Goodbye dosa, hello sandwiches: Bengaluru restaurants turn to ‘jugaad’ amid LPG crisis

• Restaurants face LPG shortage due to Middle East conflict
• Menus shift to charcoal, firewood, and fewer gas-intensive dishes
• Hotels may shut down if LPG supply isn't restored soon

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A notice at the entrance of Sanctum Hotel in Gandhi Nagar, near Bengaluru’s Majestic area, captures the LPG crisis now unfolding across the restaurant industry.

“Dear guests. Due to the ongoing war in the Middle East, there is no supply of fuel gas all over the city. Hence, we may not be able to serve the full menu of food items as earlier. We apologise and request your cooperation. Once the supply starts, we will resume the same,” the notice reads.

Hotel staff in chef whites were seen ferrying plywood sheets into the kitchen. With commercial LPG cylinders running out, the kitchen has begun relying on charcoal and firewood.

“Every day, we have around 350 guests across our 95 rooms and eight banquet halls. Now we are using charcoal and firewood to manage cooking,” a senior staff member of the hotel told Moneycontrol.

Also, read: Iran war: OMCs ask LPG distributors to supply commercial cylinders only to hospitals, educational institutions

The crisis is already reshaping menus. Fuel-intensive items such as vada and masala dosa are among the first to be scaled back.

“Today we didn’t serve vada. We are planning to remove masala dosa from the menu. Instead, we will rely more on bread items like sandwiches and tandoor dishes. Normally we need five cylinders a day, but our distributor says he has no stock,” the staff member said.

Across the country, restaurants are scrambling for short-term fixes as the shortage deepens. Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) have instructed LPG distributors to prioritise hospitals and educational institutions, temporarily halting commercial cylinder supplies to hotels, restaurants and other businesses.  Until LPG supplies resume, many restaurants may temporarily replace staples like dosa and vada with sandwiches, grilled snacks, and whatever can be cooked without LPG.

Also, read: The Israel–Iran war is coming for your masala dosa

Cutting down dosa production

For many South Indian restaurants, dosa preparation is one of the biggest consumers of LPG.

“One dosa tawa requires constant heat even if you are not making dosas. I have four dosa tawas, but I have shut down two to reduce gas consumption,” Arun Adiga, owner of Vidyarthi Bhavan, told Moneycontrol.

On an average weekday, Vidyarthi Bhavan serves nearly 1,800 to 2,000 dosas.

“Dosas consume the most gas. So the first step is to reduce the number of tawas running. By shutting down two, one cylinder can last a few hours longer. We can stretch for another one or two days, but if there is no solution, we cannot do any magic,” he said.

In Coimbatore, renowned restaurant chain Annapoorna has put up notices at its outlets saying it is limiting its menu to essential items due to an LPG cylinder shortage.

Also, read: Bengaluru hotels warn of shutdown from March 10 if LPG supply isn’t restored

Even black market cylinders scarce

SP Krishnaraj, owner of Nisarga Grand Hotel on Nrupathunga Road in Bengaluru, said restaurants are even struggling to procure cylinders in the black market.

“Today we have five cylinders left. Even in the black market, one cylinder costs around Rs 2,800-3,000 and it is still not easily available. The official price of a commercial 19-kg cylinder is around Rs 1,940,” he told Moneycontrol.

He said the hotel may stop serving dosas soon.

“From tomorrow it may not be possible for us to serve dosa. Instead, we may focus on items like rice and sambar, which need to be cooked only once unlike dosa that requires continuous heat. We have to come up with such contingency plans to tide over the crisis,” he said.

Krishnaraj added that the government should step in to address the shortage.

“More than one crore people in Bengaluru depend on hotels for food. There are also marriage halls and other establishments that consume commercial cylinders. The government needs to come up with a plan to address this,” he said.

Also, read: Karnataka, Tamil Nadu CMs write to Centre, flag LPG supply concerns amid Iran war

Electric cooking not an easy solution

Some eateries are considering solar-powered or induction-based cooking systems, but these would require new vessels and electrical infrastructure.

“Induction stoves require huge power loads - around 20 kilowatts for some equipment. Most restaurants are not designed for that kind of electricity demand. We also need vessels that are compatible with induction stoves,” said Krishnaraj.

There are also cost challenges.

“Even if induction is possible, it is expensive. Power consumption is high and equipment needs to be replaced. It cannot happen overnight,” he said.

Limited options

For many kitchens, the only viable alternatives are wood-fired ovens, charcoal grills and electric fryers.

“All gas-related cooking will have to stop once the cylinders run out. Restaurants that have wood-fired ovens or electric fryers can continue some operations. Fried items may still be possible, but regular cooking becomes difficult,” Mukesh Tolani, co-founder and director of Toit Beer Co., told Moneycontrol.

The crisis has forced restaurant owners to rethink their menus almost overnight.

“South Indian dishes depend heavily on LPG. Nearly 95 percent of our dishes require gas. We have never been in a situation where we had to think about alternatives like this,” said Adiga.

For now, many restaurants say they have enough gas to last only a few days.

“At most, hotels can keep stock for two to three days. We cannot store cylinders for longer. Once that runs out, operations will become extremely difficult,” said a senior hotelier.

Chennai-based popular restaurant chain Adyar Ananda Bhavan (A2B) said it has LPG cylinder stocks only for the next two days, after which it may have to shut down operations if the issue is not resolved.

The shortage comes amid the ongoing conflict involving Iran in West Asia, which has disrupted oil and natural gas exports from the region and tightened fuel availability. The booking interval for domestic LPG cylinders has also reportedly been increased from 21 days to 25 days, signalling broader supply constraints.

The disruption has triggered a severe shortage of commercial cylinders in Bengaluru, forcing the Bengaluru Hotels Association to warn of a possible shutdown of hotel operations starting March 10 if supplies are not restored.

Also, read: LPG Cylinder crisis: 20% Mumbai hotels shut, 50% may close soon, says association