With four Indian chefs a part of the Global Chefs Exchange 2011 in Singapore, India’s own Masterchef show and
diners becoming increasingly savvy, India’s F&B story is fast becoming one to reckon with.
The plot thickens – The Westin Gurgaon opened last December with eight F&B outlets, Sarovar has plans to take
its Geoffrey’s brand global and Lebua has tied up with a Hollywood producer to roll out a dramatic F&B service
process and concept.
And competition over India’s growing F&B pie is likely to get stiffer as novel concepts come in. Manav
Thadani, chairman, HVS says, “We’re launching HVS F&B services next year and it will do everything from
concept planning to development to actually opening the restaurant both inside and outside hotels – I can’t
disclose publically but I have someone key who has set up restaurants at hotels and standalones which are
running very successfully.” The new arm at HVS will be “handholding” only up to opening stage
but will also have a restaurant management company. “If you have the owner’s confidence in creating their
restaurant concept, training staff and developing SOPs chances are that once open, he’ll be happy to have you
run it. We’re open to creating new brands or working on existing brands,” says Thadani.
There are other new concepts coming in as well. Homi Aibara, partner and consultant, Mahajan & Aibara says,
“At the MGM Grand in Vegas half the restaurants are not their own. Franchising is becoming very important. It
could come in during 2012 – we’re presently negotiating a contract for a certain new type of beer concept, not
a micro-brewery but I can’t divulge more right now. Its confidential but will come in during 2012. We’ll pay a
franchise fee, it will stay in the operator’s hotel but it’ll be a famous brand.”
