By Amrut Mehta, Director, Little Italy Group
Over the past 2 Decades India has seen rapid globalization which has resulted in consumer preferences changing and increasing acceptance of global cuisine. Italian food has become one of the most popular cuisines in the country known for its delicious food, iconic dishes like pizzas/pasta But also Italian cuisine is convenient, fast, economical, and has a wide variety of vegetable and meat options which appeals to multiple segments in the market. With such wide offerings Italian cuisine has created its niche in the market and become a cult favorite for Indians.
Italian food philosophy revolves around celebrating the abundance of Fresh ingredients in your region with the freshest of vegetables, artisan cheeses, and exotic meat paired with expert craftsmanship to create nutritious and lip-smacking dishes honoring the history and culture of that particular region. One can witness the diverse food culture in Italy as they travel through the different regions seeing the changes in landscape, ingredients, and infrastructure which largely influence their local cuisine.
In the Late 80s a couple restaurants in 5 Star hotels started with Italian restaurants which were very exclusive and limited to only the very wealthy customers. In 1989 we launched La Pizzeria as a pizzeria which later became a full scale Italian restaurant, in 1995 we started in Mumbai as Little Italy which was a huge success and then we went on an expansion spree to Goa ,Jaipur , Bangalore etc. While we operated in the casual dining segment the acceptance of Italian food was growing and from the late 90s American pizza chains entered the Indian market expanding rapidly to all corners of the country familiarizing Indians to Italian food and since then it has become one of the country’s favorite cuisines. You can see the acceptance and love of Italian food today as today most restaurants / cafés serve pizzas and pastas. It’s a must have on menus and they are generally the highest selling items.
In India the top 3 most popular cuisines are Indian, Chinese, and Continental ( American / French) Over the years Italian cuisine being a niche product started growing in popularity for its items like pizzas and pasta which were likable, easy to eat and with good bold flavors too. Italian isn’t bland like French food or so heavily reliant on meat like Spanish or American food it’s also easy to prepare, can be served in a fast food format, Plenty of vegetarian options and is economical too, all these points contributed to the meteoric rise of Italian cuisine in India . A recent industry report suggests that Italian cuisine has become the third most popular cuisine in India and is poised to become the second most popular cuisine in the next few years overtaking Chinese cuisine which currently is second behind Indian cuisine.
With the growing demand for Italian cuisine, pizza has become a staple food in all corners of India paving the way for increasing acceptance of Italian food which has led to casual and fine dining restaurants that serve specialty Italian cuisines such as regional specialties and exotic products.
We have been able to see first hand the growth of Italian cuisine in India and We have come a long way from calling it Pijja to Pizza! Italian restaurants now serve different styles of pizzas in India with the help of an abundance of imported products. There was a time when we only knew penne and spaghetti as a variety of pasta but today we are familiar with ravioli and tortellini. There also came a time, when we first wanted to make tiramisu in India, mascarpone cheese didn’t exist and it can’t be easily made locally. To bridge this gap, we made a different version using custard and cream but we were only able to make classic Italian tiramisu after mascarpone cheese was made available in India. Similarly, Italian liqueurs like grappa and speciality wines, all had to be imported to create an authentic Italian experience for diners.
When we started in 1989, mozzarella cheese wasn’t available in India, we had to make our cheese. Hence, since that day we have been making our cheese by using Italian techniques and craftsmanship, we made our Mozzarella di buffala in India which we use for our pizzas. Other familiar names that we hear today like Olives, Artichokes, Capers, Olive oil, 00 Flour, Parmesan cheese, etc were also unavailable in the Indian market back then. They had to be specially imported from Italy in large quantities. As the culture grew Italian products started becoming available in the Indian market which made it easier for the growth of Italian restaurants as it was easier for local businessmen / Entrepreneurs to open Italian restaurants and trading businesses.
We are proud to be a part of the Italian food culture in India and over the years we have seen the love for Italian food grow from restaurants only having pizzas on the menu and eventually adding Pasta, Antipasti, Insalata, Desserts and more on the menu. We believe the reason for the success of Italian cuisine in India goes beyond the good food. The countries are also very similar in terms of having a rich history and culture , importance of family in their personal lives and love for their local food.
Fun Fact: The History of Italian food & Indians goes way back when Indian water buffaloes were taken to Italy as they were known for their high protein and fat content which is used to make the famous Italian Mozzarella di bufala. After world war 2 nazis destroyed all the water buffaloes and they were once again brought to Italy from India to revive the dairy industry. It’s fair to say there would be no Pizza without India!
