“Don’t ever compromise on quality”
Gauri Devidayal gave up her tax consultant job at PriceWaterhouseCoopers to help her husband Jay Yousuf with the restaurant he was planning to open. She is now running the show at The Table, one of Mumbai’s top restaurants. “Jay lived in San Francisco for 15 years before he moved back to India, so the inspiration for the restaurant was to bring a little California back to Mumbai. At first, it was difficult to explain our food philosophy to our guests because they needed to understand what the ‘cuisine’ was. The idea of a globally inspired, cuisine agnostic menu was quite alien in Mumbai as was having it all on one page with ‘small plates’ and ‘large plates’ intended to be shared. We were often asked whether that was just a nouvelle way of referring to appetisers and mains. “Our food philosophy was essentially an ingredient-driven cuisine focused on simplicity and purity of flavour,” she says. When they opened in 2011, it wasn’t common to find a dish at a restaurant where the star ingredient was zucchini or beetroot. “Fast forward to 2017, and food seems to be the trendiest subject and unique ingredients, chefs, restaurateurs and restaurants have all become stars,” she says. Whether it’s due to exposure through TV shows, social media or the restaurant industry, their diners today are aware and more discerning. “I’d like to think that The Table, and its sister brands Mag St Bread Co, The Table Farm and Magazine St Kitchen, also trendsetters, had something to do with this.”