Three chefs and niche dining experience

Their restaurants might be packed, and reservations might be next to impossible to get, but for Chefs Kavan Kuttaapa, Hussain Shahzad, and Vinesh Johny who were in conversation with Shonali Muthalaly, Editor, MetroPlus and The Hindu Weekend at The Hindu Lit For Life, this never featured in their grand scheme of things as they set out to carve a niche for themselves in the food industry.

“None of us ever opened restaurants or cooked with the intention of wanting people to come and brag that they ate here. We create with the intention of wanting to put our best work out there, cook a delicious meal and give our diners an amazing experience,” said Chef Hussain, executive chef, Hunger Inc Hospitality, the company behind some of the hottest restaurants in India currently, including Papa’s and Veronica’s in Mumbai.

“Being in hospitality and F&B industry is tough, there is a lot of sacrifice that goes beyond running a restaurant in this country and most of it goes unseen, social media only shows the glamour. Running an amazing restaurant requires a village to come together, it is a collaboration,” Hussain said.

The hugely popular 20-seater noodle bar, Naru, Chef Kavan revealed, was born out of his wanting to open a small ramen shop like the ones he loved eating at in Japan. “I did not think this would become a cult restaurant for which I would be sitting and talking about reservations,” he laughed, and also revealed that a diner had gone as far as creating a bot to snag a reservation.

“I feel like diners are looking for more special experiences, and smaller spaces that have more involvement and interaction. You see food being made in an open kitchen, and over the counter dining has become very popular. I’ve always been a fan of this in Japan and I think it is picking up here as well,” Kavan said.

Responding to a question from Ms. Muthalaly about the impact of being a chef-owner, Chef Vinesh, co-founder of Lavonne Academy of Baking Science and Pastry Arts and its award-winning Lavonne Cafe said, “What is amazing is that all of us are ridiculously passionate about what we do. We are passionate about every single detail which makes the product better and better.I think that slowly pays off over time for people to constantly keep coming back and expecting something amazing at one of the things that we do.”

Restaurant boom

Discussing the restaurant boom in India post COVID, Hussain pointed to how experiential dining, much like Papa’s, is gaining ground in India. “Diners who have travelled abroad, seek similar food experiences in India and all of our brands work hard and are leveling up. It is an exciting time to be in the food and beverage space in India; I have seen this landscape evolve in front of my own eyes,” he said.

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