“When the members of the Club
des Chefs des Chefs (CCC), the most exclusive gastronomy club whose members
comprise chefs to presidents, prime ministers and royals across the world, get
together for their annual General Assembly meeting, it is almost like a G20 of
culinary diplomacy,” says Montu Saini, Chef to the President of the Republic of
India. This year, the Paris-based CCC, are convening in India for their General
Assembly. “I am delighted to spend our annual meet in India, It is great to
discover the wonder of India and its fabulous gastronomy,” said Chef Christian
Garcia from Monaco, who is also the President of the CCC.
Indian
Sojourn
Preparations for this grand
event have been on for over a year. Starting their Indian sojourn in the
capital, with scheduled meetings with both, the president as well as the prime
minister of India, the chefs have had a packed itinerary with a trip to the
spice market, Khari Baoli, a meal at the iconic Indian restaurant Bukhara at
the ITC Maurya, savouring Indian delicacies at their host hotel, The Imperial,
New Delhi, and even cooking for a gala charity dinner, besides fulfilling the
norms of the annual general assembly meeting such as exchanging notes and
recipes and learning about each other’s traditions and cultures. Today they
have gone to Agra, where they will stay at the ITC Mughal, then on to Jaipur
via Fatehpur Sikri, where the Rambagh Palace will host them. There is also a
stop en route at the Maharajas’ Express, the most luxurious train in India.
A
Peek Into the Royal Kitchens
Although the chefs follow
strict protocol, we coaxed them into sharing a few exclusive quotes on the
first families that they cater to.
·
“Cooking for the first family makes it a zero-error job,”
says Chef Montu. As the host chef and yet-to-be-crowned youngest member of the
CCC, he has been involved in every step of planning and executing this
prestigious event. He shared that there is a cyclical menu for the Rashtrapati
Bhawan that includes pan-Indian and regional specialties, however, the family
members occasionally ask for specific dishes as well. As a routine every meal
is rather simple, comprising a dal, sabzi, non-vegetarian dish, rice and roti.
·
Mark Flanagan (Vice-President of the C.C.C.), Chef to Her
Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom says that they avoid using any imported
food items and stick to locally available fare, especially from the royal
estates. Between Windsor Castle, Norfolk and the queen’s home in Scotland they
have fantastic products including deer, pheasant, all water fowl and amazing
fruits and vegetables. When asked about the fussiest eater in the royal family,
he laughed out loud saying “you can guess!”
·
Cristeta Comerford, Chef to the President of the United
States of America, said she wasn’t really allowed to talk about the first
family, but shared that she will miss the Obamas.
·
Neil Dhawan, Chef to the prime minister of Canada says
that the Trudeaus are just like any other young family. His go-to dish for them
is a comforting shepherd’s pie.
![]() |
The Menu for the Gala Dinner at The Imperial New Delhi. |
Giving Back to Society
The CCC announced a three-month scholarship for the top student
of the Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa in New Delhi to train in the palaces
of Europe. They cooked a 5-course a charity dinner at The Imperial, New Delhi
to raise funds to support the Kailash Satyarthi Foundation-India, a charity
headed by Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi. After a very impressive round
of cold and hot canapé by Prem Kumar Pogakula, executive sous chef, The
Imperial, New Delhi, Chef Cristeta Comerford, chef to the US President Barack
Obama, served up a roasted kuri squash soup; Chef Fabrizio Boca from Italy
rustled up a veg risotto with herbs and aged parmesan; Chef Christian Garcia
from Monaco, prepared a Mediterranean sole roulade with a vegetable confit and
black olives while Chef Mark Flanagan, Royal chef of the UK, cooked a lamb
dish. Chef Montu Saini presented a rose scented kheer, pumpkin halwa and a
fresh fruit skewer. “There was rigorous coordination especially to put together
the menu for the grand Gala Charity Dinner, to culminate the general assembly
in Delhi at The Imperial. The chefs have been working with me in the kitchen
too and were highly impressed with our hygiene standards, infrastructure, team
and the local produce and flavours,” shared Chef Prem.
![]() |
Top L-R: Mediterranean Sole Roulade, Squash Soup; Loin of Lamb. Bottom L-R: Herbed Risotto; Gulkand Kheer. |
In Jaipur there will be another fund-raiser lunch at the City Palace for the Princess Diya Kumari Foundation.
This article first appeared on indiatoday.intoday.in on October
26, 2016. It has been modified by the author to fit the requirements of
AppetisingTales.com.
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