The next time you eat out, you might be denied a doggy bag that packs your leftovers or get asked to sign a disclaimer form. Packing charges, health risks and eco hazards are forcing Mumbai restaurants to worry about what you leave behind on your plate, finds Janaki Viswanathan

What's wrapped up in plastic and foil, can be reheated, and smells of last night's dinner? Your very own doggy bag that's going to double up as breakfast or even lunch -- depending on how desperate you are -- if you stuffed it into the refrigerator on time.

This routine, however, is likely to change if restaurateurs and chefs in the city have their way. The doggy bag, a term used to refer to a package of leftovers that a restaurant packs for you after you are done with your meal, is a gift from America. The concept that's fed many a singleton who couldn't be bothered about whipping up breakfast when a box of half-eaten Penne in Arrabiata Sauce lies in the fridge, might soon be bogged down by the weight of a disclaimer form.

That's if the doggy bag isn't banned altogether.

Last shot of the day: 1 am, Punjab Grill, Lower Parel
Steward Pankaj Vohra clears the last table on a Thursday night at Punjab Grill at the Palladium. The Indian speciality restaurant takes its final order at midnight, and advises guests on portion sizes in an effort to minimise chances of wastage. Pic/Vikas Munipalleu00a0u00a0

Last shot of the day: 12.30 am, DelItalia, Juhu
Post midnight is a busy time in the kitchen at Italian eatery Delitalia. The griller is scrubbed, cold salads and marinated meats are put back into the refrigerator, and dishes are emptied of garnishes. The seaside restaurant takes its last order at 12.30 am, and doesn't deny guests their doggy bags. Pic/Vikas Munipalleu00a0u00a0

To pack or not to pack
The ITC Grand Central at Parel, a part of the ITC-Welcome Group, would like that. The five-star hotel houses sixu00a0 restaurants, and has stopped packing leftovers. The reason? Health concerns and possible eco hazards. They took the cue from Starwood, the flagship hotel and resorts brand that owns the Sheraton chain. "It's a precautionary measure. Leftover food sits on the table for an hour at least, if not more," says general manager Zubin Songadwala. With restaurants having no control over the conditions in which leftovers are carried, stored and reheated by guests, a no-doggy bag policy seems a smarter alternative.

But, it's the guest's right
Owner of Mocha coffee house chain, Juhu-based Italian eatery DelItalia and Continental joint Salt Water Cafe in Bandra, Riyaaz Amlani, says it's a misplaced concern. In his opinion, the doggy bag is every guest's right. "It would be ridiculous to stop packing doggy bags. The customer can do what he wishes with his leftover food -- cultivate fungus in it or use it as a weapon. It's his problem." True to his word, Amlani makes sure DelItalia packs every morsel of leftover food for its guests if they so wish.

At the Taj President in Cuffe Parade, packing leftovers isn't a regular practice since most guests don't request for a doggy bag. "Our portion sizes are just right. It's rare to see our patrons waste food," says executive chef Ananda Solomon.

You waste desi food, not firang
What's interesting is the connection between type of cuisine and quantity of wastage. Restaurateur Farhan Azmi who owns Cafe Basilico, a cozy bistro with branches in south Mumbai and Bandra, and Koyla, a North Indian eatery that specialises in kebabs, believes eateries serving European cuisine have lesser chances of leftovers. "We pack leftovers if any, but it's rare. Excesses occur mainly at Indian and Chinese restaurants, especially those eateries where food continues to be made in huge handis and entire families share a meal."

He just found a friend in Zorawar Kalra. Kalra's recently-launched and hugely popular North Indian speciality restaurant Punjab Grill packs doggy bags as a rule for all guests. "Our portions are large, and guests don't always finish what they are served. It's only fair that we pack it for them. It is a health concern though, and we are figuring what to do."

Sign up for it, and take it
In the West, as also in a couple of restaurants in New Delhi, signing a disclaimer is a practice. The form states that the restaurant has no control over the quality of food once it has left the premises. "We are working towards introducing the practice at Punjab Grill. Guests will also be handed out a booklet with instructions on how best to store and reheat packed leftovers," Kalra shares.

It's not uncommon for eateries in the West to inform guests about the food's shelf-life, and storage guidelines.u00a0
Foodie and Andheri resident Sagorika Dasgupta would be a shade more content is she got to eat all the food she paid for. "If I'm unable to finish my meal, it's only fair that the restaurant packs it for me. It's ridiculous if they refuse," says the journalist with a trade magazine, who eats out close to three times a week.

No different fromu00a0 takeaway
Chef Paul Kinney of the InterContinental Marine Drive doesn't see the logic to the noise. He compares doggy bags to takeaway food. "Do you have any control over what a customer will do with a takeaway package? The same logic applies here too," he says. The five-star where he's posted as executive chef, packs doggy bags for guests on request, although Kinney admits that health risk is always a concern.

