Great biryani makeover: How PEs add their 'dum'

Big bucks is starting to find its way into the Indian restaurant industry, with private equity players betting big on the quick servicerestaurants. The latestentranton this list is theBiryani-a single product-based model and a complete meal in itself.

According to a report in the Business Standard,India-focused PE fund Samara Capital, which last year bought out Raghav Bahl-promoted Newswire18 for Rs 90 crore and made a Rs 175-crore investment in Monte Carlo Fashions, is now in advanced talks to buy stake in Hyderabad's famous Paradise Restaurant. This second-generation restaurateur has already tweaked the business model to drive home delivery and takeaway sales as it prepares to roll out in other metros.

Biryani's fast food makeover and investor interest have tempted many regional players to aspire for their 'discover me' moments.

[caption id="attachment_204740" align="alignleft" width="380"] Picture from hafizismail.com from Flickr under Creative Commons[/caption]

Bangalore-based HO Food Services Pvt Ltd, the company that owns and operates the quick service restaurant (QSR) chain Mani's Dum Biryani, raised Rs 2 crore ($3,19,488) in funding from Navlok Ventures in September 2013. Last yearSAIF Partners last yearinvestedRs 40 crore in TMA Hospitality Services, which owns Ammi's Biryani, a Bangalore-based QSR chain. Anotherreport in Times of India points out that Kolkata's Shiraz - famous for its e Awadhi biryani - is talking to private equity investors to expand nationally, and overseas.Take the case ofThalapakatti Biryani, Dindigul. Born in a small town in Tamil Nadu, they are now expanding aggressively in Tamil Nadu.

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And with restaurantspromisingthatthat biryani can reach your home faster than a pizza, it's also the pricing that makes it a serious challenger in the galloping fast food industry.A regular plate of non-vegetarian biryani retails at approximately Rs 150-170 across the country, while a medium pizza would set one back by Rs 500.

"Biryani lends itself very well to a chain format, as it is easier to standardise and needs limited last-minute cooking. Also, it has a nationwide and international appeal, can be served both as a vegetarian and a non-vegetarian delicacy, and forms a meal with limited add-ons. It is among the Indian cuisine options that could compete with burgers, pizzas and chicken items. That is what could be driving PE investors' interest," Saloni Nangia, president of Technopak, a retail consultancy firm told BS.