IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Prashant Issar : A conversation on the trends, challenges, and talent in the restaurant sector of India. Hosted by Arushi Bhattacharya.

May 2021

Prashant describes himself as ‘someone who pursues opportunities without regard to the resources within his control.’

After graduating from hotel school at Dadar Catering College, he started as a management trainee at The Indian Hotels Company, training at The Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai. He spent five years at the hotel making his way to Managing the Apollo Bar and Rendezvous.

He then packed his bags and moved to London, the city he considers the culinary capital of the world. He worked for over ten years in various restaurants and was involved in new openings across Soho and Chelsea. He managed the famous Michelin star restaurant Amaya in Knightsbridge for over five years.

Ever hungry to learn more, he bagged a scholarship at the Henley Business School for an MBA and majored in entrepreneurship. Ditching the comforts of a settled life he returned to India which he calls the new land of business innovation. He adapted quickly to the new India working in hotels, restaurants, and heading brands like Hakkasan and Yauatcha, before opening his own Indian-tapas-inspired restaurant, Mirchi & Mime, with his business partner Anuj Shah in Mumbai in 2015 and Madeira & Mime in 2016. He continued breaking convention and created a service design that employs hearing impaired service staff who he complimented by curating an eclectic menu from his experiences and travels.

In the interest of taking their concept to the world, Prashant and Anuj exited their maiden venture in 2018 and formed Stratix Hospitality with equity participation from Impresario Entertainment and Hospitality thereby enabling them towards achieving their desired scale and higher purpose of generating wealth for society.

Reflecting on his journey he has delivered numerous lectures to under-grad and post-grad students for various business schools from India, Germany, and the US. He has also delivered two TEDx talks.

He decided to take up long-distance running in 2016 and has successfully completed four half marathons (sub-two hours) and one full marathon.

And in his own words – ‘I’m only just getting started.’

In his conversation with Arushi, Prashant takes us through the learnings from the pandemic’s first wave in India, the trends he has spotted within the country’s restaurant sector, and the talent developments that may follow.

Watch the full conversation between Arushi and Prashant in the video above!

Arushi Bhattacharya
Vice President
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