Home LPG booking time-cap forces festive diners into restos

Kolkata: The footfall at city restaurants surpassed last year's Bengali New Year figure on Wednesday. The crowd at most of the leading restaurants on Poila Baisakh eve was also higher than last year's. Both lunch and dinner seats at most of the restaurants on Poila Baisakh were full, with some witnessing lunch booking till 5 pm. And it wasn't just Bengali cuisine that was on demand. From Mughlai to Chinese, all restaurants witnessed a good box office. Restaurateurs said the time cap between domestic LPG bookings has boosted this years dine-out footfall.President of Hotel and Restaurant Association of Eastern India Sudesh Poddar, who owns Songhay, MS Bar & Lounge, Manthan, said the crowd count for both Tuesday night and Wednesday lunch were better than last year's. "Dinner is also full. We have hardly any seat left," he added. Chairman of Speciality Restaurants Anjan Chatterjee agreed with Poddar, saying this year's crowd surpassed that of last year's Poila Baisakh. Chatterjee has brands like Oh! Calcutta, Main Land China, Café Mezzuna, Haka, Asia Kitchen, along with others. He pointed out that this year, because of the domestic LPG booking gap, most people decided against expanded home cooking in favour of going out to restaurants. "Our offering was mostly buffet as, on occasions like these, people want to eat a bit heavy. We called it ‘Naba Barsher Gala Buffet'. We witnessed that in restaurants like Oh! Calcutta and Mainland China, most of the people preferred buffet," he said.The director of 6 BP, Sushanto Sengupta, which is known for its Bengali cuisine, experienced huge pre-booking and walk-in crowds. "The momentum started from 1.30 pm on Wednesday, and after that, there was no end to the crowd. Not only our signature restaurant at Ballygunge, but all our units did well," he added. Aaheli at Peerless Hotel, one of the pioneers in Bengali cuisine, has done brisk business on Poila Baisakh. "From 1 pm onwards, it was full. And compared to last year, it was better," an official said.The owner of Peter Cat, Mocambo, Peter Hu!, Nitin Kothari, said all his restaurants were houseful on both Poila Baisakh eve and on Bengali New Year's day. "Even at 4.30 pm on Wednesday, there was a queue, which is not usual," he added. Kothari argued that in Peter Cat, he added 145 seats a few months ago. But despite that, there was a queue. "This is why we feel this year was better," he added. The director of Aminia, Kabir Azhar, said all its outlets in the city are serving at full capacity and there is a queue as well. "Both dining and take-away did well. This is good for the industry," he added. Debaditya Chaudhury, managing director of Chowman, Oudh 1590, Chapter 2 and Chaudhury & Company, said, "Like every year, we were overcrowded on the night of Poila Baisakh eve. Although there was some scepticism around the current LPG scenario, and we had anticipated a lower turnout this time, we were truly pleased with Tuesday night's footfall. So far on Wednesday, the crowd is in line with our expectations." Get real-time updates and result insights on the CBSE 12 Result 2026.