India-Pakistan match boosts eatery business
NEW DELHI : As the cricket frenzy reached a fever pitch when India and Pakistan clashed on Saturday, the restaurant industry in major cities experienced a substantial boost in business. Restaurant chains like Massive Restaurants, the operator of Farzi Cafe, and other popular chains like Cafe Delhi Heights, said business was 15-30% higher than a typical weekend, as India started batting around 6 pm. “We had our highest-ever Saturday lunch and pre-dinner sales.
Even dinner across the board was much higher owing to the celebratory mood of the patrons. This was noticed even in some of our overseas restaurants that were screening the match," said Zorawar Kalra, founder and MD, Massive Restaurants. The company also runs brands like Pa Pa Ya, Bo-Tai and several others across about 10 cities in India.
Cafe Delhi Heights, which has around 20 outlets in the National Capital Region (NCR), saw an almost equal share of sales between alcohol and food. Moreover, cricket enthusiasts continued to patronize the outlets after India’s victory. “It was truly a fantastic boost for us, and the excitement surrounding such high-stakes matches undoubtedly played a significant role in a 16% revenue surge," added Udit Bagga, managing director of Delhi-based fine dining restaurant Kakapo.
Restaurants are innovating with various events on India match dates as well. At Flow microbrewery and The Chatter House pub in Delhi, restaurateur and founder Swadeep Popli said the company is going to do a special event next weekend when India clashes with New Zealand in Dharamshala. This will be a ticketed event at its microbrewery open to about 350 people, with large-screen televisions and cheerleaders.
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