Opened with much fanfare in February this year, the Night Bazaar on Old Jail Road quickly became the go-to destination for foodies in the city who craved for a quick bite late at night.
Visitors were spoilt for choice at the Night Bazaar’s Food Arena, where over 80 food trucks offered a wide range of scrumptious food. Owners of the food trucks were also upbeat about their investments as business was good. There was also talk of allowing the Night Bazaar to stay open for an extended period of time.
However, things took an unexpected turn barely a month later as the COVID-19 pandemic struck.
All food trucks saw their business come to a grinding halt, and struggled to tide through the pandemic. While a handful of food trucks gradually reopened just over a month ago, the others reopened recently, hoping to recoup some of their losses.
‘Good to be back’
“It is good to be back in business. The last few months have been very difficult as we had no source of income. After the relaxations allowed by authorities, some food trucks and stalls have reopened and we are witnessing a steady trickle of visitors. We are doing good business now and are hopeful of recovering from our losses,” said A. Raja, who runs a stall at the Food Arena.
However, the vendors say that they are missing out on the late-night movie crowd. “A bulk of our customers are people who go for late-night movies. Many of them drop by here to catch a bite after the movie after 11 p.m. Unfortunately, with no blockbuster movies being released recently, the movie crowd is missing in action,” said Ravi Kumar, a worker at a fast food stall.
Many vendors rue that the police are permitting them to stay open only till 10 p.m.. Earlier, they were being allowed to stay open till 2 a.m. Some generally come after 11 p.m. or 12 a.m. due to midnight cravings or to celebrate a birthday party, which is not possible now due to restrictions in wake of the pandemic.
Pending proposals
There was also a proposal to convert the Night Bazaar into a full-fledged Night Food & Crafts Bazaar, giving space to craft makers. As of now, the proposal is still pending for authorisation from higher officials, GVMC officials said.
