09 August,2010 06:30 AM IST | | Sowmya Rajaram
If a proposal mooted by the Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association goes through, a law dating back to 1948 that makes it mandatory for restaurants to display a grade certificate earned from the BMC, will be scrapped. Do don't-know-don't-care Mumbai's foodies give a hoot?
Air conditioning? Check. Bar? Check. Dessert counter? Check. Music? Check. Big portions? Check. Grade? Huh! What's that? No one is sure, and if a proposal mooted by the Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association (AHAR) is implemented by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, you may never have to know.
For information scavengers though, it's one of three grades that every restaurant in the city has been assigned while being issued a license to operate. Displaying the Registration Certificate somewhere prominently on the premises is mandatory.
Farokh Chokri of Irani cafe Kyani & Co. says the Grade 3 board has
been up for decades. He says, "The rules stipulate that it must be
displayed, along with a 'No Smoking' board. So, we are doing it."
PIC/ Sanjiv Valsan
Part of the Bombay Shops & Establishments Act of 1948, grades 1, 2 and 3 are assigned to all restaurants on the basis of a points system that scores them on factors like seating, general hygiene, air conditioning, rest rooms within the premises and so on. Now do a mental rewind, and think of the last restaurant, any restaurant you visited that displayed the grade sign.
You will draw a blank, until you think of the old-timers.
Old timers say a rule is a rule
South Mumbai's Kyani & Co, one of Mumbai's last surviving round-the-bend Irani cafes, sports a grade 3 board on a beam that holds up a quaint first level that was once lined with red-and-white chequered tablecloth lined seating. Co-owner Farokh Chokri is matter of fact when he says: "The board has been here for ages.u00a0 The rules stipulate that it must be displayed, along with a 'No Smoking' board. So, we are doing it. I don't know the technicalities."
It's these archaic technicalities that prompted AHAR to recently moot a proposal to scrap the grade system altogether. "Mumbai is the only city in India that has this system. As part of a presentation we made to the BMC, we have asked for it to be scrapped. It's no longer relevant," says AHAR General Secretary Sukesh Shetty. Indian consumers are aware of "what to eat where", he believes, and capable of taking decisions for themselves.
It's redundant
New age entrepreneur Farhan Azmi, the man behind the Cafe Basilico chain of bistros, calls it a pre-historic law. "Unless there are regular checks, grades don't make sense. You'll eat at a restaurant regardless of the grade, simply because it suits your budget and your taste, won't you?" That's an idea supported by food critic Rashmi Uday Singh. "Grading is completely outside the scope of my decision-making, as a customer. My decision to go to a restaurant is price and taste-driven. Plus, unless the consumer knows how the grading is done and what it signifies, does it matter?"
Celebrity chef and author of several cookbooks Sanjeev Kapoor calls grading redundant. "The idea to grade restaurants made sense when a minimum standard was needed, and was difficult to achieve. Today, consumers are well informed. They know what they want. Restaurants too are mindful about hygiene and service. Besides, who knows what the grades mean?"
That makes Indian restaurant owners not very different from their counterparts in New York city where a new law that requires the city's 24,000 eateries to prominently display letter grades for cleanliness, has provoked anger in the hospitality industry. And it's not just about a signboard in a window. The health department website allows patrons to call up a quick roster of eateries and what rules they have violated and remedied, before they choose to eat there. The site attracted 4,652 visits and 6,152 page views on the first day of operation.
Bribe to get the grade you want
Corruption and complicated old laws don't make it any easier, admit most restaurateurs. "Consumers who are aware of grades, know they can be bought a price, like everything else," says the owner of a Bandra-based deli, who doesn't wish to be named. New entrant in the business, Suren Joshi of Pali Village Cafe in Bandra suggests that the existing system be replaced by a fresh one that's what-you-see-is-what-you-get. "The value of grading done by a government agency has diminished in the eyes of the consumer," rues Kapoor.
And that's a far cry from the old days when it was a matter of pride for the owner to display the board, the way a kid would flaunt his report card. "What was once a matter of pride is now a hurdle that's passed by greasing palms," says adman and restaurateur Prahlad Kakar. "The rot has set in so deep, people operate catering businesses out of illegal hutments. The system made sense when there were checks and balances. The only way out is a complete overhaul and a transparent start to the system," he says.
