ADDING WHISKY & KABABS TO THE JOYS OF AL FRESCO DINING

Restaurant operators across the board have been worried about how a large number of diners do not venture into their premises because they fear getting Covid-19. They may have been quick to implement safety protocols, but the average customer is still not convinced, one of their being fears being the quality of air in enclosed environments. There’s also the big ‘if’ about the quality of air being pumped out of an air-conditioning system—don’t the ducts spawn colonies of microbes?

It will take some time for the Doubting Thomases to be convinced, so restaurants must now look for viable alternatives. Cloud kitchens have definitely improved cash flows for restaurants, but this is the time for those with open-air spaces to offer to cash in on the advantage. The cold wave can be offset with tech-efficient heaters and you can entice people to enjoy an al fresco experience and the much-improved AQI (day and night). Nature, however, has its limitations; it needs a strong food and drinks package to go with it, which is exactly what The Park New Delhi has been laying it out at Aqua, its open air space around the swimming pool.

Looking beyond the inveigling beauty of the space, The Park’s team has put together a hard-to-say-no offering—a buy-one-get-one free deal on single malts topped up with a scrumptious menu of kababs, priced from Rs 350 to Rs 650, with only the Raan Chettinad costing Rs 1,000 because of the Australian lamb racks. The mixed kabab platters come for Rs 750 (vegetarian), Rs 850 (mixed) and Rs 1,000 (non-vegetarian only). A hot deal for a cool night?