RA 2025 PASS
About
Indian Restaurant Awards 2025
Karnataka Edition
The Indian Restaurant Awards 2025 – Karnataka Edition is a premier industry event dedicated to fostering growth, innovation, and collaboration within the state’s thriving food and beverage sector. As part of the prestigious Indian Restaurant Awards series, this edition brings together leading restaurateurs, chefs, investors, and industry experts to discuss emerging trends, challenges, and opportunities in Karnataka’s evolving F&B landscape. With a legacy of 15 successful editions, the summit serves as an exclusive platform for thought leadership, business networking, and strategic insights, empowering food entrepreneurs to elevate their brands and drive sustainable success.
Why Attend
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Unparalleled NetworkingConnect with top restaurateurs, chefs, investors, and foodpreneurs to build valuable business relationships. -
Industry Insights & TrendsGain expert knowledge on evolving consumer preferences, innovative restaurant technologies, and market dynamics key takeaways -
Business Growth OpportunitiesExplore investment prospects, partnerships, and new business strategies to scale and sustain your restaurant venture. -
Innovation & TechnologyDiscover cutting-edge solutions in restaurant operations, sustainability, and digital transformation to stay ahead in the competitive market.
Karnataka Edition Speakers 2025
Abhijit Saha
Chef-Entrepreneur, Restauranteur and Author
Abhijit Saha
Chef-Entrepreneur, Restauranteur and Author
He is the Founder & Principal Consultant of Ace Hospitality & Consulting and has recently
opened his Neo Indian Fine Dining Restaurant ‘Ammakase’ at 1 Raffles Place, Singapore and
LYFE Restaurant & Pizzeria in Whitefield, Bangalore.
Abhijit Saha was awarded “Chef of The Year 2023’ at the Times Food & Nightlife Awards. The
coach and mentor of Team India for Bocuse d’Or Asia-Pacific 2018; Guest Judge of MasterChef
India and Senior Judge of Young Chefs Olympiad – Abhijit Saha was inducted as a fellow of the
‘IIHM International College of Distinguished Fellows’ by International Hospitality Council,
London in 2021. As the Principal F&B Consultant of Bangalore Airport, he has been leading the
Food & Beverage Development work for Terminal 1 & Terminal 2 during the last five years.
As founder-director of Avant Garde Hospitality from 2008 to 2020 he conceptualized, executed
and managed award-winning and critically acclaimed restaurants such as Caperberry (Modernist
European Cuisine), and Fava (Mediterranean Cuisine) in Bangalore. His Michelin recommended
Signature Indian Restaurant ‘SAHA’ (2014-18) in Singapore was awarded the Epicurean Star
Award for Best New Restaurant, 2014 by the Restaurant Association of Singapore. He has
provided consulting services and technical knowhow to several Red Rhino Craft Brewery, The
Pizza Bakery, Tamara Resorts, Serai Resorts and Dream Cruises Hong Kong. Three of his recent
projects Glass Kitchen & Bar, The Pet People Café and Over Coffee have won the ‘Times Food
Award’ for Best Modern Indian Restaurant 2022, Best Plant Based-Healthy Restaurant 2022 and
Best Cafe 2024.
Shakir Haq
CEO, NKP Empire Ventures
Shakir Haq
CEO, NKP Empire Ventures
Shakir Haq is the CEO of NKP Empire and is steadfast in his business principles and strategy, Shakir is a big proponent of learning from constant experimentation. His extensive knowledge of restaurant business management and strategic acumen, nurtured by his education at IIM Bangalore, fuel constant pursuit of growth and innovation at NKP Restaurants. A 3rd Gen Entrepreneur, his vision is to create a Global Food Company.
Anand Ramanathan
Partner and Leader, Consumer Products & Retail Sector, South Asia, Deloitte
Anand Ramanathan
Partner and Leader, Consumer Products & Retail Sector, South Asia, DeloitteAnand has around 16 years of experience from both an industry and consulting perspective. Anand is currently a Partner with the Strategy & Operations practice in Deloitte based out of Bangalore. He is a graduate from BITS Pilani and has completed his MBA from IIM Indore and PhD from IIM Bangalore. Anand started his career with GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare. He has been in sales and brand roles for nutritional food brands such as Horlicks & Boost. Prior to Deloitte, Anand has been a part of the management consulting practice at KPMG for the past 8 years and has worked on over 90 engagements. His work has primarily been in the consumer markets domain across various sectors such as Retail, FMCG, Agribusiness, and Education. Anand led the channel and salesforce effectiveness solution for the practice.
Gaurav Pande
Executive Vice President and Business Head- Popeyes, Jubilant FoodWorks
Arun Prasanna
CHO, Byg Brewski Brewing Company
Arpita Aditi
Founder & CEO, Dil Foods
Arpita Aditi
Founder & CEO, Dil FoodsArpita Aditi is the founder and CEO of Dil Foods, a company launched in March 2022, aiming to harness the underutilized potential of small to medium-sized food businesses across India. Dil Foods is a virtual restaurant operator based in Bangalore. A Biotechnical Engineer, from the Manipal Institute Of Technology, Arpita’s career trajectory shifted towards the food industry, starting with a role at Swiggy as the National Partnership Manager, where she gained firsthand experience in the challenges faced by food businesses. This led to co-founding Nutnbolt in May 2020, a precursor to Dil Foods, focusing on enhancing the online presence of small restaurants. Dil Foods and Arpita's efforts were recently recognized on Shark Tank India Season 3, highlighting their commitment to transforming the food industry landscape. Her vision encompasses building a profitable ecosystem that benefits all stakeholders within the restaurant industry, focusing on sustainability, and scalability.
Agenda 2025 More Tables, More Food, More Moolah
Inaugural Session
Restaurant Industry Ahead: Knowing the Future Trends
The New Age Restaurant Growth: Powering Restaurant Growth Through Technology and Leadership
Session Highlights:
- Intelligent Leadership: Leveraging Emotional Intelligence, Data, and Technology to Drive Restaurant Success
- The Winning Story: LTOs that drive success
- Innovation That Works
- Feeding the dupe culture, Gen Z and younger Millennial
Keynote Session:
Food and Profit: The Dynamics of the 10-Minute Food Delivery System
The Rise of home-grown Startups: How they are attracting Investors
Session Highlights:
- Staying competitive in the fast growing data-centric biz
- Evolving with Innovation
- Customer is the King: Focusing on customer to drive growth
- Building an effective transformation team
2025 Dining Trends: How Chefs are Innovating The Table Experience
Session Highlights:
- Staying One Bite Ahead: Understanding Customer Trends Better
- New age menu innovation: moving towards a Sustainable Futures
- The Rise of Hotel Restaurants: How Top executive Chefs are creating different flavours
Networking Lunch
Building omni-channel in restaurants: What Does Innovation Look Like for these brands
Session Highlights:
- How QSR and delivery/ Cloud Kitchens have become co-conspirators
- How data can help in better decision making
- New and Exciting: Embracing Trends that sets you apart
- Big Data, Bigger I1mpact: Creating Outstanding Delivery and Dine-in Experiences
Keynote Session
The Bigger The Better: Building Spaces That Creates an Everlasting Expression
Session Highlights:
- The journey from ‘Fine Dining’ to ‘Fun Dining’
- How Big is Big for Nightlife Restaurant and Bar
- Key elements pushing the growth of fun spaces
- Beyond The Food: How Bar Teams are ruling the top restaurants