There is a popular adage amongst chefs: You eat with your eyes first. However tasty a dish maybe but if it doesn’t look appetising enough, no one is going to eat it. Hence, chefs the world over pay so much attention and details to how to present dishes. Unfortunately, this saying falls flat when we order for a delivery. Most eating joints that deliver don’t spend a lot on how they package the food. A few plastic containers and foil to wrap the rotis is the standard packing.
But, one take-out delivery in the Capital ensures that one definitely eats with one’s eyes. The packet in which the food is delivered is pretty and colourful. Looking at the box, it gives a sneak peek into what is to come in terms of taste.
Manav Deep Singh, co-founder, The Masala Story tells you that the packaging has been designed by a company in Bengaluru. “We have a company that works for us out of Bengaluru. We are an eco-friendly brand and use zero plastic. We are using recycled paper to pack our food,” Singh says.
Go for mutton biryani, garlic naan, muttoon korma, and tandoori non-vegetarian platter. The platter has four meat tikkas — fish, chicken malai tikka, chicken tikka and mutton seekh kebab. Ordering tandoori dishes home is a bit tricky, it does get a bit cold taking away the taste but given the way it is packed, it does manage to retain the flavour. If one is a mutton fan, mutton biryani is worth a try. The muttoon is tender; falling off the bone with a perfect blend of spices.
There is a reason why Singh decided to go with North Indian cuisine. He found a gap between Indian cuisine delivery brands and wanted to fill it.
“It is the not first preferred cuisine when one is a teenager or a couple due to the messiness that comes while opening it. People know that it comes in a plastic box and will have oil around. There is a perception around Indian food and that is why people prefer to order pizzas, pastas and salads — eat out of the box foods,” Singh says.
The aim, he tells you is to offer food in a packet that can be placed on to the table, open the handis and serve from it. Also, every dish that one opens will have the name of the person who has ordered it. For example: If one ordered a butter paneer and a butter chicken, it will read: Hi Shalini, enjoy your butter chicken.
The cloud kitchen, a concept of delivery only restaurant with no physical space, no dine-in space or takeaway counter, opened just before the lockdown in March 2020.
“It was because of this concept, packaging, the quality of food and safety measures (our staff undergoes tests regularly) played in our favour during the lockdown. People were and are ordering food from reputed brands when it comes to hygiene. So much so that we went from unit one to unit six in this last year. The latest to join is the unit in Noida,” Singh tells you.
He says that cloud kitchens that are organised and trusted brands are the future. “There was time, pre-COVID-19 times, when we were accessing some nice restaurants. Cloud kitchens that opened because two friends got together or two-three family members pooled in funds because such kitchens were doing well are not going to survive this wind. Restaurants that are from organised branded and following hygiene protocol are the ones that will move forward,” Singh says.
To order, download The Masala Story app.
