Wok to Walk is a QSR restaurant which was started by young Spanish guys who travelled to Bangkok and were impressed by the culinary culture there. They developed the same food concept and opened their first outlet in Amsterdam in 2004. Since 2004, Wok to Walk has become a huge name in the restaurant industry and set their feet in India 2018 and opened its first outlet in Delhi. As a student in UK for three years, I was a regular at Wok to Walk. It was cheap, healthy and fulfilling to the core. It was among my favourites and remained so long after I left the UK. Hence when Wok to Walk came to India, I was overjoyed and decided that we have to get this for Kashmir; a place like Kashmir deserves a hangout like this and I started the outlet at The Boulevard.

Wok to Walk is headquartered in Barcelona Spain and the kitchen is led by the Head Chef Derek. Setting up Wok to Walk in Kashmir was also full of challenges. We encountered logistics, sourcing and manpower problems when we started. The design for space was sent by the head office in Spain and most of the material came from outside the state. We boast of state of the art kitchen equipment including a German Rational Oven to an Italian Simran cutter. Everything was imported to make it one of the best places in Kashmir. It was a major uphill battle to import everything and transport the same to Kashmir due to the prevailing situation.

The last few months have been a lot tougher on us. Since the abrogation of Article 370 and the COVID-19 lockdown, business and social gatherings came to a sudden halt. This was a big blow but we have revived and are receiving an overwhelming response from our visitors. People of all age groups tend to like the food and appreciate our efforts of bringing something new to the landscape of the city. Since we have an ambient chilled out backpackers kind of an outlet, Wok to Walk is turning out to be a popular spot for people.

Our staff was trained in Delhi and we had some chefs from Delhi too who supervised the new staff and guided them through Wok to Walk Protocols. Now that they are back in Delhi, our boys have evolved into world-class Wokists. Our menu is simple, our dishes are fresh and we use imported quality which is used all over the Wok to Walk brand outlets all around the world. A dish you will savour in New York, London, Kolkata would taste the same as in Srinagar. Our menu is hot among the visitors with people showering us with love and trust. Our Japanese Udon Noodles with Shrimp, Broccoli, Pak Choi with Szechuan Sauce and topped with Sesame is our top selling item currently. Kashmiris are building taste buds for new classes of food now and we are most happy about it.

I bring brands which I believe in, like Pappa Roti & Wok to walk. It is imperative to invest in something that you believe in. We are opening Pappa Roti at the end of June and we have 6-7 more outlets in pipeline with more world class brands.

(Adaptation of a conversation with “Sanjar Dev” Director “Palatable Group”, Edited by “Namisha Raj”, Editor, “Khyen Chyen)

Address: Main, Boulevard Rd, opp. Gate No 1, Durgjan, Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir 190001

SOURCE: (Adaptation of a conversation with “Sanjar Dev” Director “Palatable Group” Edited by “Namisha Raj”)