Tips on how Indian food restaurants can make their services better

In a typical foodie country like India, almost all people would prefer eating out at food joints due to the variety and taste provided by restaurants and hotels. It is very important for Indian hoteliers to realize the fact that Indians need variety and will get bored of the same type of food provided. Indian food restaurants either should be multi cuisine, or have a new delicacy coming in every now and then. These things need to be adopted by restaurant owners, in order to make sure that a customer leaving your hotel, will come right back again.

What are some of the characteristics of Indian food restaurants?

• These food joints basically focus on providing the best food at the fastest pace. They focus on giving fast food to people of their choice, almost round the clock in their operational hours.
• They are also service oriented and focus on providing a good service to their customers. Especially in family restaurants, a very good service can be witnessed.
• They also serve Jain food, a special type of food for the Jain of India. This food is without onion and garlic and can be consumed by people who are strong believer of religion.

  
  Many other people also prefer eating at family type restaurants, even though they are not religious. Most of the Indian population are Hindus, thus prefer eating strict pure vegetarian meals when they go out. Thus, many hotels of India are strictly serving vegetarian delicacies when it comes to India. Indian vegetarian food  restaurants serve various cuisines within the genre, including Jain food.

   

Types of Indian vegetarian food:-

• While it seems to people that Indian vegetarian food may not have any variety the facts suggest different.
• South Indian- This includes various delicacies made from Ravva which are usually consumed for breakfast.
• Punjabi- Includes spicy vegetables with a base of cottage cheese or famous drinks coming in from the region.
• Gujarati- Coming in from a state which is considered the hub for eating, this type of cuisine includes many delicacies which can be consumed as snacks. Not only snacks, but various special meals can be eaten.

It is very important for hotels in India to make sure they create some spice, or variety in their food or restaurants to get back their customers. Retaining a good market share is a must for Indian food restaurants which can come only with a regular change in their product line or attractive offers.

How can Indian food restaurants make sure that their customers come back to their restaurants?

• Create a new delicacy every now and then. If this is done, people would come to their restaurants to try it, and always be excited about the new product.
• India food restaurants should also focus on service. Service is very important when it comes to a country like India. People like to be taken care of and a good prompt service is a must.
• Clean and hygienic kitchen should be incorporated.
• Ambience should be made soothing.
• Attractive offers such as happy hours with good deals on food should be given.

Different tastes of Gujrathi Veg Thali

In India there are 28 different states with 28 respective cultures. Every culture has its own customs and traditions and a manner of upbringing the young ones. Amongst all of these factors, the staple diet is one significant factor as it differs again from culture to culture. Some include more portions of proteins, while some consume more of pulses and wheat, while some may just live on rice. Wherever we may go, to travel, to study, to work, we always do miss our home made food. This developed a consciousness among Chefs and thus they created a Veg Thali.

Now if you are away from home for couple of weeks, not a problem, you have the leisure of tasting food just like it is served at your place. If you are tired of eating the monotonous Chinese, Punjabi, Italian and Mexican cuisines, then you do have another choice ahead of you. As you travel from region to region, there might be certain variations in the diet but overall it is the same old feeling of eating in your own dining room at home. The most common types of Thali that are available in popular restaurants are Gujrathi, Rajasthani and Maharashtrian.

 

Gujarati: The restaurants that are Pure veg, generally include this. The reason is because in their Culture, there are very few people who eat non-vegetarian food. A typical Gujarati meal is sweet, and moderately spicy. Farsan and sweets are the items you begin with after ordering a Gujarati Veg Thali. Undhiyu is a regional specialty of Gujarat. It is derived from the words ‘matlu’ meaning earthen pot and “undhu” that means upside down. This is a seasonal dish that contains vegetables like green beans, unripe banana, muthia and purple yam. Also, amongst the sweet cuisine, this is a dish that is very spicy.

 

Rajasthani: A Rajasthani meal comprises of majorly all sweet food items as over there the sweet dishes are never considered as desserts. The origins say that such food was prepared in warlike condition so as to last for several days with no heating required. The snacks that are famous in a Rajasthani Thali take in Bikaneri Bhujia, Mirchi Bada and Pyaaj Kachori. Churma is their most popular delicacy which is served with baatis and dal. It is basically ground wheat crushed and cooked with Ghee and Sugar. Gujia, imarti, ghevar and Jhajariya are some of the other frequently serving dishes.

