Friday, October 12, 2012

DARWIN IN THE GRIP OF CURRY WAR

Unnoticed by the local media gourmets  is a price war in places dealing in Indian tucker . Two businesses , one off the Smith Street Mall and another long established cafe in the Nightcliff village , have closed their doors. The Nightcliff premises  are  in the process of being converted into an eatery specialising in good old Australian meals. A supermarket at Tiwi, now owned by Indians ,  has  added  national dishes  to  its takeaways ; a mobile canteen that visits construction sites has an Indian connection. It is self evident that there has been an increase in the Indian population in Darwin and it is suggested this is  responsible for the competition on the vindaloo  front. On the Asian food side , the “ food enhancer” MSG, which gives some people  headaches and  makes  some feel hungry after a meal,  is widely used in Darwin cafes and markets- surely  both  these   situations  are ideal subjects for  ABC TV reports, or anybody else in the Press corps , a group renowned for flashing their  fangs like whitepointers  at free PR banquets