Party cut short in year’s final festive week, restaurants to take the hardest hit

The party plan will need a revision.
After Delhi’s ban on Christmas and New Year gatherings, year-end revelries will have to be truncated in neighbouring NCR cities with both the UP and Haryana governments on Friday bringing back night curfew, which will be in force from Christmas day between 11pm and 5am.
The hospitality industry that had been looking forward to its best festive weekend in the last two years since the pandemic hit, and gains from the shift in bookings from Delhi to NCR cities, is disappointed.
Restaurateur and Noida chapter head of National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) Varun Khera said many outlets had booked artistes, planned themed gigs, invested on marketing their events and accepted advance bookings for the week. “All of it has been negated by the curfew order,” he said.
The industry, he added, expected more emphasis on ensuring Covid protocols than a curfew. “This could have been better balanced. People wouldn’t want to step out now as a curfew would mean multiple checks at various points,” he said.
Restaurateur Utkarsh Chandra of I Sacked Newtown said most bookings at night were seeing cancellations and the most anticipated week of the year could well turn out to be one of the worst. He says for the 11pm curfew, malls have been asked to stop entry of visitors from 10pm. “Our peak business has been taken away this year. We expect support from authorities such as reducing our excise fee or waiving off other charges to support the struggling industry,” Chandra added. Restauranteurs wondered how a night curfew made sense when election rallies and other functions continue to be held in the daytime.
Gurgaon-based Vishal Anand of Saga, Cafe Staywoke and Papaya said there had been a conspicuous improvement in consumer sentiment and just as outlets had started doing better business, the night curfew was a big blow. Joy Singh of Raasta and Yeti said curtailed business hours at night meant less revenues, adding nightlife and the F&B sector are a major contributor to the economy but are not recognised. “In the last two lockdowns as well, we haven’t received any help or moratorium from the government,” he said.
Restaurants will, however, still see business, but clubs and other properties dependent on late-night gigs will take the hardest hit, said Sharad Madan, co-founder and director of the Imperfecto group. “Considering that we have already gone through two national lockdowns where restaurants had to pay rents to landlords, maintenance to malls, salaries to employees, with a 50% cap on occupancy, the night curfew is going to result in heavy losses. We had planned six major events, which we had to cancel,” he said.
Owners of cafeterias and eateries pointed out that their peak business window is from 7pm to midnight, which would reduce by two hours since venues have to be vacated from 10pm for the 11pm curfew because commuting would otherwise become a problem.
“I was not cheering the expected rush of people from Delhi to Gurgaon after the ban on gatherings in the national capital. It’s a pattern. Delhi imposes bans and NCR districts follow without consultations with stakeholders. The curbs are certainly a spoiler for business the sector was expecting,” said Paras Suri, owner of the city’s first 24x7 food court at Central Plaza Mall.
Some said the restrictions are unavoidable and businesses had to swallow the pill, no matter how bitter. “Omicron is for real and at our doors. We've already been battered with two waves. This is a global threat and the utmost priority is health and safety. After all, the economy’s well-being depends on all of us being well,” said Rahul Singh, owner of Beer Cafe.
Roop Singh, executive director of Best Western Country Resort Club, said eateries would take a bigger hit because of the curfew. “It (curfew) will limit the activities of cafes and restaurants. But for resorts and hotels, it’s not much of a problem. People coming for parties anyway check out in the morning. Guests will have to just report before 10 pm and leave after the curfew ends. The cap on gatherings is also not a problem as everyone is already adhering to that.”
(Additional reporting by Siddharth Tiwari in Gurgaon)