Guest Writer

Mall and high street dining

Dhiren Kanwar tells us how the neighbourhood mall has moved fast food outlets from high street locations to suburban catchments

India has just beaten Sri Lanka and the Sharmas are in a mood to celebrate. While pasta is the obvious choice for the kids Mrs Sharma is keen on eating pav bhaji and Mr Sharma is opting for his all-time favourite sheesh kabab from the corner restaurant. A situation that is sure to dampen their spirits, but not anymore…

Mushrooming of slick malls across the suburban landscape have changed more than just the country's retail shopping appetite; they are changing the way India consumes food. A battle between the mall with it's variety of offerings and the traditional standalone restaurant on the developed high street is underway where the traditional standalone high street restaurants are fighting hard to retain their appetising allure in the face of a progressively challenging environment.

Even the best standalone restaurant can often find itself besieged by similar cuisine restaurants mushrooming within a small radius along the street. Throw in rising real estate rentals, inflation and local 'environmental' costs that seem to have no cap, spiced with limited parking space along the high street and you have a potent mix that seems to be a constant on the menu of every high street restaurant worth its salt. This undoubtedly keeps high street restaurateurs battling hard to keep the pot from boiling over and to build brand recall with customers, who now, have choices closer to home - within their neighbourhood mall.

The neighbourhood mall has moved the fast food outlets from high street locations and on to suburban catchments, tapping as yet poorly serviced areas, increasing customer base and providing repeat clientele. The convenience of being able to access a variety of cuisines and satisfy a larger number of palates within the comfort of a mall, without having to battle traffic between cuisines, and search for parking, assures the food courts and restaurants of footfalls from hungry shoppers.

While some malls are known for their fast food service, others have a clutch of fine dining restaurants within the mall, which acts as a magnet to attract serious diners by cutting through the clutter and noise of the fast food court. Coupled with the exclusivity clause that prevents the mall from hosting another similar cuisine restaurant, the restaurant remains insulated from the attendant dangers of another similar-cuisine restaurant springing up down the aisle.

The best alternative seems to lie in developing malls near or on traditional high streets which allows both the malls and standalone restaurants to benefit and almost feed off each others' advantages in an almost win-win situation.

A case in point is the development of three malls in the vicinity of Bengaluru's MG Road and Brigade Road high streets. So while the malls may have shifted the focus away from standalone restaurants, in this evolving environment there continues to be a place for both high street restaurants and those that seek to showcase their wares within the mall to benefit from each other and grow. Ultimately, the one to benefit the most is the customer.

The writer is chief (F&B & Operations), Kshitij Investment Advisory