And now, a look at 5 mouth-watering startups!
We all love food. There’s no two ways about it. However diet conscious one might be, the aroma of that Hyderabadi Biriyani can just get irresistible at times. It’s almost as if it doesn’t matter who we are, where we come from or what we do. We just love indulging, and treating our taste-buds to something special every now and then. Making the most of this ‘weakness’ for food, coupled with the fact that laziness too can crop up as a factor, there are a number of companies that have gorged their way into the start-up world. From traditional food delivery services to the not-so-traditional midnight meal indulging enablers, here is a look at a few of them.
Yo! Potato – The Chennai based home delivery service comes as a true life-
line from the sweltering heat and humidity. Operational in most places across Chennai, ‘Order from ANY restaurant’, is their theme. Customers get to choose the food they want, from the restaurants of their choice, and the delivery would be made for FREE. If how Yo! Potato makes ends meet is your question, the answer is that they have tie-ups with restaurants that they partner. But from a customer’s perspective, it just doesn’t get any better. Plus their site and newsletters have a totally jovial look that you can check out here.
FoodPanda – Launched in Gurgaon, this rocket internet startup’s value proposition is to make ordering food for home delivery fast and hassle free for consumers. Akhilesh Bali,
the co-founder adds, ““Instead of hunting for the number of the restaurant from where you want to order food, and going through the whole process of repeating your contact information and delivery address, you just call on our central delivery number or place the order online or through the mobile application, and we’ll get the restaurant to deliver the food hot and steamy to your door step.” Besides India, FoodPanda is also live in 8 other countries. Now that’s one really global Panda we’re talking about. With the same concept as Yo!Potato, the two startups will be converging when they expand outwards from the North and South.
Heat2eat – A service that is a must-try for ones who currently live abroad and miss apna ghar-ka-khaana. Heat2eat offers vegetarian snacks, dals, gravies and a lot more which are dehydrated and dry packed hygienically in various sizes to
retain the goodness of the flavour and taste. The food can be prepared in 2-8 mins, contains no preservatives, and can remain packed for upto 5 months. The fresh food promised by Heat2Eat seems ideal for students studying abroad, overseas travellers and young working couples.
– This is a service tailor-made for a night person whose city sleeps a bit too early for his liking. From coke and chips to cigarettes and contraceptives, FlybyKnight’s menu card seems perfect for Mumbai’s late-nighters. Started by Neha Jain, their products range from a list of well-chosen eatables like Lays, Bourbon, Snickers, Water, Beverages (legal hence non-alcoholic) to need-of-the-hour material like antacids, sanitary napkins, cigarettes and condoms. All of this is available at between 11pm to 3am at your doorstep at the MRP with a convenience charge of Rs.50, however large the quantity may be. Currently delivering between Andheri and Bandra, FlyByKnight looks to expand in the near future.
Wonderfully lip smacking things are happening in the space of food. From bigger chains like the Faaso's and Fishtro's of the world to the smaller ones which have just started up, the gastronomic juices are sure to get a lot more fizz. For more such interesting startups, read about Photography startups or Offbeat ventures or even Financial Startups.
- With inputs from Jubin Mehta
