The Gourmet Nite, 50 Glorious Years of IHM Kolkata and a Grand Reunion

24^th January, 2013, the grounds of Institute of Hotel Management at Taratala Road, Kolkata was teeming with visitors and students at 8 pm which is otherwise a very unlikely feature in these grounds. The occasion being the Gourmet Nite 2013, which ushered in the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the college. Established in 1963 this college is the oldest in the city and has been the grounds of many celebrities of the Hotel Industry. This year’s Gourmet Nite was definitely special for me and my batchmates as it not only brought back hordes of memories but we were celebrating 25 years of passing out of this esteemed institution.

It took us all back to the December of 1985, when we had just joined this college with loads of aspirations. Our seniors, with permission from Mr. Koshy, our Principal, decided to start the first food festival hosted by amateurs and called it the “Gourmet Nite”. Although the name has stuck by ever since 1985, the festival which had once served world cuisine for its guests served a complete Indian fare this year. The theme this year was “Chakh le India”. None of us were interested in what was happening around us as some of us were meeting each other after 25 years and were far too excited to concentrate on anything else! And as a result “Chakh le India” was literally “Chakh le” for some of us! Now that is something we definitely did not anticipate. There was a snacks counter from which we had some delicious kababs and small bites with our drinks but when it came to eating dinner we almost missed the bus and just about managed to taste some of the spread laid out. The food was quite delectable and the students under the guideance of the professors (all of whom are alumni of the college) turned out a very mean sorpotel, vindaloo and biriyani amongst many other dishes from the various states of the Indian subcontinent. The salad counter also had a fairly good spread and there was a chaat counter too. Trying to catch up 25 years of news from each other made us miss the desserts completely and it was the chaat counter which came to be our saving grace! 

The evening saw many luminaries of the Hotel Industry present. Anjan Chatterjee, founder of the Mainland China Group; Subhomoy De, General Manager of Peerless Inn Kolkata; Chef Sujan Mukherjee, Executive Chef of Taj Bengal; Chef Anirudhya (Rambo) Roy, Executive Chef Taj Lands End; Chef Rajesh Dubey, Director Food Production of the Mainland China Group; Swaminathan Ramani, Chef Sushanta Sengupta and Anindya Palit of the 6 Ballygunge Place; Bharat Dhamala and Namrata Borthakur of the Red Hot Chilli Pepper all graced the occasion. Barring Swaminathan Ramani of 6 Ballygunge Place and Bharat Dhamala of Red Hot Chilli Pepper the rest are all alumni of the college. The oldest student Mr. Barun Chakraborty was felicitated that evening but due to ill health he couldn’t be present and just 3 days later he left us all for the heavenly abode.

Chef Sujan Mukherjee, Chef Anirudhya (Rambo) Roy and Chef Rajesh Dubey are all a part of the group that was celebrating their 25 years of passing out. It was this group who had celebrated the Silver Jubilee of the college and standing on those very grounds they were all back to being carefree 19/20 year olds with not a worry on their shoulders for those few hours. The Batch of ’88 was in their third and final year when the college celebrated their Silver Jubilee. This batch was a very talented lot in all respect. They had decorated the college beautifully, something we sadly missed this year! Their talent in the kitchen is also evitable considering the fact that they have 3 well renowned chefs in their batch. The reunion celebrations of this batch started with the Gourmet Nite on the 24^th January, and went on till the 27^th January. The only regret that they possibly have is that they would have had a lot more people joining in on that evening at the Gourmet Nite had they known about it earlier. The dirty dozen who were there that evening had a complete blast forgetting their age and thus the food too!! The Batch of ’88 is one of the three batches who have seen the Silver and the Golden Jubilee of the college and hopefully will live to see the 75 years celebrations too! And when that happens they will once again shout out their famous slogan “yeh kya ho raha hain......” 

Institute of Hotel Management, Kolkata

Anjan Chatterjee – Founder of the Mainland China Group

The Famous 3 from the Batch of ’88 – fom left Chef Sujan Mukherjee, Chef Rajesh Dubey, Chef Anirudhya (Rambo) Roy

Subhomoy De – General Manager, Peerless Inn, Kolkata

Young students of the college at the Gourmet Nite 2013 

A lighthearted Batch of ’88

Silver Jubilee preparations going on 

Sujan Mukherjee at the 1988 Goumet Nite

                                                                      

Food Culture in the Clubs of Calcutta – CCFC

I have been going to CCFC (Calcutta Cricket & Football Club) for the past 35 years since 1976. From then till now there hasn’t been much of a change in how certain items are prepared or taste.

Although the history of the club dates back to 1792 it is practically impossible for me to describe let alone perceive what was available from the kitchen to the members then. I can at best start from the mid 70’s when their fish finger, keema aloo chop, chicken sandwich, beef steak, chicken roast tasted just as good as they do even now.  In order to understand the kind of food available at this club one has to know a bit of the club’s history. This is the second oldest cricket club after MCC, an essentially a sports club whose members were people from the tea industry. The members would after a game or while discussing business would look for quick bites to satiate their hunger pangs. During the 70’s and 80’s it was male dominated where members would discuss business over drinks and quick eats. One would rarely see a lady in the premises other than during the festivities or sometimes over weekends. In the winter while an interesting cricket match was in progress the members and their guests would enjoy a hearty beef steak while sipping on their favourite drink enjoying the afternoon sun.

In the 80’s the menu saw the advent of new dishes and momos, chaats and kebabs found their way to gastronomic delights of the members. However, if you wanted to eat a hearty meal you could no further than the humble beefsteak or the roast chicken. Although the 90’s saw an increase in the menu and a change in the demography where members started bringing their families to enjoy the facilities, of the club the all time favourites fish finger, keema aloo chop, chicken sandwich, beef steak, chicken roast remained firmly where they always were! In 2004 the club boasted of their new dining room, which once was a huge hall used only very rarely, serving a multi cuisine fare to its members. Despite the changes there was no change in the way the all time favourites tasted. I have heard that the CCFC serves, possibly, the best beef steak in the city!

Over the past year the club boasts of a much better fare to tickle the gastronomic juices of its members. The kitchen which once served just a few quick eats now caters to varied tastes and has in its list chelo kebab, fish and bacon roll, chicken and vegetable tarts, noodle soup and lots more. The kitchen staff is capable enough to handle a lavish meal for its members if they want to have a private party.

The thought of documenting the food culture in certain clubs of Calcutta, now known as Kolkata, came about when I met this gentleman who has a media company and has started a food magazine in Bengali, Hyangla Henshel. So, when Anilava wanted me to write for their magazine and that too on the given topic I thought what better than to start with CCFC which has been home turf. What you have just read is the English version, albeit tweaked a bit here and there, which has been published in the February/March 2013 edition Hyangla Henshel. It hasn’t been easy writing in Bengali, but this too has been adventurous!  

                                                     Beef Steak at CCFC