Aaheli: Reviving Tradition with a Green Twist

Take the legacy restaurant at our Peerless Hotel, Aaheli, for example. Long revered
as the custodian of Bengal's gastronomic traditions, Aaheli is spearheading the movement to
embrace sustainable eating – a movement that goes much beyond greenwashing in the form of
token gestures, but adopts a holistic approach to eco-friendliness, to being environmentally correct
in the palette.

First step is to select sustainable food resources locally

At Aaheli, the journey begins with the sourcing of sustainable food resources and ingredients. Local sourcing is more environmentally friendly due to reduced transportation distances, which naturally reduces carbon emissions. There is also another aspect to it. It also leads to the boosting of a sustainable economy through local job creation. For example, Goyna or Gahona Bodi is a very traditional fry that is usually served with daal. It is also made of ground daal. Making them is a very laborious process, and they taste the best when made using the traditional method. It is very difficult to source authentic tasting goyna  bodi from the market these days, and most of what is sold in the market is machine dried instead of under the sun, leading to a higher carbon footprint. It also compromises the authenticity of the taste. Committed as we are to bringing to your table sustainable and authentic Bengali dishes, we have tied up with a woman entrepreneur from Midnapore who makes these bodies at home for us.
 

As an important backward integration move, we are in touch with the farming communities from where we source our ingredients. We help them incorporate Innovative new farming techniques and regenerative agriculture to not only increase efficiencies but also to substantially reduce carbon footprint. We encourage prioritisation of soil health and reduced reliance on synthetic inputs. We have full supply chain visibility and are aware of where our materials come from and how long they are in transit. This helps us assess our sourcing strategy continuously.

Then cooking it right 

Every dish that is served at any of the multiple Aaheli locations is cooked just right -- our master chefs have perfected the art of blending quality, quantity, nutritional value, and taste, which ensures the least amount of wastage. The disposal of waste, too, is something that is approached with an open mind, and recycling is a practice that is ingrained into the system.

Sustainability, however, is not a term that has been imported into Bengali Cuisine. Sustainable Bengali dishes have been in currency long before the term was even coined. Every course in a meal is therefore the perfected synthesis of a thought process that ensures not only a complete epicurean satisfaction but also is an exercise that is one with nature. At Aaheli, for example, plastic water bottles are an anathema, and biodegradable banana leaves and earthenware are often used to serve the delectable spread. 

Freshness counts the most

Bengal, being an agrarian economy, has witnessed the evolution of its culinary traditions around the freshest of ingredients. Aaheli, paying tribute to these timeless traditions and techniques, not only lays an obsessive amount of stress on purity and freshness, but also strictly adheres to a philosophy of sourcing directly from the producers, thereby eliminating middlemen, delivery time, and any possibility of adulteration. All spices at Aaheli, for example, are ground in-house, and market-sourced, packaged spices are abhorred. 

It is not for nothing that Aaheli is the go-to Bengali food restaurant. It is not for nothing that Aaheli is acknowledged as the top Bengali cuisine restaurant in Kolkata. It is not for nothing that Aaheli is considered to be the most sustainable eatery, one that is not only helping revive the rich legacy of Bengali cuisine but is also garnishing it with eco-friendliness and sustainability, in a quiet but bold statement about climate change.

Aaheli is focused on sustainability, eco-friendliness and supporting the local economy and job creation. From the supply chain to the final service, each single step is defined by our commitment to a green economy.