Swaminathan B (cbedit@imaws.org)
Jaipur: Ever felt that traditional restaurants can’t compete with modern cafes? If you think you might be wrong when it comes to Jaipur. Arya Niwas, one of the traditional restaurants in Rajasthan is able to be a blend of traditional and modern. Chetan Bansal, the third-generation entrepreneur who runs the hotel successfully speaks exclusively to ChefBharath.com on the current trends and expansion plans.
Changes in the eating pattern:
“Lot of new cafes are coming and people are looking at continental and fast food. Casual food is getting more prominence and we see a lot of consumption of fast food”, says Chetan who also says there is also a slowly emerging trend of local people avoiding Rajasthani meals in restaurants. Jaipur restaurants depend on various factors- business customers, travelers (both international and domestic), local residents, destination weddings,s and more. “Customers these days want new recipes and international. North Indian meals- they are not interested to eat. Jaipur, Rajasthani cuisines are very limitedly available. It cannot be made on ordered and made immediately. Thus hoteliers have to re-innovate that”, he says. On the other hand, Chetan also says that filling your menu card with a single cuisine also might backfire hoteliers. “There were many Italian, Spanish, or Japanese foods that did not do well in the market and they had shut down.
Jaipur in recent days is seeing more new small eateries entering the market. With the advent of online portals, one side many are ordering food online, and in parallel ways, many are trying out in the restaurants after trying out. And kids also play a major role in family outings.
Different-Generations, Different Challenges:
Recalling the challenges from his grandfathers’ days, he avers, “During my Grandfathers’ days, the availability of a good hotel itself was a challenge. Restaurants with hotel facilities were available only for the star hotels and mid-range tourists had limited varieties.” When the industry matured slowly and when the next generation came into the picture there was an over-supply. Chetan recalls, “When my dad took over the business, that was the time when we got established and everyone started visiting our outlets, but we were dependent mostly on the human work and that was a big challenge before the commercial kitchen equipment era.”
Speaking on the current day scenario, Chetan points out that it ranges on wide issues. “From staff to online ratings to technology to keeping the right and fresh food and costs, we have to manage multiple challenges.” According to Chetan, every foodie calls himself/herself a vlogger/influencer and has the ability to influence the viewers. Many eateries that do not maintain standards also get good prominence only through sheer marketing. “Even educated crowd fails to understand the importance of the quality versus cost. In all the outlets of Arya Niwas, we take extreme care right from product procurement, cleanliness, and cooking standards. That is the way we care for those who eat in our kitchen”, he says.
Suggestion for the family businesses:
As a third-generation entrepreneur, Chetan says that a restaurant is beyond a good location and has good interiors. “Just because we have a good location and a big place we cannot run a restaurant successfully. Days are gone where we can think that a manager will take care of everything. My suggestion to all the newcomers in the hospitality sector is to give importance to every single detail of your restaurant. Know every single inch of your outlet”, he says.
Expansion plans:
Arya Niwas is now waiting for the market to come to the right condition. “We have restaurants catering to various segments and we also have a bakery for the young crowd. What we are also planning is a green café with lot of organic and healthy food for the health-curious customers”, he concluded.
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