At a tete-a-tete with Abishek Gupta, the executive sous chef at Leela, who interned at the famous Noma restaurant in Copenhagen, he spoke about his travels and how has it influenced his methods and thought the process of cooking.
Tell me about your pop-up dining restaurant, Epic?
This restaurant is more about experimental cuisine, majorly working on a lot of Indian flavours. It is an integration of global experience and local flavors. We use local ingredients. We innovate there and have created around 320 plus dishes as of now which have been shared with the diners and got some great feedback. Few dishes worked, few did not.
For example, we work a lot on local fishes but being in Delhi we don’t get it. Every Friday we get fresh seafood from Cochin. The idea is to create something from the local fishes. We have created a local Ceviche and it is dedicated to the Koliwada community of Mumbai. The dish is served on a live aquarium. The idea is to pay homage to people working hard to get seafood. We used the Peruvian technique to make Ceviche and combined it with our local fish. It was very well appreciated and diners enjoyed it.
The bookings are majorly by word of mouth. The idea is not to make money but to create awareness among the clients that Indian ingredients can also be at the prime level. I don’t need to have white asparagus from north Italy, I can probably use eggplant from Himachal and make it as premium as white asparagus.
How often you make changes to your menu?
I try and change the menu every month. But if my vendor calls me saying that he has some great mushrooms, I will probably use it. The idea is that till the time the produce is coming in, you keep inventing the dishes and keep fixing it to the various stages of composition. One of our philosophies is that we don’t like to repeat ourselves, we experimented with the root vegetable last year and this year I will not repeat it, I will take the root vegetable and treat it differently. So the idea is to take local ingredients and give it a global appearance.
How was your experience at Noma?
Getting into Noma restaurant was a continuous Endeavour; from the last five years, I was trying and applying like mad. Finally, in 2016, I got a chance to work for him.
There were 26 nationalities and everybody would treat every ingredient very differently. So if there is an apple season in Copenhagen, everybody will look it differently. Like for us, apples have been in desserts and pies, tart or salad but nothing beyond that. But when the Japanese see an apple, he might have a different version of it. The possibilities are endless there.
The idea of working with them was to understand how they work. Once you understand that then you can come back to your ecosystem, see what is there and create something of your own.
How do your cooking methods get influenced by your travels?
I travel a lot. I have been through to 15 odd countries and every four months I travel to see what’s happening in the world. Dishes in Epic do get influenced by my travels. For example, I had some local meals in the Himalayas. People offered me biccchu ghas ki sabji with mandwe aate ki roti. It was damn delicious. I made it and served it at my restaurant. When I travel in India, I try to grab some ingredients and bring back and create some dishes out of it.
Food travels and it’s just like memory. Travelling for me is only to learn from various places, to create something new, which is very Indian and is also accepted by a global diner.
How sustainable is our menu today?
The menus have become shorter now; they are already changing to what is available in the market. The purchasing team has become more aware, chefs are asking for what is there in the season. So the drift has already been started. In the past three years, I have witnessed a drastic change. People are having happy hour drink made of jamun. That’s a new fancy drink. So change is happening and everybody is contributing in their way.
What is trending today?
I see people moving back to basics. I see people are moving towards taste. Moving forward, I think core taste and seasonality will marry each other.
You also studied Botany?
In 2013-14 I studied Botany, even before I came to Leela, that was how you can use various plants and flowers in cooking but I could only bridge the gap in theory and my practical when I went to FRI in Dehradun. So there I got exposed to a lot of professors who are already doing a lot of research on available leaves and flowers there. There is a professor who had written a book. I still use it. It has over 700 ingredients on plants and flowers in Dehradun and Himalayan belt, you can use them in cooking. Only 10% of it has been used now and we have no idea about that.
There is nothing like food to connect the world, cutting across borders, cultures and races. And with each country, and at times each city or town, offering a wide variety in terms of gastronomic experiences, food is something that spreads good cheer too. Underlining this was the recently held, and fascinatingly curated, fine dining event by Together at 12th, an experiential fine dining restaurant, along with the famous Nadodi Restaurant of Malaysia, which showcased their authentic nine-course meal to let diners experience a transformative gastronomic journey.
