Why I Only Work With Indian Restaurants: A Personal Story About Culture, Honesty, and Why Cheap Marketing Will Kill Your Business

A restaurant owner asked me the other day, "Why do you write and focus on restaurants so much?"

The question caught me off guard. I had never really stopped to think about it. I just did it. Every day. Writing about restaurants. Working with restaurants. Thinking about restaurants.

But his question made me pause and actually examine why.

The answer turned out to be more personal than I expected.

The Gap Nobody Wants to Fill

Let me start with the business reality.

Most marketing agencies avoid restaurants. They run away from them. There is a reason for this.

Restaurants are demanding clients. The work is constant. The budgets are often tight. The owners want results yesterday. The creativity required to keep producing fresh content week after week is exhausting. Many agencies take on a restaurant client, struggle for a few months, then quietly part ways.

This creates a gap in the market.

Restaurant owners need marketing help. They need it badly. But the agencies that could help them do not want to deal with the challenges. So restaurant owners end up with two options. Either they work with agencies that do not really understand restaurants, or they work with cheap providers who cannot deliver real results.

Neither option works well.

I saw this gap and decided to fill it. Not because it was easy. It is not easy. But because someone needed to do it right.

Then It Got Personal

Here is where the story takes a turn I did not expect.

When I decided to specialize even further and focus only on Indian restaurants, something shifted inside me.

I am half Sri Lankan. My parents brought that culture into our home. The food. The traditions. The way community and hospitality intertwine. I grew up surrounded by it.

Working with Indian restaurant owners does not feel like work to me.

It feels like I am helping my uncle's restaurant. It feels like family. It feels like I am part of something I already belong to, not something I am trying to break into from the outside.

I understand the culture because I live in it. I understand the food because I grew up eating it. I understand the family dynamics because I watched my own family navigate them.

This connection changes everything about how I approach the work.

When I talk to an Indian restaurant owner about their challenges, I am not pretending to understand. I actually understand. When I think about what content will resonate with their customers, I am thinking about people like my own family and friends.

This is why the work feels like play to me. I am not forcing myself to care about an industry I have no connection to. I am working in a space where I genuinely belong.

Why I Write So Much

You might have noticed that I write a lot about restaurant marketing.

The growth strategies. The how-to guides. Building brands. Creating content. Advertising that works. Customer obsession. Team building. Leadership. Common mistakes and how to avoid them.

I write about all of it. Constantly.

People sometimes ask why I give away so much information for free. Why not keep it secret and just sell it to clients?

Here is the truth.

Everything in running a successful restaurant is intertwined. You cannot separate marketing from operations. You cannot separate branding from customer service. You cannot separate content from culture. It all connects.

As someone who only works with restaurants, I learn something new every single day. Every client teaches me something. Every campaign reveals something. Every success and every failure adds to my understanding.

Writing is how I process all of this.

When I write about a concept, I have to think it through completely. I have to organize my thoughts. I have to find the clearest way to explain it. This process burns the knowledge deeper into my brain than just experiencing it ever could.

Writing makes me sharper. The frameworks and tools and strategies become better articulated in my mind. I can recall them faster. I can apply them more precisely. I can explain them more clearly to clients.

So yes, I share a lot publicly. But the process of sharing makes me better at what I do. It is not charity. It is training.

The Honesty Policy

Let me tell you something about how I work with clients.

I am honest with them. Brutally honest sometimes.

Why? Because their customers are honest. If the food is bad, customers do not come back. If the service is slow, customers complain. If the atmosphere is off, customers go somewhere else.

Customers do not protect your feelings. They just leave.

So why would I protect your feelings? What good does that do?

When something is not working, I tell my clients. When their content is weak, I say so. When their strategy needs to change, I push for the change. When they are doing something that hurts their business, I do not smile and nod. I speak up.

When things are working, I show them the results. I celebrate the wins with them. I point out what is driving success so we can do more of it.

This is not about being mean. It is about being useful.

A marketing partner who just tells you what you want to hear is worthless. You are paying for results, not for someone to make you feel good while your business stagnates.

The Peer-to-Peer Relationship

Here is how I think about the relationship between our agency and our clients.

It has to be peer to peer.

