An ancient Indo-European root word covering the reciprocal relationships of hospitality; the English words, guest and host both come from this word.
As the month of December is one of hospitality, especially with the anticipation and excitement of Christmas when family and friends gather to celebrate together, it seems a good time to be thinking about the reciprocal relationships of hospitality. You may also have heard Radio 4’s recent programme, Breaking Bread Together, with Priya Basil, Shamil Thakrar and Thomas Harding.
Reflections on Food, Community and the Meaning of Generosity.
For those that love spending time at a table amongst family and friends, sharing food and conversation we can recommend Priya Basil’s book, Be my Guest. Reflections on Food, Community and the Meaning of Generosity.
The dinner table, among friends, is where the best conversations take place – talk about the world, religion, politics, culture, love and cooking. In the same way, Be my Guest is a conversation about all those things, mediated through the sharing of food.
The langar, community kitchen.
The practice of offering a free meal to all was implemented by the Sikh founder, Guru Nanak, from the beginning of Sikhism in the 15th century. The langar (community kitchen) in a Sikh Temple, or Gurdwara, was a way of expressing two central tenets: equality between all human beings and service to the community. Vegetarian meals prepared and served by volunteers, were offered to all those who sat down on the floor together to eat.
Across the world Sikh temples still maintain that everyone has an open invitation every day to the langar.
Bombay’s Irani Cafes
Shamil Thakrar, co-founder of award-winning restaurant, Dishoom, tells the story of the old Irani cafes in Bombay (or Mumbai as it is now known) in the book, Dishoom: “From Bombay with Love”
The Parsis are an ancient and distinct community from Iran who have played a significant role in Bombay. Escaping religious persecution, they originally landed and settled north of Bombay in Gujarat, but came to Bombay as it grew and they held onto their identity and traditions with integrity.
They were enterprising, valued education, and become wealthy through trade in cotton, opium and other goods. They were also civic minded and philanthropic.
The people in the second wave of immigration who came to Bombay to work in the homes of established Parsi families, came to be known as Iranis. Later they began to set up their own cafes – often on street corners and these Irani cafes became an important part of the city.
In the 19th century eating out was rare and always segregated according to religion. The Irani cafes, opened by immigrants, welcomed everybody and were affordable.
The Irani cafes also played a significant role in enabling women and children to be a part of eating out by providing family rooms. These cafes, set up by immigrants, became Bombay’s first shared public eating and drinking places where people could mix, regardless of religion, caste or class.
“When people break bread together, barriers break down.”
Recommended Reading:-
Priya Basil, Be my Guest. Reflections on Food, Community and the Meaning of Generosity.
Shamil Thakrar, Dishoom: “From Bombay with Love”
Thomas Harding, Legacy: One Family, a cup of tea and the company that took on the world. The story of Lyons Corner Cafes and how one immigrant family fed Britain for over 100 years.
We can help you incorporate food tours or visits to the tucked away restaurants that locals love to visit on your next trip. If you’d like to chat to us about planning a trip to any one of our destination countries please contact Amanda Kay by email: amanda@travelmaxwellscott.com or telephone 01937 520677.
Featured image (at top of blog) courtesy of Dishoom.