NEW DELHI, MARCH 19: A team of 21 chefs in Ashok Hotel had a little piece of information to work on after the food-tasters from Washington visited them the first time - Clinton has never tasted cottage cheese (paneer) in his life.This was enough to get them started. And so a liberal dose of paneer in the main course is what Clinton is going to be served when he lunches at the hotel after signing of agreements at the Hyderabad House on March 21.Though with a well-known weakness for junk food, he is known to patronise curries at the Indian restaurant Bombay Club in Washington. ``All curries are going to have soft meat in them. Except for maybe decoration, we are not going to have any bones on the table,'' said one of the managers at the hotel, overseeing arrangements for the Clinton lunch.Spicy, soft, mellow and very Indian is what the food is going to be - very different from the food Clinton loves best - burgers and chips. ``This is the only opportunity we have to showcase Indian food,'' said the manager. Though there will be a one-odd Western dish for the very fussy.Out of the seven menus that were prepared, two have been sent to the PMO for final approval. Both the menus are essentially Indian in nature, but have different textures and combinations. ``If we have paneer shashlik in one, we have kadai paneer in the other,'' said the manager.In the three-course meal, the dessert is going to be an all Indian fare - chenna paise, gulab jamun etc.The exact menu is a closely-guarded secret as the staff believes that the element of surprise would not be there if the 150 guests were already familiar with the menu.One lunch and the face of staid Ashok has changed. The banquet hall is being readied, marble floors given a polish and security already in place. Are the hotel chefs fearing losing their master touch for the all-important lunch? Though Maurya Sheraton was given preference over Ashok, they say they are used to entertaining state guests and who's who of the country. ``Just last week we had all the big faces of India, when Rajat Shrama hosted his party in the same banquet hall. Out of the 300 people who have been on his show, 270 were there. That was a big night for the hotel,'' said the manager.The care with which the lunch is being planned, it is evident that Clinton might just see his weighing scales tip beyond the magic figure of 180 pounds - the figure which he struggles to maintain at most times!
