A Broad Street restaurant established 16 years ago has relaunched today following a £500,000 refurbishment.
Rai Singh, founder and owner of Pushkar, has said the major revamp – a bold and potentially risky move – was necessary in order to save the restaurant from possible closure. The new opening will welcome customers to transformed interiors, an updated menu, and a more modern vibe.
According to Birmingham Live, despite the restaurant’s initial success – including a Best of Birmingham recognition at the National Curry Awards this year – it has been hit by the cost of living crisis and changes to government legislation.
“It’s been a challenging few years for everybody in the restaurant business,” said Singh.
“Restaurants have had to put their prices up to justify their existence. Eating out has become a bit of a luxury – people are still eating out, but not as much.”
He added: “It was a big decision… Do I close the doors or do I give this one more shot? I didn’t want to regret not trying.”
Two weeks ago, Singh decided to close the restaurant temporarily to allow for a complete rebrand and overhaul of the interiors using the £500,000 investment.
“People are either going to love it or hate it,” he said, adding: “We wanted to make things a bit more relaxed, we’ve done a new menu and have moved away from the fine dining element towards a more casual chic concept.
“Diners will still get the same quality of food and quality of service, so there’s no compromise there, but it’s a more modern take on Indian food.”
Singh shared that although he also considered a change in location, he decided to stay put in the end and hopefully “put Birmingham Broad Street back on the map”.
Recent social media posts for the restaurant revealed the 1 August relaunch date. They also showed glimpses of a modern interior, which speaks to a dramatic transformation of Pushkar’s vibe, while calling the reopening “A fresh chapter”.
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