Dine with the Durbar: Special lunch menu recreates Coronation-era delicacies

Guests enjoying the celebratory Delhi Durbar lunch at the 1911 terrace at The Imperial in New Delhi. (Source: Shantanu David)

As far as Colonial hangovers go, this one is eminently palatable. The Imperial hotel in New Delhi is celebrating the 104th anniversary of the last Delhi Durbar, held to herald the coronation of George V and Mary as Emperor and Empress of India, in 1911; both the year of the Durbar as well as the name of the iconic restaurant at the hotel.

The menu ‘Delhi Durbar ki Dawat’, curated by the hotel’s General Manager and senior vice-president Vijay Wanchoo and executive sous chef Prem Kumar Pogakula, is a tip of the toque to the culinary heritage of an era bygone. Celebrating the stylings of the coronation feast of more than a century ago, the meal has both vegetarian and non-vegetarian offerings, beginning with a choice between Scotch Eggs with Broth and Mulligatawny. The former comprises eggs stuffed with meat and served with a barley and lamb broth, apparently a royal favourite, while the latter could arguably be called India’s national soup, simmered in the shared Anglo-Indian heritage of the nation.

Bubble and Sqeak with creamy spinach is one of the mains on the menu. (Source: Shantanu David)

Other luminaries from the menu include quintessentially British savoury dishes such as Shepherd’s Pie and Bubble and Squeak as well as desserts from the island, such as Rhubarb Pie and English Trifle.

French cuisine was much in vogue during that time and so the menu includes dishes such as Vol au vents with Lentil Gravy (a type of baked tartlet stuffed with seasonal vegetables and topped off with a lentil gravy) and Vegetable Polonaise, a cigar roll stuffed with fresh produce and baked. The legendary Crepe Suzette, pancakes flambéed with orange liqueur, round off the experience.

The menu also features the traditional English dessert — the fruit trifle. (Source: Shantanu David)

The menu will be available during lunch at 1911, The Imperial Hotel, Janpath, New Delhi, till December 17, 2015.

The author visited the Durbar restaurant on invitation from the restaurant.