GIFTS

We walked into a space that felt special. A beautiful restaurant that seemed more like small conference rooms. Different shaped and sized tables, beautifully laid in this particular small room that had a twin room with the same set up.

We were attended to by older men in suits. That was telling, but ignored by me. It should have announced the sort of evening it was going to be. More like a lesson than an Indian culinary experience. Our first ask was whether we had experienced this elsewhere around the world. The answer we all bellowed was “No.”

The decor was quite like the interior of a temple, Was it Brahma staring at us? There seemed to be other Gods on the shelf. That’s not common. As open-minded Christians, we knew they were sacred, so we just appreciated the ambience.

Our drinks arrived, each one unique . Each mocktail had a twist of course. Mine was a frozen, ice basket with berries laid on top of the tall glass of the fruity concoction. Very refreshing, bordering on a healthy fruity juice.

Was it our first or second course that stole the show? it must have been the second. Red, gold and green, plate garnish, each nesting a different kind of fish. Sole, salmon and sea bass, laid on the red- cranberry, yellow-plum and orange sprayed sauces. The sweet but tangy tastes were given to cut through the fishy oils.

Before we were allowed to touch our individual plates, we were given instructions as to which piece had to be eaten first. Apparently the order was important to amplify the tastes.

For each of the six courses we had a mini-lesson, either about what was on the plate, the order in which they had to be eaten or something about that particular course. Was it number four that was the palette cleanser? So tantalising and refreshing with it’s mango sorbet effect. That really made us feel special.

Number five which was the main course came when we were almost full. They gave us time to chat in-between the courses, nobody seemed to be in a rush. All the other customers were relaxed, that’s why I felt it was all conference-like.

We had time to catchup on conversations going on between the five of us. Old friends always have a lot to say to each other. Many topics were covered.

Course number six, the finale, we were presented with sweet balls of magic. The one that went down well was a sweet, gritty carrot puff. It worked, we all enjoyed that considering there wasn’t much space for more.

The whole experience was a treat from our friends. Ros (my sister) and I are being spoilt this holiday, we are extremely grateful.