Awan Bangwi, a Tripura based dish. (Cutlure Trip photo)
Guwahati: In Delhi, northeastern cuisines are now celebrating their time doing good business after foodies welcomed them with open hands, PTI reports.
Northeast, known for its diverse tribes and traditions, also offers varied cuisines like their trademark northeast spices and herbs like bamboo shoots and 'akhone', along with the staple meats. Restaurateurs are now offering these across New Delhi.
A Manipuri restaurant owner Mutum Ashok said, "We started in 2015, and it was more like a hole-in-the-wall kind of a venture then. But eight years on, we are now in a bigger location and doing good business."
In the initial days, the crowd was mostly confined to people from the northeast, but positive word of mouth for the food slowly started attracting people from different places, he said.
He said, "Our USP has been the simple, home-cooked food that we serve. Our ingredients are sourced from Manipur. People love the unique flavours and our staple dishes of pork, chicken and fish."
Rocila Patton, a restaurateur from Nagaland, said, "People know that our food is healthy, as it does not involve too much oil and frying. We have regular customers from our region and also a lot of foreigners, especially those working with different embassies."
The growing number of restaurants offering cuisines from the northeast has also led to increasing competition, said Rubi Brahma, who runs an eatery specialising in food from Assam.
Meanwhile, the competition in serving the northeast food has increased.
Competition is a challenge. One needs to constantly understand the preferences of the customers and evolve while keeping the unique taste of the dishes intact," Rubi Brahma, an Assam-based eatery owner.
"I try to have a special weekend menu, and it has always found favour with my patrons," he added.
Ashok, Patton and Brahma have a specialised supply chain for the vegetables, herbs and spices they use so that they would be authentic. Ingredients are for recreating these flavours, they say.
Most restaurateurs keep a connection with their home states for supplies.