The re-emergence of the all-you-can-eat buffet in Bengaluru post pandemic

Long Boat Brewing Co., Bengaluru

The lunchtime rush is going full steam ahead at Barbeque Nation in Kalyan Nagar, north Bengaluru and the staff is already preparing for the second round of buffet which will begin at around 2.15 pm. The restaurant manager, Ishfaq Ahmed, says the price of the Barbeque Nation’s iconic buffet dips at Rs 786 on Mondays and Tuesdays, picking up at Rs 944 on Wednesdays and Thursdays and crests at Rs 1,049 for the rest of the week. “We get more crowd on the weekdays,” he states, which is around 100-150 diners per day. Only recently, after seeing the response to the buffet, the price was increased but Ahmed cannot forget how their buffets had ground to a halt because of COVID-19.

The popular concept of the ‘unlimited’ buffet faltered because of COVID fears and it seemed unlikely that it would return. Restaurants which based their business around buffets were left in a lurch, be it the popular vegetarian buffet restaurant Sattvam or Barbeque Nation. When restaurants hesitantly opened for business after pandemic, there was no signs of buffet as cautious diners chose to be cordoned off in the safety of hand sanitisers and masks. The community model of sharing the same serving spoons and space mingled with the breaths of other diners was looked upon as a ‘threat’. The buffet was dead.

Come 2021, after two deadly waves of COVID-19, food critic and consultant chef Suresh Hinduja says he never thought that the buffet would re-emerge. But like the proverbial phoenix rising from the ashes, buffets started showing up in new and old restaurants and, interestingly, restobars.

Aurum Brew Works, for instance, had just started buffet lunches in January 2020, attracting the employees from the nearby Wipro office on Sarjapur Road. Post-pandemic, the work-from-home model meant the employees weren’t showing up in full strength. “We decided to tailor our weekend buffets around family activities and began having live counters for starters, deserts, candies and waffles,” says chef Kuldip Bharani. With the response now looking encouraging, they are planning to reintroduce their lunch buffets. “Actually, Bengalureans are fond of buffets. During the pandemic, I believe people were missing it.” And for those who are still hesitant to have weekdays buffets, a Sunday brunch seems the way to test the waters. Gawky Goose, a restaurant near the old airport, began its Sunday brunch a few months after the pandemic, when the walk-ins started to trickle in. “The response has been good so far,” says chef Sajosh Peetayil.

The attraction of buffets could be best explained as a value proposition. Some of the most lavish spreads are priced within Rs 1,500 and to sweeten the deal, some buffets even have complimentary alcoholic drinks thrown into the deal. The Long Boat Brewing Co. at Marathahalli, East Bengaluru, offers a whopping 120 items (including accompaniments) in its buffet lunch, including 250 ml beer, at Rs 1,200. “We launched the lunch buffet just three months back and now most of the days are quite packed,” says its owner Vinay Chandrashekhar. According to him, demand and price point are the two main reasons for the buffet to be back. “People are coming back to buffets and we are actually doing two rounds of buffets from Mondays to Fridays.”

“Actually, I wouldn’t call it the re-emergence of the buffet,” Hinduja says. “Instead, it is the reinventing of the buffet.” He recalls the buffet at Chutney Chang, which now has several branches all over the city, and which, according to him, was the first of its kind in the city. “Back then, I gave Chutney Chang a rating of 4 (on 5) and people bombarded me with questions. The reason was simple, the fish and prawn dishes alone were enough to give value to the buffet. Since Bengaluru isn’t a coastal place, it’s very hard to find good fish dishes and, hence, my point.” During the pandemic, when restaurants shifted to the cloud kitchen model, Hinduja worked with various establishments, fine-tuning their dishes to suit the delivery concept. One of the criteria was that the dish must travel well. The ‘rise and rise’ of the food delivery apps has triggered a change in the old model of buffet. “Tell me how can a restaurant possibly offer 120 dishes as a delivery option?” he asks. “Only a fool would not monetise the delivery option.”

As Bengaluru's restaurants learn from their experiences during the pandemic and their foray into cloud kitchens, the buffet model has undergone significant changes. Whether it's Barbeque Nation, Long Boat Brewing Co., Sattvam, or Gawky Goose, these establishments have embraced innovation. Either their online buffet menu has fewer items or else, they offer lunch boxes with a couple of items. Hinduja offers one simple rule for restaurants if they wish to have a successful buffet model: Cut out the 45 or 100 dishes and bring it down to 20, thereby reducing the cost and adding value. “When buffets first started in the city, from Chutney Chang to The Leela Palace, the whole concept was perceived as a fad. At that time, a spartan menu wouldn’t sell. Today, a trimmed menu is the need of the hour,” Hinduja says. “I will probably have to charge money for this valuable tip!” The buffet, on the other hand, is set on becoming a fixture.