Kalakkal Cafe

Its time to celebrate...Its the first anniversary of the Kalakkal cafe,for those of you who don't know what it is,its a cafe for the differently able,started by Vidhya Sagar and opened to general public on the second and fourth Saturdays of every month,this a place to hang out and meet so many amazing young energetic people.
   Well,I have been associated with the cafe for the past six months,thanks to my friends on CFG (Chennai Food Guide),Mr S and Mr K,I have had the opportunity and the good fortune to have made friends with so many young wonderful people.
The anniversary started at 4 pm on the 23rd of March at the cafe,pleasantly surprised to see that most of them had arrived much earlier and were eagerly awaiting for the crowds to come in.The cafe is totally disabled friendly,you have ramps for wheelchairs,ample space to maneuver and ever friendly staff and friends to help you at the drop of a hat.

Many from Chennai Food Guide have been actively involved in spreading the word around on the concept of this cafe and were there to spread the cheer.A music band played softly in the background amidst laughter and constant chatter..Karthik was in his elements with his beautiful smile,JanakiRam had written a beautiful letter thanking one and all for being there,Anjana and Ummul were buzzing with activity and my cutie pie Santosh spelled out wow on seeing the cake that the group had brought along.The twin brothers had a whale of a time with all the attention they were receiving.

Time just flew by in the hours that we spent there,and I am sure each and every one who spent time there went back with a huge smile as I did. I was thankful that day for having such wonderful friends in my life...
The video is also courtesy Karthik G....Please read more on Kalakkal Cafe from his (Karthik Ganapathis) blog herehttp://www.eatwitheyes.com/2012/04/awesomeness-in-chennai-kalakkal-cafe.html?q=kalakkal+cafe

Share and Learn

Share and Learn is a concept started by the Chennai Food Guide wherein the food bloggers/photographers and in general the foodies of Chennai had an opportunity to meet and interact with speakers of different branches of food.The session was arranged at Azzuri Bay a Mediteranian/Thai restaurant in Gandhi Nagar chennai. 

The first speaker up was Smriti k a food nutritionist,and an avid raw food advocate.She spoke passionately about the advantages of eating raw food and the benefits derived from it, don't know how much an impact it left on the audience,but her sheer passion and convincing attitude needs to be admired.She stood up amidst  hard core food eaters and carnivoures and put across her points rather effectively.I wonder if she did convert a few.

The next up was the shy Sanjeeta k,she though needs no introduction.Many would have noticed her beautiful and vivid pictures of food on CFG ,yes she is a food photographer/stylist.She addressed the audience in her amiable style,giving pointers and outlining the details on how to be not a good, but a great photographer.A picture says a thousand words and hers literally want you to eat them up.A very valuable moment for me as I consider myself a "dyslexic photographer."

The last speaker was my good friend Avanthi Vissa,she too needs no introduction,the owner of a quaint little ice cream parlour named Bellaria,(a rather new concept of ice cream making,they make it right in front of you,and with the flavours you want) a sensory scientist,having worked at Kraft foods and handling the oreos line,she explained the importance of taste and smell in conjunction with food.She displayed her humourous side with anecdotes of her experiences in the food industry.

An evening well spent,got to learn so many new ideas from these young ladies.Post presentations and speeches we were served dinner at the restaurant.The management and staff put up a good display of food and I must say it has taken a turn for the better.The last time I had visited the place I was clearly disappointed at their food and had made my opinions clear.There is indeed a marked improvement in the quality of food that we were presented with.So thank you Azzuri Bay for taking the brickbats together with the bouquets.

Catch up with a Chef

 Teenie Tiny Chef Shazia Khan,
cooking up a menu with such ease and elan,
mothers and sisters and burqa clad listers
hep pop chicks, and one dear mister.
Watching and listening at an event of food christening,
the joy of sampling the food which was indeed glistening,
The ease of her cooking has no parallel,
 and her presentation was there for all to tell.
The morning season a veg spread ,
points were noted and her menu well read.
The menu book provided, had for all to see,
the delicious recipes, she made in a jiffy.
Time went by with the fusion food,
all things done it was super, super good 
semolina cake and zucchini cups,
 topped up the charts and made our hearts go whup.
Enter the non veg section post heavy lunch,
kind off felt sleepy after the munch,
but Aswin Rao, the stand up comedian,
 woke us in time to just say wow,
the menu was eclectic and fabulous too,
and Shazia started without further adieu
from sea food exotica to the grandeur of the Shahi Pulao
this young chef made all of us say wow.
Her prawn mousse and her tzatziki dip
had us all drooling, all over our lip.
The mother of all, the Shahi Tukra
done in the morning, and served piping hot, 
it was time now to be served the Gajari Zafrani Pannacotta with Pista cream shots.
A more sincere effort by a chef I have yet to see
your power over food will make us abide by thee.
What can i say about our cupcake queen,
who brought us to you,it seems like a dream,
time flew by and the event flew smooth,
it wouldn't have been possible without you too,
Koncepts Galore you aim for the sky,
for after this your sure gonna fly