Maharashtrian: This meal cannot be called sweet although it adds certain sweet delicacies like Puran poli and Ukdiche Modak. But a Maharashtrian Veg Thali is a mixture of spice, sour, bitter and sweet all together. Kothimbir vadi, Sabudana wada, Alu wadi, Thalipeeth and Pohay are some of their general appetizers. As a substitute to Roti, they have Bhakri that is prepared from millets like Jowar and bajra. Along with it, the commonly served vegetables will be Farasbi (French beans), Palak (Spinach) or Fanas (jackfruit). Finally in desserts one has Amras, Basundi or Anarsa.

 

Thus, if we think about it, homemade food is no more difficult to access outside your home. There are many people in fact who eat such food only in spite of being in their home city. The reasons might me either health consciousness or too much love for home food. Either ways, it is a glad scenario that the sanctity of Indian Cultures is being maintained very well.

The food of the west – Rajasthani and Gujarati food

Indians are known to be food lovers and some of them also happen to be the best cooks in the world. Most peculiarly known, these best cooks generally originate from Gujarat or Rajasthan. Located in the western region of India, Gujarat and Rajasthan are known as the land of colors, vibrancy, great culture, heart melting landscapes and of course, great food.  They have a large variety of delicious Rajasthani and Gujarati food items which are absolutely finger biting delicious for the visitors that land here from the different parts of the world.

Rajasthani food is predominantly vegetarian. However, it still has a wide variety to choose from. It is spicy and ghee is the integral part of most of the meal preparations. The specialty of the cuisines from Rajasthan is the lack of green vegetables evened out by abundant use of lentils, legumes and pulses. The milk, buttermilk and curd are used instead of water to prepare the gravy of the vegetables. They are also used alongside as an item during the meal.

As you travel through Rajasthan, some of the famous Rajasthani food such as dal-bati and Besan Chakki will be served to you with great pride and joy by the locals. Various chutneys made from locally available spices like turmeric, coriander, mint and garlic are given too. It is also known for its snacks like Bhujia from Bikaner, Mirchi Vada and Pyaaz Kachori. Other famous dishes include Bajre ki Khichdi, Kalakand also known as Mishri Mawa, Besan Ki Chakki, Dal Bati Churma, Moong Dal ka Halwa, Sweet Dish of Ajmer- Sohan Halwa, Jodhpuri Mawa Kachori, Ghewar, Mirchi Vada, Pyaz ki Kachori A Spicy Dish and Rabdi.

The traditional food from Gujarat is also primarily vegetarian and has a high nutritional value. A  typical Gujarati thali consists of different variety of lip smacking dishes. Gujarati cuisine has so much to offer to its visitors and each dish has an absolutely different cooking style which can be noticed in the recipes of some food where one of the dishes are fried while others are boiled. The food is often served on a silver platter owing to its rich taste. Gujaratis use a combination of different spices and flavors to cook their meals and this is what makes Gujarati food truly exotic. The most popular form of meal that is a typical Gujarati thali consists of roti, dal, rice and vegetables known as shaak which are accompanies by pickles and roasted papads. The meals include popular beverages like buttermilk and tea; sweet dishes include laddoos and mango.

One distinct character of Gujarati food is its subtle sweetness in all foods. Some of the most popular Gujarati foods are undhiu, thepla, khakra, jalebi, bhajia, gathiya, fafda, halwa and other snacks known as farsan. Gujarati cuisine differs from season to season depending on the availability of vegetables. The modern day chefs are coming up with the concept of fusion food by combining food from the lands of Gujarat and Western food in desserts to make it more appealing.

Ethnicity at Indian Food Restaurants

When you think about India, by default, you think of the  Indian vegetarian food  and the thousand mixtures of colors, aromas and textures that always seem to win your taste buds. Within this 28 – lands and 7 union territory country, there are a multitude of culinary styles to choose from.

It you are Bengali brought up on your daily dose of Hilsa and Bhat, you might just jump at the thought of Makke di Roti and Sarson da Saag. And if you’re a North – Indian Resident, the thought of Idli – Dosa breakfast might be appealing and that’s what special about this Indian cuisine; it’s so friendly to the tongue that we don’t jump out of shock, but rather out of happiness at discovering yet another palatable treat, at discovering yet another reason to continue the affair with the food.

It looks like; India is the only country that houses so many vegetarians as compared to any other country in the world. Considering that more than half of the population eats meat, it’s simply the numbers game when it comes to India. Only by India’s sheer strength of population that there are more vegetarians in India than the rest of the world combined. According to a 2006 survey by ‘The Hindu’ newspaper, it was found that 40 percent of the Indian population, that makes it some 400 million Indian vegetarian food eaters.

