Is Chennai ready for fine dining?

CHENNAI: A year after Marmar restaurant in Saudi Arabia began fining its customers for wasting food on their plates, a Chinese buffet place in the UK has now introduced the fine mechanism. More restaurants, especially places with buffets, have been following suit because hotel owners find this as a way to reduce wastage of food and exuberance.Considering the increasing number of buffets in the city, is this a method that will soon make its way here? “Not in the near future,” promises Vipin Sachdev, managing director at Tuscana Pizzeria, B Bar, Kryptos and Burgundy. But at the same time, he says that since there is so much food wastage at buffets in his restaurants, charging customers for leftover food is an idea he will consider. One of the biggest reasons for more wastage in buffets when compared to an ala carte menu is the customers’ insistence on getting their money's worth. “It is proven that people tend to eat much more at buffets because there is a value proportion attached to them,” explains a marketing manager at city restaurant. Most 'all you can eat' buffets are expensive, especially at big restaurants, because of the variety offered. So diners put pressure on themselves to try every dish on the menu at least once to make up for the price they are paying. But the way to tackle this is not by charging customers for wastage but by reducing costs. “This way, the price of the buffet also comes down and you'll be surprised to see that wastage significantly reduces,” says Vipin.  At Le Royal Meridian, wastage is nipped in the bud. “We maintain a log book and make food for an estimated number of customers,” says Sachi, assistant F & B manager at the hotel. “But despite our calculations, if there is excess food, we usually donate it to orphanages.”  Most restaurants have especially small plates at their buffets so customers cannot fill their plates beyond a certain point, thereby ensuring less wastage. “The dishes that we use to serve food are also small,” says Vipin. But charging customers for wastage is an idea that restaurateurs will always have at the back of their minds. “Chennai diners might not be open to the idea yet, but that doesn't make it a bad idea. It will definitely help in controlling food wastage. The only way to implement it is by educating people and preparing them for it,” says Sachi. Vipin breaks it down. “If people are now willing to pay for a plastic bag, they will definitely be ready to pay for what they don't eat at some point of time.”