Success Mantra 2.0: What Happens When Two Brands with One Vision Joins Hand

Pricol Gourmet is a manifestation of a vision that two promoters with similar synergies were pursuing in their independent F&B companies. Operated by Japtej Singh Ahluwalia, Nikesh Lamba and Vikram Mohan, the brand portfolio today includes epicurean offerings across a panorama of cuisines.…with top drawer Food & Beverage offerings like Savya Rasa, a South Indian fine-dining restaurant; Soy Soi, an Asian eat street with seven different cuisines from South East Asia; Quaint and Cute Little Soi with a reputation for serving a top-notch menu that showcases a diverse selection of Chinese and other popular Asian dishes; Double Roti, an easy-breezy chain of cafes, best known for its burgers; Delish, an epicurean dessert studio; Bread and Chocolate, a rustic bakehouse and cafe And finally Green Meadows a boutique resort that houses Origin Bar, an unflawed balance of contentment with class, where craft cocktails and global tapas are at the soul! And Bayroot is a Mediterranean focused global cuisine restaurant offering honest, good food, cooked from the heart with local sustainable produce. Excerpts from the interview:

How did the idea of Pricol Gourmet come into being?

Pricol Gourmet is a manifestation of a vision that two promoters with similar synergies were pursuing in their independent F&B companies. In 2017, VM Hospitality, started by Vikram Mohan and Infusion Hospitality founded by Japtej Ahluwalia and Nikesh Lamba merged together to form Pricol Gourmet. The idea was to offer exceptional gourmet concepts across the country.  Today, Pricol Gourmet is a respected brand operating premium and casual dining restaurants as well as boutique resorts in Chennai. The idea was simple to offer new and exciting food and beverage concepts to the people of Chennai to begin with and there on to the major cities in the country.  The objective of Pricol Gourmet Pvt Ltd is to establish itself as a leading player across different food and beverage segments in the country. Our restaurants on an average serve 3000 customers daily with the help of 500 employees, a family that is growing rapidly.

What makes the three of you the best combination?

The fact that brought the three of us together is our shared passion for food and beverage. Having said that we are very different personalities and each of us bring different strengths to the table, it is in fact this diversity that makes us a formidable force.  

Secret of your success?

We do a fair amount of ground work before we start a new brand or open a new restaurant. We always look at doing a need gap analysis to determine whether the concept we are trying to create has a demand or not. After identifying the right brand for the right market, we go into depth research, travel and trials to create the best version of the cuisine we plan to offer. We also invest heavily in our people and each of our brands is led by a dedicated culinary custodian who is not only responsible for creating and maintaining the brand but also ensures regular research and development in the same. We keep our restaurants compact and not very large which helps us keep our formats easy to adapt in any retail format. We also keep an eye on trends which will stand the test of time and not join the bandwagon on any fads that are hot.

The highlight of your company?

Would have to say our Team. We have a team which is full of go getters and employees who take ownership in their role. We are also a growing company so there is always something exciting brewing and concepts that we are working on.

Challenges faced?

Besides surviving the pain induced by the pandemic, the availability of good quality talent is one of the main things that is hampering our growth. This is not something that is unique to us but as an industry everyone is grappling with this.

Your future plans?

As an organisation we are constantly looking at growing, our immediate focus is to strengthen our presence in the cities we have already entered, Chennai, Pune, Delhi and Kochi and also to make and entry to a few new cities like Bengaluru and also explore upcoming cities like Coimbatore, Mysore etc.      

We also forayed into pop ups in 2022 to test waters in International Markets.

#Originshakeup a series of collaborations started in 2022, invites mixologists from around the world for a unique cultural exchange, pushing the teams to explore flavours beyond their spectrum.

On the Anvil- Elephant Room Singapore Takes Over Origin Bar Chennai 14^th to 16^th Oct 2022 and Savya Rasa (from the Pricol Gourmet family) will travel to Elephant Room itself for another three-day collaboration in Singapore at the end of the year.

#SavyaRasaTravels a series of collaborations started in 2022, Savya Rasa pops up and invites chefs from around the world for a unique cultural exchange, an amalgamation between the both, is put together to create a one of a kind tasting menu cooked with the best of local produce, showcasing the diner what the best of South Indian cuisine has to offer and vice versa.

On The Anvil- Savya Rasa will be taking over Pickle in Dublin (Best Indian Restaurant in Ireland) on the 28^th, 29^th & 30^th October. The chefs will be hosting meal experiences on both their home turfs. In 2023, Chef Sunil Ghai will travel to Savya Rasa for another two-day collaboration in India.