Eating places in Hyderabad are struggling to stay afloat

Hyderabad: No busy cashiers issuing meals, no waiting at the service bench to place an order, and no loud screams from the kitchen on your tiny idli or dosa ready to be picked up

Gone are the general scenes of pre-Covid days from the counts of tiffin and dining centers across the city.  Before the pandemic started calling, these centers got used to hungry customers making a fridge for idli, dosa or uthappa at tiffin centers or packing up the garbage centers during lunch and dinner time.  Now most of these eateries, both small and large, are closed and the few who survive are desperately looking for customers.

Tiffin Centers in Ameerpet and SR Nagar, which were popular with bachelors and students, were most affected by the pandemic.  These places that used to be flooded with food from early morning until midnight have almost no protection these days.

The owners of outlets take all possible steps, such as providing disposable plates and glasses,

but there are very few people who will pick them up.  “Forget about earnings, we can not recover rental costs or other expenses and recurring expenses,” said the owner of the Tiffin Center.

The unlocking process has brought a lot of hope for these eateries.  But nothing has changed.

“We do not even do 30 percent of our normal business,” said another owner.  Despite all the measures for neatness and hygiene, customers still do not have to trust eateries, he added.

T Santosh, owner of Sri Hari Dosa in Ameerpet, said they serve at least 1000 customers a day, but the numbers are almost 200 a day these days.  “Once colleges and institutions reopen, things can improve,” he said.

‘I have 11 branches in the city, and most of them have been closed because sales are not encouraging at all.  We have even installed foot taps, but people are still reluctant, ”Santosh added.

Owners of tiffin centers in Ameerpet and SR Nagar say at least 40 percent of the centers have closed.

Bharghav of the Suprabhat Tiffin Center, SR Nagar, said bachelor and students form a large crowd of clients for a tiffin center.  “They have now moved to their hometowns and there is no immediate hope that they will return to residences and rooms soon until a vaccine for Covid-19 is available, ”he said.

It was also difficult to run the business at the old rates as the cost of ingredients and essential commodities rose, the restaurant owners said.  Bharghav said: “We see that there is less downfall and that it can no longer rise because it can also stop coming,” Bharghav said.

Hundreds of residences remain closed

Often referred to as the city’s bachelor hubs, Ameerpet and SR Nagar have over 300 hostels and paying guest accommodations. However, since the pandemic began, hardly 50 are operational. With no immediate signs of students and bachelors returning to the city, most hostel owners have decided to keep their business shut.

Some hostels are operating for namesake with just 10 or 15 boarders. Those staying at hostels complain of food at their mess not being of usual standards but owners say they are helpless given the present scenario.

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