(Top) Chef Surinder Singh with a display of crespelles at Taj Bengal; a variety of salads at Pizza Hut. Pictures by Rashbehari Das

Crespelles ? or crepes ? are from Italy, not France, as most people believe. According to culinary legend, a couple of Frenchmen were invited for dinner in Italy and fell in love with the creations, took the recipe back to France. There, the name changed to ?crepes?, explains Taj Bengal executive chef Surinder Singh.

To set the record straight, The Hub is hosting an exotic Crespelles Campari festival, on till the end of the month.

Vegetarians can sample crepes in a number of styles ? with porcini mushroom, parmesan and mascarpone; spinach, ricotta and nutmeg or grilled vegetables and basil pine nut sauce, among others.

For meat and seafood lovers, the thin pancakes go well with prawns, garlic, onion, chilli flakes, cherry tomato and basil sauce; chicken supreme and pommery cream sauce or red wine, steak and red onion.

A complementary glass of Campari accompanies every festive meal at the Italian restaurant.

Salad savour

Pizza Hut, the world?s largest pizza chain, has introduced some tasty greens for health-conscious foodies. Zero Gravity Salads are meant to provide balance to an otherwise heavy pizza meal.

?Summer is an especially great time for salads and they liven up a Pizza Hut dining experience,? said Pankaj Batra, director, marketing, Yum! Restaurants International. ?Our decision to introduce a wider range of salads to our menu is a move to meet customer expectations.?

There are two options each for vegetarians and non-vegetarians. The Garden Salad includes broccoli, cherry tomatoes, capsicum, pickled cucumber, American corn and pineapple tossed together in an Italian herb dressing. The Pasta Mint Salad is a macaroni salad, with mint, diced pineapple, tomato and lettuce, tossed in Vinaigrette dressing and pineapple juice.

Non-vegetarians can choose from the Chicken Caesar Salad (smoked chicken breast served on a bed of green lettuce, with capsicum, broccoli, pickled cucumber and American corn, tossed in classic Caesar dressing) or Tropical Chicken Salad (lettuce with diced chicken, cherry tomatoes, capsicum, black olives and pineapple tossed in Thousand Island dressing).

The price pinch for these summer salads is almost as negligible as the calories they might add, at between Rs 50 and Rs 75.