Meghana HarikumarBengaluru: From a well-established career in the competitive world of software to the dynamic landscape of hospitality, Pulkit Arora, Co-founder and Director of Gurugram-based CYK Hospitalities, has forged a remarkable path. Along with co-founder Simranjeet Singh, he has built an end-to-end F&B consultancy, providing a single roof for all HoReCa needs—from ideation and conceptualization to execution and brand expansion. This holistic approach is what defines CYK Hospitalities. Born and raised in Agra, Pulkit’s early fascination with the city’s vibrant street food culture provided the foundation for his professional pivot. Despite pursuing a master’s in computer applications, his passion proved stronger, leading him to leave a stable job and launch a food startup in 2015, culminating in the establishment of CYK Hospitalities in 2019. The firm, which stands for Concept Your Kitchen, now boasts over 150 conceptualization projects and 300+ brand expansion projects, working with major brands like Domino’s, Starbucks, and Burger King, with an international footprint in the US, Canada, and Asia. In this exclusive feature, Pulkit Arora shares his journey, his strategic vision for the future of Indian dining, and the ethos that drives his mission to build a lasting legacy in the F&B industry with CYK Hospitalities.
How did your early life in Agra shape your perspective on business and the world of food?
“Agra is where chaat and an exciting street food culture are a big part of life… I was born and raised in this daily celebration of food, and it was through this that I formed my most basic bond with flavours, authenticity, and consistency. From a business standpoint, Agra taught me that food is not only about recipes, it’s also mainly about emotions, nostalgia, and community. The vendors who live on taste, trust, and good relationships with the customers showed me early the importance of facilities, quality, and the power of making unforgettable food experiences. The very surroundings became the ground of my food passion and influenced the way I build and consult restaurant brands, which is still the case today.”
Can you recall the exact moment when you decided to step away from a stable career in software to pursue the high-risk world of hospitality? What was that turning point?
“Yes, I was doing very well in my software career, but deep down, I was in need of enlightenment regarding the future I really wanted to have for myself… I got busy with the food research, making experiments in my rented house’s small kitchen, and figuring out whether this enthusiasm this passion were just a hobby or something deeper. At last, I concluded that producing food and providing food experiences composed a kind of satisfaction that my job could never offer. That was the moment when I realised that if I did not take this chance at that time, I would always be thinking of the question, ‘what if’. So, I decided to get off the secure path and treat hospitality as my career with full commitment.”
What is the single most significant shift you predict for the Indian dining and hospitality space in the next five years?
“While looking forward to the next five years, I foresee the most significant development as a powerful transition to experience-driven dining with food that is clean, conscious, and culturally rooted. Indian consumers are getting to be more sophisticated; they not only want to dine out but also want to know the tale behind the dish, the ingredients, and the brand…This will lead to the restaurants being heavily focused on giving the customers what they want, or rather, the trend will lead to the prominence of the following: transparency, regional flavours, healthier options, open kitchens, and formats offering both convenience and experience. The brands that will grasp this opportune moment, providing honest food, captivating storytelling, and a memorable dining experience, will dominate the Indian hospitality sector.”
What does “leaving a legacy” mean to you in the context of your work, and how does that influence your daily decisions?
“When I think about passing on something to the next generation, I do not limit it to just the company I built, I think about making something that will survive me and, even more importantly, to the food industry, will add value to it and still be there for me! My ambition is to produce a restaurant operational formula that is free from mistakes—a system so powerful that any brand will be able to use it and continue to enjoy peaceful operations without confusion. If we can establish such a foundation, that would be the true inheritance of CYK Hospitalities: A framework that changes the way Indian restaurants are set up, run, and expanded. This mission influences every decision I make as a director.”
What was the toughest hurdle you faced in building your company, and what key lesson did it teach you?
“The most significant challenge in the process of building up my company was to get the right people and at the same time, to scale the processes. In the first few years, I was the one doing everything… As the company grew, it became impractical to do this by yourself. I concluded that even the best ideas are going to fail without the right people and proper systems in place…But this period taught me the most important lesson of my lifetime: A company does not grow only on talent; it grows also on culture, on clarity, and on consistency. The lesson is very simple: If you have the right team and the right systems, the business will take care of itself.”
You’ve expanded internationally. What’s the biggest difference in approach when consulting for a brand in the US or Canada, versus in India?
“The biggest difference is the mindset of planning and precision. In India, the industry is still maturing, so clients are more inclined to flexibility and jugaad. However, in the US or Canada, everything is based on systems, documentation, compliance, and long-term clarity. When consulting internationally my thinking has to be much deeper about the following: Standardisation, Compliance & food safety, Labour optimisation, and Supply chain planning… In other countries, it is the opposite – systems are the spine and creativity is the flesh. These variances have, in fact, augmented CYK’s approach… the outcomes are strikingly better.”
What is the defining characteristic or “X-factor” that an aspiring restaurateur needs today to truly stand out?
“Concept creativity, supported by truthful storytelling. The patrons of restaurants today expect more than just tasty food; they really want to know the ‘why’ of a brand. The restaurant owners who get noticed the most are those who create a concept that is new, culturally sensitive, and emotionally significant, and then let it out with full honesty. Customers are curious about the truth behind what they are eating… This is the case when the combination of creativity, authenticity, and transparency becomes the real X-factor in the hotel industry today.”
How do you balance the intensity of running a pan-India operation with your personal passion for photography and reading?
“Indulging in personal interests amidst managing a pan-India operation is a tough task, but I’ve concluded that my hobbies are not a distraction; they’re fuel. I have always been a proponent of the saying “learn first, execute next.” Through photography, reading, and even hiking, I am granted the opportunity to observe, reflect, and return with a fresher and broader perspective…Ultimately, it is this equilibrium that keeps me professionally sharp and personally sane. Because if you stop learning and observing, then you stop growing, regardless of how large your operation is.”
Pulkit Arora’s journey with CYK Hospitalities is a testament to the power of structured passion. By marrying his early love for food and community with a deep understanding of systems and process scalability, he and his team have created a successful model for F&B consultancy. His commitment to creating a “mistake-free operational formula” ensures that the legacy of CYK Hospitalities will be one of lasting positive change for the HoReCa industry, both in India and globally.
Meghana Harikumar
Editor
