Tip of the Toque

The Hotel Ashok was awash with people in chef whites and checks on Saturday evening,and those thinking a massive banquet was taking place wouldn’t have been mistaken. However,this time,instead of toiling in the kitchen,the 700 plus chefs were guests at the 10th Annual Metro Chef Awards 2013 organised by the Indian Culinary Forum (ICF). Union Minister Shashi Tharoor was the chief guest in a list which included culinary heavyweights such as Vikas Khanna and Kunal Kapoor from MasterChef India as well as India’s culinary khazana,Sanjeev Kapoor. The event was hosted by “stand-up chef” Saransh Goila,of TV’s Roti,Rasta aur India,who is the country’s youngest celebrity chef. Apart from the three jury awards,chefs and culinary students had competed for 11 other award categories (including Master Chef International Cuisine,Kitchen Artist,Master Chef North India Cuisine,Student Chef of the Year) in a series of trade tests conducted earlier in the month.

Among the jury award winners were Olive’s Sabyasachi Gorai (Silver Hat Chef Award),journalist and author Hoihnu Hauzel (Best Food writer Award) and the Taj group’s Satish Arora who won the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to Indian culinaria,including the setting up and running of Taj SATS,the gourmet airline catering service. “ It was an unexpected honour and what made it special was that it was awarded by my peers in the community. Plus Tharoor’s oration made the evening unforgettable,” Gorai said.