The Hindu Business Line : Catching up... with good food

They are not reckless spenders, but that doesn't prevent them from having a good time. Eat, drink and be merry, for sure, but tomorrow is another day for which one must be prepared. How, then, do these people, all passionate about food and having a good time, have their cake and eat it too?

"Eating out is never planned, we go out whenever there's something to celebrate or if we badly want to. We always pamper ourselves when we do," says Vijay Chacko, Vice-President, Clea PR, Chennai. So he prefers a place that is all style and flair like the upmarket Park, where he's a member of their restaurant loyalty scheme, rather than a downmarket Velu Military in the city's congested Valluvar Kottam area.

"Most places serve only food and no liquor and that forces us not to eat out too often," he says, adding that when they're out with friends, they juggle between drinks at home or their friends' place.

For Padmapriya, a housewife training to be a gourmet cook, eating out is a pastime. Her family eats out at least once a week, if not more, but their choice of restaurant is dictated by the entertainment available to keep their six-year-old daughter engaged. "It's as much her choice as ours," says Padmapriya, adding with a laugh that they sometimes end up at places serving terrible food but with a nice play area.

Says Susan Alexander, lead content developer at Tata Interactive Systems, Mumbai, "The biggest spenders probably are in Mumbai. Even middle-class folk spend on the local eateries and the street cart-vendors do good business, mainly because people spend half their day commuting and may not have the time to cook breakfast, lunch or dinner."

Susan, who lives in Andheri West, eats out at least once every week and usually at a place she hasn't tried before. An average meal is about Rs 80-150; the more expensive ones can be Rs 300 or so, excluding dessert. "As I'm a single, working woman who lives in a hostel, there's no question of being able to cook and hence, eating out becomes more important than it normally would," she says, adding that she tends to eat at places which include a lot of fast food, Italian, Mexican, Continental and seafood, with the exotic Nepali or Tibetan food thrown in.

"Also, as there really are no places in Mumbai you can chill out with friends in, a restaurant becomes the popular choice. It's not just about the business of eating, it's also about staying in touch with your `community', whether it is family, friends or office colleagues," she says.

Anupama Chandrasekhar, who's chosen to be a full-time playwright despite the lack of money in that arena, says she's an expert in enjoying life on a shoestring budget. "I spend a lot of my money on coffee," she says.

There are many coffee shops in Chennai and one can stay for as long as one wants. The lion's share of her income from freelance writing and editing goes towards libraries — which is the only year-round expense. The activity of writing or honing a play can stretch for more than two months. "I tend to spend when I'm not writing and my entertainment depends on not spending much," she says.

Ashwin Rajagopalan, Chief Executive of Pratika, an image management consultancy, loves good food and is always experimenting with something new. "It has to be very good value for money whether it's a Rs-500-for-two meal or a Murugan Idli, it doesn`t matter," he says. He goes out to dinner thrice a week. As for lunch, it could be ordered in, or eaten at a restaurant with a client. About 3 per cent of his earnings goes towards eating out, which is one of his major expenses, he says. Other forms of entertainment include hanging out at the club with friends, movies in the theatre and on DVD, and travel.

It's difficult to take time off for a long holiday so he and his wife go on short trips every two months to nearby destinations like Pondicherry. The drive itself is an experience, says Ashwin, a sentiment echoed by Padmapriya, who, in fact, often drives down there on impulse to sample the French/Continental/fusion food that is so typical of its upmarket restaurants. Or sometimes, it could be a dhaba in Sriperumbudur, an hour away from Chennai, which serves authentic stuff. "While we end up spending Rs 150-200 on petrol, the food bill comes to not more than Rs 30-40," she says.

Ashwin is also fond of shopping for himself, family and friends, and the house. He finds it very relaxing and has never felt his purchases were wasteful.

Does he qualify to be called a spendthrift? "No, savings are important. Sometimes we make purchases we don't plan for. And as long as you can pay your bills, you're alright," he says.

For some, spending on good food isn't limited to eating out. It's money spent on food made at home, too. Says Padmapriya, "I think it is money well spent as I'm training to go professional. We never compromise on the quality of ingredients, so we're spending time and money on getting the best." Moreover, for this native of Coimbatore, jeeraga samba rice for biryani comes all the way from home, as does the wheat rava for the upma that`s a favourite in her family. "In fact, we have ingredients parcelled to us from Coimbatore all the time," she says.

Mumbai is a food connoisseur's delight too, because even the average vegetable market has a full and exotic range of vegetables and fruits. The availability of speciality and ethnic items, such as Goan sausage or sorpotel masalas or pickles are among Susan's list of gastronomic treats.

Chacko spends about Rs 5,000 a month on eating out. He also spends Rs 1,000 a month on renting DVDs, being the proud owner of a home theatre. Given his newfound savings streak, one way he disciplines himself from mindless splurging is avoiding credit cards. "I use them only for high-value purchases, or to settle hotel bills," he explains.

And it's sobering "to contemplate why I should pay Rs 120 for a roti when the hotel is going to spend that money on its sofas," he says with a grin. It's a happy mix of caution and blithe spirit that prevails then, just the right recipe for living life itself.

Picture by K. Pichumani

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