(Audrey) As I’ve written about before, being able to walk in upper class circles is one of the great joys of living in India. But beyond walking in somebody else’s shoes, one other interesting thing happens when I cross the border into India: I become part of the upper class. My income is high compared to the Indian population as a whole, and my appearance marks me as from another, more developed land. This privilege plays out in all kinds of ways, not least of which is that I enjoy luxuries in India I rarely if ever do at home.
Yesterday, Thane and I had dinner with some of his colleagues, and I got to pick the restaurant. In New York, this would have involved a difficult calculation of factors, such as wanting a nice restaurant but being limited by price. In Delhi, I simply thought of the best five restaurants in the city and picked the one I most wanted to go to. And so we ended up at Varq in the Taj Mahal hotel, a 5-star beauty of a place.
The lobby of the hotel is pretty swank, with live music from a baby grand and all—
Downstairs is one of the hotel’s many restaurants, Varq. I’ve heard a lot about Varq over the past few years as it’s rumored to be fabulous. The rumors are pretty much true. The food was ridiculously priced by Indian standards and accordingly delicious. After 3 courses that included various amounts of lamb, chicken, sea bass, and prawns, not to mention some vegetables and drinks, halwa for dessert, some tastings and cleansing sorbet on the house, the bill was 5,500 rupees a couple, including tax and tip. It’s not a cheap dinner (a little over 100 USD), but for one of the nicest restaurants in town, I call it a bargain.
Tags: Delhi, food, hotel, India, luxury, restaurant, Taj Mahal, upper class, varq
February 13, 2010 at 5:33 am |
Wow — how come you’ve never taken ME to this restaurant?
Love, Mom
February 15, 2010 at 6:07 am |
How much do you tip in general? Is tipping only at the higher end restaurant? I remember when we were there it was not common, but that was at the middle priced places.
February 15, 2010 at 10:09 am |
(Audrey) Tip–I give 10% across the board, no matter the class of the establishment. Upper-class joints increasingly leave you no choice as they include service charge in the bill. Tipping is still pretty uncommon at anything other than really nice restaurants though. More than once I’ve had a guy stop me from leaving a restaurant to give me my change… they’re always thrilled to keep it though.
July 18, 2010 at 11:19 am |
[...] of steps up Satrunjaya to a holy Jain pilgrimage spot, and going to the best restaurants in Delhi (here, here, and here). Don’t get me wrong—I prefer life in the West on regular basis, but [...]