Nadodi Restaurant, which is well known for its ‘nomad South Indian cuisine’, uses flavours and ingredients that South Indians contributed to the region’s culinary diversity when they were settling in the Malay Peninsula and Singapore. Chef de Cuisine Sricharan Venkatesh and Chef Vanshika Bhatia together with their team served amazingly conceptualised dishes with meticulously crafted cocktails with each dish for two days on September 13 and 14, 2019.
Together at 12th believes in using local produce in a world-class way. It then combines traditional and ancient techniques of making food collected from across India and the knowledge gained by working all over the world to create innovative culinary spreads. As such, in the recent event, each of the dishes or drinks had unique flavours that at times brought nostalgia to the fore. Meanwhile, Akshar Chalwadi, head of the beverage programme and the co-owner of Mixologist at Together at 12th joined hands with Nitin Tewari to create a special beverage menu that was perfected paired with the food.
Here’s a sample: mushroom and rose burger, okra with bajra roti, banana and barley koot, chicken salami with cured egg and pistachio, ragi sourdough and beet kombucha sorbet were some of the sumptuous dishes that were served at this exclusive feast. In cocktails, rasam distillate, a most revered drink by Nadodi, stole the show. It had fermented tomatoes with warm rasam. This drink was made of three different types of tomatoes to make the rasam and the leftover tomatoes were then used for fermentation of the drink. Smoked salmon, fennel and basil distillate with chilli oil was another such unforgettable drink.
Not only the dishes were a treat to the eyes but they were equally unique in their taste too. A cocktail drink of Jim Beam whiskey with tamarind and Earl Grey was served in a clay glass with a butterfly made of tamarind over it. As someone rightly remarked, there didn’t seem any need to go all the way to Kaula Lumpur when you could have the rasam distillate here in India. The meal was priced at two options: Rs 4,500 for the nine-course menu paired with non-alcoholic beverages and Rs 6,000 for the nine-course menu paired with cocktails or wine. In short, a wonderful evening that had the taste buds dancing with delight!
There is always space for improvement, no matter how long you've been in the business – Oscar De La Hoya said.
The Indian Railways is one of the oldest industries in the country. Through constant innovation and evolution, it has continued to maintain its position as the most preferred mode of transport in India. As such, the railway system of India is today, a lifeline of the country’s transport system. If you look at a snapshot of the railway industry from 10 years ago, you will notice some remarkable changes present today, in terms of technology and efficiency. With 23 million travelers and 3 million tonnes (MT) of freight being transported daily by the railways alone, the Indian Railways is also one of the largest railway systems in the world.
This is why, the Indian Railways is now actively launching a flurry of redevelopment projects, designed to facilitate a much-needed makeover of some of the main transport hubs of India. The Piyush Goyal-led Railway Ministry has planned to revamp around 50 important stations, and invested INR 7,500 crore in the renovation. As part of this initiative, the Ministry is aiming to give the railway stations an almost airport-like makeover. Equipped with a wide range of lavish and advanced facilities and amenities, soon, railways will be able to provide the utmost convenience for all travelers.
The aim is to offer amenities like posh lounges, modern public toilets, lifts, escalators, water vending machines, and also partnering with top food brands and restaurants to provide travelers with world class food which is both hygiene and tasty as the ones at airports. The redevelopment programme has started taking shape at few of the railways stations including the likes of Habibganj, Gandhinagar, Anand Vihar, Bijwasan, Chandigarh, Shivaji Nagar, Surat, Baiyyappananhalli, Nagpur, Gwalior, Amritsar, Gandhinagar (Jaipur), Sabarmati, Kanpur, and Thakurli to name a few.
The food and beverage segment in the industry has also undergone a significant transformation in recent years. Today, most customers are extremely conscious of quality and health, and are willing to pay accordingly, for it. Thus, cleanliness and sanitary conditions of food and beverage stalls in railway stations, especially suburban ones, are being scrutinized carefully, to ensure adherence to health standards. In addition to that, Railways will soon also have a range of meal options and lavish food courts, akin to the ones present at major highways, such as the NH58 Highway and the NH 4 Highway.
