New Delhi, February 05, 2019: The Indian food service sector has seen exceptional growth during the past decade and continues to expand at a fast pace. This can be attributed to a high percentage of young and working population with rising disposable incomes. Availability of organised retail space has also helped the industry to encourage the growth of local and international brands across different formats.
According to FICCI-PWC report ‘The Changing Landscape Of The Retail Food Service Industry’ following are the trends that will shape the Indian food service industry.
In the fine or casual dining space as well, regional cuisine restaurants are slated to come up. It is expected food from states such as Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Kashmir will flood the Indian restaurant market. More and more restaurants will come up focusing on cuisines from the North East, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh.
Over the last few years, as food delivery apps, quick-service restaurants (QSRs) and take-away outlets have begun to dominate, biryani has emerged as an unlikely champion of India’s fast food scene, unseating pizzas and burgers, which used to dominate standardised fast food kitchens. According to food delivery apps, it is among the most popular dish ordered and its demand far surpasses that of Western imports.
The rise of ethnic cuisine has not been limited to QSRs or dine-in restaurants. It is also evident in the cafe space with the rise of a multitude of chai cafes. Tea chains around the country are looking to break free from their traditional outlook and that of their older and more established counterparts-coffee retail chains. By focusing on the tea drinking experience, labelling tea as a wellness brew and creating novelty around a familiar product, tea cafes are wooing students and young office goers. This makes sense as India has traditionally been a tea-drinking nation. For every cup of coffee, an Indian drinks around 30 cups of tea.
