World's best chefs arrive in Mumbai

Picture this chefs yoursquove admired for years on television showing off their signature skills will just be a few feet away from you answering your queries And that London restaurant yoursquove heard so much about will not just transport itself right here but also let you taste a bit of their gourmet recipes Why would you want to be anywhere other than Marine Drive between February 22 and 24 The Taste of Mumbai mdash based on the popular Taste Festival concept mdash is coming to the Indian subcontinent for the first time Apart from 19 celebrity chefs from 12 restaurants who will share with you their recipes and allow you to sample a few there will be a wide array of gourmet food and beverages as well as lifestyle products on display Chefs give live demonstration of gourmet dishes at Taste of London in 2012 Pic courtesy Tom Frost Taste which began its journey a decade ago has been held in 14 cities of Europe Australia the Middle East and Africa till now ldquoThe Taste of Mumbai represents the wonderful diversity that makes Mumbai the city it is mdash truly a melting potrdquo says Justin Clarke CEO Taste who is excited about trying the various cuisines that Taste of Mumbai has on offer The idea is unique but will a food festival with live demonstrations from celebrity chefs and restaurateurs woo the audience enough ldquoWhile food has always been an important part of Indian life gourmet food has now gained popularity across classes This makes it the perfect time to introduce the Taste festival to Indiardquo says wellknown author and chef Karen Anand whose organisation ASK for Food is bringing the festival to Mumbai Participants indulge in some wine tasting at last yearrsquos Taste of London ldquoThe popularity and glamour of shows like MasterChef and the fact that many of our chefs are so articulate has given them celebrity statusrdquo she continues Perhaps this is why a charity cookoff between celebrity chefs has been introduced at the Taste of Mumbai ldquoChef Vikas Khanna will host the charity cookoff which will have two teams of great chefs competing against each other Each will have to work with mystery boxes just like in MasterChefrdquo describes Anand The audience is encouraged to contribute to a charity Chef Khanna is affiliated with ldquoGuess who the winner will be and you might win a trip to New Zealandrdquo adds Anand Taste which began its journey a decade ago has been held across 14 cities of Europe Australia the Middle East and Africa till now The festival will include a combination of some of the ldquolatest greatest and most excitingrdquo restaurants such as Arola Kofuku and Ellipsis as well as the cityrsquos more iconic China House and Olive Bar amp Kitchen ldquoDelhirsquos Fire Bangalorersquos Caperberry New Yorkrsquos Graffiti and Londonrsquos The Cinnamon Club will showcase their food as well hoping to attract an all new clientelerdquo Anand adds The idea is to create little popup restaurants where they will serve four little tasting portions mdash three signature and one iconic dish throughout the festival While Anand had to work hard to get the required security and licenses to host the event at Marine Drive she is happy to have pulled it off ldquoIt was the perfect place to exhibit what Mumbai has to offerrdquo she says enthusiastically Pune where Anand is based is on the charts to get its own Taste fest soon And Delhibased celeb chef and restaurateur Ritu Dalmia who will make her presence felt at the Mumbai fest is equally excited about Taste of Delhi later this year ldquoIt will provide tough competition to Mumbairdquo she warns Taste of Mumbai 12pm to 4pm and 6pm to 10pm Tickets will be available through BookMyShow priced at Rs 600 for a standard ticket and Rs 2000 for a VIP pass Learn more at wwwtasteofmumbaiin u00a0 Whatrsquos cooking A pavilion titled the Taste Theatre will feature backtoback master classes by some of the worldrsquos top chefs In all 20 chefs including international chefs Margot Janse Alain Fabregravegues Jehangir Mehta will conduct live demos interacting with and teaching visitors how to make signature dishesu00a0Vicky Ratnani who says his masterclass is likely to last between 30 to 40 minutes will work on a dish with scallops ldquoMy plan is to keep it very local as far as flavours are concerned I will serve the scallops with purple yams and beetroot falafel The spice Irsquom planning to use is lasun ki chutney mdash like the one they serve with vada pavrdquo he revealsu00a0Ritu Dalmia on the other hand will offer her tips and tricks to create a mouthwatering sweet and savoury Risotto with Summer Berries ldquoRisotto is extremely simple to make and yet slightly tricky Irsquom just afraid people will stop coming to my restaurant after Irsquove shown them how this dish is maderdquo she laughs