New Delhi: As a special gesture, Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee hosted a private dinner for Iranian President Seyyed Mohammad Khatami at his official residence on January 24 night shortly after his arrival on a five-day visit.

Specially prepared by ITDC, for starters, the dignitaries were served with raan alishan (baby lamb cooked in tandoor), murg hazarvi (marinated chicken with cheese cream), which was followed by mouth-watering murg badam pasanda and ghost seekh kabab masala with gulnar biryani.

For those preferring vegetarian dishes, there was bhindi kurkuri, dam aloo banarsi and dal frontier. Garam kala jamun, fresh orange souffle, fresh fruits, ending it with South Indian coffee.

External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha, Ministers of State Digvijay Singh and Vijay Goel, Principal Secretary to PM Brajesh Mishra, Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal and India's Ambassador to Iran were among those present.

PTI