Guest Column

Opening vistas

By Sanjeev Kapoor

The F&B market in India is on the brink of a sea change. In the coming years, there will be an increasing demand for regional cuisine, a fact that is already visible, with the number of restaurants opening up at every nook and corner serving regional cuisines such as Malvani, Goan, Mangalorean, Bengali, Keralite, etc.

At the same time, there is more demand for low calorie Indian food with people turning health-conscious. Vegetarianism is 'in' and more and more people today are turning away from a non-vegetarian diet. Of course, they demand value for money.

Hygiene is equally crucial and is being looked upon critically, both by chefs and customers. Presentation is also important, as today, a lot of attention is being paid to the crockery and cutlery. The food should also be colour co-ordinated. Another trend which is catching on fast is the display kitchen where the customer can see what is being cooked - which is even more reason for the kitchen to be kept scrupulously clean and tidy.

Change churners

Due to extensive travelling nowadays, people are being introduced to a variety of cuisines and are thus becoming quite adventurous to experimenting with food, hitherto unknown to them. This has opened up vistas for the chefs, whereby they can create a variety of fusion foods, combining certain aspects of different cuisines to produce something exotic. While traditional food is widely appreciated, it is not mandatory anymore, and people are ready to accept the modifications that are necessary to accommodate the modern pace of life. Taste is of paramount importance and as long as food is not just palatable, but tasty too, it sells - and how!

Thanks to the ever-booming economy and advanced means of communication, it is now possible to procure a variety of ingredients and equipment. For instance, most homes in metros these days will have a microwave oven - in fact, it is fast becoming a necessity.

Like in most other areas, India is taking lessons from the West even in the hospitality industry with more and more chefs opening up restaurants. This, to a large extent, gives rise to confident clientele who are not wary of trying out food at a newly-opened eatery, especially when they find out that the owner is a trained chef.

In most modern families, both parents need to work in order to enjoy a reasonably comfortable lifestyle, which leaves them with little time to prepare exotic food at home, and therefore eating out has become more of a norm than an occasional affair. And yes, with more and more eating joints opening up, the owners need to be on their toes to ensure they stay ahead. Frequent changes in menu and occasional changes in the ambience has become the recipe for success today.

Banquets are 'in' in a big way. Due to the fast lifestyles that most people lead, they opt to have their parties and get-togethers outside their homes. And for those who can't afford banquets, family occasions like marriages, engagements and even birthday parties are usually celebrated in a restaurant or a small hotel.

Creating more scope

The hospitality industry in India has huge potential right now, because it is only in the big metros that it has actually caught on. Thus, there is still a large untapped territory to explore. Currently, it is mostly only those with laden pockets who can afford to avail of these facilities. So if the industry can offer budget packages, it will work wonders for them.

Budget hotels will do extremely well if packaged properly. With more and more people travelling, it will not only be the hospitality but the travel industry as well that will be raking in the moolah. India is known for its inexpensive medical facilities. Thus, a lot of foreigners come to India in search of treatment, which is another way that the Indian hospitality industry can earn good money. However, care should be taken to ensure that infrastructure is on par with the best available anywhere, which also means that we need to have more facilities to produce trained manpower.

New vistas

With market growth, the role of chefs has also evolved. Because of exposure to TV and other media, more and more people are getting attracted to this profession and it is being regarded as an upmarket vocation to follow. There is also quite a bit of glamour attached, what with celebrity chefs ruling the roost in quite a few places.

It is no wonder then, that this career option is attracting a lot of youngsters. However, they must be prepared for a lot of hard work. This field also inculcates a spirit of planning, discipline, perseverance and creativity, and if one is good at one's job and has the right attitude, one can establish oneself fast and make a name for oneself.

These days a lot of opportunities to work on foreign shores are available, which brings higher earnings and more than that, exposure to different ways of life and people, thus widening horizons. Since cooking is a highly skilled job, the possibility of machines replacing manpower also becomes remote. Moreover, cooking is not just a science - it is an art, which definitely calls for skills which machines cannot give.

It is not just hotels and restaurants that attract chefs these days but even food courts, malls, five-star hospitals, cruise liners, etc, all of which promise highly attractive remuneration packages. With the arrival of several MNCs, industrial canteens are now dishing out exotic menus. Gone are the days when canteen food was found to be bland and sloppily served. Nowadays, all top companies have attractive cafeterias serving multi-cuisine menus. There is a belief that in the professional field there are more men. However today, there is a noticeable change in the trend, with a lot of women venturing into this field and doing very well for themselves, despite the long and erratic hours of work with corresponding demands.

Earlier, too, men who cooked in commercial outlets were called chefs, but now chefs have graduated to a higher level - they work not with knives, but with pens and laptops. The onus of managing the restaurant, even in star hotels, lies entirely on their shoulders. Thus, they are not only responsible for the day to day nitty-gritties, but also for management-related activities like building up a good team, motivating them, decision-making, etc. They are also accountable for all that is going on in and around the kitchens and above all they play the role of the head of their domain, responsible for making it a profitable enterprise.

The writer is a restaurant consultant, TV host of Khana Khazana and author of several best-selling cookbooks