Sreejith and his wife, Manju, live in an unassuming home at Malikkayalchira in Kumarakom. The quaint environs of this waterfront home in northern Kuttanad, however, is in sharp contrast to the bustling scenes within.
During daytime, its kitchen prepares local dishes that help visitors understand how this village eats. Tourists make a beeline for the flavoursome specialties on offer, which are served piping hot on plantain leaves.
The eatery forms part of a Statewide ethnic cuisine network set up by the Responsible Tourism Mission Kerala, which serves as a window to the gastronomic cultures of different locations. Over 2,000 eateries, most of them family-run, across 14 districts, are currently part of this network.
Guests can cook too
According to K. Rupesh Kumar, coordinator, RT Mission Kerala, the network forms the core of a tour programme, Experience Ethnic Cuisine, that introduces people to the history and culture of a location through its ethnic cuisine. The units are expected to cook up a taste of home and function as part-time restaurants. Guests can try their hand at cooking ethnic cuisine, if they wish,'' he said.
Stipulations
Registration with the Food Safety authority is a precondition for the eatery units, which comprise homes, homestays, women self-help groups and restaurants, to join the network. The member units, which are imparted training on ‘food as a tourism product’, are accorded online visibility through the RT Mission website.
Though the programme was launched with about 2,800 units towards the end of 2019 , the COVID-19 pandemic dealt a serious blow to its initial momentum. “Some of the units joined the public kitchen programme of the State government during the lockdown period while about half of the remaining dropped out in the absence of guests. Efforts are now on to revive them. Some new units too are coming in,’‘ added Mr. Kumar.
