Idea 139 of 500. Cluster 6: Food and drink as export, not just hospitality
A fine-dining Sri Lankan restaurant in London or New York aiming for a Michelin star, the flagship that makes the whole cuisine premium
The mechanism, from the book
Dilmah says it earns over 3 times the national average price for tea, because it does its own blending, branding and packing. The proof has been sitting inside the industry all along.
Every idea in cluster 6 uses this mechanism.
A first step
Write the menu first: 8 courses that tell the island's story, from hoppers to kithul, each made to a standard that would satisfy a critic. Cook it as a series of supper clubs in London or New York, charge a fine-dining price, and invite food writers to one of them. The bookings and the reviews are what you take to an investor.
- Who pays first
- A diner in London or New York who already pays for tasting menus and has never been offered Sri Lankan food at that level.
- What leaves today
- The cuisine is known abroad as cheap and cheerful, so every Sri Lankan food product on a foreign shelf sells at the bottom of the price range.
The idea and the mechanism are from the book. The first step was written for this site as a suggestion; if you know a better one, say so.
The test
Does it keep value that now leaves the island, or build the proof that lets somebody else do so?
The only test any idea on this site has to pass. The four rules that go with it are here.
In the book
- Ch. ElevenThe Mechanisms
What a brand and an owned variety are worth, from the kiwifruit growers - Ch. TwoAn Island Nobody Has Counted
The island's spices: pepper, cardamom, cloves and nutmeg
More from cluster 6
Idea 139 of the 500 in the appendix of Why Not Sri Lanka? Every one can be started by one person, one family or one small firm.