(6) I'm so "Cultured" - Are you, really?

(6)

“Our restaurant gives you the chance to experience India as it should be experienced” – a common tag line used by many Indian restaurants.

Walking through the front doors, a burst of aromas rushes through my nose- for a spilt second in time my brain is overwhelmed in computing which smell is from where- as if there are millions of smells running through my head! As I grasp every smell, I’m set back with the beautiful intricate décor at the restaurant. The dim lights, the vibrant colours of the room, the deep red, maroon, gold, statues, drapery – is this what India really looks like? Ugh… NO!

The restaurant is designed in a way that creates an environment where individuals are surrounded with the belief that they are in India. Just for a split second. Until reality hits home (for me anyway). 

 

Restaurants try their best to display a certain ideology of the country's ethnicity, cultural and authentic cuisine. However, a restaurant, is a business – it needs to generate a profit. The authenticity of cultural food, is changed to meet the economic demands of the business. The more authentic it appears to be, the more revenue for the business. 
 

The authenticity of cultural food, now meets the demands of customers since customer service is an integral part of any business. The success of ethnic food depends on the participation of its audience. Now we have restaurants like Jack Astor’s and the Pickle Barrel selling, in my opinion “bootleg” versions of butter chicken – thus the whole debate with “authenticity at its finest” (the first blog). Restaurant food is so dependent on the clientele and the environment, that it is impossible to truly have authentic foods outside the country of origin. The food served at many ethnic cultural restaurants reflects the demand for a Canadianized version/twist. The balance between the exotic and the comfortable is crucial to appeal to us!

The great thing about Indian food, it is meant to eat without any utensils. Throw away your fork, knife and spoon! And bring on your fingers! Eating Indian cuisine with your fingers, has been part of the Indian culture and etiquette for centuries. If you are eating naan with a fork and knife- and dipping the naan into a plate of butter chicken – that isn’t the Indian culture! Plus you are missing out on the entire experience of eating with your hands!

We eat at restaurants to satisfy the desire for an “exotic” experience. We want something new, exciting and exhilarating, but at the same time we do not want to be taken too far out of their comfort zone! We want to show our family, friends, colleagues and the rest of the world (through the help of social networking websites), that “I am very cultured”. Eating out at ethnic restaurants that do not match your ethnicity, demonstrates how adventurous you are, open minded, accepting and willing you are to try new cuisine. For some of us trying out new cuisines is a form of self-expression, for others it is merely to take a couple of bites of the ethnic food and post it on instagrams in order to display how “culturally invested you are”. In this premise, food is no longer enjoyed for itself. Food now takes a new form, where it displays a status. For instance, I am the only one in my family (including cousins) that loves sushi – this makes me more “culturally invested” then the rest of my family. 

Living in a world with a fast growing economy, globalization, commercialization, fetish-ism, commodification and mass mediation keeps us up to date with the daily news, what’s hot and what’s not in pop culture. The possibilities of obtaining information are enormous- from television, internet, radio, billboards, newspapers, magazines and so on are everywhere around us. These mediums, reproduce the Indian culture- from music, language, clothing style and food.