Cookifi and Your Next Party

The husband and I are fairly social people. We love going out as much as having people over. Whenever we host an evening at home, our responsibilities are well defined – cleaning done by both, he is in charge of the bar, while the kitchen is my domain. I guess that would be the case in most households. A few weeks ago we had family over, and me being me, decided to cook that evening. The concept for the evening was simple – everybody loves starters and it goes great with the drinks that flow. That was enough for me to go overboard with them. The main course, of course, was a simple Biryani. I love making desserts and decided that I would have a dessert bar with all the desserts presented beautifully. I loved putting everything together, but the only problem was that I had no idea what was happening in the living room when the guests were there. I would sit for a minute and run back in to get a fresh round of starters or make sure whatever is on the gas does not get burnt. Although the party was a hit, I hardly remember talking to anyone. That isn’t really the reason why you had invited people over right? Yes, it did occur to me that  I could have ordered from outside, but it just does not feel the same.

This was just one of the  many evenings we’ve hosted in our house where one of us haven’t been able to be an active part of the get together. That’s where Cookifi comes to your rescue. Ajay and Prachi Modani and Harsh Singla have created a platform where you can hire a cook for you party who will be your Mary Poppins for the evening and conjure up a wide variety of delicacies and relieve you from all the kitchen stress. Perfect for the urban party thrower’s dream!

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Ajay and Prachi started Cookifi in 2015 along with Harsh targeting the urban professionals who love to entertain and/or sometimes really don’t feel like entering their kitchens after a long day at work. Cookifi has an army to chefs to take over your kitchen just when you need them. The Cookifi chefs can be hired from their website or mobile app before your party, they come in with the ingredients and the experience to allow you to have the fun evening that you had been planning all along.

Cookifi offers a wide variety of options in terms of menu selections and budgets to suit your needs. Whether its your kid’s birthday party, or your own birthday party, a themed party, a festival or just a quiet dinner with that special someone, Cookifi has got you covered. All you need to do is to give them a buzz and be ready to have some amazing food. They also offer Cooks on Demand, which would take care of you immidiate cooking needs. You need to give them a half an hour notice and viola! your personal chef will be at your doorstep. 

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A few cuisine choices from the Cookifi website

The chefs that are hired by Cookifi are all extremely well trained. The training includes learning the variety of cuisine that Cookifi offers, dealing with the varied sizes of gathering, and maintaining hygienic conditions in the kitchen while maintaining their own personal hygiene, among other things. The chefs have all had a rigorous background check before they’re handed their chef whites which makes it more comfortable for us to invite them into our homes.  

To demonstrate exactly how Cookifi works, the owners had a brilliant idea – a dinner party! They opened their doors to a few of the bloggers of the Food Bloggers Association, Bangalore on a Staurday night.

The Cookifi Curated Evening

The evening at the ‘Cookifi home’ (as I would like to call it) is what most dinner parties are like – warm hosts, flowing conversations and a delectable menu. For once, the hosts were not in the kitchen and hanging with us. We were fortunate to meet the entire team of Cookifi – Ajay, Prachi, Harsh and their chef Kushal. Post the introduction to Cookifi, we were ready to get the party started.

The menu was a mixture of Italian and Indian (mixing up cuisines seamlessly is one of Cookifi’s fortes). Italian cuisine is one of my favorites and starting with Bruschetta, The Little Lotta couldn’t contain her excitement!

Italian food is so rich in colour and simple flavours that the food bloggers and photographers had a field day. The freshness of the ingredients and care with which the food was prepared was very evident with every bite. The starters were a wonderful example of how professional and highly trained the chefs are.

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Mesclun Salad with Berry – I absolutely love salads and this one is on top of my list of favourite salads. Every bite was brimming with freshness and the lone berry packed a tangy punch.
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Cucumber Mascarpone Rolls – A beautiful roll with cucumber strips skewered with olives and mascarpone cheese topped with pomegranate
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Tomato Mozzarella Skewers – Simple and elegant. A dish that truly transports you to Italy.
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Corn Cheese Balls with Sweet Chili Sauce – How can you go wrong with this one?? Always a party favourite. It is a tricky dish to make, but the chefs demonstrated their proficiency by getting these absolutely spot on!

If the starters weren’t enough, the hosts put together one of their famous live counters – The pasta counters. The minute you tell anyone that there is a counter where you can customize what you want to have, you can see the most mature person transform into a child. There is something so exciting about having a live counter in your parties and we were more than excited!

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This was still not the main course! The main course included chicken Biryani, which unfortunately I could not have. I was just so stuffed with the excitement of having my pasta prepared just for me, just the way I like it.

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The cherry on the top was the dessert – Malpua and Rabdi shots.

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Malpua and Rabdi Shots

Serving desserts in small helpings is one of my absolute favourite things to do. It adds so much glamour to your desserts and I have to say, it somehow makes the desserts tastes better as well. We do eat with our eyes too right?

My Two Cents: Cookifi is an inspired idea. To have someone completely take over the kitchen while you have guests over is a huge stress buster. Unlike the regular caterers, the food you serve is made fresh from scratch and right in your kitchen. You are aware of everything that goes into every dish and is definitely a healthier option for the ever so conscious urban populace of today. You are not limited with the choice of cuisines that can be offered to the guests. The menu and the budget is completely customizable. The food that was served is made with the freshest of ingredients and with absolute precision. Even on those days when you don’t feel like entering the kitchen, but do not feel like ordering in, hiring a Cookifi chef for the evening is money well spent. They aim to bring in new concepts for the menu for the festive season that is round the corner and I can see more than just a few Diwali parties with these guys on board.

Check out Cookifi here

Website: www.cookifi.com
Facebook : www.facebook.com/cookifiapp
Twitter : twitter.com/cookifiapp
Instagram : www.instagram.com/cookifi_app

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I would like to thank the Cookifi team and Food Blogger’s Association, Bangalore for having me over for this wonderful evening. The opinions, as always, are all mine!