in Chetinad masalas and cooked with fried coconut). Next I try the yera manga kozhambu (prawn and mango cooked together with hot Indian spices) with plain steamed rice and reserve the soft buttery naans for the Punjabi bhindi hara pyaza (lady’s finger cooked with dry chana masala, raw mango and Indian herbs) and Alleppey koottu kari (mixed vegetable preparation from Kerala). The Lucknowi veg hara masala kababs and the Haryanvi Tandoor sarson machi (fish marinated with mustard leaf paste and cooked in tandoor) make yummy accompaniments to the meal, which has many more dishes to offer. But my stomach can’t take in more.
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Chef Andavan has a checklist of 90 items ready to be rotated through the festival. He rattles off a few more names and I make out they are from Kozhikode, Amritsar, Goa, Mumbai, Andhra and many more cities and States. “The core recipe and ingredients remain the same,” he says, “we only tweak the combinations to make the items more interesting, delicious and refreshing.”
The dessert counter at GRT is always something to look forward to and I spot something wickedly colourful, the tomato halwa! Exploding with a new flavour, it just melts in the mouth. For those with a sweet tooth, there are many items to pamper yourself with from payasams and puddings, laddoos and poli to cakes and mousse.
If you are not watching your weight or promise to hit the gym after such a hearty meal, then surely experience the pan-Indian cuisine. It retains the soulfulness and celebrates what Indian food is all about. The complete journey of the Indian spice route on your table is available from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. till August 20.
@ Ahaaram multicuisine restaurant, Madurai Regency by GRT Hotels, 38 Madakulam Main Road.
HIT: The balance of assorted spice and distinct flavours of different regions
MISS: Too much oil in some items.
Meal for One: Rs.923 (for adults); Rs.615 (child)
Phone: 7550041142
