Page 125 - Hospitality Recreation

Chill your summer drinks with 'cool' cumbers (Food Feature)

From juices to margaritas, mojitos and daiquiris -- cucumbers are now given a twist in myriad forms in refreshing summer cocktails, which are readily being shaken and stirred at pubs, bars and eateries.

Michelin-star chef Hemant Mathur, wife open Indian bistro in NYC

Indian restaurateur and Michelin-star chef Hemant Mathur and his wife Surbhi Sahni, prominent names in New York City's fine dining scene, are now bringing an Indian bistro experience to food connoisseurs here, offering authentic cuisine from their homeland, with special focus on preparing dishes exactly as they are prepared at home. SAAR Indian Bistro, a 57-seat restaurant and bar, opened near Times Square this month and offers traditional home cooked and Indian street foods, prepared to reflect the essence of India's broad multicultural influences, including elements from British, Persian and Jewish cuisine. "We felt there is a need in the market for an Indian bistro. People want to eat Indian food that is not only authentic but also tastes like home-cooked food," Sahni, Pastry Chef and Creative Director, told PTI. "Our goal is to show how food has evolved in India over the past 100 years, serving the dishes exactly as they are prepared and eaten at home today, she said. "The more I .

Tourism hit due to violence in Shillong

Tourists visiting this picturesque hill station are at the receiving end as curfew remains in force in the entire city and parts of it are virtually under siege due to continuing clashes between two groups since Thursday. A number of hotels in Shillong told PTI that there were anxious queries from tourists and last minute cancellations of rooms due to fear of a breakdown of the law-and-order situation. Violence broke out on Thursday after local tribals and Punjabi residents clashed in the city's Punjabi Line area after a bus handyman was allegedly beaten up by a group of people. The Army conducted a flag march today and is scheduled to conduct another again at 10 pm. "We have received a lot of queries from guests on the current situation in the state capital. There have been cancellations of advanced bookings at our hotels in the last 72 hours," a manager at Hotel Centre Point told PTI. She said the hotel had witnessed record reservations and bookings over the past few years during ...

Now travel from Shimla to Chandigarh in just 20 minutes on heli-taxi

It will now take just 20 minutes to travel from Shimla to Chandigarh on a heli-taxi flagged off by Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur today. Thakur launched the service from the Jubbar-hatti airport, 22 km from here. It will be operated on Mondays and Fridays. The Shimla-Chandigarh heli-taxi will take off at 8 am. The return flight will take to the air at 9 am. The fare has been fixed at Rs 2,999. Operated by Pawan Hans, the service will reduce the travel time from 4 hours to just 20 minutes. The tickets can be purchased online from the Pawan Hans website, while a special counter has also been set up at the airport for this purpose. Thakur said the services would be extended to Manali and Rohtang Pass. The possibility of starting heli-taxi joy rides for Shikari Devi, Dharamshala, Chamba etc. would also be explored, he said.

CISF to guard runway-facing 5-star Mumbai airport hotel

In a first, over 60 armed CISF commandos have been deployed to provide anti-terror security cover to a five-star luxury hotel in Mumbai, part of the CSIA airport terminal, which gives a sweeping view of the airport runway. The hotel -- Taj Santacruz -- is located within the domestic terminal of the Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) and a number of rooms of the facility face the runway. PTI had first reported in March last year that a squad of about 150 Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) commandos was deployed to secure the hotel on a temporary basis. It has now been made permanent. "A full contingent of over 60 commando-trained CISF personnel took charge of hotel security on June 2. The squad will be part of the deployment that guards the CSIA," a senior official said. The cost of the CISF deployment will be borne by the GVK group that operates the CSIA, he said. The official said the vehicle-borne commandos, armed with assault weapons, will secure the hotel area ..

Alia Bhatt to endorse air hostess training institute

Actress Alia Bhatt has been announced as the brand ambassador of the air hostess training institute Frankfinn Aviation.

Indian Railways now using compostable tableware

Indian Railways is using tableware that is compostable as part of its drive to go green.Passengers are being served meals in compostable plates and bowls instead of the polymer ones.Indian Railways has tied up with Yash Papers, India's largest manufacturer of compostable paper for this project. The latter has introduced backyard compostable tableware in various Shatabadi, Duronto and Rajdhani trains under the CHUK brand.Initially, the pilot project has been introduced in 32 premier trains by the Railway Ministry, which is expected to be scaled up to other trains, post successful completion of the pilot project.Yash Papers MD and Strategy Head Ved Krishna said, "We have been working with railways for the last four months, trying to build products as per their needs. It gives us immense pleasure to be on board with Indian railways for compostable tableware products. We are going to sign an order of INR 5 crores for the next six months. . We will supply around 15 lakh tableware pieces ...

Anti-nuclear group offers to foot summit bill for N. Korea's Kim

A Nobel Prize-winning anti-nuclear group offered today to pay for next week's historic summit between the US and North Korea -- including the delicate issue of Kim Jong Un's hotel bill. Who will cough up for lodgings at the five-star Fullerton Hotel, believed to be the North Korean leader's preferred option, is one of many reported logistical and protocol headaches surrounding this month's meeting between Kim and US President Donald Trump. The United States is prepared to pay but fears offending cash-poor but pride-rich North Korea, the Washington Post wrote last week. The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) said it was willing to help resolve the impasse by bankrolling Kim's delegation, using part of the $1.1 million cash prize it received for winning last year's Nobel Peace Prize. "We are ready to shoulder the cost of the summit, naturally including expenses for accommodation and conference venues," Akira Kawasaki, an ICAN representative in Japan, told AFP. "If .

