The Expanding Food Chain

Cafe Pico is one of the pleasant surprises that Le Mill,a high-end lifestyle store in Masjid Bunder,has for its vistors. The cafe nestled in a mill-turned-chic store,is a favourite among the residents of South Mumbai. Encouraged by its success,the cafe,owned by Nilgai Foods,soon opened a branch in Tardeo and as an express station in a […]

Cafe Pico is one of the pleasant surprises that Le Mill,a high-end lifestyle store in Masjid Bunder,has for its vistors. The cafe nestled in a mill-turned-chic store,is a favourite among the residents of South Mumbai. Encouraged by its success,the cafe,owned by Nilgai Foods,soon opened a branch in Tardeo and as an express station in a Goregaon-based corporate park. As it opens yet another outlet in Phoenix Market City,Kurla,this month,the brand has realised that it can have a following outside of South Mumbais society and in the corporate executives of Goregaon.

If our Kurla move works out,we know we can replicate that anywhere, says Arjun Gadkari,president of Nilgai Foods,sitting at the Kurla outlet,which is frequented by expats as well as locals. With the number of high-end retail options in Phoenix Market City,Kurla,growing,there will soon be a lot of people coming from outside the area. So we wont be catering to the local crowd alone, says Gadkari.

As is the trend in recent years,the city has seen a growing number of restaurants and cafes gaining popularity. Given Mumbais expanse,it is not always thrilling to travel a considerable distance for a nice meal. Thats the reason multiple eateries are now taking their franchise to various corners of the city. And often their new destinations are not restricted to popular and happening places such as South Mumbai,Bandra and Andheri.

Sports bar Manchester United Cafe was one of the first to make the bold move of opening at Malad in western suburb as well as Mulund in central suburbs,soon after opening in Palladium,Lower Parel. Cafe Moshe is slated to open in Oberoi Mall,Goregaon,this month,and in Ghatkopar in another two months. This was also one of the first cafes to open in Malads Infinity 2 mall. After a two-year stint in Colaba,Le Pain Quotidien (LPQ) will be the third standalone restaurant after Yauatcha and California Pizza Kitchen to have an address in Bandra Kurla Complex.

Areas such as Ghatkopar and Mulund are cities within a city, says Rahul Akerkar,owner of DeGustibus Hospitality,which owns brands such as Neel and Indigo. He wishes to cover more of Mumbai before expanding to other cities. If you dont live in any of these areas,you dont have reasons to go there often. But these are markets with millions of people and great business opportunities, he adds.

Moshe Shek,head chef and owner of the Moshes franchise,believes that the opportunities in Bandra,South Mumbai and Andheri are getting saturated. Opportunities in areas such as Malad,Ghatkopar and Thane are good,and in some cases,even better, he says. Shek plans to open in Thane soon. These are the areas where flats cost Rs 1.5 crore and above. The crowd moving there has a lot of spending power, adds Shek.

However,while moving to the suburbs,most of these franchises stick to their tried-and-tested menus. For Akerkar,an area having a larger vegetarian demographic doesnt mean a change in the menu constitution.

Story continues below this ad

Shek assures that the food at his cafes in Colaba,Bandra and Juhu are identical. That will also be the case when Moshes opens in Goregaon.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram

Tags:
Masjid Bunder