Delhi Darbar opens first outlet in Eastern India

Leading restaurant chain Delhi Darbar has marked its presence in the state with the opening of an outlet in Bhubaneswar on franchise model.

This is the 46th outlet of the restaurant chain in the world and the first one in eastern India. Abroad, the multi-cuisine eatery has outlets in Dubai, Kabul and Russia and in the country, it has presence in cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Udaipur, Raipur etc.

"The outlet in Bhubaneswar is spread over 2,300 sq ft. It will comprise of dining hall and a lounge. The rates of the items served will be competitive," said Akashdeep Mohanty, the promoter of the restaurant.

Delhi Darbar is famous for authentic indo-fusion Indian, Tandoor and Chinese food.

Customers can enjoy the taste of indo fusion cuisine mixed up with the Odia cuisines, he added. More than 70 items of Tandoor, 50 Indian cuisines and about 55 Chinese items will be served at the new restaurant. 

Burman Hospitality Launches First Taco Bell Outlet

Taco Bell, the world’s largest Mexican-style quick service restaurant chain made its debut in New Delhi with its first outlet at Ambience Mall, Vasant Kunj. Taco Bell announced the Delhi launch with Burman Hospitality Private Limited (BHPL), its first franchisee in India incorporated by The Burman Family, the promoters of Dabur. In addition to the grand opening in New Delhi, Taco Bell has six restaurants in Mumbai and Bangalore. Taco Bell with Burman Hospitality Private Limited aims to take the count to 25 restaurants in the next 18-24 months.

The new restaurant’s contemporary design is inspired by its Mexican-style cuisine and the brand’s California-based heritage. It has an urban fresh look which brings to life the brand’s belief in freshness and made-to-order food which can be seen from the open kitchen. The 75-seater Delhi restaurant will offer international classics like Crunchy Taco Supreme, Crunchwrap and Burritos as well as Kathitto developed especially for India to suit the local palate.

Speaking about the launch Unnat Varma, General Manager – Taco Bell & Pizza Hut said: “Delhi fans have been asking for Taco Bell in their city and we are excited to offer our signature Mexican-inspired food and break-through value to our consumers here who have a youthful spirit. With a strong proof of concept in Bangalore and Mumbai, we are now eager to increase our footprint across India and are delighted to work with Burman Hospitality as part of our expansion strategy into northern states including New Delhi, Punjab, Chandigarh and Uttarakhand.”

On the other side, Gaurav Burman, Director, Burman Hospitality Private Limited said: “We are delighted and honoured to work with Yum, the largest restaurant company in the world to grow Taco Bell in India. We believe Taco Bell with its differentiated and innovative product offering will win the hearts and stomachs of the Indian consumer. We look forward to opening Taco Bell restaurants across India and making it the most successful QSR brand in the country.”

Founded in 1962 by former U.S. Marine Glen Bell in Downey, California, Taco Bell proudly serves made-to-order and customisable tacos, burritos, and other specialties with bold flavours, quality ingredients, breakthrough value, and best in class customer service to over 36 million customers weekly across the globe. Taco Bell and its more than 350 franchise organisations have more than 6,000 restaurants across the United States and continue to grow with over 250 restaurants internationally including Latin America, Europe and Asia.

Arby's look towards India as the next growth market

Arby's, the second largest quick service restaurant sandwich chain in U.S. is looking to capture the palette-share of global food lovers. 

India is a focus country for Arby's, which has been serving innovative meat recipes for the past 50 years and is now 3,400 restaurants strong chain.

Founded in 1964, Arby's is the first nationally franchised sandwich restaurant brand with nearly 3,400 restaurants worldwide. 

The Arby's brand purpose is to "inspire smiles through delicious experiences." Arby's delivers on its purpose by celebrating the art of Meatcraft™ with a variety of high-quality proteins and innovative, crave-able sides, such as Curly Fries and Jamocha shakes.

 Arby's Fast Crafted™ restaurant services feature a unique blend of quick-serve speed combined with the quality and made-for-you care of fast casual. Arby's Restaurant Group, Inc. is the franchisor of the Arby's Brand and is headquartered in Atlanta, GA.

Arby's is looking to develop the Indian market through Master Franchise.

Kangana Ranaut inaugurates first Gap Store in India

American multinational Clothing and accessories brand Gap made its way to the Indian market on Saturday with the launch of its First Store, Inaugurated by actress Kangana Ranaut amidst a huge crowd in a Mall. 

Spread over 10,000 Sq ft at the Select City Walk in South Delhi, the new  flagship store offers Gap for men and Women, Gapkids  and babyGap Summer 2015 Collections. It has partnered Arvind Lifestyle Brands Ltd. for the India entry, where the latter is looking at an investment of Rs 400 crore over five years.

We are excited that Gap is now available to our Indian customers through the terrific partnership between Gap and Arvind. Through this partnership, we plan to open upto 40 stores across the country.” said J Suresh, MD and CEO, Arvind Lifestyle Brands Ltd.

