Itinerary at a Glance
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Arrival at Bagdogra Airport by afternoon. Chauffeured Car Pick Up
2.5-3 hr Drive to the charming town of Kalimpong nestled in the Himalayan foothills; Scene of a quiet food revolution proudly championing local ingredients, traditions and terroir and ranging from coffee to seasonal greens and more.
Check in to the classic Hotel Mayfair or Elgin Silver Oaks or similar.
Fermentation Workshop with local restaurateur & food writer Ishita Rai -Gundruk , Kinema, Pickles, Churpi, Sel Roti.
Curated Kalimpong (confluence of Bhutanese, Tibetan, Nepali, Chinese) dinner at Cloud 9 Himalayan Kitchen
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Visit to Kalimpong Haat and Organic Food Market for farm-grown vegetables, herbs, local produce , homemade pickles and delicious snacks
Drive to Glenburn Tea Estate ( 1.5 hours). Check in to your luxury suite
Al Fresco Lunch under the Old Pomelo tree with local specialities like Perilla Chutney, Stinging Nettle Soup, local pork, country chicken, vegetables
Thongba ( millet beer) tasting
High Tea at the 110 year old Burra Bungalow, with freshly baked cakes and savouries
Explore the gardens and the village, relax in the various cozy nooks, enjoy the sunset. Beautiful views of Kanchenjunga on a clear day.
Brainstorming Session and Groupings with fellow Chefs for Saturday’s Grand Cookout
Tibetan & Chinese themed dinner in the elegant Dining Room.
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Tea Plantation and Factory Tour; Premium Darjeeling Tea Tasting Sessions
Nature Walk down to the river; foraging in the hills and forests on the way - discover mushrooms, wild gooseberry, tamarillos, stinging nettle and more
BBQ at the campsite by the roaring River Rungeet; cooking with fellow chefs; grilling mountain trout, meats and vegetables on open firewood
Evening Cocktails: Planning & Prep for tomorrow’s Grand Cookout
Tea Themed Dinner by Chef Shaun Kenworthy
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Sustainability in Mountain Cuisine / Sourcing Ingredients from the hills - a session over breakfast
Foraging in the hills and forests Part 2 ; discover blue turmeric, drooping fig, sawtooth coriander and more
Nepali Lunch at the Glenburn Orchard - cooking on clay stoves with a Nepali family
Prep & Planning for the evening
Grand Cookout on the Estate lawns
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Check out on Tuesday September 3. Drop at Bagdogra airport.
For more details see www.gormeitravel.com/chefs-retreat
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Flights & Visa Info
Here are some details that will help you plan your flight itinerary.
Incoming flight
Nearest airport: Bagdogra ( IXB) - flights from Kolkata (50 mins), Delhi ( 2 hours), Mumbai ( 2.5 hours ), Bengaluru (3 hrs)
You are requested to arrive at Bagdogra airport latest by 2 pm on Friday Aug 30. The program starts with your chauffeured car pick up from Bagdogra airport and drive to Kalimpong ( 2.5-3 hours).
Departure Flight
The departure flight from Bagdogra should ideally be after 12 pm on Tuesday Sep 3, as the drive from Glenburn TE to the airport will take 3 hrs.
International Guests
As you will be travelling from outside India, you will have to connect at one of the above airports. Please keep enough time (at least 3 hrs) to clear customs and immigration at the connecting airport.
Please remember to apply for an Indian Visa ahead of time. You can apply through a travel agent or through the online links below:
Hong Kong: https://indianvisaonline.gov.in/evisa/Registration or check Indian Consulate in Hong Kong https://cgihk.gov.in/page/visa-information/
A few tips:
1) Please choose Tourist Visa.
2) Destination Hotel Address: Glenburn Tea Estate & Boutique Hotel, near Singritan, Darjeeling, Kambal Tea Garden, West Bengal 734101
3) Local reference: Argha Sen, 183/1A Park Street. Park Apartments. Kolkata 700017. Phone No. +91 7044800150
4) For the question on profession, please choose “CHEF”. (Never choose the “MEDIA” option)
Option for Stay in Kolkata
For guests who want to explore the nearby city of Kolkata either before or after the Chefs Retreat, we would be happy to facilitate a stay with special rates at The Glenburn Penthouse, a luxury boutique hotel in the heart of Kolkata,
https://www.glenburnpenthouse.com/
For any clarifications please email katherine@gormeitravel.com
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Location & Weather
Kalimpong and Darjeeling are east Indian hill towns in the Himalayan foothills of West Bengal. In fact, Darjeeling, which was once a summer resort for the British Raj elite, produces the world’s finest teas, known as the “Champagne of Teas.”
While the town of Kalimpong is located at an altitude of 4,100 ft, elevations at the Glenburn Tea Estate in Darjeeling range from 3,230 ft at the Bungalows down to 800 ft down at The Camp near the rivers.
