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Two very different women have put their minds together to form one very distinct vision: to alter the perception that Indian food is heavy and greasy by creating delicious, healthy and light dishes that can be delivered straight to your door. We spoke to former banker, Arti Bareja and ex-university business development manager, Upma Arora to find out just how they are going to take on the challenge...
How did you come up with the name Dhaba Lane? We brainstormed for days!We had a list of 20 names and Dhaba Lane resonated most with us. Dhabas are roadside shacks on the Indian Highways. Traditionally trucks would stop for a chai or a simple home cooked, meal. Over time, these dhabas now attract people from all stratas of society.We too want to be like these dhabas, providing a home away from home. Simple, no frills, just good taste and lots of substance.
Although we all know the British do love their Indian cuisine, do you not think the Indian food market is a bit saturated now? We couldn’t agree more. The British curry market is saturated. In fact we are so done with seeing the usual curry houses that serve heavy, greasy Indian food that we decided it needed a bit of shaking up!
We grew up eating light, balanced yet tasty food everyday (yes, even during the day!) at home in India. That’s what we are here to bring, in an easy and practical way to eat for lunchtime. You see Japanese food, burritos, and falafels for lunchtime, but no Indian?! Part of that is due to the perception of Indian food being greasy and heavy. Our soups, sandwiches, salads and light curries, all with an Indian
@SYBMAGAZINE
twist will provide Londoners with an innovative and tasty choice like never before!
The perception of Indian food is far from one of health; how do you plan to change people’s mind? We’re already doing it! Getting people to try and taste our food is key. Once they’ve done it, they understand the difference between the curry houses and what we are here to offer. Our hotpots are light, refreshing and bring the simplicity from Indian households, while we innovate heavily to bring a distinctive Indian taste to soups and salads to make them more exciting and delicious.
Messages from our customers telling us that their Dhaba Lane salad was ‘delicious and healthy’ and that the Dhaba Lane chicken was ‘not a “run off the mill” curry’ tells us we’re doing something right!
What’s thisWednesday lunchbox thing about then? We had to start somewhere! So we thought let’s do this in the most cost-effective way with a once a fortnight delivery service!We started by emailing a handful of people (friends and family) and then through word of mouth increased this to a substantial number. We deliver two options each time: one meat and one vegetarian in
JULY 2014 | SYB | 11
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