Monday 7 April 2014

GoodFood Magazine Event


First time in India someone thought of an event mainly for Vegetarian Food Lovers and the initial step was taken by GoodFood magazine. This was a 2 days weekend event i.e. 29th and 30th March 2014 at Nehru Center, Worli. There were exhibition stalls on some floors and restaurants, pastry and other eatery stalls on the other. In addition to this, there were cooking workshops by renowned celebrity chefs on both the days. There were back-to back 8 workshops on first day and 9 on the second. This was like a paradise for all the Foodies.


Tat-O Multigrain Crispetts, Fresh Potatoes Snacks, India Gate Brown Rice, Nutrela, Gits, Bachelors, RRO, Tea Truck, Radika, Missisippy, American Garden, Raw Juices, Paper Boat, Good Juicery, Fantasie Chocolate etc… showcased their products at the exhibition. Some of the exhibitors were showing demos at their stalls, while others were giving samples to try.  I had to rush through all the stalls as the master classes were on my priority list.



Some artists got a platform to showcase their talents at this event. There were live performances going on the terrace where restaurants and other eatery stalls were set up. This was very entertaining and a treat to watch them perform.


The weekend was like a bouquet of masterclass, where different cuisines were presented. Every chef showcased their expertise and we relish their final output.

Chef Vikas Seth from Sancho’s shared different types of Mexican Dips and Mexican Food


Chef Himanshu Saini, Masala Library shared traditional Rajasthani and Kashmiri curries with a twist.


Chef Pooja Dhingra, Le 15 Patisserie taught Chocolate Chapter from her cookbook ‘The Big Book Of Treats.


Chef Manu Chandra, Monkey Bar Gastro Pub soaked us with Steam Bao Burger and Piadina which he terms as Dirty Food J



Chef Gresham Fernandes, Salt Water Café went Veggies Go Glam
Chef Alex Gares, Four Seasons Koh Samui took us on a tour to Spain
Celebrity Chef Saransh Goila, Chef Kunal Kapur and Chef Ajay Chopra wanted us to go healthy with soya and shared some of the Nutrela based recipes.


Chef Manish Mehrotra, Indian Accent turn a simple day-to day dish into glamorous one. He made karela taste heavenly. Its the first time I ever liked karela so much.
Chef Sanah Ahuja, had a No-Bake Cheese cake to share
Chef Kelvin Cheung, Ellipsis took us on a brunch ride.




Chef Abhijit Saha, Caperberry had Spanish dishes apt for the summer season
Chef Sanjan Patel, La Folie with her pastries, éclair stole the show.


Chef Gautam Mehrishi, Sun-N-Sand Hotel had Treats for Kids





Over all, the 2 days were full of workshops, exhibitions and food stalls right from morning to night. What a long day of learning.

It was well organized but had few hiccups. May be going forward they would consider the below points while organizing.

Firstly I felt it was too crimpy. Since the workshops were back-to-back without any gap one had to either do justice to the masterclasses or exhibition and other stalls. I missed one workshop and actually had a running look at the exhibition and food stalls, since I had to attend the workshop. There was no breathing space between two workshops. The only time was between winding-up and setting-up. Going forward I would suggests them to either have lesser workshops or extend the event for 3 days. So that we could have some breathing space and also do complete justice to both i.e. master class and stalls.

Secondly the seating arrangement was limited so many people were standing inspite of purchasing the tickets.  Next time they need to ensure that they organize a larger seating space and more chairs.

Lastly and the most importantly the tasting portion not served except for couple of workshops. Samples kept for tasting were the ones chefs had prepared on the spot. So people had to literately run to get their share and many people didn’t even get to taste it, as the cooked dish was just a small portion. When people pay and come to attend the workshop they atleast expect a single portion. This needs to be taken care big time going forward.

Since this was the first time I guess there were some hiccups. Having said that one learns from their mistakes & I am sure that there is always a room for learning and one becomes expert only after experience.

Over all it was indeed a fun filled and very gainful day in terms of culinary skills and knowledge. Enjoyed it thoroughly and looking forward for it with the consideration on the above mentioned feedback.

                                                                                                                                                                                           




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