Make reservations for special Independence Day menus

Feast for a cause 

On August 15 every year, Mumbai’s The Bombay Canteen transforms into a community dining space with a special lunch, the Independence Day Daawat. This annual experience is in its tenth year now, and there are two sides to it—a thali and a social initiative. The thali, served on a banana leaf, features delicacies from all corners of India. On the menu this year, there will be Amritsar’s chhole masala, Bengal’s Notun Aloor Dum, Andhra’s gongura keema, among others. The second part is the social initiative with the restaurant collaborating with an institute or NGO for fundraising. Since 2015, they have raised more than ₹1 crore to help underprivileged children, farmers and distributed ration kits. This year, they have partnered with the RPG Foundation’s biodiversity project, Nature:re (Nature Rebalance) to plant native trees in Mumbai’s Captain Namdev Lotankar Park. Diners are free to pay as the like for the thali and the proceeds will go towards this cause. The dining hours are 11 am to 4 pm on Thursday.

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India on a plate

Independence Day menus are the perfect canvas to showcase the culinary diversity of India. The JW Marriott Mumbai Sahar has a Flavours of India Brunch at JW Café on August 15. It is an expansive spread of dishes from different regions and communities. There’s vegetable Bohri Biryani, Kadhai Jingo and Murgh Jhinga for mains. Interactive food stations add the fun to dining. These include Thattukada (Kerala fried chicken), puran polo and jalebi fafda with masala milk—all cooked live and served fresh.

A food workshop

This week has a long weekend and it’s a good reason to learn something new. On Saturday (August 17), there’s a masterclass at Bengaluru’s Angsana Oasis Spa and Resort. While one might expect Indian dishes, it isn’t so. The workshop highlights the cuisine of the neighbouring Bhutan with dishes like, Puta Lamb (ground lamb), the Bathuep (vegetable or meat broth thickened with flour) and Ema Dashi (a cheese preparation spiced with Sichuan pepper), among others. To reserve a spot at the workshop, contact 24 hours in advance.

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