Restaurants, eateries and good food in general are synonymous with the Goan landscape. However, there slowly seems to be a shift in the trend of eating out, with the younger generation preferring to frequent food courts or chains more, rather than standalone restaurants.

A chef, who asked for anonymity due to the nature of the circumstances, recounted his own experience, saying, “I ventured into the restaurant sector in the northern part of the state. However, due to a lack of younger clientele, I shut shop after a little over a year. We would see a fair few people from the middle-aged and older generation walk in, but to drive such an establishment, one also needs to have a healthy mix of young diners.”

Dr Kuheli Bhattacharya, a well-known food blogger, points out the age old adage of vibes attracting tribes and how that factor comes into play here, while elucidating that the whole package makes a difference in perception.

“I think it is an age thing (even though it’s fair to say that I left being a youth some time back). In college I craved the ‘Cheese Burst Pizza’ from Dominos; KFC also had its bright and ‘hangout’ vibe. It was the ideal place to go with gangs- you could wear jeans, talk loudly and order coke without the waiter looking down on you. A restaurant comes with grown up vibes; a place where you dress proper, talk in normal tones, not back-slap your friend, and order wine or at least mocktails as opposed to coke. I don’t necessarily think it is money, only that the crowd is looking at. It’s the whole package. See through glass walls, bright fluorescent lighting, high stools to sit on, chirpy primary colour interiors, I guess all that attracts the youth. Restaurants are considered to be ‘for special occasions’.”

Restaurant consultant, restaurateur and chef Vasco Alvares believes that these outlets do have some positives going for them, which can easily sway their target audience, while at the same time catering to the needs of a younger age group, largely due to how they are placed.

“Food courts are one part of a bigger experience, namely the mall. So it’s not just the meal but shopping and a meal, or a movie and a meal. Also, the variety available in the same space makes it more interesting as far as choice of cuisine goes. Why exactly people prefer chains to restaurants is a mystery. What I think it might be is the consistency of the product no matter which outlet, and the speed of delivery of the food. These are two positive things. But more than anything else, it’s pop culture,” he says.

With a change in the eating trend, one needs to look into whether, in the grand scheme of things, this is a phase in everybody’s life, or whether there is a larger issue at hand that needs to be investigated.