Millets and health foods have been worming their way into star hotel restaurant menus these days. Many have added them on their breakfast menus. Ragi idlis, kambu dosas, varagu upma and flakes made from millets are tastily prepared for the health conscious.
At the InterContinental Chennai Mahabalipuram Resort on ECR, the chef has come up with interesting items such as ragi puttu and oats pancake.
“There are guests who ask us if we can customise their meals to suit their health needs, which we do. Then there are those who are accustomed to having oats for breakfast, we have tried to make millets and oats a bit more interesting,” said Karuna Amarnath, Director of Marketing.
According to chef Ajit Bagera of ITC Grand Chola, the hotel has been including millets right from its inception. “We place large signage near the millet preparations during the buffet breakfast. We use amaranth and finger millets in bread, seven grains and cashewnuts in millet pancakes, we have a finger millet and jaggery pancake as well as a bajra and jowar roti at the Madras Pavillion and Café Mercara. In the rooms, we have organic ragi sticks, roasted jowar sticks, ragi thattai, thinnai sticks and thattai,” he said.
Babu Murugavel, a resident of Chetpet, said that whenever he breakfasted at hotels, he always went for health foods. “Somehow, starting the day with healthy stuff, including fruits and juice, feels better. Biryani and tandoori items are ok for lunch or dinner,” he said.
Taking the love for millets and organic food a step further, Hotel Grand by GRT at T. Nagar has begun a Sunday Sandhai where they sell organic greens and millets at their lobby on Sundays.
“Anyone can walk in and buy the fruits, vegetables and greens from noon onwards. We wanted to support the Nalla Keerai initiative and encourage organics in our own way,” said Shabin Sarvotham, Senior General Manager of the hotel, where the breakfast menu too has incorporated millets.
Seeing greens, fruits and vegetables on sale inside a hotel came as a surprise for T. Nagar resident Gayathri Vishvanath.
“I had come in to check out a hall for an event and I saw the greens as I entered the place. It was nice picking up some stuff for home,” she said.
On Mondays, the restaurant uses up the greens in its kitchens, said chef Sheetharam Prasad.