AHAR ex-president and current advisor Chandrahas Shetty reluctantly admits to Kakar's allegation. To skip the high license fee that accompanies a higher grade, restaurants prefer opting for a lower one. "But they don't display the grade, because displaying the wrong grade is illegal."
Give us a fresh start
Joshi would like to see a grading system that's in tune with the times. "If there's a private agency that visits the restaurant anonymously, rates it, and makes the grade publicly accessible, I'd say that makes sense. Otherwise, it helps no one."
Azmi says the New York model (see box) is an idea Mumbai might want to emulate. "For a customer, it would provide the satisfaction that he is going a to place that's doing its job right. It would give me a chance to show off the hygiene and standards we maintain. I, for one, would welcome it."
So would we.
On-ground check result: They don't care
Kiran Makhija, Business development executive
Spotted at: Cafe Coffee Day, Carter Road
Are you aware of the grade of the coffee shop you are eating at?
No.
Did you know all restaurants have grades?
No.
Now that you do, does it matter?
I wouldn't bother about the grade if I liked the place.
Taha Vahanvaty, Samyaa Kjini & Karan Ramadios, College students
Spotted at: Dosawalla at Carter Road
Are you aware of the grade of the roadside eatery you plan to eat at?
No.
Did you know all restaurants have grades?
No.
Now that you do, does it matter?
We go where we feel like, depending on how much money we can afford to spend. Maybe if the budget was high, the grade would matter. Otherwise, we don't really care.
Raksha and Mahesh Narang, Bandra residents
Spotted at: Brownie Cottage, Carter Road
Are you aware of the grade of the eatery you are eating at?
No.
Did you know all restaurants have grades?
Yes.
Does it matter?
It's the ambience, food and prices that matter, not the grade.
Owner speak
Scrap it, say restaurant owners
The value of grading done by a government agency has diminished in the eyes of the consumer.
Sanjeev Kapoor, Celebrity chef and restaurant owner
Forty years ago, people didn't eat out much and didn't trust restaurants, so grades made sense. Not anymore.
Devavrath Kamath
Owner, Madras Cafe, one of Matunga's oldest South Indian joints
NYC restaurants miffed over grades
Restaurant owners in New York are up in arms about a new law that requires its 24,000 restaurants to prominently display letter grades for cleanliness. Owners are worried that a big B or C grade will put off foodies who may imagine indescribable dust and filth. That's not all. Plans are also afoot to publish all inspection data and grades on a new website that will allow easy searches by grades, ZIP codes, and even the first letter of a restaurant name. Owners fear that a health department website that publishes older inspection data will give people the wrong picture about a restaurant that may have faltered in the past but has pulled up its socks now. Under the earlier system, restaurants received points for each violation; a total score over 28 was considered a failing grade. Under the new system, in which 0 to 13 points gets an A, 14 to 27 points gets a B, and 28 or more is a C, officials have eased some rules, like those governing temperature of food held for service.
5 questions for GT Ambe, Executive Health Officer, BMC
Clean waiter uniforms earn you points
How do grades work?
Restaurants are given points depending on various factors, on a scale of 0 to 100. The points are then totalled. Less than 50 points gives you grade 3. Between 50 and 80 points gives you grade 2. And 80+ points earn you a grade 1.
An example of the points structure?
General cleanliness after conducting a thorough examination, is worth 10 points. A 'No Spitting' board earns you 5 points. Points are allotted for having air conditioning, rest rooms within the premises, and clean uniforms for waiters too. There is also negative marking. Points are deducted if we notice violations (use of unauthorised space, bad hygiene, filthy waiter uniforms, etc).
Is it mandatory for restaurants to display the grade given to them?
Yes. It is a licensing condition that they display various licenses they have acquired prominently within the premises.
But most of them don't. What then?
It's an infringement of the license. They can be issued a written notice to adhere to the law, and display the grade. If that doesn't work, they can be prosecuted under section 394.
How does the license fee differ for each grade?
A grade 3 holder pays two times license fee and trade refuse charges, grade 2 restaurants pay two times the grade 3 fees, and grade 1 pays two times the grade 2 fees.
