Prithi Raj: 'Best Indian' restaurant in Sheffield reveals increased menu prices amid cost of living struggle
A Sheffield restaurant has revealed it’s continuing to face repercussions from the Covid-19 pandemic despite its growing list of accolades.
Prithi Raj is a longstanding Indian restaurant on Ecclesall Road in Sheffield, and is well-known for its celebrity diners, from Dan Walker, to Mark Labett, also known as ‘The Beast’, from ITV’s The Chase.
As well as its star-studded customers, the restaurant has also won plenty of awards - most recently the title of ‘Best Indian’ at the Westside and Southside Restaurant & Bar Awards 2024 on Monday, October 28.
But while the team struggles to find a place in the restaurant for their latest award, they have also revealed the business is still facing difficulties returning to its pre-pandemic customer base.
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Salim Karaa, Prithi Raj manager, said: “We are OK [financially], but we lost a lot of customers when people stopped eating out.”
After a difficult summer with the hot weather impacting the public’s curry-eating habits, the restaurant is now starting to see an increase in customers as winter approaches.
But the rising cost of living has also impacted the business, resulting in some small increases being introduced to the menu prices.
Salim said: “The prices are increasing by a very small amount. But we have had to do it because of the ingredients we buy - the prices are getting ridiculously high, so we have to cover the cost.”
By mid November, mains in the restaurant will increase from £14 to around £15.50, with beers increasing from £6.50 to £6.95.
At the same time, three new menu items will also join the menu, including ‘The Beast’, which has been in the pipeline since the summer, plus ‘sabzi raj’, and ‘zara special’.
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Speaking on their latest win at the Westside and Southside Restaurant & Bar Awards, Salim said they weren’t surprised when they were named ‘best Indian’.
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“It wasn’t a surprise, we were confident,” he said. “It feels great to be honest, I don’t think we are going to find space in the restaurant to put them [all the awards].”
Salim said they were recently asked how they keep winning all these awards, and he put it down to ‘consistency’.
“You come in here any day and any time, it’s going to be the same great service and the same great food,” he said.