Each year, the F&B industry goes through some interesting trends. One such is that of restaurant and bar takeovers. Chefs as well as bartenders and mixologists are opening up to the idea of another professional coming in to takeover the burners and bars, for a set number of days. The result has been some interesting collaborations.
At the recent takeover of O Pedro in Mumbai, Chef André Magalhães of the famed Taberna da Rua das Flores in Lisbon, offered diners a culinary journey: Finding Lisbon in Goa. The idea was to present the influence of Portuguese culture on Goan cuisine. In preparation, Chef Andre and executive chef of O Pedro, Hussain Shahzad, spent a few days together in Goa, visiting local markets, eating at places known for their Portuguese rendition of Goan dishes, exchanging notes with local chefs.
“The beauty of such takeovers is to see how chefs step into someone else’s kitchen and create something new,” states Hussain. “Most of these events are dictated by what is happening in the restaurant and the city at that time. It’s amazing to see how chefs can riff off each other and create new things that are seasonally relevant and apt for the situation.”
Prateek Sadhu, executive chef and co-owner of Masque, Mumbai, talks about the creation of a poached barramundi and millets dish from the 8 Hand Dinner at Masque, a takeover that had chefs Ivan Brehm (Nouri, Singapore), Trevor Moran (The Catbird Seat, Nashville) and Matt Orlando (Amass, Copenhagen) coming together. “It was the first time we had so many head chefs in one kitchen. The four of us were bouncing ideas off one another on how to use the fish — one decided to use the skin in a crispy salad, the flesh itself was poached, and then someone else thought to cook down and purée the bones and head, add starch, and make noodles out of them. Every part of the fish was used across the menu. It began as a conversation about how to use the fresh seafood we had just got, but I think each chef had developed this zero-waste instinct in their cooking that kicked in in creative ways.”
Such takeovers offer everybody involved something. Ishaan Sarkar, Director – Hospitality and F&B, The Whitefield Arms (TWA), Bengaluru, says, “Restaurant or bar takeovers are spike events that attract millennials and are hits on social media. This gives the place a differentiator.”
Ishaan recalls the time when Chris Moore of London’s famed Coupette had taken over TWA. Besides creating a compact cocktail menu that infused local ingredients in high-end spirits, they also got a little adventurous with cocktails, using sparkling wine and liqueurs. Chris brought in some signature British humour in his interaction with guests and also taught the team some tricks of the trade.
1Q1 Kitchen & Bar, Bengaluru, has, on occasion, experimented with having two guest bartenders working together. Teams tend to form and guests begin cheering for their bartender, turning things into a friendly competition. “Takeovers are unique and exciting. For venues, it is an opportunity to collaborate and the ideal platform to showcase and promote themselves in a more interactive manner,” says Anirudh Kheny, Partner, 1Q1 Kitchen & Bar.
Building fraternities
Prathik Shetty, Founder-Partner, The Reservoire, Bengaluru, wants to encourage a bartending culture in the city. For World Cocktail Day, the pub invited seven bartenders and mixologists to a panel discussion and got them to make their signature cocktails for guests. “The highlight was the bonding between bartenders as a fraternity, which though tight-knit, rarely gets to meet up. Through such takeovers, bartenders get to know of the culture at The Reservoire vis-a-vis the bar they are working at, learn new techniques, and share theirs,” Prathik says.
Internationally, takeovers have been happening regularly, but the trend is relatively new in India and promises to be a great way for experts to exchange knowledge. It also means that guests will constantly have something to look forward to.
