Food lights up Diwali festivities! Celebrate Diwali with Radisson’s Meetha to VARR’s culinary pilgrimages and pocket-friendly burgers

Mention Diwali and the first thing that comes to mind is lights and Mithai! In India, festivals are inseparable from the varieties of food that become a part of all celebrations. A peek into Indian homes and outdoor gatherings during Diwali festivities indicate how everything is centred around celebrating food in different ways as well as welcoming the seasonal changes as well.

From festive occasions to auspicious new beginnings and weddings, Indian sweets are a much loved food item for every special occasion. Keeping this in mind, Meetha, Radisson Hotel Group’s recently launched premium offering of curated Indian sweets and its first premium retail outlet at radisson Mumbai Goregaon, adds more sweetness with a festive Indian touch to all festivities.

Diwali festive celebrations: What makes Meetha Special?
Zubin Saxena, MD and VP-Operations, South Asia, RHG highlights what makes Meetha special for the festive and upcoming wedding season ahead, “India’s growing branded mithai industry offers significant opportunity in the premium segment and we are set to unlock this potential with Meetha. We are encouraged by the response to our first retail outlet and we will continue to expand the offering across India, while evolving it into a strong revenue stream.”

The premium quality offering stands out for its high quality, freshly made and handpicked ingredients, which is why it is in much demand since its recent launch this year. Notably there are plans to launch Meetha across cities like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Amritsar, Bhopal, among others. Now, Meetha is available as takeaway or home delivery in Mumbai and Delhi NCR.

Through Radisson’s Meetha, India’s festive spirit is matched with not just fresh flavours and handpicked ingredients but also with state-of-the-art design and premium look and feel. Guests can opt from a variety of 60 mithais including sugar free and vegan options. From 15 packaging options that are customised to suit requirements such as festive gifting and weddings to corporate gifting that comes with an exclusive Rose gold packaging, the orders are available for takeaways and doorstep delivery. Best of all, the orders can be personalised.

Durgo Pujo Festivities with over 75 dishes from Bengal

Not just Diwali, other festivals have also ushered in a spirit of personalised culinary offerings. During the recently concluded Durga Pujo festivities in Delhi, over 75 authentic Bengali dishes were celebrated at the food festival held at Edesia, Crowne Plaza, Delhi.

“Popular Bengali dishes such as Aalu Posto, Chanar Dalna, Dhokar Dalna were prepared. We have specially flown in an award winning chef Rangonath Mukherjee from Kolkata to ensure that our Probashi Bengalis do not miss the distinct aroma and flavours from the mainland. We set up food stalls for Puchka, Mishti, Chop & Bhaja stalls to recreate the bustling streets of Kolkata,” Pradipt Sinha, Director of Food and Beverage, Crowne Plaza New Delhi Okhla informed Financial Express Online.

Diwali celebrations through VARR’s culinary pilgrimage

Tarun Gulati, Director, Himalayan Hotels, believes that temple food or ‘prasadam’ as many call it are a way of life for Indian families. Highlighting a new concept based restaurant that has been recently launched in Rishikesh named ‘VARR – Temple Food of India’, which is housed in the boutique hotel ‘Ganga Kinare Riverside Hotel’, an artisanal food spread featuring four Raj Bhog Thalis for lunch and dinner has been conceptualised by its award winning chef Anuj Kapoor.

“The menu takes patrons on a culinary pilgrimage across the Char Dhams in the Himalayas, the Brijbhoomi in the northern plains and the Gurudwaras across North India. Bhog offered at temples are an extraordinary facet of India’s culinary landscape as each temple offers unique prasadam made from seasonal and local ingredients, ” Tarun Gulati tells Financial Express Online.

VARR offers guests a wholesome temple meal experience right from the moment they step in.

For instance, the Aachaman is basically Panchamrit comprising of cow milk, ghee, honey, Ganga jal and tulsi that is served to guests. Some of their most popular dishes include Kadi Pakoda and Kadha Prasad, that are reminiscent of a Gurdwara Langar thali and Barsaane Ki Arbi, which is believed to be a unique dish that is loved by Radha, among others.

Diwali celebration for youth: Say yes to pocket friendly burgers!

Not all are keen to savour temple food items during Diwali festivities. There’s a good chance that festivities also call for a change in taste for many health conscious youth who aren’t easily drawn to desi mithai or festive spreads.

Farman Beig, Co-founder & CEO of Wat-a-Burger recognizes what youngsters love to eat when he tells FinancialExpress.com, “We understand the market requirements, and our target audience. Given that most of the customers are youngsters, we have launched this pocket friendly burger to serve their favourite taste while also going easy on their pockets. This also serves the purpose as we expand our footprint in tier -2 markets. Hence, we are widening our menu on one side, and our presence on the other.”

A visual cue of how a nation can honour what its people love to eat can be referenced from the iconic Smithsonian Museum of American history, where there are exhibitions that are centered on the American table, how the Americans eat and feast.

Now is the time for festivities and perhaps it is also time for Indians to do the same and dedicate more documentary facts related to our festive food treats and how we feast during festivals like Durga Pujo and Diwali.