The Latest Buzz in The F&B Space, Summer 2022

From vegetarian-only tours, Virat Kohli’s latest investment, a 1-calorie ginger ale to beat the summer heat, it’s been a busy few weeks in the F&B industry.

Coming soon in Ahmedabad, a star rating on an item will indicate just how prudent/ healthy your food choices are. As part of their aim to tackle obesity in the country, the government is considering levying a special tax on foods loaded with sugar, fat, and salt. Niti Aayog, in collaboration with Institute of Economic Growth and the Public Health Foundation of India, is reviewing other action, including front-of-pack labelling, marketing and advertising of HFSS foods. Recently, they also extended the Pradhanmantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, to provide free five kilograms of food grains per person to more than 80 crore beneficiaries.

Elsewhere, you can avail of vegetarian-only tours courtesy Thomas Cook and SOTC. They announced exclusive vegetarian food tours to summer destinations like Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Sikkim, Darjeeling and Sri Lanka.

Here is some other news from the world of hospitality.

War and food

Sri Lanka’s economic crisis is seeing severe shortages of essentials like food, and cooking gas. Latest findings in the 2022 Humanitarian Needs Overview warn that more than 70 percent of South Sudan’s population will struggle to survive the peak of the annual ‘lean season’ this year. People are warning of the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on food prices, and hunger especially in countries already struggling with food insecurity.

Russia and Ukraine supply about 24% of the world’s wheat, with Ukraine accounting for 50% of wheat of the World Food Programme. In addition, the two countries are the leading suppliers of sunflower, rapeseed, corn, and soybeans, which are used for oil and animal feed. India relies heavily on imports of sunflower oil for domestic food supplies. The continuing invasion can spark a global food crisis — fertiliser and food prices have already increased world over — as countries scramble to fill the gaps. United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates that food prices could surge by as much as 20 percent. Meanwhile, the G7 countries have pledged action to address these food shortages

Winning big

It’s awards season and not just the recently-concluded Oscars.

Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants for 2022 saw Masque crowned as India’s best, coming in at No. 21, one ahead of Indian Accent; Megu (49) was the other restaurant in the top 50.

The first edition of FoodSuperstars, Culinary Culture’s ranking of top 30 chefs in India was held in March in Delhi. Manish Mehrotra of Indian Accent won the top spot, while Regi Matthew, Himanshu Saini, Prateek Sadhu, Saurabh Udinia, Ritu Dalmia, Manu Chandra, Nooresha Kably, Naren Thimmaiah and Hussain Shahzad rounded up the top ten.

Goa’s Bar Tesouro took the top honour at 30 Best Bars India 2021, pushing aside Delhi’s Sidecar to second spot. Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru had six bars in the top 30, followed by Goa with five. Tesouro won Best Independent Bar, Best Bar Design, Best Bar Team, and the Best Cocktail Menu.

Quick delivery

Move aside Maggi noodles. You can now get an entire meal in ten minutes! Or so claims Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal. He recently announced the launch of Zomato Instant, which he claims will deliver food in 10 minutes by relying on finishing stations that would house bestseller items from restaurants; this would roll out in Gurugram first. The move came in from a lot of flak from people wondering how food could be delivered quicker than it would take an ambulance to arrive at a spot, and what pressure this could put on delivery personnel.

Drink up

Malaki recently launched low-calorie crafted beverages: 1 cal Tonic Water and 1 cal Ginger Ale. The brand’s portfolio includes tonic water, sparkling water, coffee tonic and flavoured drinks. Drifters Brewery launched a new LBW Lager (Millet & Rice Lager), a dry hopped lager beer made with bajra (Pearl Millet) and rice.

Goa-based Third Eye Distillery will launch two new gins, Spice trade Gin, and Trading Tides, which are collaborations with Australian distillery Four Pillars. Third Eye Distillery is also in the news for acquiring a majority stake in Countertop India — founded by Arijit Bose and Pankaj Balachandran, Countertop is a consultancy focused on developing the F&B industry.

New eats

The hospitality buzz continued in Goa with the launch of new restaurants across the state. In Anjuna, Pisco by the Beach offers stunning views of the sea, sea deck hammocks and what they call ‘resort cuisine’ divided into day and night menus. Bandra’s Izumi found space at the Botanique guesthouse in Assagao, serving up sushi, yakitori and cocktails with Japanese ingredients. Thalassa’s Mariketti and Spiro Grana’s new project is Taboo Sunset Bar & Grill has head chef Eddie Cruzet cooking up global cuisine, and some Greek appetisers, salads and grills. Pune’s gastro pub Elephant & Co has set up a base in Anjuna.

In Mumbai, the upscale Jio World Drive saw the launch of the city’s second SAZ, the SAZ American Brasserie, a gourmet all-day dining spot with pizzas, pastas, burgers, tacos and more. Borivli saw the launch of Blabber, an all-day Cafe & Bar whose menu features a modern take on global cuisine: think dabeli bao and tadka hummus. In Andheri, mead taproom, The Canary, is showcasing modern British pub culture and cuisine. Chef Victor Manuel Murguia Mancilla & Chef Darius Madon have brought their modern American & South American flavours to Mumbai with Binge by Bastian. There’s Tsubaki offering Japanese and Korean fare, and will soon host Japanese tea ceremonies, wine pairings and more. Chef Saransh Goila’s Bambai Meal Rolls, a delivery venture that has rolls inspired from across the country, and Third Wave Coffee’s flagship outlet in Andheri, and finally, POULT: a QSR and restaurant hybrid that promises all things chicken are also new on the scene.

Elsewhere, Karjat’s Oleander Farms, which hosts a coffee shop, restaurant, and design studio, now has a new brewery Common House, offering four original brews and live music. In Jodhpur, Mharo Khet is a new farm to fork experience that has a rotating tasting menu. Delhi has Miso Sexy, a bar and nightlife venue overlooking the Qutub Minar, serving Southeast Asian fare. In Bengaluru is Brassa, a new space with a mix of Asian, Mediterranean, Mexican and Middle Eastern fare. The hawker style fare from Singapore finds favour at Park Hyatt Chennai’s Mr Ong.

Talk of the town

The biggest buzz in the hospitality space, especially in Mumbai, is the news that chef and co-owner Prateek Sadhu will part ways with Masque this March. This makes him the third high profile chef to leave the restaurants they became synonymous with: Manu Chandra and Olive, and Thomas Zacharias with The Bombay Canteen.

Delhi-based FMCG Company Rage Coffee now boasts of Virat Kohli as an investor and brand ambassador.

Hilton India launched a new menu called Aayush focussed on bringing back traditional Indian healthy recipes like Kapalanga Thoran, Kathal Sukka, Malabar Nadaan Curry, Vegan Quinoa Kheer, and Turmeric Latte.

Bombay Sweet Shop has gone national. The reimagined Indian mithai shop offering up sweet and savoury options — Indian Jujubes, Bombay Bhel Chikki, Khasta Kachori — are now available for delivery across India.

Andhra Pradesh sees the launch of a mega food park in April, the highlight of which is a processing centre, which will to enable farmers to bring raw material and process them and make them available for sale.

Joanna Lobo is an independent journalist from Goa who enjoys writing about food, her Goan heritage, the freelance life, and other things that make her happy. Follow her on @thatdoggonelady.

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