Okay, so last week I was thinking about trying to launch a little side hustle. I figured, everyone loves Indian food, right? And throwing parties is a hassle. So, boom, Indian party food delivery!
First things first, I spent a solid day just googling “indian party food catering menu.” Got a bunch of ideas, saw what was popular, and, more importantly, what was easy to make in large quantities. Butter chicken? Obvious choice. Samosas? Gotta have ’em. Biryani? Yes, please. Naan? Okay, that might be tricky to keep fresh during delivery, but we’ll figure it out.
Then came the fun part: cooking! I blocked out a Saturday and went full-on kitchen commando. Started with the butter chicken. Made a huge batch of the sauce the day before, letting all those spices meld together. On Saturday, I just had to grill the chicken and toss it in. Samosas were a pain, I’m not gonna lie. Rolling out the dough and filling them took forever. I ended up buying pre-made dough wrappers to save time. Best decision ever.
Biryani was next. I used my Instant Pot. Seriously, that thing is a lifesaver. Layered the rice, meat, and spices, and let it do its thing. Came out perfect every time. I also whipped up some raita (yogurt sauce) to cool things down.
Packaging was a whole other challenge. I didn’t want to just throw everything in plastic containers. I wanted it to look nice, you know? Found some decent-looking takeout containers online and ordered a bunch. I also got some smaller containers for the raita and chutney. Spent an evening meticulously packing everything up, making sure nothing leaked and it looked presentable.
Okay, so now I had the food, the packaging, and the menu. Time to spread the word! I built a super basic website using one of those drag-and-drop builders. Nothing fancy, just a menu, some pictures, and a contact form. I also created a Facebook page and started posting pictures of the food. Ran a few targeted ads to people in my area who were interested in Indian food and parties.
The orders started trickling in. My first order was from my neighbor, which was nice. I delivered it myself, making sure everything was perfect. Got some good feedback, which was encouraging. Then a few more orders came in over the next few days. Nothing crazy, but enough to keep me busy.
Delivery was the most stressful part. I had to make sure the food stayed hot and got to the customer on time. Invested in some insulated food carriers, which helped a lot. I also planned my routes carefully to avoid traffic. A few times I was running late, but I always called the customer and let them know. Communication is key!
So, what did I learn? Running a food delivery business is hard work! But it’s also rewarding. I enjoyed cooking the food and seeing people enjoy it. I definitely made some mistakes along the way, but I learned from them. I think I’ll keep doing this as a side hustle, but maybe scale back a bit to make it more manageable. Naan is still a problem though, need to find a way to make that work better.
Overall, it was a fun and challenging experience. Would I recommend it? Sure, if you’re passionate about food and don’t mind putting in the work. Just be prepared for some late nights and a lot of dishes!