Owing to the natural demand for the Vegetarian food, ethnic Indian Food Restaurants replenish their varieties with huge quantities of similar food. Indian cuisine is known all over the world for its delectable use of spices. The proportion of Masalas (spices), the accurate time for its addition and the degree of cooking are the key factors that determine the quality of a dish. However, this art had been confined to the master chefs who have their proprieties spice mixtures and are reluctant to share their recipes.

In the last several years, observing and researching recipes in the kitchens of Indian Food Restaurants have turned into a passion for many food lovers and they have been scientifically analyzing recipes and noting down various interpretations for the simple reason of making the Indian cuisine appeal to a wider connoisseur.

If we look at these recipes critically and scientifically, we can reach up to a conclusion that each step has a particular purpose and there are alternate ways of making the same dish also. At the same time the proportions of spices, several additions, is off course an art that needs to be understood and perfected as per changing times. After all, Cooking is not merely following a recipe” It is an art as well as science”.

India is a huge country, so much so that it seems there are many a countries within one. Indian Food Restaurants try bringing in the ethnic Indian flavors for an outsider that facilitates and provides mindboggling amount of cuisines and recipes having clear international influences, visible to even ordinary eye.

Ayurveda and the Thali

Enough can never be written about Indian cuisine. Even for people living in India, travelling to a new place within the country means discovering a new culture with it unique traditions and foods. With so much of a variety present within the country, it is not possible to give one label to the food. What Indian food is depends on whom you ask. Even going in for a veg thali will give you a myriad of options in the name of Indian traditional food. So what is it that something that can bring together this vast variety? Some people believe that the answer lies in Ayurveda.

How Ayurveda and the Veg thali might be linked

Indian cuisine has been influenced by many events and invasions, but Ayurveda has by far had the most deep-rooted influence on the food served in Indian households all over the country and the world. The word Ayurveda is derived from two words, ‘Ayu’ which means the span of one’s life and ‘Veda’ which means knowledge. Thus when put together, it means that knowledge which increases the span of one’s life. And yes, that is exactly what is means and does. Ancient Indians believed that food could be medicine, which strengthens and revitalizes the body and thus ensures a long and healthy life. If you think about the concept of a thali in India, you can begin to understand that it has also been deeply influenced by Ayurveda.

The many flavors in a thali

A thali consists for several courses and is served with either lassi or buttermilk. The courses consist of starters, main course which consists of vegetables and different kind of rotis, curd, rice, pickles and different kind of chutneys. When you compare this meal with what Ayurveda suggests, you can find a lot of similarities. Ayurveda suggests that you must consume food that has six primary tastes. These are sweet, sour, pungent, bitter and astringent. Each flavor has a particular therapeutic value.

More reasons to choose a Veg thali restaurant

Each of these tastes is present in your meal when you go in for a veg thali. Each course provides you with something new, something delicious and something healthy. By just changing the way you look at a night out with your family, you will realize that the best choice of restaurant you can make is by booking a table at a thali restaurant. Another benefit of these restaurants is that they are extremely popular, hence the food prepared by them moves fast. Thus, you can always be sure that what you are eating is freshly prepared and not the left over of yesterday. Freshness of the food you are eating is something you must never ever compromise on and thali restaurants always ensure that you never do.

So go ahead and order a veg thali for you and your family. This is the best, freshest, healthiest option available to you when you dine out. The food is severed piping hot and the quantity is unlimited. And it has the Ayurveda stamp of good health. What more could you ask for? So go ahead, make that reservation today.

Biscuit Bhakri

Serves: 4 people

Preparation Time: 25 mins

Ingredient:

Wheat flour – 4 cups

Besan flour – 1 cup

Ghee – 4 teaspoons

Milk – 2 cups

Sugar – 4 teaspoons

Hot water

Method: 

1. Knead the wheat flour, Besan, Ghee, Milk, Sugar, and keep adding hot water. The dough should be hard.  
2. Make small circles of it and roll into a small biscuit size chapatti, which should be  ½ inch thick.
3. Cook the chapatti on both sides on a slow flame till it turns brown.
4. Eat with tea

 

The world loves the traditional dishes of India

India boasts of a rich heritage and a vibrant tapestry of culture. Be it the languages, the dressing style or even the food, no other country can proudly claim to be so varied and yet so united. But in spite of this variation each and every house hold firmly believes in wholesome, homemade food made from the local ingredients available. One has to admire the fact that though the vegetables, spices and condiments are more or less the same all over the country, the myriad ways in which the same vegetables are made and served is so amazingly different and delectable that one cannot feel anything but admiration for the culinary skills of the Indian women. That is precisely the beauty of the traditional dishes of India.