“We are pleased to bring Gaps’ casual American style to customers in India and we have been encouraged by the positive response from our launch efforts thus far. We are looking forward to providing a unique branded shopping experience across India.” said Ismail Seyis, VP, Gap Franchise.

US hotel chain Best Western scouts for franchise partner to expand in India

US hotel chain Best Western is scouting for a new management partner to expand its presence in India, according to three people familiar with the matter, as the company gears up for growth in the country's hospitality sector. 

Eight years after signing on a franchise partner in India, which it calls an "important" market, Best Western has fallen behind targets due to what industry experts say are quality considerations and the absence of a strong sales and distribution network. 

"Best Western needs more focus on the top management to be able to grow the brand in India. The international partners need to give more commitment and attention that this territory deserves," said one of the people, who earlier worked with the company. 

Best Western had inked an agreement with existing master franchise partner Cabana Hotel Management Services in June 2007. At that time, Cabana had planned to invest over $1.2 billion to add more than 100 Best Western hotels and 10,000 rooms in India by 2017 — targets that are likely to be missed. 

While Cabana acknowledged that growth hasn't taken place as planned, it denied that a change of partner was being contemplated. Best Western International, headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, was noncommittal. 

"We consider India an important market and we will continue our steadfast efforts to meet the hospitality needs of customers in this significant market," David Kong, president and CEO of Best Western International, said. 

A Cabana (Best Western India) official said the company is currently discussing the terms of an extension of its agreement with Best Western International. 

"In terms of the global Best Western development pipeline, India stands at number 4 amongst all Best Western Affiliates internationally," Gaurav Sarin, associate vice president of Best Western India,said. 

While Best Western India's website mentions 25 operational properties with about 1,250 rooms in the country, he said the company runs 29 hotels. 

Sarin attributed the slow signing of deals to the overall slowdown and financing issues facing the hospitality industry since 2010-11. "Signup numbers might be proceeding at a slower clip in the past two to three years compared to earlier. However, it is still much higher compared to other chains." 

Classic Rock Coffee Co all set to open its first outlet in India

After two established venues in the US, and six more in progress, Classic Rock Coffee Co. (CRCC), the high end classic rock music themed coffee shop, will be opening its first outlet in India on Saturday,16 May in Pune. For its Indian launch, Guns N' Roses guitarist Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal will perform alongside Blackstratblues front-man Warren Mendonsa.

Master Franchisee for Classic Rock Coffee Co. (India), Avinash Agarwal says:” After venturing into the F&B business, through my own company 'FoodJockeys', I was looking at bringing American F&B franchises to India. During that time, I came across Classic Rock Coffee Co., and found out that they were looking at opening various CRCC franchise​​s around the world. I wrote to them and after various evaluations, background checks and finance checks, we became the Master Franchisee of Classic Rock Coffee Co. here in India.”

CRCC (India) is located in Kalyani Nagar, Pune, with a seating capacity of 200 people and total capacity of 400.

Agarwal further added that since FoodJockeys is the Master Franchisee of the brand, he plans to open various CRCCs across the country, including cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Hyderabad. For the initial roll-out, COCO (company-owned company operated) is the most suitable model since we can control all the areas of the brand. After the flagship store is running, the FOCO (Franchisee-owned company-operated) and FOFO (Franchisee-owned Franchisee operated) models will be the best business model. Bringing the CRCC franchise to India was a multi-crore investment as the expenditure included setting up the venue in Kalyani Nagar, advance franchise fee, master franchisee fee and large funds presented to CRCC upfront in return for holding the franchise rights in India.

Manhattan Fish Market opens outlet in Chennai, sets sight on another 10 cities

After popularising chicken, quick service restaurant chains are now looking at healthier seafood. Some of the international seafood chains also are entering the Indian market.

International specialty casual dining restaurant chain Manhattan Fish Market has launched its first outlet in the country in Chennai.

Jumbo Seafoods Pvt Ltd, the master franchisee of the Malaysian restaurant brand, plans to take the brand to at least another 10 cities in the country through sub-franchising.

The 140-seat restaurant will serve predominantly seafood, said M Shafraz Anees, Managing Director of Jumbo Seafoods. “However, as we go forward, we will gradually step up our vegetarian offerings to at least 20-25 per cent.” There was a big gap in the market which offers good quality seafood either at a very high price or very cheap and not-so-hygienic restaurants, “And hence we positioned our restaurant at the right place where it offers good food at affordable price points,” he said. A three-course meal will cost ₹650 here, he added. It serves fish in flamed, poached, grilled, fried and baked forms in American-styled cuisine.

The brand name (Manhattan) is the influence of the famous Fulton Fish Market in Manhattan, and the restaurant has 60 outlets in Asia and the Middle East.

The Indian master franchisee also owns the franchise rights for Sri Lanka and Maldives. “We have two restaurants in Sri Lanka, and are in the process of expanding there as well,” Anees said.