CHENNAI: Curd rice and potato fry, idli and vada curry, chapati and dal...the list is endless and so are our everyday cravings for comfort food. Tapping on this and promising to offer homemade, multi-cuisine food prepared by our neighbourhood home chefs, is a homegrown food delivery app called ALT EAT.
Founded by Anand and officially launched in August 2021, the app has 150 home chefs on board, catering to 52 areas including Alandur, Anna Nagar, Besant Nagar, Kolathur, Nesapakkam, Porur, Royapuram, T Nagar and Perambur. They hope to expand their service across the city shortly.
Explaining what sets them apart from the existing delivery apps offering homemade food, Selvi, the spokesperson said, “It’s a highly competitive market, especially since the pandemic. We were particular about serving healthy and wholesome comfort food at an affordable cost. It took us six months to rope in home chefs, after examining their kitchens, method of cooking and their adherence to hygiene practices. We’ve also helped them obtain FSSAI registration.”
The home kitchens on the app fall under two broad categories — pre-order and instant. While the former requires a prior intimation of the order to the home chef, the latter is readily available within the given time of delivery. Upon logging in, the customer is directed to kitchens that are active and accepting orders within a three-km radius. The start-up has tied up with Swiggy and Zomato for a swift delivery.
Besides ensuring quality food, the start-up is driven by the mission to empower women. “Most of these home chefs are first-time entrepreneurs. We’ve trained them on time management, multi-tasking, handling the Internet and stocking up the pantry based on requirements. Through our app, housewives can double up as entrepreneurs. They can earn more than `500 per day from their home. All it requires is some planning, according to their everyday schedule. Weekends are busy and they may earn more. Eight per cent of the money they make goes to them and 20 per cent comes to us and we use it for promotions and inducting new home chefs,” she explained.
To bring in diversity, the selected home chefs specialise in different cuisines. “The menu is mainly designed to attract those with lesser disposable incomes and with roots outside Chennai. Everything is freshly prepared and no preservatives are added. While there are plenty of options already available on Swiggy and Zomato, it’s the homemade food that we crave for the most. Review meetings are held for home chefs with our relationship manager and that’s how they get to work on their skills. Our vegetarian and non-vegetarian options have garnered positive feedback so far. However, it’s still a work in progress and we will be bringing in more home chefs,” she shared.
The start-up plans to expand its presence in the tier-2 towns of Tamil Nadu and across Mumbai, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Pune and Bengaluru in the next three months. Expect calorie-based food menus, specially curated for diabetic and cardiac patients with the help of a dietician, every month. Subscription models targeting loyal patrons will also be introduced.