AT SARTORIA, KEEP WAITING.THERE ARE some meals that are worth waiting for and then there are some that you never find out about, for they just don't show up. Wednesday night at Sartoria, the quaint little Italian restaurant in Vasant Vihar Vasant Vihar is an upmarket neighbourhood located in South Delhi. It is located south of R. K. Puram and is relatively close to the international airport. Premier higher educational institutes like JNU, IIT and IIFT are situated in the neighbourhood of Vasant Vihar. , fell in the second category. We had been invited for a tasting session to review Sartoria's Emilia- Romagna food festival for which we arrived at a quarter to nine. This was after many confirmation calls from the PR, including one just minutes before we walked in. Expectations were quite high, especially because Emilia- Romagna, Italy's ' Food Valley', is the home of Parma ham, Bolognese sauce Bolognese sauce (ragù alla bolognese in Italian, also known by its French name sauce bolognaise) is a meat based sauce for pasta originating in Bologna, Italy. , tortellini, balsamic vinegar balsamic vinegar n. 1. An aromatic vinegar of Modena, Italy, made from white Trebbiano grape juice that is heated and aged in wooden barrels for several years. 2. Any of various similar vinegars. and Parmigiano Reggiano. To top it all, we were supposed to be dining with the Italian ambassador, Roberto Toscano, who was born in Parma, and whose opinion on the meal would have mattered. Maybe that was where the problem lay. The manager, the waiters and the beverage manager were all on their toes rushing to and from the VIP table, right past us, till about 9 p. m. when a waiter poured us wine and decided to take our order. Bruschetta bruschetta Noun an Italian open sandwich of toasted bread topped with olive oil and tomatoes, olives, etc [Italian] ( Rs 200), Parma ham with melon ( Rs 550), spinach and rice soup ( Rs 200), Pizza alla Salsiccia with goat's cheese and pork sausage ( Rs 400), and steak filled with smoked ham, served with onion and red wine sauce Noun 1. wine sauce - white or veloute sauce with wine and stock variously seasoned with onions and herbs; for fish or meat sauce - flavorful relish or dressing or topping served as an accompaniment to food ( Rs 1,035). What I can vouch for vouch for verb 1. guarantee, back, certify, answer for, swear to, stick up for (informal) stand witness, give assurance of, asseverate, go bail for verb 2. were the bruschetta, which were delicious ( though they came off the platter from which the waiter had served the table next to ours) and a lentil soup Noun 1. lentil soup - made of stock and lentils with onions carrots and celery soup - liquid food especially of meat or fish or vegetable stock often containing pieces of solid food with tomato, herbs and balsamic vinegar -- very light, but with subtle flavours and loads of veggies Veggies of Nottingham, also known as Veggies Catering Campaign, is a campaigning group based in Nottingham, England, promoting ethicalbum alternatives to mainstream fast food. . No complaints about the soup, except it wasn't what we had ordered. Following the soup came C* nothing actually. My companion and I sat making small talk and staring into the bottoms of our wine glasses. It was 10.20 p. m. and we had spent an hour in almost complete silence. Till finally, we had to ask how long it took the chef to wrap some ham around slices of melon? Yet another 15 minutes passed after the manager's assurance that our food was on its way. It was time to cut our losses and leave. Which we did, only to be followed by the PR, the owner and the manager who cajoled us to go back. As we settled down, every course we had ordered showed up like clockwork. This was also the point when I realised I had been served the wrong soup, for the one I had really ordered now showed up and it had a lot more spinach than the one they had served me earlier. The food tasted good, though our appetite had been killed. For Sartoria, our advice is, keep the chef, sack the rest. And when the new staff shows up, do take the trouble of telling them ' the guest does exist' and must be occasionally served. Copyright 2009 India Today Group. All Rights Reserved. Provided by Syndigate.info an Albawaba.com company |
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