Fiesta time: Hotels gear up to keep diners happy
LUCKNOW: Given the Covid twist, outdoor Christmas celebration in the city is obviously going to be toned down this year.
Most roof-top dance floors won’t have jiving revellers. Malls have decked up their entrances and atriums but are not organising any energetic RJ anchored mass participation events for children or grownups.
Yet it would not be absolutely dull either, as restaurants, bars, cafes and lounges have done Christmas-themed preparations for menu and ambience.
With Covid in the air, people have altered plans. If the malls have deserted looks and no loud music, then all the major and minor parks have become exceedingly vibrant already.
“We came here to take a look if we can have a Christmas picnic here. This place looks perfect and vibrant. Parks, perhaps, are the only places which look festive.. Now it’s decided that my family along with five others will have a Christmas picnic here--be it fog or sunshine on the day,” said Dileep Arora at Janeshwar Mishra Park (JMP) in Gomti Nagar.
The JMP, Lohia Park, Globe Park and Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Sthal (Ambedkar Park) have already become overcrowded with festive outings.
“Pointless to give any views on crowd. You can see it yourself. Parks are open spaces, now there is no restriction on visitors.. So, these places are now out-of-the-home celebration hubs,” said an LDA official at the ticket counter at Lohia Park.
And inversely, a hotel in Gomti Nagar that had its dance floor active almost every day and overactive during festivals, is silent. “No, we have not organised any celebration this time. The dance floor will stay closed,” said the hotel’s event organiser.
But restaurants and hotels have done preparations as footfall is increasing gradually since they were allowed to open.
Malls are going in for special decor but avoiding big events to maintain social distancing. Yogendra Arya, general manager of a mall, said, “The decoration is in place so that our customers feel good. We are doing a CSR activity in which we will host kids from an orphanage for movie and snacks. Besides, there will be a small live band while Santa will gift goodies.”
A hotel in Gomti Nagar has organised a special evening to make Christmas memorable. “Celebrations start with Christmas Choir. It will be followed by piano performance which will be taken over by four-person live instrumental band. A gala spread has been organised which includes day’s specialty roast turkey with cranberry sauce, Yule log, plum pudding and more,” informed the hotel’s food and beverage director Shantanu Chakraborti.
Another Gomti Nagar hotel is holding a Christmas brunch and dinner on December 25. They are setting up a festival classic and a carving station at their restaurant with traditional roasted turkey and chicken. The five-star hotel had come up with a package for beverage and alcohol, informed Yashi Mishra.
Yet another dine-in and bar in Gomti Nagar has planned a DJ night for the eve and a brunch on the D-Day. “Specialties like rum-ball, mulled wine with dry fruit brownies, cold gunshots, live pizza-pasta stations and fresh fruit chocolate bar have been set up. Besides, guests in red-green will get vodka shots and those in redwhite surprise gifts,” informed chef Rohit Yadav.
Flipside: This Christmas, if you decide to dine out, getting a table in restaurants, bars and food courts would be easy.