It's about the money too
Chandrahas Shetty, advisor to AHAR (Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association) looks at the economic angle to the debate. Doggy bags cost a lot, he complains. "Containers in which leftovers are packed cost money, and the restaurant doesn't charge you for it. They serve customers food that is meant to be eaten at the premises.
Why should they pack it for you?"u00a0

Azmi's Basilico has come up with an eco-friendly solution to the problem. They use only specially designed recycled paper bags and foil containers. "Our plastic containers at Koyla are GSM approved by the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation), as are the plastic covers they are put in. But there are several restaurants that don't stick to basic safety norms. They won't until it's made a rule," he says.

Rules...u00a0what rules?
Rule it is not, according to Shetty. "There are no standard rules on packing leftovers or waste disposal in India. Every hotel makes its own rules," he says. Shetty says doggy bags weren't an issue in the past since customers carried their own containers. "In Udipi restaurants, guests would carry stainless steel containers to take home extra sambhar. The doggy bag idea arrived from the West, where fast food joints are the norm," he says.

Gone to the dogs
Cookbook author Tarla Dalal has published several titles that offer readers smart recipes made using leftovers. She says doggy bags are a waste. "Very few customers eat the leftovers anyway. They either give it away to domestic help, the poor, or to dogs. What's the point?"

UK-based foodie and author of Eat My Globe Simon Majumdar says he has never been denied a doggy bag. Majumdar offers two opposing thoughts. "If you have paid for the food, you should be allowed to finish it at home or at the restaurant. The second, is that it is a sign that we are valuing quantity over quality (an American disease which seems to be spreading) and it simply means we are wasting food. I'd like to know how often the contents of doggy bags are consumed. Or does it just sit in the fridge until it's thrown away?"

Ever wondered?

What happens to the food you leave on your plate, or kitchen leftovers?
Ever wondered what happens to food that's either left half-eaten on a plate, or untouched at a buffet or banquet? In most restaurants, it's dumped into a bin, like at Punjab Grill. "It's risky to give it away to someone or the poor, so we throw away the food," says Zorawar Kalra.u00a0

Ditto at InterContinental Marine Drive, although buffet leftovers are checked once by the chef before they are discarded. If found suitable, they are consumed by the staff.

But at a Ramada Plaza Palm Grove Juhu Beach, or Villa 39, leftovers are trashed. Cafeu00a0 Basilico and the Taj President give away leftovers (not from the table) to charity. "Every morning, we give away food that can feed 100 people to charity. If there aren't that many leftovers, we cook fresh food for them anyway, because it's a company rule," says Ananda Solomon of Taj President.u00a0

The ITC Grand Central says it has a zero solid waste generating unit. They have Organic Waste Converters into which all the food waste goes in, and emerges as odourless manure. "Natural enzymes and microorganisms are added to it. We pioneered the movement five years ago, barely a year after the hotel was launched," says GM Zubin Songadwala.

Recycling bread

American chef-novelist-TV show presenter Anthony Bourdain tells you why that basket of bread on your table is probably not fresh... and why it shouldn't bother you. An extract from his book Kitchen Confidential

I will eat bread in restaurants. Even if I know it's probably been recycled off someone else's table. The reuse of bread is an industry-wide practice. I saw a recent news expose, hidden camera and all, where the anchor was shockedu00a0...u00a0u00a0u00a0 shocked to see unused bread returned to the kitchen and then sent right back onto the floor.

Bullshit. I'm sure that some restaurants explicitly instruct their Bengali busboys to throw out all that unused bread -- which amounts to about 50 percent -- and maybe some places actually do it. But when it's busy, and the busboy is making espresso and cappuccino, hustling dirty dishes to the dishwasher -- and he sees a basket full of untouched bread -- most times he's going to use it. This is a fact of life. This doesn't bother me, and shouldn't surprise you. Okay, maybe once in a while some tubercular hillbilly has been coughing and spraying in the general direction of that bread basket, or some tourist who's just returned from a walking tour of the wetlands of West Africa sneezes -- you might find that prospect upsetting. But you might as well avoid air travel, or subways, equally dodgy environments for airborne transmission of disease. Eat the bread.

Elsewhere in the world

Japan and China
They didn't pack doggy bags until very recently, citing fear of food poisoning and eco hazards. Off late, they make packages with corn powder and instruct guests on how soon they must consume the leftovers. An Italian restaurant in China even hands out recipes that use leftovers to its patrons.

UK
Simon Majumdar tells us that the common man in Britain is usually too reticent to ask for a doggy bag. The concept is picking up only somewhat now.

Australia
Down Under, there are no rules either. A restaurant can refuse to pack leftovers, and a guest can take his own containers and get leftovers packed if he so chooses.

US
America, which began it all, prides itself for its doggy bags, which account for the monstrous portions that mostu00a0 of their restaurants serve. During occasions like Thanksgiving, it is customary to prepare meals in quantities larger than required, just so that guests can take home some of it.