For starters

Harshad Choudhari,marketing manager at the Sayaji Group,which manages Barbecue Nation,Turque and Portico,says,”We might even associate the vast success of our restaurant chain Barbeque Nation to this new trend of ‘Starters Love’ wherein many a times we hear patrons telling us that they got full eating starters itself and could not even reach the main course.” He adds that the trend has prompted them to increase the varieties of starters spanning different cuisines in our regular buffets. So much so that the group has started planning food festivals and other food events with starters as a theme.

Imran Inaamdar,the restaurant manager at Arc Asia,says,”Starters are really popular right now. We have a lot of people who just order starters and fill up on them. This also means that now restaurants need to focus on their starter menu.” He adds that with fun and entertainment,people now look for hassle-free food. Along with the taste,starters are also convenient to eat alongside a conversation,a band performance or even watching a comedy show. Arc Asia,located in ABC Farms,Korgaon Park,has some really popular starters,such as the Achari Murg,Satay Ayum,or chicken satay,Malaysian Paneer and a wide selection of dimsums.

“Starters are so much easier to share when eating in groups. And a lot of people drink in the evenings; starters just combine better with drinks,” says Newton Paul,at Terttulia. Located in Koregaon Park, Terttulia serves several bite-sized options such as baked portobello mushroom with olives and feta cheese,brocolli with lemon and chilli and fish in peppercorn and olive oil.

Starters seem to rule the day even at parties and conferences. According to Sukhwinder Gill,Food and Beverages manager at the Sayaji Group,starters go well with cocktails and other drinks and the combination makes a great addition to a dinner party among friends,a corporate get together where people can munch onto the finger food while sipping their favorite drinks and chat without getting into the fuss of plating the big dinner spread.

People seem to prefer starters even when ordering take-out,says Om Bhujbal,branch manager at Dum-A-Dum,Wakad. “Our most popular orders for home deliveries,apart from the Dum Biryani,are our starters – Tangdi kabab,Lassoni lajawab and our Paneer Tikka. When people order food for parties,it’s much more convenient to serve starters. Kids also prefer eating kababs and other finger food,rather than a regular sabzi-roti,” he says.