<p>If India truly is a melting pot, metaphorically, she has blended a heavenly repertoire of delectable cuisines — a disinct tale of tastes from her many states.<br /><br /></p>.<p>And aiming to bring the delights from all 29 states of India to the table, literally, is Bengaluru-based Zzungry, a startup recipe that Subash Baliga put together, with Sandeep Rana and Ashish Kalya.<br /><br />While Zzungry isn’t a mainstream restaurant, it’s an eating place that best serves the fast-paced Bengaluru of today. “We are not a mainstream restaurant, but a restaurant on the cloud, or an internet restaurant,” Baliga tells DH.<br /><br />Sharing Zzungry’s flavoursome fable, Baliga says, “The idea was to offer Indian food at affordable prices, suiting the cosmopolitan tastes of Bengaluru. The fare that we’ve created is at par with the quality of food you would see in a five-star hotel, but at a price-point of a neighbourhood restaurant.”<br /><br />Till date, the nine-month-old firm has curated nearly 200 dishes, originating from 12 states — Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Gujarat, Punjab, Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, and Uttar Pradesh.<br /><br />Zzungry — which currently operates only in Bengaluru — runs a central kitchen, where items are prepared under the supervision of a former sous chef from a major hotel chain. “When we curate menus across states, we identify three to four popular dishes, based on several criteria, and invite a food expert to taste what we’ve created; ensuring that whatever is rolled out has the element of authenticity, even as it is tweaked to suit the local palate. There is some alteration, keeping in mind the customers we serve,” Baliga says.<br /><br />The firm currently operates through a delivery model with six operational kitchens (delivery pods), with the à la carte menu priced Rs 195-320, while combos are priced Rs 195-325. <br /><br />“We have two ways to take orders — app and website. Once you register on our app, with few simple clicks, you may need 15-30 seconds to place an order. On the website, the menu is visible with images, so you know what you are eating. Payment can happen through cash on delivery, online channel, payment gateways, or wallets. For an order less than a minimum of Rs 150, we charge a nominal Rs 40 for delivery, which is within a radius of 5 km,” Baliga says, adding that the entire inventory (including vegetables, groceries, lamb, poultry, and seafood) is locally sourced.<br /><br />Processing around 150 orders a day, Zzungry estimates to have served around 50,000 people till date, with each order being shared by at least three people. Having raised $200,000 in funding till date, it now aims to foray into other destination verticals to go a step beyond the food delivery model. In the coming months, Zzungry plans to enter retail with its signature desserts, as also eye kiosks at malls, corporate campuses, events, and so on, to reach a wider ‘hungry’ foodie-base.<br /></p>
<p>If India truly is a melting pot, metaphorically, she has blended a heavenly repertoire of delectable cuisines — a disinct tale of tastes from her many states.<br /><br /></p>.<p>And aiming to bring the delights from all 29 states of India to the table, literally, is Bengaluru-based Zzungry, a startup recipe that Subash Baliga put together, with Sandeep Rana and Ashish Kalya.<br /><br />While Zzungry isn’t a mainstream restaurant, it’s an eating place that best serves the fast-paced Bengaluru of today. “We are not a mainstream restaurant, but a restaurant on the cloud, or an internet restaurant,” Baliga tells DH.<br /><br />Sharing Zzungry’s flavoursome fable, Baliga says, “The idea was to offer Indian food at affordable prices, suiting the cosmopolitan tastes of Bengaluru. The fare that we’ve created is at par with the quality of food you would see in a five-star hotel, but at a price-point of a neighbourhood restaurant.”<br /><br />Till date, the nine-month-old firm has curated nearly 200 dishes, originating from 12 states — Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Gujarat, Punjab, Delhi, Jammu & Kashmir, and Uttar Pradesh.<br /><br />Zzungry — which currently operates only in Bengaluru — runs a central kitchen, where items are prepared under the supervision of a former sous chef from a major hotel chain. “When we curate menus across states, we identify three to four popular dishes, based on several criteria, and invite a food expert to taste what we’ve created; ensuring that whatever is rolled out has the element of authenticity, even as it is tweaked to suit the local palate. There is some alteration, keeping in mind the customers we serve,” Baliga says.<br /><br />The firm currently operates through a delivery model with six operational kitchens (delivery pods), with the à la carte menu priced Rs 195-320, while combos are priced Rs 195-325. <br /><br />“We have two ways to take orders — app and website. Once you register on our app, with few simple clicks, you may need 15-30 seconds to place an order. On the website, the menu is visible with images, so you know what you are eating. Payment can happen through cash on delivery, online channel, payment gateways, or wallets. For an order less than a minimum of Rs 150, we charge a nominal Rs 40 for delivery, which is within a radius of 5 km,” Baliga says, adding that the entire inventory (including vegetables, groceries, lamb, poultry, and seafood) is locally sourced.<br /><br />Processing around 150 orders a day, Zzungry estimates to have served around 50,000 people till date, with each order being shared by at least three people. Having raised $200,000 in funding till date, it now aims to foray into other destination verticals to go a step beyond the food delivery model. In the coming months, Zzungry plans to enter retail with its signature desserts, as also eye kiosks at malls, corporate campuses, events, and so on, to reach a wider ‘hungry’ foodie-base.<br /></p>
