India's BURGER BOOM

From uber processed fast food burgers to a plethora of homegrown, independent gourmet options, the way we enjoy a juicy burger has changed. With a burst of new brands vowing to make them fresher and better, has India finally made the burger its own?

-  Samreen Tungekar

Talk to anyone in their 20s or early 30s about their first memory of a burger, and they'll all point to McDonald's. Talk to someone a little above 35, and they know the real gems of homegrown burger brands – the ones that had the sticky, sweet mayo, heavy meat, and soft buns. "McDonald's was definitely our generation's introduction to the burger. The Chicken McGrill was economical and it was definitely a memorable introduction," recalls Karan Dhillon, marketing professional who food blogs as a passion.

From McDonald's to now, the burger had gone through some serious evolution. Not delving into too much history, we do know that burgers in India existed before the first foreign burger came in the 1980s via QSR chain Wimpy, followed by McDonald's in the late '90s, which introduced India to the fast-food burger, and the story continued from there. Homegrown burger brands is not a new concept, thanks to Nirula's in Delhi or Hearsch in Mumbai, but the last couple of years have seen so many new burger brands in India that The Quick Service Restaurants (QSR) market is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 18 per cent during 2021-2025. Why the rise?

I ask Vir Sanghvi, journalist, author, and one of the most respected voices in the food space, and he points out that the two most ordered dishes during the pandemic have been biryani and burgers. "Until now, it was always pizza, but burgers have outdone them,” he says, adding that “mid-priced brands saw the room and demand to make actual non-vegetarian burgers that aren't your chana tikki burgers and are affordable, which has led to the development of this burger market," he explains.