Gold-plated hamburger is selling in India
As a gold favorite, India is the second largest gold consumer in the world. Despite the impact of the pandemic, indians still bought up to 315.9 tons of gold jewelry in 2020, according to Bloomberg. Gold in India is commonly used in the culinary industry. Two hamburger cakes - American meatball patties - covered with eaten yellow leaves launched by Louis Burger restaurant in Mumbai since July 2021 have quickly become a fever in the market, selling out like 'fresh shrimp'.
The hamburger is called Louis Grand Royale and comes with two pieces of beef, shimeji mushrooms, truffle mushrooms and English-style cheddar cheese caught between two golden-plated cake shells and priced at $9.25.
The Truffle Take Burger - made from mushrooms, 2 types of cheese and truffle oil - costs 11.85 USD, equivalent to the average 2 days' salary of indians.
After seeing a too high demand from customers for the two new gold-plated dishes, Louis Burger plans to open new branches to distribute nationwide.
Tradition of golden sliced foods in India
The Indian people have long known to use gold as a decoration for food, from leaf gold, gold powder to thin 24k gold plates called Varq in Chinese. This tradition originated during the Mughal period in the 17th century, when chefs served dishes decorated with yellow or silver leaves to impress noble diners and kings.
This tradition is still continued until now. Gold is widely used to decorate every dish and drink, from dessert to main dishes.
During the holiday season, especially the biggest Hindu festival, shops are always flooded with gift baskets containing Vodq-covered fruits and nuts.
According to the revealed by the goldsmith Ram Deen based in New Delhi, gold leaf or Varq is created by using hammers to cut gold metal sheets for many days until it reaches a super-thin size of 8,000 millimeters. And only 22k to 24k gold is used in human food. The production process must be done in hygienic conditions to avoid pollution.
Although yellow leaves used in food processing are the world's most expensive item with prices up to 15,000 USD/500 grams, many gourmets are still willing to spend a lot of money to enjoy high-end gold dishes at luxury restaurants.
Varq restaurant in the 5-star Taj Mahal hotel in New Delhi is a favorite destination for top celebrities in India, including politicians and famous Bollywood stars.
With gold-plated wooden ceilings and custom-designed furniture, the restaurant has a grand menu filled with gold-plated dishes. The average price for each dish here is 13 USD.
Pradipt Sinha, director of food and beverage at Crowne Plaza Hotel in New Delhi, said: "Golden and silver leaves have been a rich cultural and culinary heritage of India for centuries."
Many people think that gold dishes are good for health. However, modern doctors and nutritionists say there is no evidence to confirm this, but eating gold or silver is not harmful to the body because they are in the bare form, so they will be eliminated from the human body.
