The Ristorante Dali which is a relatively new Italian Restaurant (originally housing the original and equally popular Artusi Ristorante, is totally different in its internal structure and decorations, making it non recognizable in its original avatar. The restaurant is still not complete and the Menu not fully finalized with the bar license in hand only a few weeks ago, But that did not prevent Prateek Gupta and his brother as the partner of Ristorante Dali and Café Dali in Meharchand market, to send a warm invite to the Italian contingent for a quick lunch.

The lunch had to be made for quick consumption- unlike a leisurely Italian Lunch with multi- labeled wines with each course, since the time allotted for Lunch for the guests staying at Hotel Courtyard by Marriott at Dwarka was very short-less than an hour. In fact, Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) which organised Vinitaly India Roadshow for the first time (for the uninitiated, Veronafiere had organised Vinitaly India once before perhaps 2 decades ago, but not as a Roadshow). The organisers insisted that due to shortage of time, wines ought not to be served. Also, the producers would be wined out during the two days of tasting-first at the Ambassador’s Residence and then the ‘public’ tasting at Dwarka on the second day.

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With some persuasion, Arora made them agree on serving a glass of Prosecco each on their arrival to take care of their parched throats. He explained that this would be equivalent to welcoming the guests by garlanding each guest and applying our traditional ‘teeka” on their foreheads- a ritual they might have gone through at Dwarka.

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This was a good decision as we could say Cin-Cin and Salute (Cheers) to them with Arora cheering them with the Indian equivalent Jai Ho! (Though not yet in the Oxford Dictionary). The guests waded through the interior of the spotless light coloured furniture in light Italian styled interiors and. But they were really excited to move to the downstairs eating area, a wine library if you will, with the walls surrounded by wine bottles on the wall-mounted single-bottle racks and wine books strewn over around the 2 dining tables that are sufficient for 19 Pax.

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In fact, the entry to this area and the fruity and flavorsome Pitars Millesimato Prosecco DOC Extra dry got them into a casual wine mood and the atmosphere turned quickly to laughter with lots of bonhomie that is seen usually between long-lost friends. A non-stop flow of pizzas (thin crust but delicious, unlike my favourite Napolitana Pizzas served at Café Dali), pasta and antipasti and a refill of a few glasses as time permitted. Mushroom Risotto doubled as the Mains due to shortage of time with an adequate dessert to follow.

After a few questions the visitors had, duly answered by Arora in all honesty and as lucidly as possible, he asked the all-important question whether they would come back if Veronafiere organised another edition next year, just like they have been doing with other countries like the US (Chicago). A bit hesitant at first, but when Arora pointed out that this was an informal impression and not any commitment, almost all raised their hands. It was heartening to see the instant response from Adolfo Rebughini, the General Manager of Veronafiere that if the response from the existing participants were so positive, Veronafiere would love to be back.

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The participants did complain about not enough professionals present like importers, hoteliers and the distributors etc. The general feeling was that Dwarka is a bit too far off from the city and many stakeholders had taken a pass due to that reason. A senior staff from Indian Chamber of Commerce said that there were a lot of events happening around this time and the decision was taken a bit too late to arrange a more convenient space

One hopes this kink would be removed next year and the Roadshow will become a regular affair.

Subhash Arora