Many of the eating habits of the Indians are ruled by the climatic and geographical conditions of where they hail from. Consequently, one finds the North Indians consuming a lot of wheat, dairy products and poultry. Whilst in the South, the monsoons favor the abundant crop of rice and paddy which reflect in the eating habits. In the East, it is the local produce from the network of rivers like the fish and also rice which dominates the eating patterns. The traditional dishes of India therefore are a glimpse in to the Indian lifestyle. Corroborating the same, in the West again, it is rice, wheat, fish and in some arid regions the berries and desert growth that governs the food. The food is also rich and heavy laden with ghee and oil in certain areas and devoid of this luxury in some areas depending on the kind of manual labor performed. 

The thumb rule of Indian cuisine and cooking is to first let the eater drink with his eyes the vibrant colors and soak in the aromas of the served food, and only then, begin to eat! And why not? Every Indian house has its own masalas, spices, flavors that not only add to the basic ingredient but also help in enhancing the flavors to the optimum. Restaurants like Rajdhani Thali embody the essence of Indian food, making optimum use of the regional ingredients to offer authentic native dishes. A simple fare of rice, dal, sabji and a pickle or a papad becomes a culinary delight because of the seasoning and the spices used. A humble potato can be churned out as a sabji or vegetable dish either in combination with another vegetable like the cauliflower or ladies finger or capsicum, with poori, as a aloo paratha, as a aloo tikki, as a aloo mutter combined with green peas! The traditional dishes of India explore a wide range of possibilities where food is concerned. The non-vegetarian population too has a huge range of delicacies like the Tandoori Chicken, Kheema, Biryani, and Kebabs. Fish like prawns, pomfrets, sardines, crabs occupy a place of pride in the Indian kitchen. Practically all over the country ginger, garlic, coriander, green chillies are the basic spice enhancers used. This lends a distinct flavor to every dish, making every morsel a precious one.

To sum it up, one can never claim to have eaten Indian food like a connoisseur: India offers options way beyond one’s imagination.

A plethora of tiffin services

There comes a time in everyone’s life when they must leave their home to study, work and try and stand on your own two feet. Yes, it is a difficult phase, with many ups and downs. With a million things to think about, you are your own responsibility. Find a place to live, make new friends, maintain relationships while still trying to have a little fun. But the biggest adjustment to make is the food! No more freshly cooked, hot and steaming food in carefully prepared lunch boxes. No one is there to make sure you’ve eaten all your meals in the day. But everything doesn’t need to be such a struggle. There is someone who still cares. It is your local dabbawala!

With a new challenging life to lead, you need to be stress free when it comes to your food. You need to look after your health because that is what will keep you going in the long run. The best way to ensure that you need not compromise on the quality of your food is to research tiffin services and start one A.S.A.P. Every major city has several tiffin businesses to choose from, each with its own philosophy.

Some dabbawalas only serve lunch boxes, as they have not expanded their business to provide dinner services. These are great if you are working and do not want to eat from your workplace’s canteen or the stalls outside. They provide lunches according to your requirement, either Monday to Friday or Monday to Saturday, depending on your weekly schedule. However, if you are a student who eats in the mess during college hours but needs a meal delivered for dinner, then you can opt for only dinner services from a business that provides dinner tiffins.

There are a lot of tiffin services which provide exclusively vegetarian food if you are conscious about mixing of spoons and utensils.  There are other services that provide non-vegetarian food either once a week, or as many times as you like. A lot of tiffin businesses have gone online. So you can know what is going to be served in advance and change your preferences or cancel your tiffin for a day instantly. All you need to do is send an email or log in to their website and make the necessary changes.

There are also services that provide food in lunch boxes and there are others that deliver food in disposable packaging.  The choices are endless; all you need to do is do a little research online and all the information that you need will be available on your computer screen. So no matter what your preference of food, packing, timing or cuisine, it is sure to be taken care of.  Tiffin carrier services are known to be especially careful about quality and timely delivery because of the nature of their jobs. However, it is always a good idea to take a trail package first, before you become a regular with one particular service. So if you are not satisfied with one particular service, you have plenty more to choose from.  With so many choices, it is truly great to know that you can be relaxed about at least one thing while venturing out into the world on your own.

The growing popularity of Lunch Boxes

The lunch box is a concept that has spread the world over and age is no bar. The lunch box is prepared for the child going to school and also for the adult going for work. A lunch box has become something which people share and bond over. Friendships have been forged and maintained over the lunch box. The modest lunch box has come a long way from its humble origins. Today it comes in a variety of shapes, sizes and is made of a variety of materials like plastic, metal and some are even insulated to maintain the temperature of the food inside.

