The Story So Far...
There is a small Belgian cafe (called De Lekkerbek) on 80 ft road near our house in Koramangala, Bangalore and I have been frequenting it for the last year or so. I like the place because the food is good, reasonably priced, and the place is nearly always empty so I can lounge around without being shoved out of the cafe. They serve good waffles, pancakes, and sandwiches amongst other things and my personal favorite is minestronesoup and pan-fried fish. Therefore, all in all, it is a perfect place for me to hang out over a leisurely brunch and with my wife Garima and our friends over dinner.
I meet my friend Riad a couple of times every month for breakfast. We always end up eating south Indian stuff and he always complains that there is no place nearby that would make eggs, toasts, pancakes etc for him. So about a week ago, I took Riad to the cafe for breakfast. As soon as we entered the cafe, a "To let" sign greeted us. I had seen it coming considering how sparsely the café was occupied most of the time but still somehow, it came as a shock. We asked the waiter and the cook as to what the deal was. They said that there was not much business and the owner had decided to close down the place. We had a somewhat disturbed breakfast that day even though the food was great. I was upset to lose my favorite hangout place and Riad was upset that he had finally located a good place for breakfast only to see it shutting down.
Some hectic discussion took place between us and we decided to meet the owner. As it happens, the building is owned by a real-estate fellow with his office next door. We managed to catch him and asked about the place. He said that he owned the place physically but he was not the owner of the restaurant. He had leased the place to someone called Jaya. She had given him a 3-month notice and he was looking for a new tenant. Would we be interested? We were - but not in the place as much as in the restaurant! So he gave us Jaya's contact number.
I called Jaya, explained that I was a regular to her cafe, and was sad to see it getting closed. She said that she had put in a lot of effort and heart into it and hence she too was very sad. She was looking to sell the assets but was also open to the idea of shoring up the place. We decided to meet. After an interesting discussion, Jaya had a proposal for Riad and me. She would let us control and run the place for the next 3 months. We would bear the running cost and take the revenues while she would put nothing and get nothing. After 3 months, if we felt that it was our cup of tea (coffee?) then we could go into a partnership with her where we would share the revenues (but not necessarily the costs since she had put in a lot of capital already). We wanted to sleep over the proposal. We did and in 24 hours, we had a deal with Jaya!
We wanted to preserve a lot of things about the café and change a few things too. I always liked the décor of the place with its small tables and chairs and the European feel of the paintings. Its languid pace and a good selection of the menu had always attracted me to the cafe. But I also thought it underutilized the light. It had a wonderful glass wall overlooking the 80 ft road but the bottom portion of it was blocked by a huge sign. So even though the 80 ft road has been dug up for over 2 years and was nothing much to look at, the sign cut down all the view. Riad and I knew right away that that had to go.The menu needed a trim and the service needed a zip. The walls were screaming for a new coat of paint and the desserts were totally missing. De Lekkerbek was looking for some fresh energy and we are all set to provide it!
So what happens next in the story? Well, we could make a hash of it and in 3 months realize that running a restaurant may sound romantic but is a hard job. Or we could makea place out of it and decide to stick around. Currently all those silly case studies from my MBA days are coming in handy for me (I never dreamt they would be useful and I still donot believe that they will actually be). His experience of running the school is being tested for Riad. Garima is planning to use all her baking expertise and Kavita's (Riad's wife) finesse in handling the tough customers as a flight attendant is going to come in handy.
So the story continues at De Lekkerbek on 80 ft road in Koramangala, Bangalore.... Stay tuned.
I meet my friend Riad a couple of times every month for breakfast. We always end up eating south Indian stuff and he always complains that there is no place nearby that would make eggs, toasts, pancakes etc for him. So about a week ago, I took Riad to the cafe for breakfast. As soon as we entered the cafe, a "To let" sign greeted us. I had seen it coming considering how sparsely the café was occupied most of the time but still somehow, it came as a shock. We asked the waiter and the cook as to what the deal was. They said that there was not much business and the owner had decided to close down the place. We had a somewhat disturbed breakfast that day even though the food was great. I was upset to lose my favorite hangout place and Riad was upset that he had finally located a good place for breakfast only to see it shutting down.
