Japanese, Korean cuisine spreading in Bengaluru

Over the past year, at least 14 Asian speciality restaurants have come up across the city

Bengaluru is taking to Japanese and Korean cuisine in a big way, and restaurants are sizzling with offerings.

Business insiders Metrolife spoke to say Chinese food, which has held sway for decades, is slowly making way for cuisines from other parts of Asia.

In the past year, at least 14 restaurants have opened in Bengaluru with a focus on Japanese and Korean food or expanded operations, according to food blogger Vedshree Gupta.

Japanese restaurants have consolidated their place on Bengaluru’s F&B map, Korean food is beginning to come up, and the appetite for Indo-Chinese has saturated, says food and travel blogger Nivedith Gajapathy. The diners are starkly divided. “You see the under-20 crowd going for Korean food while older people are visiting Japanese restaurants with more refined aesthetics,” he says.

Make way for sushi

Prajwal Hegde, who has been in the F&B business for over 20 years, used to primarily focus on Chinese food. “The Indian crowd now has a growing appetite for Thai and Japanese food,” he tells Metrolife. Prajwal and two partners recently launched Hunan Square, a pan-Asian restaurant in Electronics City.

“We serve dishes from Thailand, Japan, Korea, China, Vietnam and Bhutan. A favourite among customers is vegetarian sushi. The Indian palate is not yet used to raw fish, so they prefer vegetarian sushi or sushi with cooked prawn,” he says.

Riding on the Asian wave, Aurum Brew Works on Sarjapur Road is launching a new Asian menu on Monday. The brewery has been around since 2019, and prior to the pandemic, only had limited Asian dishes on the menu.

“It was only during the lockdowns that we introduced pan-Asian rice and noodle dishes to cater to customers on delivery apps. But after the lockdowns, we have seen a huge demand for Asian dishes, specifically Japanese cuisine,” says Kuldeep Bharani, culinary director.

Over the next two months, the brewery will add steamed dimsums, gyozas, baos, tempura, and maki rolls to the menu.

“More than sashimi (thinly sliced raw fish or meat), the crowd wants authentic maki rolls and tempura that are more suited for the Indian palate,” he observes.

Food and hospitality professional Aslam Gafoor agrees good ol’ sushis and sashimis are still holding the fort, but a greater variety in fried items and bowl foods is now in evidence. “One fine-dining restaurant is even running a vegan Japanese food promotion till February,” he says.

He also feels the Japanese food offers a “premium feel” and isn’t overpowering, and that’s why it is earning a spot at wine pairings and resto-bars. Vedshree agrees, “Nachos with dips and tikkas with sauces get messy while the bite-sized Japanese food looks neat.”

Expansion underway

Dimsum and sushi restaurant Lucky Chan, originally located in Indiranagar, recently opened a branch in Hebbal. Three more branches are coming up this year, according to Amit Ahuja, owner, AA Hospitality. “With the demand for Japanese food continuing to grow, we see many market players coming for a piece of the pie,” he says.

The revival of the F&B industry after the lockdowns has also added to the growing number of Japanese restaurants in the city, believes Mukesh Tolani, head of the Bengaluru Chapter, National Restaurant Association of India.

“Last year has been good for the industry. After the lull of the lockdowns, many who had postponed launches because of the pandemic, finally opened their restaurants in 2022,” he says.

After functioning as a pop-up eatery for a year, city’s famous Naru Noodle Bar set up a restaurant in August last year. Located in Shantinagar, Naru works on a reservation system. The
restaurant is compact and reservations for the week go live every Monday evening, and are sold out within minutes. About 95% of the customers are Indian.

Founder Kavan Kuttappa says the demand is high and “expansion is inevitable”.

Japanese Consulate approves ‘Indian sushi’

Nakane Tsutomu, Japanese consul-general in Bengaluru, has noticed a rising fondness for Japanese cuisine in the city. “I visit Japanese restaurants in the city on weekends,” he says. On non-Japanese chefs creating Japanese items, he recalls a recent meal: “I had a sushi roll made of strawberries, prepared by an Indian chef at a Japanese restaurant, and it was quite delicious. Using strawberries as an ingredient in sushi is not something that Japanese people would ever think of.”

Now, K-food

Hasan Patel was introduced to Korean street food in Canada and worked at a Korean kitchen there. When he returned to Bengaluru in 2021, he found the city in the grip of ‘hallyu’, or a Korean wave. So he opened Koriken in Cooke Town last May, and another on New BEL Road in December. On his menu are 31 Korean street food items, from fried chicken burger to kimchi fried rice and noodles, and Korean corn dog (a rage now).

Founder and co-curator Hasan plans to take Korean food, which is currently “limited to fine-dine restaurants” because of steep pricing, to the masses.

In the case of Haru Asian Bistro, which opened in Sahakar Nagar last month with Korean, Japanese and Thai cuisines, a Korean owner is at the helm. “In the morning, we see Korean customers, and at night, Indians,” says manager Suresh.