The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and his guests opted for the veg fare prepared by chef Sanjeev Kapoor who was assisted by Masterchef winner Nikita Gandhi during Narendra Modi’s visit to UAE
It had all the trappings of a royal menu — with separate veg and non-veg options — which celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor had whipped up to whet Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his royal guest, prime minister Narendra Modi’s appetite at the royal dinner table recently. However, the Sheikhs’ plate preference was a lesson in itself on royal table manners — for they chose to dine keeping in tune to their guests’ eating habits — vegetarian all the way.
The dinner menu’s non-vegetarian section listed Gujarati meat preparations like murg zatar parmessan tikka, dal gosht and murghanu shaak. None of these ever reached the tables as the Sheikhs preferred undhiyu, lauki kachumber and lehsuniya bataka on their plates.
The dinner was also a trial by fire for Nikita Gandhi, the MasterChef India title winner this season, who was assisting chef Kapoor whip up the delectable. The Amdavadi girl was basking in glory and recognition everywhere, but this opportunity was beyond her dreams.
An elated Gupta could hardly mask her joy while she gushes about the spread, Modi and the fine detailing in the menu and serving.
“Sanjeev Kapoor wanted me to be part of the team. It was he who designed the entire menu while a team of other chefs including me assisted him. We mainly plated and gave final touches to the recipes,” said Gupta, visibly proud of being part of the prestigious project.
She couldn’t meet Modi in person, but was happy to at least see him.