Vermilion Hosts A Lunchon And Dialogue With Madhur Jaffrey

VERMILION WELCOMES MADHUR JAFFREY, THE DOYEN OF INDIAN COOKING AND CULTURE, FOR A SPECIAL LUNCHEON IN CELEBRATION OF CLIMBING THE MANGO TREES, AND INDIAN CUISINE IN THE U.S.

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 13 FROM 12-2 P.M.

CHICAGO, Ill. (December 5, 2006) - On Wednesday, December 13, Owner Rohini Dey of Vermilion restaurant (10 W. Hubbard St.) and the America India Foundation (AIF) are honored to welcome Madhur Jaffrey, James Beard award-winning author and Bollywood and Broadway actress, for a special luncheon in conjunction with her latest book, Climbing the Mango Trees (Random House, 2006), and the celebration of Indian cuisine in the U.S. The afternoon will take place from 12 to 2 p.m., featuring a three-course luncheon prepared by Executive Chef Maneet Chauhan, and highlighted by a not-to-be-missed program, which includes:

12 to 12:30 p.m.
Panel Discussion - "Bringing Indian Cuisine to the U.S.: Two Perspectives"
Featuring Owner Rohini Dey and Author Madhur Jaffrey,
Moderated by Rami Randhawa

12:30 to 1 p.m.
Reading from Climbing the Mango Trees by Madhur Jaffrey

1 to 2 p.m.
One-on-One Conversations between Guests and Madhur Jaffrey

"We are so pleased to collaborate with Madhur Jaffrey," says Owner Rohini Dey. "Since opening Vermilion, we have hosted spirited book launches for lauded authors such as Pulitzer finalist Suketu Mehta and Pen Award winner Chitra Divakaruni. To continue this tradition with Madhur Jaffrey is a true honor and equally demonstrative of our commitment to the expression of both Indian and Latin culture at our restaurant - through literature, art, film and fashion."

The cost to attend this event is $35 per person, all inclusive. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling (312) 527-4060.

About Madhur Jaffrey
As an actress, TV presenter and writer, Madhur Jaffrey has many strings to her bow, but it is for her cookery that she's best known. Ironically, as a child she never went into the kitchen and when she left India, she couldn't even cook.
Born in Delhi, Madhur Jaffrey came to the UK at the age of 19 to pursue her passion for acting by studying drama at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. It was here that her love of cooking began, though more through necessity than anything else.
While in London, she desperately missed Indian home-cooked food, so she started writing letters to her mother asking her how to cook different dishes. Her mother would regularly send her recipes so effectively that she learned to cook by correspondence.
After graduating from RADA, she acted in TV, film and radio productions, but then left England and headed to New York where she began to write food articles as a way of supplementing her income and to help get her children through school. Then came her hugely successful books and accompanying TV programs.
With four decades of culinary experience behind her, it's the straight-talking clarity of her language that makes her books so successful. She unravels the mysteries of Indian food and says her aim is to keep things simple and easy to follow and, as she only started to cook when she was 20, she writes from the perspective of someone who had to teach herself and is aware of all the difficulties presented in the kitchen.
Madhur Jaffrey is the author of many previous cookbooks, including the classic An Invitation to Indian Cooking and Madhur Jaffrey's Taste of the Far East, which was voted Best International Cookbook and Book of the Year in 1993 by the James Beard Foundation. She is also an award-winning actress with numerous major motion pictures to her credit. She lives in New York City.

About Vermilion
Vermilion is the antithesis to the traditional genre of Indian restaurants in the United States. Energizing and passionate, its culinary premise seamlessly marries Latin and Indian ingredients that constantly surpri