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Hard core non-vegetarians
might not relish the idea of Navra tri -a festival when most people go
veg for nine days. But `go veg' no longer has to mean `go boring'.
Restaurants in many states celebrating Navratri are ready with their
cooking gear and are whipping up traditional vrat ka khaana with a
global twist. So, you have banana pizzas, arvi nachos with avocado dips
and even fast-appropriate sushi for your Navratri (aka Navaratra) thali!
Now, you don't have to think of a bahaana when mum calls up and reminds
you to fast on all nine days. Just head to one of these restaurants and
gorge on these yummy Navaratra treats.
FOR THE SUPER BUSY, SINGLE YOUNGSTER
“People are enthusiastic about fasting on all nine days, but hardly have the time to cook. Our menu offers an entire range of special dishes for the festive season. We have used ingredients that are ideally allowed to be consumed during vrat. We have sweet sama rice pudding and kuttu and fig parantha,“ says Ashish Singh, executive chef.
Says Vikrant Batra, a restaurant owner, “We are serving a Navaratra-special thali, which is also pocket-friendly . People lead hectic lives nowadays, and also like to exper s iment with their food. So, we have some r traditional dishes like saboodana khich t di and phalahari kheer that will be served during Navaratra.“ For single youngsters, eateries offering vrat ka khana save them from the hassle of making Navratri food at home. “I live alone and my mum's been pestering me to observe the fast.She doesn't understand that I don't have the time to make a special meal. Thankfully , restaurants are offering Navaratra food, so that's my best option. Besides, the Navaratra food at eateries will taste better than what I make at home. So, even though it'll be a little expensive, I'm going restaurant-hopping this Navaratra,“ says Ankita Sethi, 26, who works in a BPO.
EXPERIMENTING WITH GLOBAL CUISINES
Taking the love for fruits to another level, some restaurants offer fruit pizzas for this month. Says Priyank Sukhija, “We have come up with special fruit pizzas like apple caramelized pizzas and banana pizzas, which will be served on these nine days, along with fruit mocktails.“
Restaurateur Sumit Goyal adds, “We have taken a key traditional ingredient pumpkin and made a soup. The whole concept of the fast is that you can't eat onion and garlic or any grain. The only thing we can eat is Sumac rice, so, we have made a Sumac rice risotto. Next, we Sumac rice risotto. Next, we have arbi (colocasia root) na chos with avocado dip and jalapeño and tomato salsa.
We also have honey-roast ed pumpkin kuttu aata tortellini with caramelised walnuts. For dessert, we have the sago (sabudana) and coconut pudding served with seasonal fruits.“
A Japanese restaurant has also come up with a range of vegetari an sushi, which will be available till the end of the festival, while a Span ish restaurant is offering a fast menu called the Tapas Fasting Trio. Says Chef Sushmit Daniels, “The Trio comprises potato bravos, eggplant caviar cheese and fruity sangria (made from fresh fruits & juices). We have also come up with a Spanish meal.“
NAVARATRA KITTY PARTIES!
One restaurant has introduced a special Kit-Kat Navaratra menu. Naveen Sachdeva, director, says, “Kitty parties are pretty common during Navaratra. So, we've come up with a Kit-Kat Navaratra menu, which includes dishes like fruit chaat, shahi paneer, kuttu ki puri, sabudana tik ki and kheer.“
Smita, 34, a teacher, says,“It's vacation time in school and all my friends are in town. It's the ideal time to catch up with friends, and what's better than a kit ty party? Even though it's N av a r a t r a , we'll figure out some place which serves good vrat ka khaana.“
“People are enthusiastic about fasting on all nine days, but hardly have the time to cook. Our menu offers an entire range of special dishes for the festive season. We have used ingredients that are ideally allowed to be consumed during vrat. We have sweet sama rice pudding and kuttu and fig parantha,“ says Ashish Singh, executive chef.
Says Vikrant Batra, a restaurant owner, “We are serving a Navaratra-special thali, which is also pocket-friendly . People lead hectic lives nowadays, and also like to exper s iment with their food. So, we have some r traditional dishes like saboodana khich t di and phalahari kheer that will be served during Navaratra.“ For single youngsters, eateries offering vrat ka khana save them from the hassle of making Navratri food at home. “I live alone and my mum's been pestering me to observe the fast.She doesn't understand that I don't have the time to make a special meal. Thankfully , restaurants are offering Navaratra food, so that's my best option. Besides, the Navaratra food at eateries will taste better than what I make at home. So, even though it'll be a little expensive, I'm going restaurant-hopping this Navaratra,“ says Ankita Sethi, 26, who works in a BPO.
EXPERIMENTING WITH GLOBAL CUISINES
Taking the love for fruits to another level, some restaurants offer fruit pizzas for this month. Says Priyank Sukhija, “We have come up with special fruit pizzas like apple caramelized pizzas and banana pizzas, which will be served on these nine days, along with fruit mocktails.“
Restaurateur Sumit Goyal adds, “We have taken a key traditional ingredient pumpkin and made a soup. The whole concept of the fast is that you can't eat onion and garlic or any grain. The only thing we can eat is Sumac rice, so, we have made a Sumac rice risotto. Next, we Sumac rice risotto. Next, we have arbi (colocasia root) na chos with avocado dip and jalapeño and tomato salsa.
We also have honey-roast ed pumpkin kuttu aata tortellini with caramelised walnuts. For dessert, we have the sago (sabudana) and coconut pudding served with seasonal fruits.“
A Japanese restaurant has also come up with a range of vegetari an sushi, which will be available till the end of the festival, while a Span ish restaurant is offering a fast menu called the Tapas Fasting Trio. Says Chef Sushmit Daniels, “The Trio comprises potato bravos, eggplant caviar cheese and fruity sangria (made from fresh fruits & juices). We have also come up with a Spanish meal.“
NAVARATRA KITTY PARTIES!
One restaurant has introduced a special Kit-Kat Navaratra menu. Naveen Sachdeva, director, says, “Kitty parties are pretty common during Navaratra. So, we've come up with a Kit-Kat Navaratra menu, which includes dishes like fruit chaat, shahi paneer, kuttu ki puri, sabudana tik ki and kheer.“
Smita, 34, a teacher, says,“It's vacation time in school and all my friends are in town. It's the ideal time to catch up with friends, and what's better than a kit ty party? Even though it's N av a r a t r a , we'll figure out some place which serves good vrat ka khaana.“
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