If virtuosity, laughter and zest for life are a few good things that money can’t buy, then Gary Mehigan, Matt Preston and George Calombaris form the tripod on which these life essentials rest.
The trio are currently in India for a collaborative project with Conosh. The series entails seven-course pop-up dinners and masterclasses in New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru over eight days.
Meeting the original trio for a curated pop-up and masterclass is a dream to be treasured on its own for most Indians who are MasterChef Australia devouts.
“Conosh has gone beyond in terms of pulling this whole tour together. Considering the logistics, six dinners and three masterclasses, bringing us three sous chefs from Australia”
The menu is different for every city. In Mumbai, “For a dinner of 150, we had to plan for 90+ vegetarians. And we had five Jains. The restrictions make the food interesting.”
“We are very conscious of not being kitsch. I’m not going to feed South Indian flavours to a South Indian audience. It would be suicidal,” laughs Mehigan.
“Here the masterclasses are up close and personal. It’s more like a meet and greet. It’s an interesting challenge. People have told us that this is an utter dream.” Mehigan adds
“For this pop-up, we included passion fruit wild honey from an apiary called Forest Garden Microfarms India, kalari cheese from Jammu, and a range of millets,” Mehigan shares.