You are the restaurant expert. You are in your business every single day. You know your kitchen, your staff, your regulars, your neighborhood. You have knowledge that I will never have because I do not live inside your operation.

I am the marketing expert. I look at restaurants from the outside, the same way your customers do. I see patterns across dozens of restaurants that you cannot see from inside just one. I have frameworks and strategies that have been tested and refined across many different situations.

Neither of us has the complete picture alone. Together we do.

This is why the relationship must be collaborative. I am not here to dictate to you. You are not here to just follow orders. We work together. We share perspectives. We challenge each other. We make each other better.

As a restaurant owner, you are so deep in the daily operations that certain things get overlooked. Not because you are careless. Because you are too close. You cannot see the forest when you are surrounded by trees.

My job is to be your outside eyes. To see what you miss because you are inside it every day. To point out the opportunities you are walking past. To identify the problems you have become blind to.

This outside perspective is valuable precisely because I am not you. I see your restaurant the way your customers see it. And that perspective is what drives growth.

Why We Do Month to Month

Most marketing agencies want long contracts. Twelve months minimum. Sometimes two years.

I understand why. Long contracts provide stability. They guarantee revenue. They give you time to show results.

But I also understand what long contracts really mean for the client.

They mean you are stuck even if things are not working. They mean the agency has less pressure to perform because you cannot leave. They mean your money keeps flowing out whether you are happy or not.

We do month to month.

This terrifies most agencies. Not us.

Month to month means we have to earn your business every single month. We cannot coast. We cannot get lazy. We cannot take you for granted.

Month to month means we are genuinely committed to making this work. If we do not deliver value, you can leave. That reality keeps us sharp.

It also means we both have to be invested in the relationship. We are not handcuffed together by a contract. We are choosing to work together because it benefits both of us.

Why would we even work with each other if we are not both getting benefits? Both sides have to win or the relationship makes no sense.

Your Restaurant Is Not Their Restaurant

Here is something that should be obvious but apparently needs to be said.

Your restaurant is not the same as the restaurant down the street.

You have different locations. Different owners. Different histories. Different stories. Different food even if you are both serving Indian cuisine. Different staff. Different atmospheres. Different everything.

So why would you use the same marketing?

The storyline that works for Eraz's restaurant cannot be copied and pasted onto your restaurant. The videos that make sense for their brand do not make sense for yours. The content that resonates with their customers might fall flat with yours.

Every restaurant needs its own approach. Its own story. Its own content. Its own strategy.

This is why generic marketing agencies struggle with restaurants. They want to use templates. They want to repeat what worked somewhere else. They do not want to do the hard work of understanding what makes your specific restaurant unique.

We do that hard work. For every client. From scratch. Because there is no other way to do it right.

The Shortcut Trap

I need to address something that I see constantly.

Restaurant owners looking for shortcuts.

I understand the temptation. You are busy. Budgets are tight. Someone offers you an easy solution at a low price. Why not try it?

Here is why not.

Going on the web to find stock images of food that is not your food does not build your brand. It builds a fake version of your restaurant that customers will see through immediately.

Hiring cheap marketing agencies overseas to post flyers does not grow your business. It produces low-quality content that makes your restaurant look low-quality.

Thinking you are running real ads because someone cheap said they do ads is fooling yourself. There is a reason serious marketing agencies charge thirty thousand to one hundred thousand dollars a month for paid advertising. They have systems. They have expertise. They have track records. The cheap alternative is not the same thing at a lower price. It is a completely different thing that does not work.

Nothing real is cheap.

Everything requires investment. Money has to be spent to be earned. This is not some fancy business philosophy. It is basic reality.

Why Quality Costs Money

Look at the most successful founders and business builders in the world.

What do they have in common?

They do what is necessary, not what is cheap.

They invest in quality. They pay for expertise. They build real systems. They do not cut corners on the things that matter.

This is not because they have unlimited money. Many of them started with very little. It is because they understand that cheap solutions create cheap results.

When you pay nothing for marketing, you get nothing from marketing. When you pay for templates, you get templated results. When you pay for expertise, you get expert results.

The math is simple. The investment you make determines the return you get.

Restaurant owners who understand this grow. Restaurant owners who keep looking for shortcuts stay stuck.

