Survey reveals ‘food racism’, claims top restaurateur

A Birmingham restaurateur has claimed that food racism is running rife after a survey revealed foodies are not prepared to pay top prices for Indian cuisine.

The survey of food lovers, conducted at last month’s Taste of Birmingham festival, looked at attitudes towards international cuisines including British, French, Chinese, Italian, Thai and Indian. Over a quarter of those surveyed named Indian as their cuisine of choice, but admitted that they would be more prepared to pay top prices for British and French food than for their favourite South Asian dishes.

Responses also revealed common misconceptions about the quality of ingredients that go into creating Indian dishes. Whilst French cuisine was thought to contain the most expensive ingredients, Indian food was thought to contain amongst the cheapest, coming in just ahead of Chinese food.

The survey was carried out on behalf of the award-winning restaurant group, Lasan. Director of the Lasan Group, Jabbar Khan, said:
“The survey has uncovered some surprising attitudes towards the nation’s favourite dishes. Despite the growth of fine dining Indian restaurants over the past few years, it appears that misconceptions still exist surrounding the quality of Indian food and its ingredients.

“Many diners still categorise Indian food as cheap takeaway fare. However, the skill and preparation that goes into producing authentic dishes at fine dining restaurants like Lasan means that we source our ingredients from the same quality producers and suppliers as many of the top British, French and Italian restaurants.
“In addition, top Indian restaurants will face the same business costs and overheads as their competitors, from staffing to premises and taxes, meaning that the best destinations will only continue to thrive if these misconceptions are addressed.”

To see the full results of the research, visit www.lasan.tv