To this end, it has already started handing out tenders to private players to set up retail outlets for their brands, within the stations. This is sure to upgrade the travel food industry within the railways. The very way that people consume food while travelling by trains has been transformed with the launch of Rail Dhabas at stations like Vishakhapatnam, Agra Cantt, Madurai, Vijaywada, and Pune. Such tenders have brought a new wave of privatisation within railway stations that has never been seen before. Waiting areas are also being upgraded into posh lounges with food plazas and stalls, so that waiting passengers can fully utilise their free time at the railway stations.
There is no doubt that the infrastructure of Indian Railways is on a transformative path towards a glorious future. With the amount of funds being set aside for redevelopment projects and the entry of private players into the railway ecosystem, it can be said with utmost surety that in the near future, the railways will definitely be at par with airports, in terms of quality, hygiene, amenities, and convenience.
The Indian food and beverage industry is growing at an astronomical rate of 17%, owing to 34% of Indians who admitted to eating out at least twice a week. These phenomenal statistics are a direct result of India’s ever-increasing standard of living brought about by the general trend of uninhibited economic growth since the 1991 liberalisation reforms.
With jet-setting travellers patronising meals-on-the-go, airports and railway stations have become the new platter for culinary experiences. While restaurants and hotels have dominated the sector in recent years, the next great wave of growth for the food and beverage industry will come from the proverbial ‘skies’.
While in the past dining opportunities available for fliers were more or less limited to the airport café or home cooked foods, today the only inconvenience one faces in this regard is the agony of choice. Indian airports, especially those in the four metro cities, have a plethora of culinary options, including fine dining restaurants worthy of the best hotels, premium lounges which are the envy of the world, and franchises of some of their city’s most ‘happening’ and beloved pubs like Irish House. Furthermore, while retail stores at airports for the past travellers were more prone to making an impulse purchase, today they veer towards need-based buying and making the most of the unique experience and benefits that shopping at an airport offers.
The substantial fall in airline prices brought about primarily by increased competition has resulted in these services no longer being constrained to the rich. The Union Budget of 2018-2019 was extremely favourable to the transport sector and emphasised particularly on domestic connectivity via air travel. This, coupled with people’s ever-increasing disposable incomes, has resulted in the air travel sector becoming a highly lucrative business venture for some of the world’s leading brands.
Profits aside, having one’s brand showcased at an airport, national or international, is a matter of great exclusivity and pride. Airport authorities are very selective about the companies they choose to associate with, and that in itself is a conscious reminder to travellers that the brand in question is truly exceptional in its standards of cleanliness, quality, and hygiene, to have made the cut.
It is not just air travel experience that has got an upgrade, but even the railways have chugged ahead on their own steam. Indian Railways is among the largest transportation systems in human history with 22 million passengers availing the service each day;a figure that is larger than the entire population of the Mumbai city. Each of these passengers is a potential customer, and so, even international giants like McDonald’s, KFC, Dominos, and Subway have set up outlets in humble stations across the nation, resulting in food courts that could rival Mumbai’s biggest malls, and lounges with world class facilities.
In the past, due to concerns of hygiene and pricing, the vast majority of railway travellers had to make do with their own personal provisions from home. However, given the Union Budget of 2018-2019, which favoured the Indian Railways to a large degree and the government’s SwachhBharat campaign, the hygiene issues plaguing the sector should be largely resolved in the near future. Once again, the increasing disposable incomes of Indian travellers, the introduction of all-inclusive train services like the Tejas Express and The Rajdhani Express, make this sector a promising new frontier for the food and beverage industry.
In some cases, these brands have gone so far as to update their products in order to cater to the price consciousness of Indian travellers. A good example of this is Subway’s 4-Inch sub, which was developed when it came to light that the price point for the product had to be competitive and well below the minimum price of the brand’s iconic 6 Inch sandwich. The sub was also conceived keeping in mind customer’s convenience of grabbing something to eat on the go. As a result,it is not uncommon for one to see Subway outlets at stations all around the country, and given their success, it is certain that other players will soon join in the bonanza.