'Self-drive travel gaining popularity in India'

There is no better way of travelling to a new place and experiencing things up close.One way to it is to drive there yourself through the interiors of the city of town, halt every now and experience the local flavours.Self-drive travel lets you do just that. The latest travel trend in the country is self-drive vacation that lets travellers see and feel the city in a manner that is not possible otherwise.Self-drive vacations are completely different from destination specific travel. It lets travellers see more, do more and go back home with a lot more to remember and talk about."It allows you to mingle with the local people and experience local cuisines and feel the culture yourself which gets left out in destination specific travels. The destinations chosen by people who drive to that place are generally those which have a rich culture and lots of local things to see," said Kapil Goswamy, CMD, BigBreaks.com.Some of the popular self-drive vacation destinations are Delhi-Jaipur and ...

This Environment Day, give vegan food a thought

Sipping on your morning chai while fixing an egg sunny side up, you glance outside to see the sun struggling to shine through polluted skies and a road crammed with traffic, and you wonder when will people start thinking about the earth. Concerns about the environment are inevitable, but doing so while enjoying a cup of milky tea and an egg makes you part of the problem not the solution, say experts. Why? Because consumption of animal-based and dairy products is also responsible for pollution, just like emissions from vehicles plying on the road, they explain. Transitioning towards a more plant-based diet could reduce food-related greenhouse gas emissions by up to 70 percent, says a study by the US-based journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The solution, say experts, could be as easy or as tough as going vegan. Veganism is the practice of abstaining from eating or using animal products. A follower of either the diet or the philosophy is known as a ...

Peru takes the culinary route to entice Indian travellers

With intrepid Indian travellers heading for Peru -- 7,000 in 2017 and up 36.9 per cent in the first two months of this year -- should it be a surprise that the South American nation has released four cookbooks "to bring to India our internationally-acclaimed gastronomy" and hopefuly entice more tourists.

For Goa's senior citizens, sea water is a health spa in summer

As the rains approach the Western coast, Goa's beaches see a beeline of senior citizens heading for their annual swim in the salty water of the Arabian sea, a ritual which they say keeps illness and vagaries at bay.

Now, Shimla is just 20 minutes away from Chandigarh

The travel distance between this Himachal Pradesh tourist resort and Chandigarh was reduced to just 20 minutes with the launch of a heli-taxi service on Monday.

Breast surgeon Raghu Ram launches projects in adopted village

Setting a model for others, eminent breast surgeon P. Raghu Ram has undertaken various initiatives worth Rs 50 lakh in his adopted village Ibrahimpur in Telangana.

Sri Lanka to attract more Chinese tourists

Sri Lanka's Tourism Minister John Amaratunga held talks with China's tourism and airline officials to encourage more Chinese visitors to the island nation, it was reported on Sunday.

'Bula' Fiji! Ileana D'Cruz set for new adventures

Actress Ileana D'Cruz on Sunday returned to Fiji to keep her promise of visiting the island nation again to experience its natural, cultural and adventurous bounty.

Menu from first Indian restaurant in Britain sells for more than $11,000

An Anglo-Indian traveller and businessman with roots in Bihar, who was among the very early migrants to England from India, had opened the restaurant

PSU Board meetings at tourist spots to boost tourism

In a bid to promote tourism, Indian PSUs would go the extra mile and conduct Board meetings and conferences at places like Ajanta-Ellora, Hampi and Bodhgaya, according to an official statement. The significant move comes following a suggestion by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He had asked the managements of central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) to hold their meetings at lesser known tourist destinations to help promote tourism, while addressing a conclave in April. "This matter has been considered with the ministry of tourism. It has suggested the names of five tourist destinations identified to be developed as iconic sites. These include Ajanta-Ellora (Aurangabad), Bodhgaya, Hampi, Khajuraho and Mahabalipuram," the Department of Public Enterprises said in a statement. It also directed all ministries and departments to advise the CPSEs under their administrative jurisdiction to hold at least one or two Board meetings, strategic meets or conferences at any of the above five ...

Over Rs four cr being spent for tourism infra in Ganjam

An amount of Rs 4.55 crore is being spent for the development of tourism infrastructure in 11 different sites in Ganjam district, an official said today. The highest amount of Rs 50 lakh each has been allocated for Chandrakalpeswar peetha, Gangapur near Aska, Khunteswari, Kandhuni Debi and Ujaleswar temples, he said. Rs 30 lakh each have been sanctioned for Chandraklapeswar temple, Haladiapadara, Panchama and for the construction of a trourist complex at Soneur, while Rs 20 lakh each have been provided for Biranchi Narayan and Ramachandi temples apart from the picturesque Budhakhola, he said. Similarly, the state government has sanctioned Rs 1.05 crore for renovation and site development of the Panthasala at Girishola near here, he said. "Odisha Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC) has been asked to prepare the detailed project report for floating of tenders for the projects," said Ganjam District Tourist Officer, Sanatan Nayak. The projects would include construction .

Make summer stylish with floral trend

Summer is here in full swing and with the mercury level rising day-by-day, it gets little tough to keep your fashion goals intact. However the floral fabrics can add glamour to your look if opted wisely.