It takes more than just a big name to make diners revisit a restaurant, says Usha Mani

Curiosity may kill a cat, but it definitely gives life to a restaurant. That’s what it did to Sachin Tendulkar’s signature restaurant in South Mumbai, when it opened sometime last year. This is not exclusive to Tendulkar’s alone. Curiosity does this to most celeb-run- promoted restaurants. Diners flock in great numbers just to ‘see’ what the restaurant is like or maybe even perhaps to get a glimpse of their favourite star.

And if the restaurant has some of the celeb’s favourite dishes and several memorabilia displayed, there is even more attraction. Like Tendulkar’s, which not only serves some of Sachin’s favourite dishes, but also displays cricket souvenirs – bats, balls, trophies!

“A popular celebrity’s restaurant, is accepted by people more easily,” says Jagdeep Kapoor, marketing consultant and managing director of Samsika Marketing. “Similarly there are some film stars who run restaurants as part of the family business and therefore have a better success rate.”

A standing example, here is Suniel Shetty, who has his chain of restaurants in Mumbai and Hyderabad. He is probably the only celebrity who is a businessman first and a film star later.
The trend, however, isn’t just confined to film and cricket stars, alone. Ad film maker, Prahlad Kakkar has two very popular restaurants in Mumbai — Papa Pancho and Sarson Ka Saag. And they aren’t his very first ventures. In fact, his initial endeavour in this field dates back many years. “The first restaurant I started was with Jennifer Kapoor — Prithvi Café. Those days we would draw up the menu everyday — whatever we felt like eating on that particular day, was served to our customers as well,” he remarks, with a laugh.

Similarly, Grasshopper and Sheesh Mahal in Bangalore. They are run by designers, Sonali Sattar and Himanshu Dimri, and Jamila and Suresh Malhotra, respectively.

Many celeb restaurants are however, not entirely run by the celebs themselves. They either just own them, or lend their name, while an experienced group runs the day-to-day operations. Like, Sarjaa in Pune. It’s owned by the Mangeshkar family (of the music legends fame), but is managed and run by skilled hands. Similarly, Fireplace, Bollywood actress Amisha Patel’s restaurant in Mumbai, but managed and run by Kamal Khera, a veteran in the food business.

As Jagdeep Kapoor puts it, “Very few celebrities are serious about the food business on a long-term basis. It is more of a fling and publicity opportunity. They try to tie-up or piggyback with someone else and sooner or later the partnership breaks. Since most celebrities don’t have the ability to run the business, the viability is in doubt in the long-term.”

But this is not entirely true. Like Prahlad Kakkar points out, “If the celebrity concerned takes time to mix with the guests or to take active part in the running of the place, then the chances are that the restaurant will continue to grow. Tendulkar is very involved in his restaurant. It is run by Mars Restaurants, no doubt, but then, they have the expertise. And Sachin is very much a part of its day-to-day activity and that’s important.”

Celeb owned-run-promoted restaurants are mushrooming throughout the country. Former cricketer, Ajay Jadeja’s Senso in New Delhi, Super Model Madhu Sapre’s brother’s Spanish eatery in the plush Koregaon Park area of Pune, are just some of them. Indian celeb restaurants aren’t just a trend in the country but have crossed national borders as well. Asha’s at Dubai has been attracting a considerable Sub Continental clientele.

The fact that Asha Bhosle is an international artist of iconic status, has undoubtedly helped in promoting the restaurant. Asha is said to be truly involved in the restaurant, dedicating a number of her personal recipes.

So, there we are. Celeb restaurants aren’t just a fad. Nor are they simply namesakes! Many of them are an outcome of the star’s genuine passion for good food. Add to this, great ambience, and eating here becomes an experience.

Some restaurants run by celebrities

MUMBAI
Tendulkar’s: Sachin’s favourite food on the menu. A whole lot of cricket memorablia.

Blue Cilantro: Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor’s outfit. Great Sunday brunches.

Papa Pancho: Prahlad Kakkar’s ‘dhaba‘ style eatery. Epitomises the spirit of Punjab.

Crepe Station: Dino Morea’s eatery. Scrumptious Italian meal. And, at greatly affordable rates!

NEW DELHI
Senso: Ajay Jadeja’s (in partnership with three others) ‘ristorante’. An all white fine dining Italian restaurant spread over 6,000 square ft. Boasts of an impressive wine list from famous French and Italian producers.

BANGALORE
Sunny’s: Started by theatre personality and director, Arjun Sajnani. Small place. Popular for their fresh multi-grain breads and the Turkish delight, ‘Baklava’.
Sheesh Mahal: Started by designer Jamila Suresh Malhotra. A typically North-Indian restaurant. Their ‘dal-makhani’, and ‘yakni biryani’, otherwise rare in Bangalore, are great. Try the ‘kakori-kebabs’.

Grasshopper: Belongs to designer Himanshu Dimri and Sonali Sattar. European cuisine, with a blend of Japanese and Thai thrown in. Try the beef rolls served with Wasabe sauce. Herbs, from basil to oregano and lemon grass are grown in the organic farm. Don’t miss the lemon grass ice cream.

Tiger Bay: Run by Vikram Thapar, who handles frozen thacheries. Ask for soft shell crabs. ‘Jhingri Jhol Masala’, made the Bengali way, is among the favourites here. Their fresh fish, and the ‘jinghas’ served with orange sauce, are simply delicious!

KOLKATA
Bhojo Hari Manna: Noted film director Gautam Ghosh’s eatery. Serves typically Bengali cuisine.
Grain Of Salt: Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor’s venture. Multi-cuisine. On days when the chef is in town, you get some great chocolate rossogolla, too.

PUNE
Sarjaa: Owned by the Mangeshkar family. The fare is varied and on the menu you are likely to find the popular ‘tandoori chicken’ and ‘butter chicken’.

HYDERABAD
Mischief: Bollywood actor Suniel Shetty’s first venture in this city. Great Indian spread, with some Oriental delicacies too.