From humble beginnings in 1942, we've become Mumbai's beloved culinary destination
Our commitment to exceptional customer service and warm hospitality has remained steadfast throughout our journey. Thank you for being a part of it.
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
When Prahlad Singh Kohli & his wife visited a restaurant outside dadar station, little did they know, it would change their lives forever. Har Kaur, his wife told the owner that his food was not up to the mark, to which he took offence and challenged her to cook him something worthwhile, and she went into the kitchen to do exactly that.
In the meantime, Sardar Prahlad Singh and this man started talking. By the time she came out and the food was served, the owner asked Prahladji, ‘Why don’t you run this restaurant with me?’” Their partnership ran for five years during which Prahlad Singh Kohli kept going back and forth from Rawalpindi. When the Partition took place, he came back to Bombay (now Mumbai) and wanted to stay on. His partner then sold the share of the restaurant to him, making it a private, family-owned business in 1947.
After acquiring nearby shops and further expansion, in 1975 it was opened as an air-conditioned restaurant and none other than Bollywood star Raj Kapoor inaugurated it! It was the city’s first air-conditioned standalone restaurant which, back then, was considered very upmarket.
Uncompromising Quality : Pritam’s recipe for Success
Cut to date, the group has 20 other restaurants under the same umbrella – including Ginkgo, a pan-Asian cloud kitchen; Terttulia, Grandmama’s Café, MRP, and Tori, the first venture for the group into the fine-dining luxury space. Our success mantra? No compromises on the food!
The Ultimate compliment
We recently had an 85-year-old lady come in for dinner and she said, ‘I haven’t been to Pritam in 20 years, but this dal tasted exactly like how it was made years ago’. This goes to show that our strife for achieving consistency and standardization has been successful.
Innovate but stay true to brand ethos
The young restaurateur is busy churning out more plans. In December-January, he’s planning to do a pop-up between Ginkgo and Pritam, and have a dhaba-style Chinese menu. So expect that street-style chilli chicken, triple schezwan, and hakka noodles you probably enjoyed a few years ago. But should innovation be a big part of his work essence? He says it’s important to keep with the changing times, but also to maintain the essence of what they are.
“If Pritam said it would only serve yellow dal and rajma chawal till the end of our days, we would have shut down long ago. You have to move with the present day, but also be true to what the brand stands for,” Jaibir reveals.
Jaibir shares another example. “If I sell a kimchi naan it must have some essence of Pritam in it. For instance, my truffle naan does look like a normal cheese naan, it’s not completely different. So, if you manage to sell a story and stay true to brand ethos, it always works.”
