If there’s one thing Akhila Srinivas now understands is how Bengaluru crowds are hungry — not just for food but food-related experiences. The 41-year-old founder of cultural community space in Shantinagar, The Courtyard, decided to convert the upper floor into a culinary glasshouse, aptly called The Conservatory — a space to bring people together around a shared love of food. Akhila tested the grounds with a few pop-ups but that was before Covid. “Before 2020, it was difficult to pull in a crowd. Things changed after the pandemic. People became discerning about what they eat. After all, food was one of those things that kept us going during a trying time.” Now, The Conservatory’s pop-up calendar is always sold out.
Everyone’s favourite “gonzo gastronome”, Anthony Bourdain said: “You learn a lot about someone when you share a meal together.” The man who guided a generation to connect the dots between food, experiences, community and connection was the first one to recognise the power that breaking bread with strangers had. Now gobs of gastronomes are ready to savour food as a connector, source of comfort and a way to bond. The food scene in Bengaluru reflects this, says chef Gautam Krishnankutty.
Gautam, popular in the circuit as Gonzogarbanzo, had worked in professional kitchens for over 26 years. During the pandemic, he took a break and started working from home — and opened to a huge response. A regular collaborator with The Conservatory, he’s an expert at southeast Asian cuisine. “The culinary scene has changed with the explosion of access to all types of ingredients, growth of home chefs, grandmothers opening up their pantry full of family recipes, and the rise of the standalone restaurants.”
Conceptually yours
Gautam notes that chefs who are devoted to a particular style or even micro-cuisine restaurants are atypical of Bengaluru. He counts the Domlur-based Navu — founded by Pallavi Mithika Menon and Kanika Sharma — as the gold standard, and names chefs like Karan Upmanyu who turned an independent chef consultant in 2020 and Naru Noodle Bar’s Kavan Kuttappa among those making the scene more happening.
Agrees seasoned restaurateur A D Singh who runs a host of spaces including the Olive Beach and Monkey Bar in the city. “We opened Olive Beach in 2005, and food scene in Bengaluru was still quite slow then. In the last decade or so, I saw the industry exploding.” Singh says what works for Bengaluru is the availability of affordable real estate, a reason why it is the hub for concept restaurants.
Concept spaces is one thing the city thrives on. As evinced by the popularity of Naru that was No.17 on Conde Nast Traveller India’s Top 50 restaurant for 2024, after debuting last year at 42. This 20-seater ramen-only place that is as difficult to get a reservation for as eating ramen without slurping, is as niche as they come. Chef Kavan started as a takeaway during the pandemic and then moved to doing pop-ups mainly at The Courtyard — and finally in 2022, Naru started with an eight-seater at The Courtyard itself, which became a 20-seater in Dec 2023. “A lot of people were happy that there’s something so micro cuisine focused and in a micro space. But the reservations are what people can’t get over. To reserve a table in Bengaluru was unheard of 12 years ago,” says Kavan.
Naru opens reservations every Monday at 8 pm — and is sold out in 3 minutes for all slots of the week! Kavan says this is something he carried from his pop-up days where you pre-book the seats. It also works as it leads to less cancellations. “When there’s a reservation made and there’s no money involved, we usually cancel without thinking twice,” he notes. In spite of the angry DMs Naru receives, the chef says, “It helps us control everything.”
At-home professional dining
Anurag Arora, 32, a product designer and a self-taught chef runs numerous pop-up formats — one of the most popular ones being the Apartment series that he operates from his Indiranagar home. In 2019, he did his first pop-up at home and says the feeling of strangers sharing a moment over food was so compelling that he continues to chase the high till date.
During his travels abroad, Arora works in international kitchens to up his culinary skills. “Bengaluru audience is full of adventurous eaters. A lot like San Francisco that way: tech capital with an influx of new people who are seeking experiences.” When in town, Arora’s pop-ups that host 40-50 people — ticketed Rs 2,500 per person — on a weekend are all sold out.
Digital creator and chef Sreya Vittaldev, who also does regional cuisine pop-ups, says the city has a lot to offer. “There’s a growth in private dining thanks to a lot more interesting and younger chefs in the city.”
Gautam says that chefs are taking over professional kitchens for a day or home chefs are being roped in by restaurants to add variety. Radisson Blu Atria’s Indian restaurant Tijouri is platforming home cooks to showcase India’s diverse food landscape, especially micro-cuisines. A brainchild of siblings Kaushik Raju and Sanithra Raju, the restaurant this weekend wrapped its last popup of the year ‘The Susegad of Goa’ by chef Sarita Chavan, who showcases hidden stories of Goan Hindu cuisine.
Food and friendships
Bonding over food is becoming popular as seen by the rise of Dining Society — a networking group that is centered around food. Both founders — Shravni Ramkumar and Trisha Mandal — realised that they longed for deeper, more meaningful connections beyond the usual school or work acquaintances. To that end, they hosted their first dinner in March 2024, each inviting two people “we found interesting or friendly with a goal to create a space for authentic conversations”. Since March, they have hosted ten dinners and five larger events.
Food as a connector is what made sisters Divya Rani KV and Deepa Rani KV start paChaak — an immersive theatrical dining experience. Divya, a graphic designer, recalls that one of her earliest memories of food was back in school, when they’d sit at the long tables during the break and pull out the tiffins. “I remember always being excited to see what somebody else brought, irrespective of our social and religious background. It just mattered how fun that tiffin and food looked. We want to replicate that feeling in every story — of sharing the food and the stories.”
They started in Mumbai in 2018. Deepa, who now runs a bar & restaurant in the city along with her father, says, “The concept for all the our productions is that the guest walks into a story and walks out having eaten a scrumptious meal. The food is also a part of the script.” So far they have done two productions: ‘The Lost Supper’ in Mumbai and ‘The New India Lodge’ in Bengaluru — written by Shubhra Chatterji, filmmaker and food researcher.
Cheers to that
Even companies are recognising the potential as Diageo India started The Good Craft Co.’s Flavour Lab in Whitefield. An experience centre, research facility, and innovation lab, it is a sensory tour of the art and science behind craft spirits as well as a boot camp for alcobev startups, says Vikram Damodaran, chief innovation officer, Diageo India. Launched in Sept, it hosts curated experiences for small groups of 12–15 people aged 21 and above every Saturday evening. Damodaran says, “Sessions are fully booked, with a mix of spirits enthusiasts and curious minds alike.”
Akhila of The Conservatory says the culinary scene in Bengaluru is having an aha moment, but the challenge remains to stay relevant. “We have to keep reinventing. It’s like a tiger you have got on and can’t get off.” She hears from all the visiting chefs that the Bengaluru audience is more evolved. “Chefs here have more freedom. It’s a curious young audience of 25-45 years that is driving the change.”
To end with the wise words of Bourdain: “Good food and good eating are about risk.” And both the audience and the artist are ready to take a crack at it.