Our first Business Traveller event of the decade took place in January at Kahani restaurant, close to London’s Sloane Square. The evening was hosted by Business Traveller editorial director Tom Otley in the restaurant’s private room, but not before a champagne reception at the bar gave attendees the chance to mingle and relax after the day’s work.
The inspiration for Kahani, which means “story” in Hindi, comes from chef Peter Joseph’s childhood in Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India, when his mother would cook wholesome meals for the family enjoyed over storytelling. Opened in September 2018, Kahani has already made its mark in Chelsea and has a Michelin star in its sights. The luxurious and contemporary Indian restaurant is a hidden treasure below street level, opposite the historic Cadogan Hall on Wilbraham Place, and unites Peter’s two home countries, India and England.
Compared with many of our events, this was intimate – just 14 guests, which gave everyone the chance to meet one another over some fabulous food, including vegetarian and vegan options (it was Veganuary for Tom). The menu included sharing starters of spiced green pea cake with cumin, ginger and chilli, served with cranberry chutney; and grilled stone bass coated with browned garlic, with sundried tomato purée. Main courses included chargrilled chicken tossed with red onions, tomato and fenugreek leaves; and braised lamb, fragrant rice, exotic spices, mint and coriander. For those who still had room, there was raspberry and mint cheesecake or strawberry sorbet.
The night wrapped up slightly later than billed, and many guests were already looking forward to the next Business Traveller event – these include a dinner at Charlie’s at Brown’s Hotel in Mayfair (March 9) and an evening with Theo Randall at the Intercontinental London Park Lane (March 31).
These events will be followed by the annual tasting of the winning wines from our Cellars in the Sky Awards (see page 32). To register your interest and find out more about future events, visit businesstravellerevents.com.
