STARTED FROM one outlet in Dadar, in the year 2015, Grandmama's Café has received much love in Mumbai. The café is a brainchild of Abhayraj Kohli and his wife Simar Kohli who have carefully curated the place all by themselves to add that personal touch. The café now is all set to expand its footprint outside Mumbai targeting cities like Pune, Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. BW Hotelier spoke to Abhayraj Kohli to know more about his plans.
Brief us about your story?
We hail from a legacy of restaurants, something that we are proud of and always look for chances to take it further and, this is one such initiative. We did not want to go along with the same old industrial decor of the restaurants and wanted to move away from the monotony. We wanted to get to people something close to their heart, something that hits home. There is nothing that is more dear to anyone than a treasure trove of their childhood memories and the nostalgia of their carefree days at their Grandmother's house. That's how we came up with the theme for the cafe. Grandmama's cafe is everything that memories and good times are made of.
How do you plan to compete in the market?
Today's market is a little saturated with food ventures sprouting everywhere with the same core theme behind all. Our main plan is to stay true to our vision which is delicious home-style cooking at an affordable price point. We also believe that doing all this with controlled capital expenses, low overheads and well-priced rentals will keep us competitive in every market scenario.
Brief us about your clientele, what are the recent trends you have witnessed?
Our clientele includes people of all ages, from the elderly to the toddlers, there is something here for everyone. Something that attracts everyone here is the comfort food, quick service, ambience and the people's interest to visit places where they can talk and have a conversation. The decor also plays an important role in enhancing the restaurant as people can weave stories with the pieces installed in the cafe. That's the very reason we have done up the cafe ourselves and chose the interiors carefully so as to exude a cheery and bright vibe. Talking about recent trends, we have seen people like places which are 'insta-worthy', and that is all the reason, the personally done up interiors play a major role.
Brief us about your expansion plans?
With six cafes in Mumbai at Dadar, Juhu, Lower Parel, Kemps Corner, Ghatkopar and Chembur, we are set to open four outlets in Mumbai itself and one outlet in a neighbouring city. In this year itself, four new cafes are going to come up at Phoenix Mills in Lower Parel, on Palm Beach Road in Navi Mumbai, Bandra West and in Andheri Lokhandwala. One new cafe is also coming up in Koregaon Park in Pune. In the next two years, you can also get to see Grandmama's Cafe in Delhi, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Bangalore.