Suddenly, chaos simmered behind the scenes in Bengaluru’s restaurant kitchens this week as a shortage of commercial LPG cylinders disrupted supplies across the city, a situation partly linked to global supply strains triggered by the ongoing conflict in West Asia. With cooking gas forming the backbone of almost all professional kitchens, the sudden halt in deliveries has left many eateries scrambling to manage their stock while keeping operations running.
So far, our operations haven’t been affected because we are still using the LPG stock we already have, but our vendor has warned us that supplies for commercial usage could be disrupted. On average, we consume around 200-250kg of LPG a week, so any prolonged shortage will directly impact kitchen operations. LPG is a critical and cost-effective fuel for restaurants, and if supplies are affected we may have to reduce dishes that rely heavily on gas and increase items prepared using tandoor or barbecue. We’re also thinking about alternatives like electric ranges in the long run, while trying to optimise the LPG we have by using resources like steam generated during cooking more efficiently.
This shortage will affect daily operations and menu offerings. However, I’ve long been working with multiple cooking techniques and heat sources, so we’re not entirely dependent on LPG. At the moment, we have no plans to reduce operating hours or temporary shut down, instead, we’re focusing on a more efficient and versatile menu that incorporates alternatives like induction, cookers that use less coal, rice cookers and solar dehydrators. We want to keep the team intact and avoid raising prices.
We stocked up on enough cylinders to keep us going for a while because we actually saw this coming! That’s helped us avoid any major disruption so far. The goal is to adapt in a way that makes us more resilient to these kinds of shortages in the future. We are already exploring alternatives like electrical woks and other induction or electric equipment that could help us become more resilient in the long run. At the same time, commercial gas prices have already increased noticeably. For now, we’re absorbing the additional cost ourselves, but restaurants operate on very thin margins. If the shortage continues or prices keep rising, we may eventually have to adjust menu prices. Customers haven’t reacted yet because operations are still normal, but it could become difficult for everyone if the situation drags on.
Our vendors have been denying supply from Monday. We use 1-1.5 cylinders each day and have enough stock to last 3-4 days. Some branches have more stock so we’re rationing cylinders between stores to make sure there’s no disruption. Around 25 per cent of our stores work on electric equipment; soon, we’ll be switching to induction stoves, although issues with power capacity will be a challenge. Fryers consume the most gas but we are hoping to work this out without making menu changes. Theoretically, fried food would be the first to go.
We haven’t faced any issues so far, but it’s hard to predict what will happen in the coming days. At this point, there isn’t much we can do. As long as the supply continues, we’ll keep our restaurants running. But if it stops, we’ll have no choice but to shut operations until the supply resumes.
We operate completely on gas stoves so it will be a big monetary investment to shift to other means like electric tandoors and induction stoves. It’s also a huge challenge because not only will I have to learn how to use them, I have to train my team to adopt them as well. We are planning to make some menu changes as I’m concerned the taste of the food will change because of the change. Since it’s summer, we are planning to reduce oily items and make more steamed dishes like idlis. I will be avoiding making dosaes on the induction stove because the look and taste may be very different from how we usually present it.
If the supply chain disruption was something we knew a week or two ago, it would have been a different situation. But today we woke up and realised none of the vendors was picking up calls. We’re reaching out to other restaurateurs for contacts, but nobody is responding. We’re down to our last two cylinders – one in use and one backup – so it’s quite a grave situation. We’re trying to contact more vendors and even considering paying a premium if that’s the only way to get cylinders. Shutting shop isn’t an easy decision. We still have to pay salaries and rent, and we’ve already bought fresh ingredients for the month.