September ’25 Golf Course

In the land of high-rises and hustle, LFC Gurugram is serving up slow food and sharp opinions. Hyperlocal plates and friendships far from home are welcome, but no spreadsheets allowed!

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Photos by Host, Neha and Member, Shivali.

HOST

Neha Bawa

CO-HOST

Natasha Bhan

WHERE WE MET

Cup of Joy in Gurugram is a sunlit, book-lined café serving comfort food and coffee in a relaxed space that is perfect for slow afternoons.

What Members Said

Thanks everyone for making it to today’s potluck. It was great to see many new faces. I learnt about so many new ingredients and will keep my hunt on for finding such new/old desi ingredients.

Natasha

It was wonderful meeting every single one of you. Everyone’s views on food and ingredients were so deep, new, and enriching. Thanks for giving my thecha so much love—taking back an empty jar gave me so much joy.

Shivali

Thank you LFC for organizing today’s potluck! Everything was so well arranged, and I loved the warm and friendly vibe, and the variety of dishes.

Ashish

What We Loved

A colourful table of Desi Ingredients brought in by members, including the Karimunda pepper, an indigenous black pepper from Kerala prized for its sharp heat and complex aroma. Set among wild greens, grains, and pickles, it’s a snapshot of regional diversity in a single spread.

Black Limes, usually made from small, thin-skinned varieties are boiled in salted water and then sun-dried for several weeks until they turn hard, black, and deeply aromatic. The process concentrates their flavour, giving a smoky, tangy, and slightly fermented edge that’s used in stews, soups, and rice dishes.

Labneh Thecha Balls by Shivali blending homemade creamy labneh with the fiery crunch of a Maharashtrian thecha. Shaped here into bite-sized spheres that create a cross-regional twist to a classic.

MEET YOUR HOST

Neha Bawa, also known as Nikita, is a writer, poet, and part-time kitchen witch who spends her free time learning about new ingredients, reading cookbooks, and trying out recipes on weekends. She lives in New Delhi, landing here after wandering through three countries and a desert, collecting recipes, memories, and a significant disdain for small talk. The way to Neha's heart is through kindness and new ingredients. And if you bring her noodles, you can stay forever.

What does local mean to you?

Very literally, any ingredient found in the Indian subcontinent.

What is your most enduring food memory?

I still haven’t found it 🙂

What is the most adventurous food you've tried and loved?

B**f heart at a Peruvian restaurant.

If you were a seasonal ingredient, what would you be?

I would be a few—I would be all berries and I would be all leafy green vegetables.

How do you see your Local Food Club flourishing?

That’s a great question. I haven’t really put myself in the heart of the Gurgaon Local Food Club yet. I’ve shown up because I wanted to meet likeminded people and I’ve shown up for the co-hosting duties I signed up for. But the element of ownership hasn’t fully set in yet. But if I were to really think about it, then flourishing would look like a good long run of the food club that supports the Gurgaon community through local/seasonal food experiences and education.