Page 87 - HH Jan 2023-Dec 2024

Man on a

mission

Akash Kalra, Owner & Managing
Director of United Group, on his plans
to make multi-cuisine legacy brand
UCH – Rewind a national brand of
repute and the preferred all-day
dining destination

he United Group in 2016 announced
their brand United Coffee House
– Rewind, with its first restaurant
in DLF Mall of Noida. Coming from
the kitchens of pre-Independent
TIndia’s first café and United Group’s
flagship restaurant, United Coffee House, UCH –
Rewind is a chic, smart and casual version of its
predecessor. It is a young, casual dining place
that entertains and provides for patrons across
generations.
In conversation with Akash Kalra, Managing
Director and third generation custodian of United
Group which owns the legendary United Coffee
House, UCH – Rewind, Maska – Indian Street
Food QSR chain and the most acknowledged
luxury catering facility by the name of United
Catering Services

Describe your journey as a hotelier?
I am a third generation hotelier from the family
that built this legacy brick by brick and also the
custodian of UCH. Having been around culinary
artists and entrepreneurs since my childhood
and with hospitality in my DNA, food penchant
was inevitability for me. I took the reins of the
United Group in my late teens and since then
made it into a pan-India brand. I devoted a
major part of my growing up years archiving and
reviving the recipes of UCH yet keeping a fine
balance from conventional to contemporary. I
consider myself very fortunate to be a part of
this institution spanning over eight decades in
the Indian culinary arena.
After firmly reviving UCH, I set up catering
division of the United Group in 2004 and
conceptualised UCH – Rewind in 2016 and in
2020 I saw an opportunity and launched United
Group’s first QSR brand Maska.