A 5-Star dinner!

Mindian · Aug 22, 2008

dear cheeniya sir,
enjoyed your post as much as i enjoy MY vathakuzhambu and potato roast......i too agree with u ..i never order what i make at home in restaurants....and yes i remembered a cousin of mine who used to take us out for dinner sometimes and then show off by being so pally with the waiters..even as kids my bro and i would laugh at that..nice to think that the waiters would have also laughed at him...agree with veda that 5 star restaurants are for company paid dinners..haha..sheer waste of money otherwise but how to explain that to the younger generation......
regards
Mindi

Cheeniya · Aug 25, 2008

Mindian said: ↑

dear cheeniya sir,
enjoyed your post as much as i enjoy MY vathakuzhambu and potato roast......i too agree with u ..i never order what i make at home in restaurants....and yes i remembered a cousin of mine who used to take us out for dinner sometimes and then show off by being so pally with the waiters..even as kids my bro and i would laugh at that..nice to think that the waiters would have also laughed at him...agree with veda that 5 star restaurants are for company paid dinners..haha..sheer waste of money otherwise but how to explain that to the younger generation......
regards
Mindi
Click to expand...

Dear Mindi
It has become so tough to evaluate a person's social status that we have to keep inventing new parameters. One of them is how pally one is with waiters in 5 Star hotels. I have seen some passengers in prestigious trains like Satabdi and Rajdhani Expresses and in flights trying to be pally with stewards to show that they are regulars!
Take it from me, this world won't be such fun but for these characters!
Sri

Viswamitra · Mar 6, 2012

Your post reminds me of a trip I made to Paris for acquiring a Paris based company. We stayed in a decent hotel which was about 2-3 miles away from Ritz, Paris. Since it is such a famous hotel, we wanted to visit around that area and at least watch the premises from outside. The history of this hotel attracted us and also we remembered the last fatal trip that Princess Diana made from that hotel. My friend made a suggestion that we should venture in, as we were well dressed. I cautiously said no to it but my friend said that a tea won't be that expensive. We walked in and were stunned by its ambiance. After wandering for a few minutes we walked into one of its restaurants. Since we all knew what to order, when the bearer brought a big menu card and gently asked what would we like to eat in English with an accent that is only spoken by French, we politely told him to bring a cup of tea.

After a wait for 30 minutes, he brought tea with some other delicacies which we were not sure whether it is part of the tea that we had ordered or not. Our pride won't allow us to ask him that question. To be safe, we decided to only drink tea. He brought the check that indicated that we had to pay 165 Euros. My friend paid it and gave a tip of 25 Euros as tip to the smiling bearer. The satisfaction of walking into one of the world's best hotel disappeared. We returned to our hotel. In order to make my friend happy, I offered to take him to a nice Indian restaurant for dinner. How else I could make him to smile again?

Viswa

shyamala1234 · Mar 6, 2012

Hi,

Every word that you wrote about five star hotels is true...100%.Wierd names of dishes, finally when we order and eat a simple and safe dish that we are familiar with like Vatal Kuzumbu (BTW what is that dish, I don't know Tamil, my mother tongue is Telugu) and potato curry the price of it bugs us. Every time I go to a 5 star hotel(I went only very few times) I end up eating curds and rice after coming home. Empty purse and empty stomach...we are back home.

Cheeniya · Mar 7, 2012

Dear Viswa
During my 30's and 40's, I had this tendency to 'live it up' unmindful of the cost. Diners Card was the earliest card that came into existence and was considered as a status symbol and I had one. It was such a pleasure to flash it around in upmarket restaurants and shops. Fortunately for me, I grew out of this madness in the early 90's. But during that decade and a half of madness, I might have spent more money than I earned throughout my life on crazy activities!

It is rather strange and ironical that we pay more for the ambiance than for what we eat but when it comes to ambiance in our homes, we just turn a blind eye. At least most of us do!
Sri

Cheeniya · Mar 7, 2012

Dear shyamala
'Empty purse and empty stomach' is an excellent summing up of the experience! Vathal Kuzhambhu is a kind of paste made with tamarind and chilli powder and cooked with other ingredients. This is mixed with rice and taken. This is the easiest to make and the preferred item of lazy ladies and those in a hurry!
Sri

iyerviji · Mar 11, 2012

My dear Anna

Enjoyed reading your post. Five star dinners you can enjoy only if you have lot of money. Since I was a working woman I could enjoy with my friends. Thanks to our Company and our MD who took us twice to seminar in Nasik and Lonawala and we stayed in a Posh Restaurant there. Instead of taking only the officers he gave the staff also a chance to enjoy. Enjoyed the food there otherwise where I will get a chance to have such rich food. But no doubt vetha kuzambu and sutta pappadam made at home is more tasty.

Thanks to my children also because of whom we could enjoy going to posh restaurants. My dh does not believe in spending so much money out . He enjoys the food cooked at home. I think all the old times people enjoy their home food than going to restaurants.

One of my sis in law is also like my husband only very simple. First time when her daughter who is working as a Director in a bank took her to dinner for New Year. She was so surprised . Was telling seeing the prices of the dishes only she had heart attack. Both her daughters are holding big positions and they are like sons for her. One of her daughter is still not married and is not interested in getting married also. She wants to give all the comforts to her parents , takes them abroad.

Hope I have not gone out of the topic

Cheeniya · Mar 11, 2012

Dear Viji
During my professional days, Five Star dinners were dime a dozen for me as the Bank paid for them. For all the money we spend on those dinners, we end up eating all kinds of insipid stuff with names sounding Greek and Latin to us. An ordinary Udupi hotel would serve far better stuff for one tenth of the cost or even less and yet, we flock to the Star hotels because we do need to indulge in extravagance occasionally.

I have lost all interest in them and I find all the love and warmth of Satchi's 'molakoottal' more precious than the five star dinners. I do get dragged to Five Star dinners from time to time by my grandchildren and I play my grandpa's role fittingly!
Sri

shyamala1234 · Mar 12, 2012

Dear Vidya,

You have made a very valid point....I am consoling from myself for not finding my way properly in IL, even after more than six months. First it was like a big office building where one can miss the way easily. I tried a few times...and by accident something to comment I used to comment and then if I want to have a second look I never used to find it again.If that comment has gone or not I still do not know. I stopped visiting for some months. Then slowly, slowly I found my way. Even now I do not understand the difference between post, thread ,blog and comment.75% o.k. but still not completely comfortable.....especially with various departments. Forum is the one..I have familiariszed a bit.