KOCHI: Even as the countries around the world are coming out strongly against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, some restaurants in Kochi are doing their bit to condemn the war. A couple of cafes in the city have taken off Russian dishes from their menus to express solidarity with the people of Ukraine.
The photographs of the message board in front of Kashi Art Cafe and Gallery at Fort Kochi have gone viral on social media. The message read "In solidarity with people of Ukraine we have removed 'Russian Salad' from our menu".
Edgar Pinto, the owner, said, "We wanted to stand with humanity and wanted it to prevail. Through our action, we wanted to condemn Russia’s monstrous attack on innocent people."
As for their action going viral on social media, Edgar said, "We didn’t take such a step anticipating such a response. It was not a publicity stunt. All we wanted was to say no to war. We are art lovers and hence believe in freedom of expression. This was our way of showing support to the people of Ukraine."
He said they don’t hate Russia "but are against its action that has led to the death of many innocent people".
A similar step was taken by Mocha Art Cafe at Mattanchery. The cafe took off the Russian dish called Bilini, which is a savoury pancake made with leavened batter. According to owner Junaid Sulaiman, it was a dastardly action by Russia.
"The situation is sad. No country can give a satisfactory explanation for invading another country and killing innocent people," he said. The menu board in front of the cafe read 'In solidarity with people of Ukraine we have removed Russian food from our menu'.