French fast food gift to hills

Darjeeling, May 26: Patrice Durcudoy and Olivier Senecal fell in love with Darjeeling a decade ago. Today they are all set to give back what they have got with a restaurant that will offer the choicest delicacies of their homeland.

The two French nationals will soon open Le Casse Croute, a restaurant that will concentrate on offering gourmets the chance to savour the best of French and Lebanese cuisine. From French sandwiches to Lebanese items like Shwarma with roasted and marinated chicken, the fast-food outlet will have it all.

Durcodoy and Senecal are now working round-the-clock with help from their local friend Mamta Tamang to ready the restaurant. From getting official clearance to fine tuning the menu, they are involved in every aspect.

Speaking about their dream project, Durcudoy, who works with Toshiba in Paris, said: `I first came to Darjeeling with Olivier around a decade ago and fell in love with the place. We wanted to do something here and opening a French-styled fast food outlet seemed to be good idea. We are now looking forward to spending the rest of our lives here.`

All efforts are being made to ensure that there is no compromise on quality while keeping the products reasonably priced. While the emphasis is on fast-food the menu will be novel, taking in specialities that have not been available in the hills till now.

`We plan to serve food items like Tagine, a Moroccan dish for which we need items like extra virgin olive oil and spice like cummin. We are working with our embassy in Delhi to clear bottlenecks pertaining to import of necessary ingredients,` said Durcudoy.

So far, Rs 3 lakh has been invested in the restaurant which will come up on Robertson Road. Senecal and Durcudoy will leave for France soon and come back after three months.

`For three months I will work with Toshiba as I have made such an arrangement but Blain will stay back. Our local friend Mamta Tamang, who has constantly been helping us in our endeavours, will coordinate efforts for a while till we get back,` said Durcudoy.

Darjeeling residents who know about the soon-to-be-launched restaurant welcomed the idea. `I am looking forward to some good food once the restaurant opens. I am sure the goodies on offer will delight our tastebuds,` said Bikas Thapa, a college student.

Courtesy
The Telegraph

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