It would not be incorrect to state that the quality of restaurants, lounges, and cafes in airports are equivalent to, and in some ways even supersede their counterparts in the outside world. Railway stations still have a long way to go before they reach these levels of excellence, but they are getting there. The fact remains, that as Indian’s incomes rise, these hubs of tourism and business will continue to attract brands from around the world. It is about time the Indian F&B industry capitalised on this trend that will eventually redefine the sector for decades to come.
The Indian Food and Beverages service industry has seen a remarkable growth in the recent past and it continues to expand rapidly. It is known to be one of the most dynamic industries in the country. The food and grocery retail sector accounts for 16 per cent of India’s GDP and by 2020, is pegged to contribute to 66 per cent of the total revenue of the retail sector. And with the food retail spurt the industry, which stood at USD 641 billion in 2016, is expected to rise to USD 1.6 trillion by 2026.
This sector has drastically evolved over a decade, by giving rise to exciting new concepts in food and beverage offerings and innovative service elements. As per India Food Service Report 2016, full service restaurants and quick service restaurants together account for a majority of 73 percent of India’s food service industry. The reason for this changing scenario is to be attributed to the changing demographics, increase in disposable incomes, rapid urbanisation and growth of organised retail.
A rise in the young population along with a fast-paced trend of eating out and experimenting with different cuisines has provided a plethora of growth opportunities for food service business operators in the country. Considering India having a substantial food loving consumer base, this in turn leads to a significant potential market for F&B growth. Also, the globalization due to extensive travels which have evolved the Indian palate considerably are an important factor in the growth story. According to the National Restaurant Association of India(NRAI), Indians on an average eat not more than two times a month, compared to 40 times a month in Singapore. This consumption gap proves that India also has a huge market opportunity in the industry.
The F&B consumption during travel is following a similar trend where convenience, food experimentation and quality are ruling the roster of reasons for growth. This makes airports, railways and highways a high potential revenue generator. This sector has paved way for brand new opportunities for the retailers to reach out to their consumers travelling for business or leisure.
Gone are the days when the travellers were limited to home cooked food and airplane food. Today, passengers are nothing but spoilt for choice with the plethora of culinary options available, including fine dining restaurants, franchises of popular pubs and premium lounges. Today’s traveller community considers time and convenience as their biggest motivations. For this convenience, the travellers do not mind paying a premium and this has given rise to brands which are specific to the travellers’ needs.
Airport retail is expanding at a very fast pace as souvenirs shops, luxury goods to F&B outlets and other brand experiences, retailers try and take advantage of the captive audiences during the time they have between security check, boarding time and layovers. With an increase in traveller more and more people are bound to delays and layovers which leave them wandering the place, during such time retail travel proves to be of great help. At airports apart from the comfortable and clean premises, passengers appreciate the quick service. Travellers also value the quality of food and drinks being served.
Railways and highway travel experience is also being transformed. Railway stations are now embracing well-known brands like KFC, McDonalds at the station. Earlier passengers would have to depend on their own home cooked food due to poor hygiene and low quality of food provided at the local food stall. The latest trends for railway lounges and railway food courts have made different F&B brands a common sight at the station. In addition to hygienic food, brands are constantly innovating to offer customised options to match competitive pricing and cater to all consumer profiles. With the help of eCatering services which enables passengers to order meals of their choice by simply making an order on the phone or through online booking where their meals will be delivered right to their seat. These advancements are encouraging more and more brands to associate with railway food retail business.
Food retailing at highways are also picking up in an organised manner which is also emerging as a unique sector. Today with the entire food retail sectors transformation, one does not have to worry about the availability of food. The F&B outlets in highways cater to travellers looking for good quality refreshments as per their convenience. Due to improvements in infrastructure and roads and people now opt to travel by road. This enhances the scope for food retail services in the highways. As the roadways and highways are being improved across the nation, there has been an increase in vehicular movement. People travelling by road now expect better privileges and services along the highway. These eating and refreshment points have proven to be rejuvenating points for the weary traveller.
As the F&B industry is booming it has a direct impact on the travel retail space. There is an increase in the number of travellers, a ride in disposable income and thus the travel and food retail sector is sure to grow exponentially.
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