NEW DELHI, MARCH 20: US president Bill Clinton, who is fond of Indian food, will be treated with rich royal Indian cuisine at the majestic Ashoka Hotel tomorrow when he comes for the all important official luncheon hosted by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee. The five-course Indian cuisine, including Tandoori and Mughlai curries and three special desserts have been meticulously selected by Chief Chef of the Hotel J M Choudhary and his men. Chef Sailesh Bisht, who specialises in Indian cuisines, is upbeat as the Ministry of External Affairs had first decided to throw a continental lunch for Clinton but later decided on Indian cusine. The Ashoka Hotel Management, which was informed about the hosting of the official luncheon only 10 days back, has given the hotel premises a good facelift to make the all important luncheon meeting a memorable one for the visiting dignitary. Though Clinton will be visiting only the Convention Centre - where the lunch will be hosted - the entire hotel has been dressed up for the occasion. New Belgium carpets have been laid, old chandeliers have been replaced with imported ones and a new red carpet has been rolled down the spiral ramp leading to the Convention Hall.On Monday US President Bill Clinton had a light continental breakfast after a hearty Indian tandoori dinner on Sunday night at the Maurya Sheraton hotel, before embarking for Dhaka on a day's visit. Clinton, who is staying in the Chandragupta Maurya suite on the 16th floor of the hotel, took a breakfast comprising among other things bread rolls, toast with jam, honey and marmalade and rounded it off with coffee and croissants. A self-confessed lover of Indian food, Clinton, who arrived on Sunday night, went to the hotel's popular `Bukhara' restaurant along with daughter Chelsea, mother-in-law Dorothy Rodham and some friends and spent an hour savouring Tandoori Jhinga, Murg Tandoori, Butter Chicken, Peshawari Kebab, Tandoori Pomfret and Murg Malai Kebab, besides Sikandri Naan and other breads. "I love Indian food," Clinton had told US mediapersons on board Air Force One, his official aircraft. The North-West frontier cuisine speciality restaurant was only given ten minutes time to prepare Clinton's meal. A satisfied Clinton complimented the restaurant staff for the sumptuous meal and later signed autographs for some fellow diners from the US Media. Earlier, the President briefly attended a dinner hosted by US Ambassador Richard Celeste at the hotel's `Dum Pukht' restaurant on the occasion of Holi.
