Way back in 2012, Tanmoy Basak started his journey in food blogging scene when it was still unheard of.He just started a group in Facebook and started writing and posting pictures. Tanmoy brought his own domain, with alias name “Fascinating Foodie” and evolved the Facebook group “Kolkata Food Committee” into “Munching Monks.
Today, Tanmoy is a Restaurant Consultant and take care of the food quality, plating, photography and marketing of several famous eateries and brands in the hotel industry. We spoke with him about his journey, Restaurant business trends and innovations.
Your journey from “Fascinating Foodie “ to Munching Monks” is indeed fascinating ! What has been the biggest roadblock during your journey? What has been your biggest learning?
A food blogger can’t tackle all of the worries that their audiences face every day, it doesn’t hurt to try and offer solutions when you can. Take these steps to build a reputation as a trusted problem-solver.
To solve the problems of our audience, one needs to know who they are. Working moms are dealing with a different set of challenges than college students who are trying to figure out the whole “adulting” thing.
Even if one belongs to the group that you write for, don’t assume that you’re already addressing all of their problems. Maybe you’re a professional with a hectic lifestyle, and your blog focuses on quick meals. Keep in mind that a thirty-minute recipe may take thirty minutes for you because you’ve had years of practice. If you assume the same level of expertise in your audience, you might miss the opportunity to teach your peers the tricks of the trade that actually make those quick meals possible.
Everyone learns differently. Some people work better with a video tutorial while others would rather read through an instructional blog post. When you’re addressing a specific problem, think about ways that you can make your solution clear for a variety of learning types. Include photos that illustrate steps, quick videos to demonstrate tricky techniques, and concise, easy-to-follow instructions. Since we launched First We Feast in 2016, we’ve been far from perfect in our quest to build the new paradigm. And that is how we became one to one hundred.
As an entrepreneur, what is it that motivates and drives you?
In my experience mentoring new entrepreneurs and aspiring business leaders, I see far too many who seem to be driven by all the wrong reasons. Everyone seems to espouse extrinsic motivations, such as getting rich, having power, and fulfilling parent dreams, when a focus on satisfying internal interests and desires will likely lead to more success and satisfaction. Entrepreneurial motivation is the process of transforming an ordinary individual into a powerful businessman, who can create opportunities and helps in maximizing wealth and economic development. It is defined as various factors that stimulate desires and activate enthusiasm in entrepreneurs, making them attain a particular goal. Entrepreneurship is the process of identifying strengths and opportunities that help realize one’s dreams for designing, developing, and running a new business by facing threats and risks effectively. To become an entrepreneur one should identify their strengths and opportunities from the external environment. Here, motivation plays a major role in identifying my strengths to become strong leaders or powerful entrepreneurs, making them accept risks and face uncertainty to reach pre-described goals. We all know that goals are important. If we fail to set them, how do we know when we have achieved something? In business, as in life, we need targets.For me, having a goal focus is intrinsically motivational.
Keep in mind that business goals can be moving targets, as circumstances change and reality sets in. What you must avoid is allowing yourself or your business to be paralyzed by indecision.
If you were to point to few mega trends in the food industry, what would they be?
Consumer trends create constant opportunities for food producers but also present production challenges. Here we explore current global megatrends and explain what they mean for food manufacturers.Food shoppers increasingly demand natural products with a simple list of recognizable ingredients. This means fewer, or no, artificial additives or synthetic chemicals.
An increasing focus on healthy eating is driving growing awareness of foods that can combine taste and convenience with nutritional benefits.
Food for health, increasing sustainability, incorporating ubiquitous sensing, and understanding the future of consumption habits as the mega trends expected for the food industry.
“Food companies will need to adjust and adapt to the trends to truly thrive,”. Consumers are increasingly demanding, aligning spending habits with health and sustainability. Food companies will need to take some big risks to truly thrive and stay competitive in the long run.
Developing food for health, mastering the role of the microbiome, and increasing sustainability are three of the six mega trends. People are demanding more than convenience and enjoyment in their food choices, focusing more on increasing cognitive function and the overall health of both themselves and the environment. Products will also need to pivot to be more sustainable in terms of reducing food waste, working toward decarbonization efforts, and providing sustainable packaging.
Incorporating ubiquitous sensing is a mega trend more food companies are embracing as sensors become smaller, cheaper, and more capable. They are given roles of monitoring food quality, food safety, and even consumer health.
With COVID-19 having altered – and still in the process of altering our life – “new normal” across the world, most industries are still scrambling to adjust. The effect on the restaurant industry has been particularly dramatic. What are your thoughts?
With COVID-19 having altered – and still in the process of altering – the definition of “normal” across the world, most industries are still scrambling to adjust. The effect on the restaurant industry has been particularly dramatic. With restaurants and pubs closed for sit-down service, many establishments are struggling to keep their heads above water. On the other hand, places that can offer delivery and pick-up options are seeing large increases in order volumes. Meal kit delivery services are also seeing a major surge in interest. Online grocers or traditional providers, meal prep brands are all witnessing a considerable increase in demand and order frequency.
Restaurant foot traffic and online reservations may have dropped to zero, but online orders for pickup and delivery are booming, with steady increases over the past days, particularly for casual dining and quick-serve or fast food restaurants, where site visits and purchases have been increasing. As orders have increased, the share of carry-out versus delivery has remained fairly consistent, though people are traveling shorter distances to visit restaurants to pick up these orders
What would you say about the importance of Food Photography and Social Media for one’s food service business?
Every restaurant has a distinct personality and a unique approach. That unique personality needs to be highlighted to the customers to create an identity and that can be very well done with Professional Food Photography. Professional photography always adds life to your business and even attracts footfalls into your business. But on the walk of smartphones and digital cameras, why do we need professional photography, and what positive impact it can lead to your restaurant’s business.
One should maintain a gallery where you put the spotlight on your best dishes. This would not only highlight your best works but also creates an impression amongst the audience. Just showcase the homepage with mouth-watering dishes which should tease the taste buds of your audience.
TANMOY BASAK
Influencer, Kolkata Blogger, Photographer,Marketing & Communication, Restaurant Consultant
