The moment the Indian brand Haldiram's opened an outlet in London's posh Leicester Square, a huge crowd gathered outside. People stood in queues for hours, and some were seen waiting for their turn late into the night. Videos of these scenes are spreading fast across social media. This is not the first time it has happened. Earlier too, whenever Rameshwaram Cafe, Saravana Bhavan or any well-known desi chaat outlet opened in London, Dubai or America, the same kind of frenzy played out. The real question is what magic lies in Haldiram's chole bhature and raj kachori that keeps pulling people in.
Ask any Indian living abroad what they miss the most, and the answer is almost certain: home-cooked food and the chaat from the street corner. So when that very thing becomes available near their home in London, it is only natural that they rush to it. That is exactly what happened with Haldiram's. Thousands of Indians live in and around Leicester Square, so when they got a chance to taste the real flavour of their country, they turned up in large numbers.
Why the local food falls short
London does not lack Indian restaurants; there are thousands of curry houses in the city. The trouble is that most of them have been tweaked to suit English tastes. Chicken tikka masala is served there too, but it tastes sweet, and the spices are more about colour than flavour. So anyone who wants authentic desi taste is not going to flock to these places. Haldiram's and other desi brands serve that raw, unadulterated Indian flavour. There is also an emotional pull, a feeling that this is from India and therefore it is ours. That sense of desi pride and belonging draws people in as well.
The simple maths of price
Leicester Square is counted among the most expensive spots in London. Eating at a foreign restaurant here can easily mean spending hundreds of pounds. Indian outlets like Haldiram's, on the other hand, offer value for money. You get good food with authentic desi taste without burning a hole in your pocket. A large number of students and bachelors live in this area, and for them it is an even better deal.
The social media effect
Whether it is Delhi or London, everyone today wants to be among the first to try something new and share a reel of it on social media. The same thing happened here. As soon as the outlet opened, some of the people there filmed the long queues and the food and posted it on Instagram and TikTok. Those videos nudged others sitting at home, who then rushed to the restaurant too. In this way the crowd kept drawing an even bigger crowd.
The rising demand for vegetarian food
It is not just India; people abroad are increasingly moving away from non-vegetarian food towards vegetarian and vegan culture. But this is hard to find in London's regular fare. If you ask for vegetarian food there, you are likely to be served a plate of salad and boiled vegetables. Indian restaurants, in contrast, offer pure and tasty vegetarian food, and that is exactly why the number of people flocking to such outlets keeps growing the moment they open.