Some hectic discussion took place between us and we decided to meet the owner. As it happens, the building is owned by a real-estate fellow with his office next door. We managed to catch him and asked about the place. He said that he owned the place physically but he was not the owner of the restaurant. He had leased the place to someone called Jaya. She had given him a 3-month notice and he was looking for a new tenant. Would we be interested? We were - but not in the place as much as in the restaurant! So he gave us Jaya's contact number.
I called Jaya, explained that I was a regular to her cafe, and was sad to see it getting closed. She said that she had put in a lot of effort and heart into it and hence she too was very sad. She was looking to sell the assets but was also open to the idea of shoring up the place. We decided to meet. After an interesting discussion, Jaya had a proposal for Riad and me. She would let us control and run the place for the next 3 months. We would bear the running cost and take the revenues while she would put nothing and get nothing. After 3 months, if we felt that it was our cup of tea (coffee?) then we could go into a partnership with her where we would share the revenues (but not necessarily the costs since she had put in a lot of capital already). We wanted to sleep over the proposal. We did and in 24 hours, we had a deal with Jaya!
We wanted to preserve a lot of things about the café and change a few things too. I always liked the décor of the place with its small tables and chairs and the European feel of the paintings. Its languid pace and a good selection of the menu had always attracted me to the cafe. But I also thought it underutilized the light. It had a wonderful glass wall overlooking the 80 ft road but the bottom portion of it was blocked by a huge sign. So even though the 80 ft road has been dug up for over 2 years and was nothing much to look at, the sign cut down all the view. Riad and I knew right away that that had to go.The menu needed a trim and the service needed a zip. The walls were screaming for a new coat of paint and the desserts were totally missing. De Lekkerbek was looking for some fresh energy and we are all set to provide it!
So what happens next in the story? Well, we could make a hash of it and in 3 months realize that running a restaurant may sound romantic but is a hard job. Or we could makea place out of it and decide to stick around. Currently all those silly case studies from my MBA days are coming in handy for me (I never dreamt they would be useful and I still donot believe that they will actually be). His experience of running the school is being tested for Riad. Garima is planning to use all her baking expertise and Kavita's (Riad's wife) finesse in handling the tough customers as a flight attendant is going to come in handy.
So the story continues at De Lekkerbek on 80 ft road in Koramangala, Bangalore.... Stay tuned.
posted by Gaseous Beyondus at 3:20 AM
7 Comments:
Awesome guys .. good luck on the adventure!!
hey...wen i was in bangalore i used 2 luk up at this quaint i'l place everyday thinknig dat sumday i'l definintly go there...there was sumthing so charming n inviting about this nondescript cafe...n then one day i actually went...n m so glad dat i did...completly fell in luv wid d place at the first instance itself...well my luv affair wid de lekkerbrek was cut short as i had 2 leave bangalore...but ya guys r doing an awsum job...all d very best 2 d both of ya...lets hope cafe is up n running wen i cum 2 bangalore the nxt time around...cheers n gud luck :)
well, very interesting tale, i must say. good luck, and i do hope i can follow suite!
We had a small party organised at Lekkerbek last evening for 18 people. We had a great time & everyone enjoyed the food especially minestrone soup!Good place. Looking forward for more get togethers in Lekkerbek
Thats cool.. I stay in btm layout and ud love to hang out with friends.. unfortunately hvent lived in bangalore for last 6 yrs.. wondering when I will make it back home, sweet home.. all the best for ur cafe
Thanks for the wishes everyone! Very soon, we are hoping to make the cafe WiFi!
Ranjeet
Good story, hope it has a happily ever after ending. I will be sure to visit when I'm home, and will let friends in the city know to try it.
Having seen the amount of energy Garima has for things she is passionate about, I can only imagine that the place will be a success. Good luck.
Anjana.
of Asha St. Louis.
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