NEW DELHI: Bharti Family Office-backed Gourmet Investments Hospitality Group (GIHG) is betting that India’s affluent consumers are willing to spend more on premium casual dining, as it brings American-Italian chain Olive Garden to the country.
The company, which operates PizzaExpress, Chili’s and P.F. Chang’s in India, plans to expand its network from about 55 outlets to 100-125 over the next three years, chief executive Rohan Pewekar said.
As part of that push, Olive Garden is expected to cross 10 outlets in its first phase of expansion over three years before scaling further, he said.
The first Olive Garden outlet opened this week in Aerocity, New Delhi, a premium dining hub in the capital.
Founded in 1982 and owned by Darden Restaurants, Olive Garden is among the largest US casual dining chains, known for pasta, soups and family-style dining. In India, it is being positioned above PizzaExpress, with prices 25-30% higher, targeting the premium casual dining segment.
India’s organized is drawing renewed interest as operators chase consumers willing to spend more on dine-in experiences. Rival Jubilant FoodWorks, for instance, is expanding its quick-service chain Popeyes across the country.
Pewekar said consumer demand is being shaped by higher disposable incomes and greater exposure to global brands. “Consumers today have higher disposable incomes, are far more well-travelled and digitally exposed to international brands.”
According to the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI), the casual dining segment is projected to grow from ₹1.22 trillion in FY24 to ₹1.74 trillion by FY28, supported by urbanization and shifting among younger consumers.
Gourmet Investments reported revenue from operations of ₹176 crore in FY25, according to Ministry of Corporate Affairs filings accessed via Tofler. The company began operations in 2007 and also operates the Sri Lanka-based brand Ministry of Crab’s India outlet.
Tougher market
Still, industry executives caution that international brands entering India face a far more competitive landscape than a decade ago, as domestic chains scale rapidly across price points.
“Consumers today benchmark global chains against leading domestic operators that understand local dining behaviour, value perception and frequency-led consumption far better than before,” said Samir Kuckreja, founder and chief executive of Delhi-based Tasanaya Hospitality.
Kuckreja added that international brands must now define their relevance beyond origin. “The challenge for international brands entering India now is less about awareness and more about relevance. Each brand has to answer a fundamental question: what is its unique selling point in an already crowded and increasingly mature dining ecosystem.”
He noted that domestic players have significantly narrowed the gap in brand experience and scalability, reducing the differentiation global chains once enjoyed.
While western formats continue to see opportunity in India’s growing consumption base, they have historically faced hurdles including high real estate costs, fragmented preferences and the need for extensive localisation.
Pewekar, however, said GIHG is focused on long-term brand building rather than short-term cycles. “We are building brands for the long term, not for the next six months.”
The company will initially focus expansion on metro and tier-one cities before gradually moving into other urban markets as its brands mature. It currently operates more than 30 restaurants across its portfolio and is expanding through a mix of malls, commercial centres and high streets.
PizzaExpress, one of its earliest international partnerships in India, has gone through cycles of rapid expansion and rationalisation but remains among its strongest-performing brands alongside P.F. Chang’s, Pewekar said.
For GIHG, the bet on Olive Garden signals a renewed push into imported dining formats at a time when India’s is becoming larger—but also far more contested than when many global chains first arrived. The opportunity, executives say, is no longer just about bringing global brands to India. It is about proving they can still stand out once they get there.