Spotlight

To star the gourmet sky

While one half of the culinary universe barely scrapes through the minimum acceptable criteria to meet the official grade, the other half which cuts the grade contends with inconsistent reviews by self-anointed critics. Neeti Mehra investigates this scenario caused due to an absence of an official rating system

Consider this - in a nation where it is estimated that by 2020 at least 2,40,000 restaurants, excluding their brethren in hotels, will dot the horizon (souce: Ministry of Tourism), there is no official system of rating these entities.

While restaurants in hotels are graded by the Hotel & Restaurant Approval and Classification Committee (HRACC) set up by the Ministry of Tourism, the others struggle due to an absence of an official rating system. The buck of babudom stops at the mandatory municipality ratings and necessary licences and the restaurants are left to fend with independent critics, media houses and connoisseurs that institute their own speciality ratings. How pertinent they are in influencing gastronomical choices is anyone's guess.

Culinary capers

The basic question is, essentially, why does a nation obsessed with food need ratings to decide the future of their next meal? Conversely, how would these ratings lend credibility to a restaurant, how would such a colossal job be executed and by whom?

Shreepad M Korde, secretary general of Hotels & Restaurants Association, (Western India) asserts that a body such as the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India (FHRAI) should take the onus due to the credibility it would lend to such an exercise owing to its prolific membership of hospitality veterans. Agreeing with this is Carmo Barretto, GM at Starters & More, who says, "A body such as the FHRAI will prevent the possibility of fly-by-night operators which shut down in six months and adversely affect employees and the industry."

But such a body constituted may have to struggle with biases creeping into its ranks, and the possibility of vested interests might choke its independence. Providing the Heimlich manoeuvre is Riyaaz Amlani, CEO of Mocha - Coffees & Conversations, who stresses that a body of independent players should tackle the Herculean task, with a progressive plebiscite spread over different categories with different criteria rather than the once-size-fits-all rating.

But should the authorities have a final say in this endeavour at all? The consensus is a resounding no; at best the government should act as a facilitator given that this is not their area of competency. Government run hotels, as an industry observer reveals on conditions of anonymity, are a case in point.

Flavours in focus

That brings us back to square one - who should be trusted with this immense task of objectively grading each restaurant on the set parameters? In the Western hemisphere, the recurring nightmare of every chef worth his or her salt is a Michelin inspector with a bout of indigestion. Over here, the inspector would be an industry veteran.

Manjit Singh Gill, corporate chef, ITC Hotels, says, "Ideally, an independent body consisting seven to eight people can conduct an audit which will be both for the restaurant and the chef, and the ratings can be based equally on both, which will ensure consistency in this methodology." Thus if the chef chooses to make an exit, the ratings of the restaurant will plummet, or rise, depending on his capabilities. However, Sanjay Narang, president of Mars Restaurants, feels that this methodology would be less biased if the ratings given by two to three inspectors visiting a restaurant at different times and subjected to a different experience were averaged out.

Gill also stresses that the audit committee should consist of a food writer/critic, one or two professional chefs and general managers of hotels. "The committee members must be rotated, and to maintain transparency and credibility, it should be chaired by an outsider to this industry," he avers.

The rule of thumb for these ratings should cover a gamut of criteria, especially, consisting of locations, décor, cuisine, safety norms, etc. H A Mishra, MD of Foodesign Hotel & Resorts Systems, says, "Since the government hasn't specified any mandatory measures apart from necessary licences, the rule of thumb should be to consider safety of guests - many times restaurants are death traps without proper exits or fire safety measures - and the overall standard and quality of food, among other subjective and objective criteria."

Icing on the rating cake

While all this can give any self-respecting restaurateur garlicky palpitations, the country is yet to come out with its own version of the veritable red guide, one of the most influential gastronomical ratings in the world. Whether such an industry standard will be swallowed by the Indian foodie or the restaraunter community is debatable, but the need is tangible and it exists.

Mishra debunks their credibility. "I don't agree with food guides unless the caliber of the persons writing it have a sound background and experience in the industry, which will substantiate their findings." But are these guides the actual force that drive people to flock restaurants? Not necessarily, Narang believes. He asserts that ratings are influenced by the networking skills of the restaurateur and says, "Many a times a reviewer may trash a restaurant, yet we see it attracting customers in hordes. The restaurant business is not based on just ratings by a book but actual recommendations by one's peers and the concierge, among others." Ultimately, he says, it is the restaurateur who keeps it alive by dangling the celebrity connection and constantly reinventing the place to enhance top-of-the-mind recall. Thus while the rating conundrum continues, critics will always have a reason to cheer.