Flour Power: A movement against mediocre food at inflated prices
All the insider and tasty food videos from around the world which we keep watching like literal addicts on every social media possible has made us Bangladeshis curious about the different cuisines out there. But most restaurants in our country murder the authentic essence of these cuisines. The palate that we have for Chinese or Thai for example, is totally foreign to the actual Thai and Chinese population. Seriously, just offer Thai soup to a Thai citizen, or don’t on a second thought. That poor lad might not be ready for the trauma.
So Chinese citizen Zhao Yanxian and her Bangladeshi husband Shaman Shahid living in Bashundhara thought of the sweetest initiative to do some justice to the desires of the locals. Their small home delivery food service “Flour Power” is their dream to save the Bangladeshis from the distorted so-called foreign cuisines in the country. Their speciality contains the street food of different countries like China, Japan, England etc. To them, to understand a cuisine, it is very important to try the street food because this is what truly reflects the regular lifestyle of the people of the country.
When asked, Yanxian mentioned that they started this food service just in October 2017 with a small kitchen in Bashundhara and has already gained popularity in the neighbourhood. Yanxian came to Bangladesh in 2011 and really loves Bangladeshi cuisine. But like any other Chinese, she found no authenticity in the Chinese food of the local restaurants in Dhaka. This is what inspired her to open this food service to give the locals an idea about what really these cuisines are.
The couple came up with the name from the Flower Power slogan used in the 60s and 70s as a symbol of non-violence and peaceful ideology against wars. To them, Flour is the most important ingredient which made extraordinary evolution in food industry all over the world.
Yanxian thinks that her recipes not only reflects the authentic flavour but also is a fusion of local flavour with the original, making a bridge between countries and presenting food that will be acceptable to the local palate. According to her, people here spend a lot on food but they barely get the desired quality. Flour Power is also a revolt against this unfair mediocre food at inflated prices, as highlighted on their Facebook page. The price range is just between ৳50 and ৳200 which is quite a dream in Bangladesh.
When asked about future plans, Yanxian states that they have no plans to open a restaurant. To her, the time and effort people have to put to come to a restaurant is really not worth it considering the traffic conditions of the country. She rather believes in relaxing in the couch and having a bite. Flour Power only delivers in the Bashundhara area for now. The delivery is free for orders over ৳150 and they also deliver outside Bashundhara for big orders. But they do plan to open kitchens all over Dhaka eventually.
The couple hopes that people around will try out their food and will also help them to make their dream come true.
You can find all about Flour Power on Harriken by accessing this link.
