Every crisis presents us with an opportunity to repurpose ourselves. COVID-19 too has reshaped the way we perceive and consume food. With more and more people having qualms about eating on an external premise as it entails removing one’s mask, dine-in facilities at restaurants are unfortunately attracting lesser footfalls.

Reaping the benefits from this reservation are home chefs who are fast emerging as the perfect solution for ‘baahar ka khaana’ with a generous splash of safety, health and nutrition thrown in. 

Feeling hungry? Want to have something spicy and exclusive? Don’t want to step out? Don’t want to slave over the stove? Simple…call up a home chef and book a made-to-order meal to be delivered at your home safe home!

It is worth noting that this segment of home chefs (and home bakers too for that matter) has sprung into the limelight in the post-COVID era when - dining-out is extending an invitation to the wily-virus; opting for deliveries from restaurants is a tad run-of-the-mill; and tiffin services are oh-so-boring!

Simply dial a home chef and place an order for a customized meal or even a single dish and sit back and enjoy the fresh nutritious product safely ensconced in the comfort of your home.

With passing time these food micro-entrepreneurs are becoming more organized and are - applying for Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) Licences; setting-up mini commercial kitchens; advertising locally; taking orders on social media handles like Instagram and WhatsApp; accepting digital payments; and using logistics services for deliveries.

Moreover commercial facilities like cloud kitchens are also collaborating with home chefs and in the process strengthening this segment from the perspective of - brand building, technology, standard operating procedures, working capital et al.

Foodism envisages that even after the pandemic is supressed and people are back to the ‘real’ normal – dining and drinking at restaurants; partying; celebrating festivals and social occasions etc.; there will be a segment of people who will continue being loyal to home chefs.

Why? Well for the simple reason that there’s no replacement for home-cooked, fresh, customised, nutritious and lovingly-prepared food is there…?