Restaurateurs across Mumbai, from Nariman Point to Dahisar and Mulund, are starting to change their menus, speed up cooking processes and even consider removing dishes that take a long time to cook. This comes as a shortage of commercial LPG cylinders begins to affect restaurant kitchens. Suppliers say the disruption is linked to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, according to a report by The Indian Express.
India is the world’s second-largest importer of LPG and consumed about 33.15 million metric tonnes of cooking gas last year. Most of the country’s LPG demand is met through imports and more than 80 per cent of these shipments pass through the crucial shipping route of the Strait of Hormuz. However, ship movements there have largely stopped because of the conflict in West Asia.
Mumbai’s iconic restaurant ‘may take off items that demand prolonged use of gas’
At the well-known Gypsy restaurant, which has been frequented by personalities such as Raj Thackeray, Nana Patekar and the late music legend Lata Mangeshkar – who even celebrated her 75th birthday there – the Limaye family is considering reducing its menu, the report mentioned.
“We may take off items that demand prolonged use of gas, like roast chicken which needs to be cooked overnight or Peking duck. Or specialty items like Shingara sheera which needs 1.5-2 hours of cooking. For 40 years, our schezwan sauce has been made in-house but if the problem persists, we might figure out an alternative – maybe bottled schezwan sauce. My father (Rahul Limaye) is very worried about it,” Aditi Limaye Kamat, a Mumbai-based chef and restaurateur, told IE.
Adding that she said despite their decades-old relationship with the gas agency, supplies have not come.
Mumbai bakeries also feel the impact
The shortage is also affecting bakeries, many of which had only recently switched to LPG ovens after environmental guidelines were introduced.
“We shifted from wood-fired ovens to LPG ovens in December because of new guidelines against coal usage,” IE quoted Tara Raj, the third-generation custodian of Vienna Bakery, as saying.
Raj said the bakery usually requires three cylinders every two days. “On Friday, we placed our order. Our vendor told us that the cylinders will come today (Monday) but we are yet to receive them,” she told IE.
For now, she has shifted some production to an electric oven and has started declining small bulk orders.
Bengaluru Hotels Association warns shutdown of restaurants from March 10
The Bangalore Hotels Association, which represents hundreds of eateries and restaurants in the city, also warned of a shutdown. On March 9, it announced that hotels and restaurants may have to stop kitchen operations from March 10 because supplies of commercial LPG cylinders have been hit.
Such a sudden shutdown could leave thousands of daily wage workers, students, senior citizens and hospital patients without access to affordable cooked meals.
“Oil companies had assured us that there would be no disruption in gas supply for at least 70 days. The sudden stoppage is a devastating blow to the hotel industry,” the association said in a statement. “Since the hotel industry is an essential service, the common man, senior citizens, students, and those dependent on affordable daily meals will be the first to suffer.”
The association also warned that if supplies are not restored immediately, hotels and restaurants across Bengaluru may have to shut their kitchens from March 10. Such a move could disrupt food supply not just for the general public but also for hospital canteens, student hostels, corporate cafeterias and intercity travellers who depend heavily on affordable meals from hotels.
Restaurant body seeks urgent govt intervention
Meanwhile, the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), which represents more than five lakh restaurants across the country, wrote to Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday. The association said any disruption in commercial LPG supply “will lead to a catastrophic closure of majority of restaurants”.
“This is severely impacting the restaurant industry and in turn supply of food as an essential service for citizens. We request urgent clarification / intervention,” the body tweeted on Monday evening.