The odd-even traffic trial in the capital has dampened the post-NYE funfare. Restaurant owners talk about how their business has taken a hit, and their strategies to counter it
The odd-even traffic trial in the capital has dampened the post-NYE funfare. Restaurant owners talk about how their business has taken a hit, and their strategies to counter it
The capital’s car owners are grappling with the odd-even rule, and while it may or may not prove to be a boon for the city’s air, it is turning into quite the bane for restaurant owners and their business so far. The new year just having dawned with a long weekend that, under ordinary circumstances, would have meant tons of footfall and festivity, has brought in a drought instead.
The odd-even rule is adversely affecting footfall especially during lunch hours, share Sourav Deshwal and Yasheel Anand Singh, owners of Pamphilos Kitchen and Bar in Greater Kailash. “We got a query from a guest who wanted to book the restaurant for over 90 people for lunch, but he said that most of his friends and family are based in Faridabad and won’t be able to drive down to Delhi, as many don’t have odd-numbered cars. He eventually cancelled his booking with us as he wasn’t sure how many people would turn up.”
It is not simply about the diners, but restaurateurs are facing issues with their staff too. Dinesh Arora, who owns five restaurants in the city (Unplugged Courtyard, Connaught Place, Elf Cafe & Bar, Hauz Khas Village, The Common Room, Rajouri Garden, Lights Camera Action, Hadippa and Air Bar, Rajouri Garden), says, “Those among our staff who have two-wheelers don’t have a problem.”
He adds, “But those on the ground management side, who have to get to work early in the morning and are totally dependent on their own vehicles, are facing a lot of issues. Finding carpooling partners is also not easy for them. Apart from just business, we also have to find solutions for our staff, therefore. Fortunately, all my restaurants are very close to Metro stations, so I am not facing a huge dip in the business as compared to other restaurants. But yes, there is definitely a dip, approximately 15% per restaurant, so if I sum up the business of all my restaurants, it’s a huge loss. We really hope this rule is discontinued from January 15.”
Among the strategies they are adopting to counter the effect of the odd-even rule, a few restaurateurs like Sourav and Yasheel are offering discounts on meals. “At least to make our customers happy, all odd numbered bills get 10% off on odd days and all even numbered bills get 10% off on even days till January 15. If this rule gets extended, we will continue doing the same even after January 15,” they affirm.
On the other hand, others like Mohit Ahuja and Manjish Singh of L’adresse Kitchen & Bar, Rajouri Garden, are considering providing a commute to diners themselves. “If this rule gets permanent, restaurateurs would seriously have to provide a cab facility as a chargeable add-on service to customers. People can’t have their taste buds in sync with odd and even numbers. If someone wants to go out and have fun, the odd and even rule stands as a huge hurdle,” they opine.
On the flipside, restaurants like Bailamos in Punjabi Bagh are seeing an upsurge in home delivery orders and Westside Story & Qubitos Cafe in Rajouri Garden has witnessed a 30% upswing in evening footfall. Mohak Gulati of Bailamos shares, “We got more than 100 calls for home delivery on January 1. This itself indicates the kind of dine-in business we are losing at the moment. We are seriously thinking about starting a special home delivery service for at least the coming 10 days so that we don’t end up losing our loyal customers.”
There are also restaurants that have not been affected by the new traffic ordinance at all. Priyank Sukhija of Lord of the Drinks, Hybrid & The Project says, “The formula is a hit as of now in terms of traffic control in the national capital. However, this has not affected footfall at restaurants, as going out for a nice lunch or dinner with friends and family has become a necessity for people and they will continue to go out, come what may. The food industry never sees any recession and thanks to long weekends, we have in fact better turnovers.” He adds, “Most of my places are evening driven concepts and after 8 pm this rule is not applicable in any case, so it has not really affected the business. We are fully supporting this move and giving out surprise offers to our customers too, for following this rule. One lucky customer gets 15% discount everyday at our different restaurants across the city.”
Umang Tewari, owner of Vault Cafe, Junkyard cafe and Cafe Public connection feels that it’s too early to comment if this formula is a hit or a miss. He elaborates, “The holiday mood is still on across the city. Most people are still not back from vacationing, owing to which traffic is anyway less on roads. Footfall in restaurants is not affected much either, as we have a lot of exciting new year packages going on which are tempting people to visit. Besides, our restaurants are well connected by the Delhi Metro, so we don’t have much to worry about.”
