From Street Food Store to Multi-Award Winning Restaurant - Saran Raj

In this episode, we sit down with Saran from Katana Restaurant in Peterborough to explore the story behind one of the city’s most distinctive dining destinations. With a family history in food spanning more than 50 years, Saran brings together deep hospitality experience, international training and a genuine passion for creating memorable restaurant experiences. From working in restaurants and hotels across France, Italy, the United States, New Delhi, New York and Mayfair, to helping shape Katana’s Indian and Japanese dining concept in Peterborough, this conversation gives a fascinating look into what it really takes to build a restaurant with ambition, standards and soul. Katana is not just another restaurant. It is a 200 cover venue offering Indian cuisine, Japanese teppanyaki, sushi, cocktails, Sunday roasts, private dining, group menus, live music, monthly nightclub events and cultural food festivals. Saran talks openly about the challenge of bringing a higher quality restaurant experience to a city that relies heavily on local support rather than tourism, and why creating something affordable, memorable and consistent matters so much. We also discuss the realities of running a hospitality business today, including staffing, chef recruitment, rising utilities, business rates, customer loyalty, weekday trade and the pressure placed on independent restaurants. Saran shares why teamwork, training, service standards and community support are essential if restaurants like Katana are going to survive and thrive. This is a brilliant episode for anyone interested in hospitality, restaurants, Peterborough business, food culture, entrepreneurship, Indian cuisine, Japanese dining or the future of local independent venues. Chapters 00:00 - Introduction 02:20 - Saran’s family background in food and hospitality 04:47 - Working in restaurants and hotels around the world 05:29 - Studying hotel management and leadership 08:43 - Training in New Delhi and New York 08:59 - Learning international restaurant standards in Mayfair 11:20 - The story behind Katana Restaurant in Peterborough 17:33 - Building a premium restaurant in a non tourist city 20:50 - Menus, sushi nights, cocktails, roasts and group dining 22:42 - Staffing, retention and building customer loyalty 25:56 - Private dining, events and full restaurant hire 26:47 - Creating a complete experience from entry to exit 27:52 - Nightclub events, Diwali, Onam and food festivals 34:11 - Why teamwork is central to Katana’s success 35:08 - The challenge of finding authentic Indian chefs 36:00 - Rising costs, business rates and the future of hospitality Check out our website and apply to be a guest speaker: https://business-growth-show.com Audio Only - https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast... Thank you for watching. Please like, comment and subscribe for more conversations with local business owners, entrepreneurs and people building something meaningful in their communities. #KatanaPeterborough #PeterboroughRestaurants #HospitalityPodcast #RestaurantBusiness #IndianRestaurant #JapaneseRestaurant #Teppanyaki #PeterboroughBusiness #LocalBusinessPodcast #IndependentRestaurants