Largest Downtown Café Srinagar A Untold Startup Success Story

In 2016, both brothers Suhail and Nadeem were searching for possible startups. They thought of a restaurant, which is now the largest cafe in downtown Srinagar. This not only attracts the locals but also the tourists and it’s the hope that the restaurant will boost tourism not only in the downtown area of Srinagar but also in Kashmir as a whole.

Location

This cafe is located in gojwara, Srinagar, and it can cater to around 90 people at a time. It is a 3 storey building which took 8 months to be built. The inauguration was done by mirvaiz Umar Farooq, on November 4, 2017. The restaurant already served 1200 tables in a small span of just two months.

 Idea

Suhail and Nadeem got to know while searching for startups that there is no place in Srinagar for the youths to hang out, especially with there families. When many startups in Srinagar were focusing to set up western-style cafes, they wanted to design something of our culture and tradition.they got the idea of opening something for youth’s entertainment with the culture and tradition of India. They worked hard to fulfill this thaught and made a traditional restaurant for youths to hangout.

 Challenges

They faced many challenges to starting their restaurant as there were many days in a year when downtown Srinagar remains close due to curfew. There were many challenges in business, and they have this, but they cannot just sit at home. The researched it and got that shopkeepers still make a profit during curfews. Brothers acknowledged that curfews are a part of life in Srinagar.

 Attraction

The area where the restaurant is located has witnessed the history of civilizations and near it is the biggest market in Kashmir since the time period of maharajas.

The traditional sweets which attract the locals and tourists are tea khewa, with sheermaal ( a flatbread ), tandoori chicken, soup, etc.

“This was one of the untold success stories of youth entrepreneur of Srinagar.”