MONTHLY MEETUPS
August 2026: The Desi Pantry
A snapshot into seven meetups across different cities.
In the second month of our quarterly theme Know Your Desi Ingredients, we focused on pantry staples. We dug into our kitchen shelves, and picked out ingredients that are dried, stored, preserved, fermented. From masalas and millets, to tea and coffee, we learnt more about the backbone of everyday cooking. Local Food Club (LFC) members came together across seven different cities, including Bhubaneswar, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Lucknow, and Thiruvanthapuram.
- At the monthly potluck, we challenged members to use everyday staples in unusual ways; experimenting with a savoury ingredient in a dessert, for instance.
City-Wise Recap
Explore how the LFC came alive in different parts of the country.
Hyderabad
Where We Met | Emotional Gym is a community space bringing together creativity, wellness, and meaningful experiences through workshops and events. They have created a space to learn, connect, express, and build community.
“Although it was only the two of us, we managed to make it like any other LFC meetup—sharing and talking about ingredients, and cooking. The people at the venue were encouraging, and we made tea (a pantry staple) together, served alongside beetroot halwa.”
Anurag
Bhubaneswar
Where We Met | Hotel Marigold.
“This was my first time attending an LFC meetup in Bhubaneswar. It was a great experience to meet like-minded people, and I enjoyed our conversations about food, ingredients and what everyone is doing around it.”
Satyajit
“There’s always something new to learn from everyone. The food briefs are always challenging. Special thanks to the ones who make an effort to keep it inclusive. The team games and activities were super fun. Kudos to our host and Super Locavore Rishi!”
Jinnie
“Such a killer meetup, thanks to Rishi. That quiz officially taught me that I am very competitive but I learned a ton. A shoutout to everyone who brought food—those dishes stole the show.”
Sayani
Kochi
Where We Met | Mattancherry Spice Market, Ernakulam district.
“From getting to know the fascinating world of local spices to hearing the stories behind them, every stop on our walk gave us something to appreciate about our rich heritage. To more walks, adventures, and stories together!”
LIZA
“I had a wonderful time, and loved the postcard as a keepsake. Thank you Nithin, for all your hard work, researching and planning the market. It was so nice to have everyone support and participate—a spice day done well!”
Shweta
Kolkata
Where We Met | Spiegel is a restaurant in Salt Lake that focuses on Bengali cuisine. They also revive forgotten Bengali recipes and traditions, reimagined with a contemporary twist.
“It was my first LFC meetup but I felt right at home. The quizzes and games were amazing, and the conversations were full of laughter and insights. Thanks Samudra for organising it.”
Varisha
“This was a one-of-a-kind experience. Not only did we bring food, but also shared our stories and culture. Samudra was an amazing host and I would love to be a part of more potlucks.”
Mahima
Thiruvananthapuram
Where We Met | Located in the heart of Thiruvananthapuram, Lemon Tree Premier hosts events that bring traditional flavours and curated experiences together.
“It was so interesting to hear about the different ways these everyday ingredients are used, and the food memories associated with them. Additionally, we played a game where we had to choose a pantry ingredient that best matched our personality. My pick was sabudana!”
Manju
Lucknow
Where We Met | Kaayastha Table is a supper club celebrating the recipes, stories, and traditions of Kaayastha families from Lucknow. A self-run, intimate experience bringing generations of food and culture to the table.
“We had lovely discussions about Parsi and Kaayastha food and ingredients, culture and cities.”
Manjari
“Thanks Chetna, Manjari, and everyone who came. It was a beautiful and delicious evening—with many new discoveries and friendships forged, and old ones revived. I left with a happy heart, and full stomach!”
Sumita
“We played many exciting activities, centered on daily staples, organised by our superlocavore, Manjari. I especially loved the recipe game”
Shreeja
Mumbai
Where We Met | UREST women is a hotel exclusively for women. Located in the heart of Mumbai, it is also owned and managed by an all women team.
“I had a wonderful time and got to meet many food enthusiasts. The quiz was wonderful and made us think on our toes. The recipe making sessions of podis were so interesting and informative.”
Pradnya
“Everyone seemed to be an experienced cook and shared their tips, tricks and recipes. We made a wide variety of dry chutneys like podi and metkut together. It’s always special to taste a bit of different people’s homes. The game where we guessed Indian staples was a lot of fun. Thank you for this community, and I hope it grows.”
Rishaya
Behind every Local Food Club (LFC) gathering are people quietly making it all happen—our Super Locavores (SLs)! They are our generous stewards behind the LFC community keeping it together with care, intention, and several behind-the-scenes efforts.
We would like to thank the SLs for making the meetups meaningful and memorable for the community. Meet your SLs here.
The Local Food Club (LFC) is a nation-wide, community-led initiative facilitated by The Locavore. Our attempt is to create meaningful change in our local food systems by nurturing connections, sharing learnings, and enabling collective action. Learn more about how it works, here. To be a part of more such events and conversations, sign up to join the Local Food Club!
We would love to hear from you. Share your feedback, leave a testimonial, and tell us what more we could be doing to make the Local Food Club better! Write to us at connect@localfoodclub.in.