Types of lunchboxes:

No matter what your budget, taste or appetite, there is a lunch box for you. Lunch boxes come in various themes and colors too. Little girls can have their favorite doll featured on their lunch box and little boys can have their favorite G I Joes on their lunch box. The teenager can have his/her favorite band and the adult can have a sophisticated lunch box in a modern color. The light eater or the weight watcher can opt for a single box with compartments within. Someone who loves a 3-course meal can have double or triple-decker lunch boxes. Some of them even come with attached thermos flasks for soup, coffee or water.

Lunchboxes in various cultures:

The lunch box has permeated a few cultures more than others. The Japanese Bento Box is now world famous. The neatly packed compartmentalized lunch box is an example of the Japanese people’s love for order and symmetry. The Japanese even hold competitions to award the person who arranges food in the most aesthetically pleasing way in a Bento box. Talk about lunch boxes taking over a culture’s imagination!

The India Dabbawala is also world famous because of how greatly Indians value their tiffin box from home. Entire armies of deliverymen run an almost perfect tiffin delivery business. They have their own ways of coding tiffins and managing their delivery. Their dedication to punctuality and precision is legendary.

Eco-friendly lunch boxes:

Lunch boxes have become extremely widespread and now eco friendly versions are also being manufactured. With these you can teach children to be ecologically conscious from a young age. Stainless steel lunch boxes lead the way when it comes to ecofriendly boxes. These eliminate the need to dispose used food containers and also do not use plastic. Some boxes even come with customized magnets to decorate and personalize them.

A tiffin box that is plastic is made to be BPA and PVC free to be more eco-friendly and better for the health of the user. Using a cloth napkin instead of paper napkins is also another way to make your lunch box eco-friendly.

The variety of lunch boxes available in the market today is as varied the cuisines that are found inside the boxes! An increasingly healthy conscious and eco-friendly population ensures that the popularity of lunch boxes will only increase. And as the entire world moves from mass produced to custom made, why should the modest lunch box remain modest?

Veg thali, an irresistible tray!

Rich in taste and texture, Indian food is forever filling and loved by every second person on earth! It is prepared with minimum oil and lots of herbs using healthy cooking methods; Indian vegetarian food is considered to be among the healthiest and tastiest food in the world. The flavors and spices change from state to state and region to region. One such most sought after offering is veg thali. Complete with 4 to 5 types of vegetables, pickles, salad, curd, sweet dish, papad, chutney, chapati and rice, a complete thali brings to you the most scrumptious flavors on India on plate.

The main components of a vegetarian thali shall be discussed now. First and foremost is the Roti aka Chappati. Made from wheat flour, it is a good source of energy and the most commonly eaten staple throughout India. Apart from wheat, chappati is also made from soyabean, bajra and makka. Then comes the white rice. It is a cereal grain and a polished form of brown rice. It is a rich source of fiber content. Many vegetarian thali restaurants offer yummilicious thali at reasonable rate. It is offered in many different ways such as plain rice, jeera rice, biryani or fried rice.

Thirdly comes the curries. A perfect blend or roast of spices, Curries have their roots back in the mughal period. Their extensive use of cashew nuts and almond in cooking left a stark print behind on India’s cooking culture. The Curry base has always been mouthwatering, delicious and a treat to your taste buds. A veg thali has an appealing taste and hypnotizing aroma that can make anyone fall in love with it!

Then we have curd, lentils and red chili to pep up the platter. Curd/yogurt is very beneficial for the digestive system and works wonders to improve the same. It is yet another brilliant source of calcium, carbohydrate and proteins. Lentils are edible pulse which is a carrier of essential amino acids. It regulates cholesterol and sugar levels in the human body. Red chili, although healthy can leave anyone perspiring and gasping for water! They have high levels of vitamin A, B and C. Hence, the thali provided by thali restaurants is incredibly healthy and tasty at the same time.

Another very famous and newly found food item is paneer. Generally low on fat, paneer is high on calcium. Not only does it enhance the flavor of food, but it is also easy for our tummies to digest. It prevents osteoporosis and promotes weight loss. Due to its high calcium content, Paneer also ensures healthy and strong teeth and bones. So now that you know how beneficial a veg thali can be, what are you still waiting for? Go grab your seats and place the orders NOW! It is time to let your hairs down and stop counting those calories. Enjoy those paneer achari, dal tadka, matar gobi, boondi ka raayta and sweet & spicy pickles and have the best memories of your life captured.