‘Colombo City Restaurant Collective’: Apex body of restaurants
View(s):Colombo City Restaurant Collective (CCRC), the latest association to boost the tourism initiative in Sri Lanka, launched last week at popular ‘The Stables’ of the PSM complex.
Harpo Gunaratne
As the Colombo’s fast growing culinary sector demonstrates the high note in food business, the owners of restaurants, food and beverage outlets, cafes and eateries got together to form the latest Colombo City Restaurant Collective (CCRC).
‘After realising the importance of a shared voice, all restaurant and food and beverage outlet owners come together under one umbrella to act as a one body in fighting their rights’ said Harpo Gunaratne, the first President of the CCRC.
The main objectives of the association are to act as the apex body representing the food and beverage industry, to serve as a repository for smart and relevant intelligence and to promote industry development by raising professional standards.
The Executive Committee consists of well-known restaurateurs and chef Gerard Mendis, Chairman of the Chefs Guild of Lanka and owner of Gerard Mendis Holdings Ltd, who will function as the association’s Patron; Harpo Gooneratne, founder and CEO of Harpo’s Cafes and Restaurants who will be the association’s President; Dharshan Munidasa of Nihonbashi, Ministry of Crab, Kaema Sutra, The Tuna & The Crab, Next Innings and Café Nihonbashi; Amrita De Saram, the owner of August by Mama Aida’s, acting as Treasurer; Kaleel Muzammil, General Manager of Rare Bar as the Secretary; Dinesh Wijesinghe, Partner and MD of the Sugar Bistro and Wine Bar, Sugar Beach Mount Lavinia and Talpe, Bailie Street Merchants Resto Bar, Kava Island Bar and Club Tribe, as Assistant Secretary while Saurabh Udeshi, Director of Chinese Dragon Cafe and Hisham Cader, owner of Sandwich Factory, will serve as committee members. 
Furthermore, it hopes to establish links with similar local and international professional organisations to share knowledge and foster friendship, cooperation and mutual understanding. CCRC also wishes to organise professional exchange programmes with other international organisations.
It also plans to assist restaurant owners to open similar institutions in other parts of the country in order to expand the membership and share its goals.
It will play an important role in compliance and regulatory affairs, working with the relevant government authorities and their agencies on issues that have an impact on the industry such as the Ministry of Tourism, Sri Lanka Tourism, Excise Department, Public Health Inspectors and other officials.
In order to continue making Sri Lanka the best destination for tourists, CCRC plans to promote new food and beverage concepts, encourage entrepreneurs to join the industry and raise the bar when it comes to quality, service and creativity.
The restaurant industry currently employs over 7,000 people and contributes more than Rs. 10 billion annually to the country’s economy .