Humour: Restaurants and their endless need for cuteness

From artsy menus to twee décor, why do restaurants try so hard?

A writer friend and I once visited a small Parsi restaurant that had opened in a hidden corner of Bandra. We asked for the inevitable dhansak and irresistible salli boti and an item that was called something like ‘Aunty Katy’s Kachumber’. The description involved a family anecdote, apart from the ingredients. As the lunch was served, we noticed the absence of the salad and asked whether it was on its way. The hostess laughingly replied, “Oh that kachumber? That was just copy.” We continued our meal having learned something important about the universe, but we weren’t exactly sure what.

Something about the food business brings out more than the reasonable amount of groan-worthy puns.(Photo imaging: Parth Garg)

An Italian ice cream parlour in Juhu picked the unfortunate name Gelitalia. I wonder if you could ask for your gelato with nuts!