Temperatures during the end of August and early September can range from average highs of 25 C to lows of 19 C. . While summer clothes should be sufficient most of the time, a light sweater or woollen wrap might be useful at night or when the weather cools down after a shower. In general, it is a good idea to dress in layers when visiting Darjeeling, as temperatures can fluctuate throughout the day. When exploring the tea gardens or foraging or going on a trek, it is also advisable to wear comfortable and practical clothing and footwear and sometimes carry rain gear. Our Retreat falls during the end of the monsoon period, so some rainfall is expected and the terrain during foraging could be slightly wet. On the other hand this is the time when nature is at its lushest and bountiful best.
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What to Pack
Bearing in mind the weather and activities involved, here’s what we suggest guests should pack:
Proper shoes for light hiking, water resistant, preferably.
Light and waterproof clothing.
Sun block, sunglasses and insect repellant (for the camp site/river areas). Due to its mountain location, mosquitoes are not a problem here. However, there can be mosquitoes and midges down by the river. Regular spraying takes place to combat any possible 'pest' problem that arises and mosquito coils are plentiful.
A light sweater/wrap in the summer/monsoon months when temperatures could drop after rain.
Any OTC and prescription medicines that you might need. Also for guests prone to motion sickness, do carry motion sickness pills.
A Universal Travel Adapter for charging electronics.
We will be having a friendly Cook Off between the chefs, either by the riverside or on the lawns of Glenburn TE. If you want to showcase or cook with any of your special ingredients, please feel free to bring them. I, as a Chinese chef in India, definitely plan to cook the crowd-favourite Chilli Chicken!
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Your Accommodation
Kalimpong
Guests will spend the first night in Kalimpong in either of these properties or similar.
The Mayfair Himalayan Spa Resort, Kalimpong
Built in the early 1900s amidst the cloud kissed summits, the Mayfair Himalayan Spa Resort boasts of spacious rooms adorned with antique furniture and regal architecture.
.https://www.mayfairhotels.com/himalayan-spa-resort-kalimpong/
The Elgin Silver Oaks Heritage Resort & Spa, Kalimpong
A luxury boutique heritage resort in the Himalayas that was built in the 1930s, The Elgin provides the best in luxury and comfort by integrating modern amenities tastefully with its heritage decor. The property is also decked with lithographs of old masters, period furniture and bookshelves with handpicked publications.
Darjeeling
The following 3 nights will be at the super luxurious Glenburn Tea Estate & Boutique Hotel, run by the The Prakashes, one of India's pioneering tea-planting families who have over the years come to be known as the “Chaiwala family“ - which literally means “tea planters“. Glenburn is a heavenly little plantation retreat that lies on a hillock above the banks of the River Rungeet, high in the Himalayas, overlooked by the mighty Kanchenjunga mountain range. The super spacious rooms feature antique furniture and old Burma teak flooring, hand embroidered bed linen and arched skylights.
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Cooking & Gastronomy
As a chef who recently visited the town of Kalimpong and Darjeeling said ‘There’s never a bad meal in the hills! Everything tastes so fresh and hyperlocal!”
While the goal of this Chefs Retreat is for fellow chefs to meet and mingle, learn about local fermentation, the mountain ingredients and how locals cook with them, the highlight will also be the thoughtfully curated meals.
At the Glenburn TE, the chefs bake their own breads, cakes and cookies. Guests have even been known to barter recipes with the chefs!! They also have resident cows who supply the milk used to make yoghurt, paneer, etc.
While all the meals will be special, some that require a mention are:
The meal after the fermentation class by chef/restaurateur Ishita Rai in Kalimpong, which will have all the ingredients from the class, like kinema (fermented soybeans), gundruk (fermented & dried mustard leaves), churpi (local cheese), pickled tender babooshoot and dalley (local spicy chilli).
The tea-themed meal that will include cooking with fresh, pickled and smoked tea leaves!
The hyper-local meal with some foraged ingredients like the stinging nettle, fiddlehead fern, perilla seeds, etc
The campsite barbeque beside a roaring river
The Nepali meal up in the orchard, cooked by a Nepali family on ‘chulhas’ or clay stoves
In the town of Kalimpong, where a quiet food revolution has been taking place championing terroir, local produce, foraging and artisanal processes like fermentation and cheese making , here’s a great read on WHERE CHEFS EAT by local restaurateur Ishita Rai who will be with us during the tour.
Another highlight in Kalimpong is the early morning visit to the local weekend market where farmers and food producers from neighbouring villages gather to sell their produce. These are people who are passionate about growing and selling healthy and seasonal food, and they are always happy to talk about their products, from organic vegetables, ghee, churpi (cheese), honey, fermented pastes, dalle chillies, dairy, animal products. And it’s a feast as well - there are stalls selling freshly cooked momos, thukpa, taipo, laphing, phambi, soups and other Tibetan, Nepalese and hill dishes.
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