What This All Means

So back to the original question. Why do I focus so much on restaurants?

Because there is a gap that needs filling. Because most agencies will not do this work. Because restaurant owners deserve better than what they are getting.

Because I am half Sri Lankan and working with Indian restaurants feels like helping family. Because the culture is part of who I am. Because this work does not feel like work.

Because writing makes me sharper. Because honesty makes me useful. Because peer-to-peer relationships produce real results.

Because every restaurant deserves its own story, not a template. Because shortcuts do not work. Because quality costs money but it is worth it.

That is why I do this.

And if you are an Indian restaurant owner who is tired of cheap solutions that produce nothing, who wants a partner that actually understands your business and your culture, who is ready to invest in real growth instead of gambling on shortcuts, then we should talk.

We might be the right fit. We might not. But a conversation costs nothing and could change everything.

Take the Next Step

If what I wrote resonates with you, if you are done with agencies that do not understand restaurants, if you want a partner who will be honest with you and fight for your growth, let us have a conversation.

We work month to month because we believe in earning your business every single month. We specialize in Indian restaurants because that is where our expertise and our heart align. We tell the truth even when it is uncomfortable because that is the only way to actually help you.

Schedule a call and let us see if we are the right fit.

https://www.anthconsulting.com/restaurant-growth-challenge#calendar-652ZsXHqbhZk

Your restaurant deserves marketing that is as unique as your story. Let us build it together.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do most marketing agencies avoid working with restaurants?

Restaurants are demanding clients with constant content needs, often tight budgets, and high expectations for fast results. The creativity required to keep producing fresh content week after week is exhausting. Many agencies take on restaurant clients, struggle with the demands, and quietly part ways. This creates a gap where restaurant owners need help but cannot find agencies willing or able to do the work properly.

Why did you specialize specifically in Indian restaurants?

The specialization started as a business decision to fill a gap in the market, but it became personal. Being half Sri Lankan, the culture is part of who I am. Working with Indian restaurant owners feels like helping family rather than serving clients. I understand the food, the traditions, and the community dynamics because I grew up with them. This genuine connection makes the work feel like play instead of labor.

Why do you write so much about restaurant marketing?

Writing is how I process and retain what I learn. Working with restaurants every day teaches me something new constantly. When I write about concepts, I have to think them through completely and articulate them clearly. This process burns the knowledge deeper into my brain and makes me sharper at applying it. The frameworks and strategies become better organized in my mind with each piece I write.

What does honest feedback look like in a client relationship?

Honest feedback means telling clients when something is not working, even if they do not want to hear it. Customers are honest. If the food is bad, they leave. A marketing partner should have the same honesty. When content is weak, I say so. When strategy needs to change, I push for it. When things are working, I show the results and celebrate wins. The goal is being useful, not making clients feel good while their business stagnates.

Why do you offer month-to-month contracts instead of long-term commitments?

Month-to-month contracts mean we have to earn your business every single month. We cannot coast or get lazy. If we do not deliver value, you can leave. This reality keeps us sharp and genuinely committed to making the partnership work. Long contracts often mean clients are stuck even when things are not working, which removes pressure from the agency to perform.

Why does each restaurant need unique marketing instead of templates?

Every restaurant has different locations, owners, histories, stories, staff, and atmospheres. The marketing that works for one restaurant cannot be copied and pasted onto another. Generic approaches from template-based agencies produce generic results. Real growth comes from understanding what makes your specific restaurant unique and building marketing around that uniqueness.

Why are cheap marketing solutions ineffective for restaurants?

Stock images of food that is not yours do not build your brand. Overseas agencies posting flyers produce low-quality content. Cheap ad services are not the same as professional advertising at a lower price. They are completely different things that do not work. Serious marketing requires real systems, expertise, and investment. Nothing real is cheap. The investment you make determines the return you get.

How much should restaurant owners expect to invest in quality marketing?

Quality restaurant marketing typically requires a meaningful monthly investment, not the lowest price you can find. Big marketing agencies charge thirty to one hundred thousand dollars monthly because they have systems and expertise that produce results. Local restaurants do not need that scale, but they do need appropriate investment in partners who can actually deliver. When you pay nothing, you get nothing. When you invest properly, you get proper returns.