Written for Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
House: Thunderbird
Class/Task Number: Cultural Studies. 2. [Food] traditional meal
Bonus Prompts:
[Setting] restaurant
[Object] chili
[quote] good food is very often, even most often, simple food
Word count: 1303/4500
Firangi Food Fest
Seamus, Dean and Lavender visit Parvati's restaurant
Parvati sighed happily as she looked up at the banner that hung from her very own restaurant, Firangi. She was incredibly proud of it. She'd worked for a long time to open her own restaurant in Diagon Alley.
The restaurant was located smack dab in the middle of the famous wizarding location. She'd had to work tirelessly for years to buy the building in which her new restaurant had opened its doors.
As she gazed up at the banner, her eyes filled with tears. If only her parents could see her now! They'd always encouraged her to follow her own dreams - unlike the rest of her Muggle Indian relatives who demanded why she hadn't chosen to become a doctor.
Padma walked up to her sister. "The place looks great, Paro!" Padma squealed as she pulled her twin sister into a tight hug.
"Thank you so much! I was just thinking about Mama and Papa," Parvati admitted, sadly.
"I'm sure they're just as proud of you as I am!" Padma murmured, as her eyes filled with tears.
The twins' parents had been killed in a Death Eater raid during the Second Wizarding War. Parvati and Padma had been at Hogwarts during that time, and hadn't found out about their parents' demise until they'd returned home after the Battle of Hogwarts.
It had been a very tough time for the twins, but they had relied on each other and the rest of the Dumbledore's Army to get through it.
"Is the gang coming over tonight?" Parvati inquired, hopefully.
"Yes, they said they wouldn't miss this for the world!" Padma smiled at her sister.
Dean and Seamus entered the restaurant an hour later. They were soon joined by Lavender.
"This place looks so good!" Lavender squealed, as she clasped her hands to her bosom.
"I love the decor Parvati chose for the place," Dean praised as he looked around the restaurant.
Near the entrance were a couple of black armchairs and a small chandelier for ambiance. A few counters were placed near them for people who weren't served yet. A medium-sized board that flashed the names of the food being served hung nearby. The walls were a beautiful mural of pastel colours enchanted to change every few minutes. The tables were placed strategically around the restaurant, and beautiful brightly-coloured chairs and stools were offered to the customers for their comfort. The ceiling was light-coloured; it made the area seem more expansive. Fairy lights floated over each table, twinkling and shimmering.
But the best part was the stained wall in the middle of the building - it was the piece de resistance. The wall was stained with muted, yet beautiful, colours which reflected the light all over the place.
"Grab the table in the corner," Seamus ordered Lavender, who quickly rushed over to the seat before anyone else could attempt to take it away.
Once the three were seated, Padma walked over and sat down beside Lavender.
"Hi, Padma," Lavender greeted her best friend's twin sister cheerfully.
"Hey, Lavender. Are you guys excited to order?" Padam asked, happily.
"Yeah, I'm starving!" Seamus complained.
"I refused to let him eat anything before we got here," Dean explained to the girls.
"That's a really good thing you did, Dean," Parvati said as she walked on over to them.
"And there she is, ladies and gentlemen, the star of the evening!" Seamus hooted as Lavender shot to her feet to hug Parvati tightly.
"Oh, you guys flatter me!" Parvati laughed as she slapped Seamus' shoulder.
"Congratulations on the restaurant, Parvati," Dean said, a grin on his face, as he leaned back in his chair.
"Thanks, guys!" Parvati beamed brightly.
"Are you guys ready to order?" Padma asked as she beckoned a server over.
"What'll you have?" asked the server.
"May I suggest something?" Parvati asked.
"Sure," Seamus said, immediately as he dropped the menu and turned to look at her.
"How about a traditional Indian meal?" Parvati suggested.
"What's in it?" Dean inquired politely.
"Well, a simple traditional meal would include lentils, rice or you could opt for a roti instead. You can have chutney or pickles with it," Parvati suggested.
"Is that naan bread?" Lavender asked. Both Parvati and Padma visibly winced at the words.
"It's either naan or bread. Naan literally means bread," Padma explained.
"Oh, I didn't know that," Lavender apologized quickly.
"I'll go for the traditional meal," Dean decided.
"What about you, Shay?" Parvati asked.
Seamus was busy reading the menu. There were a lot of Indian foods as well as British on the list. And Seamus felt indecisive.
"I'm actually in the mood for something more spicy than a plate of lentils and rice," he admitted.
"How.. spicy do you want your food?" Parvati asked.
"Pretty spicy. I love spicy food," he answered with a smirk.
"Are you sure? Most people can't handle the fiery taste of Indian food," Padma said.
"Yeah, I can handle it."
"Bring him a plate of haleem, then," Parvati ordered the server who stood patiently behind them.
"I'll have some fish and chips and beer," Lavender said, as she opted for the food least likely to scare her.
"I'll have the aloo paratha, please," Padma said.
The server left with the orders, and the friends started to chat about their lives. When the food arrived, they tucked into their delicious meal.
"How's the food, Dean?"
"It's good. I like the mixed pickles. They definitely add a bit of pizazz to the texture of the food," Dean answered.
"What about you, Lav?"
"This is really good," she praised happily.
"It's not spicy enough," Seamus admitted sheepishly when Parvati asked him if he liked his meal.
"What? Seriously? You could sprinkle some more garam masala and chillies over it," Parvati suggested.
"Great idea!" Seamus exclaimed before he emptied half of the spices onto his haleem.
"Are you serious?" Padma gasped as she watched Seamus pick up a chili and quickly chop it into several pieces before he added in more lemon.
Parvati had never seen anyone eat as much spices as Seamus had emptied onto his plate.
"Will you be able to eat that?" Lavender wondered out loud.
"Of course! Watch this!" Seamus announced before he started to eat the haleem with his tandoori naan. His friends watched with disbelief as he shovelled the food in his mouth and seemed to almost inhale it.
"That's not possible!" Parvati whispered, stunned.
"Even Papa never ate this much over-spicy food!" Padma blurted out.
"It can't be that spicy!" Lavender accidentally said.
"Want to try?" Seamus offered his plate to her.
Lavender hesitantly took a bite of the haleem and choked. It was definitely over-spicy! She had no idea how Seamus had managed to eat his food without destroying his taste buds. She grabbed her glass of water and chugged it down.
"Can't handle a little bit of heat, can you, Lavender?" Seamus teased as he took another bite of his food.
"You're off your rocker, Shay!" Lavender gasped as she poured herself another glass of water and chugged it down quickly.
"Oh, puh-lease! This is nothing!" Seamus laughed as he continued to eat.
"Let me try!" Dean quickly swiped in some haleem onto his spoon and tasted it.
"How are you even alive, Shay?" Dean howled as he quickly drank from his own glass and then grabbed Seamus' glass as well.
"You okay, Lav?" Parvati asked, worried.
Tears streamed down Lavender's face as she nodded weakly. "I'm good," she choked out, despite the obvious reddening of her nose.
Padma snickered as she watched her sister's friends argue over the acceptable level of spiciness in a meal.
Seamus deserved an award, she had to admit.
As she ate her own simple aloo paratha, she thought about how simple food made with love was the best food.
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