Next decade to be full of opportunities, but mediocre restaurants will struggle for existence: Tanna

Speaking to UNI, Mr Karan Tanna, Head of the NRAI Youth Committee said the youth wing has been formed with the vision to lead the restaurateurs into the  new age restaurant businesses with adoption of good technology and concepts like home dining and cloud kitchens in a way that is most profitable for the business owners as well for the country.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q) How are you going to impact the restaurant industry in West Bengal?

A) We want to become a forum that significantly impacts the sustainability of restaurants in a day and age when the industry is evolving at a very rapid pace. We want to engage the entire ecosystem to contribute together and share the vision.

Q) In the wake of the rotten meat scam that struck West Bengal last year what measures NRAI is taking to restore the confidence of the meat-eating restaurant-goers?

A) We do not have any official confirmation of the root causes of this incident, and hence we would refrain from any comments. We always advocate our restaurant partners to serve the quality of products that is most safe for human consumption. This is the only way to grow our business and the industry.

Q) Hygiene and quality have been found to be the major issue even with FSSAI registered eateries who deliver food through online apps. How are you looking to address this?

A) As the industry body, our role is to help the business owners by providing them know-how and access to information. We will be aggressively focusing on making information more accessible and will be open to guide industry best practice on kitchen hygiene and standards. It is the moral responsibility of every kitchen owner to follow the highest level of standards to maintain food safety and to make sure that the premises are hygienic. We will count on our restaurant partners to be responsible and as NRAI youth committee will always advocate the highest standards for the hygiene of kitchens. We will do the best in our capacity to impart knowledge to achieve these standards.

Q) With the convenience of getting food delivered at the doorstep with food apps, how difficult has it become to attract customers to restaurants?

A) The Indian restaurant landscape is growing very rapidly, and opportunities are increasing in all verticals of business. The home delivery business is growing exponentially, but eating out is also increasing, and that is an opportunity for high street restaurants. Of course, the competition has increased, and now the restaurants will have to be more proactive than ever before. Every aspect of the business will have to be minutely monitored. We, as an organisation, will make it accessible for restaurateurs to gain access to any know-how that can help them to sustain and build the restaurants more profitable. The next decade is full of opportunities, but now it will be difficult for any mediocre restaurants to sustain. The industry is evolving and maturing every single day.

Q) What are your plans to skill and upskill people in the restaurant business? In what way is lack of skills affecting the restaurant industry?

A) Skill plays a vital role in any industry and especially in a service-oriented industry like restaurants. There is a dearth of skilled workforce in India for the restaurant history. With skilled manpower, business efficiency increases, and it leads to a more sustainable industry. Gradually, we will look at tie-ups with various colleges and institutes to skill the base level workforce, which is the highest number in our industry. Such skill development will not only help the industry but the individuals also as it will lead to incremental value in their lifestyle. We believe imbibing skill will impact the bigger picture of benefiting the nation as a whole and hence, skill development is definitely a part of our agenda, at a later stage.