So, have I told you guys that I am a foodie? I am sure you’ve come across a lot of people who are se

So, have I told you guys that I am a foodie? I am sure you’ve come across a lot of people who are self-proclaimed foodies. Well, prepare to be surprised. If food were air, I’d breathe it, if it was water I’d drink it, if it were sleep I’d spend eight hours a day with it and if it was God, I’d make it a point to worship it every time I wake up and every time I went to bed. To say that I like food; is an understatement (naturally). So when I have to describe food, I can’t do it without grabbing a morsel or two of my favorite snack. You can imagine how tough I make it for my personal trainer. Anyhow, the motivation for writing this piece is a special meal that I have always found completely satisfying. Yes, it is none other than the world-famous Indian Thali. I am a big non-veg fan, and I consume non-vegetarian food almost every day of the year. But when I don’t, it’s the Indian Thali that justifiably satiates my monstrous appetite.

For those who don’t know, Thali is an Indian & Nepalese meal made up of as assortment of various dishes and this beautiful compilation varies from region to region and is usually served in small bowls on a round plate. Typically, a complete Thali includes rice, dal, vegetables, rotis, paapad, dahi, chutney and aachaar.

In India, thalis vary from region to region. You can find a variety of thalis like the Punjabi Thali, Rajasthani Thali, Gujarati Thali, and the Maharashtrian Thali etc.

It is also true that nothing compares to a Thali made at home, but then again there are some good thali restaurants that are now measuring up to the taste and quality standards of the thali served at home. A lot of these thali restaurantsactually work on the USP of whipping up amazing Thalis for all the customers who love to eat.

Many of these restaurants are famous for providing ‘unlimited’ thalis. What they do is charge a fixed amount of money (per plate) from the customer and serve as much food as the customer demands, till he/she has had his/her fill. This is a good model as anybody expecting to have a Thali would not like to be given limited options or amount of food to consume.

A lot of these restaurants are very technology savvy. They have dedicated branded mobile apps, brand pages on Social Media Platforms and robust Social CRM models in place that guarantee taking the consumer’s opinion in consideration. This helps these restaurants design their offerings as per the taste of consumers, especially in the catchment area of their respective geographical locations. Some of these restaurants effectively use ‘birthday marketing’ strategies to lure customers. What they do is have the customer fill out a form once he/she is done with his/her meal. In this form, most customers don’t think twice before filling out their date of birth. This way, the restaurant is aware of the date of births of their most loyal customers and attractive discount packages on family meals are designed based on this information. This turns out to be a good marketing strategy as most customers would lap this up as it allows them to take their family out to a good restaurant at lower prices.

So next time you’re at a thali restaurant be sure to fill out the feedback form!