Successful Entrepreneurs: Rahul Khanna, 28 and Kabir Suri, 30

Co-owners of Mamagoto restaurant in New Delhi have achieved an annual growth of 20 percent for their business which started with an investment of Rs1.8 crore

Childhood friends, Kabir Suri and Rahul Khanna, the co-owners of Mamagoto situated at Khan Market and Saket were determined to do something different and as Suri puts it, they were destined to do this. "We started the restaurant after dedicating almost a year of work in finalising the name, location, menu and staff. The restaurant gets its name from a Japanese word which means to play with food. And true to the name we believe in experimenting with not just food but also the decor," says Suri.

The dynamic duo are firm believers of casual yet authentic approach and it is well reflected in their offering. "We wanted to create something quirky and fun, so people have that casualness when they walk into our restaurant. At the same time the art is a background to the concept. It is more of a familiarity factor; our art is signature, from our recipes to our aesthetics. We have created these colourful Asian characters and they are drawn all across the walls of the restaurant, as opposed to bamboo shoots and mini plants seen in most Asian diners," says Khanna.

They call the branch at Khan Market the mother ship where they train the staff and brainstorm on future plans. "We want to keep our systems strong. Our business model is volume driven so it takes only about ten minutes to serve the food on the table. But the main challenge is consistency and quality and so far we have been able to maintain that," says Khanna. The menu is a fine blend of contemporary Thai and Japanese, with some original twists. For instance their Rock Shrimp Tempura is worth a try. With two more branches soon to open in Chandigarh and Mumbai, they are on the right track.

Sneak peek

• Suri and Khanna have been involved in every step of the making of the restaurant and feel it's important to be hands on all the time.This is a people's business that requires patience and work.

• Started in January 2010, Mamagoto is located in New Delhi.

Reproduced From India Today. © 2011. LMIL. All rights reserved.