The Hand That Controls Supper Rules The World

It was pouring.

The car turned into the service-lane. Hotel Diplomat up until that night was a sign I would see on my drives across Delhi. My old and tattered umbrella from St. Andrews (stylish none the less) was my shelter from the rain. The night seemed cool – and those inside the hotel, my fellow diners, were a tad cooler.

The soundtrack from the yet to be released movie, Detective Byomkesh Bakshi, was playing in the car and as the night proceeded it played on loop, in my head. If only I could describe the events leading up to the dinner and the dinner itself in a frame from the 1940’s, in black and white – I would.

Ladies and Gentlemen, let me introduce to you the Delhi Secret Supper Club.

To be fair, it’s natural to be curious about them and to try and figure out who they are? But I put aside all my detective skills and let them be, if they’re running such a successful gig from behind closed doors and with masks on – so be it. Let them have it their way – you and I get served a platter worth talking about, conversations worth continuing and new friends who know all your other friends. Welcome to Delhi, the year 2015, where a group of food revolutionaries have created a new cult – the Delhi Secret Supper Club. Have you been? If yes, you know what I am talking about. If you haven’t, the chances are you will – eventually. And, boy! You’ll be glad that you attended.

I received an e-mail one fine day – and then began a beautiful and short relationship, between two people. He/she who knew who I was, and I, who had no idea who he/she was! We exchanged fun mails, bordering on familiarity and swimming in ambiguity. They picked on the littlest of things I said, and that showed when I arrived at the dinner hosted at Amreli at Hotel Diplomat. I have a policy – I love food and am all for sharing (I think) but if I am on a date, and the girl orders a salad and then digs into my fries, we have a problem, Houston. As I went over to the table at Amreli, I found my name and a reference to a conversation we had over e-mail, in fine print. Funny and full points for attention to detail, I was in – and I wanted to see where this night would lead me.

As the night wore on and we moved from one Old Fashioned to the next, the laughter and conversation moved from the ordinary to the stuff that writers crave for. The night wore on, the people stayed. We made new friends, exchanged Instagram details, made promises to change the world.

Here’s a short exchange I had with the fine folk over at Delhi Secret Supper Club, give it a read and know more about them. I for one don’t want to know who they are – as long as I get invited to these margarita/mimosa reunions. I’ll keep quiet about their identity, make lots of jokes and help marinade the meat. That’s me trying to win their affection, sigh, but for now, know a bit about them in their own words.

Where did you grow up? And, how important was food in those growing up years? Earliest influence? Was it an aunt or grandmother or your father who made the perfect roast on a Sunday?

Each generation in the family brought inspired thought and experimentation to our lives. Our grandparents made us curious about ingredients, cooking techniques and flavors. Our parents filled our minds with curiosity, wonder and the need to constantly experiment with cuisine. We were blessed with happy childhoods where we were encouraged to indulge in our curiosities and constantly try new things – sport, hobbies, books, and most importantly food. Everyone in the team is a cook (fierce debate on who’s the best!) and this love for food also trickles into being a huge part of our travels. More than exploring the touristy hot spots, we prefer exploring local food markets, stellar eating establishments and grocery stores (pet peeve).

Once a week we all get together at the farmhouse for our traditional Sunday lunch. We don’t come from small-numbered families, so you can imagine the ruckus in the kitchen. ABBA playing in the background, mimosas being passed around like water, multiple loud conversations all at once. We do experiment with cuisines, but the team favorite is a good grill and BBQ with marinade flavors from across the globe. (Damn it – they had me at mimosas being passed around like water.)

How did the idea for DSSC come about? I'm assuming you guys (no idea how many of you came together to put this together) are friends, was it an association formed in school, college, social circles you hang around with?

The Delhi Secret Supper Club is a collective of explorers from different parts of the globe who came together to form this secret experiential dining & network building society. We are a global team with roots in New Delhi, Istanbul, Mumbai, London and Washington. (My favorite cities, God, I need an in with these cool cats. Hmm!)

On a beach vacation, we all were grumbling why the Delhi social scene is so obviously typical and hyper marketed. After many margaritas, we came to an epiphany of sorts. We love experimental food experiences and are epic conversation connoisseurs and hence came up with a small mission: Make Delhi experience a new form of dining, a new form of engaging, a new form of socializing. And all done in a mysterious and quiet way.

We regularly curate & host secret events in the city to meet like-minded & interesting people who can hold a conversation more than 7 minutes without saying pretentious crap. Two years back, we realized we were doing the same things with the same set of people weekend after weekend. Whilst those days were a complete hoot, we were tickling to meet new people who didn’t stick within their typical cliques. The objective is to get together a curated & screened set of strangers who can bond & banter over great food, drinks in a safe environment.