Picture is for representational purposes only (LT AI imagery)
In Lalbagh, childhood friends Abhigyan (28) and Garvit (27) opened Crude, a vibrant dessert café run entirely by a crew in their 20s. We didn’t want it to be a Gen Z-only place, but we definitely built it around how people our age actually like to spend time.Today, the club has over 900 members across all age groups. Because our generation just cannot do without our pets, and the city doesn’t have many spaces like this,” says Raghav Shrivastava, it is also pet-friendly.
“When we returned to Lucknow, we felt there was room to experiment, so we took a risk and introduced something different. When you think of Lucknow, there is always an image deeply fixed in the city’s quintessential identity, surrounding its cuisine, culture and craftsmanship. Driving this shift is a mix of Gen Z and young millennial entrepreneurs who are not looking to replace the city’s established food culture, but to add more of their vibe to it. Over the last few years, they have been putting their own spin on cafes, craft coffee culture, desserts, international cuisines, small-plate menus and social dining, slowly changing the city’s dastarkhwan and bringing a new mojo to the way Lucknow eats, socialises and spends its time. After studying hospitality in London, the duo returned home to experiment with new-age quick-service restaurant concepts. Our cafe is a premium QSR serving fresh desserts, with a special Tres Leches based on my mother’s recipes, along with speciality coffee and a contemporary mithai collection. For Venuka, the appeal lies in the experience as much as the food. “Lucknow is increasingly willing to spend on curated food experiences, and that is changing the way the city is socialising these days. Taking the idea of social hubs a step further, seven childhood friends-turned-business partners, all in their late 20s, Raghav Chawla, Arjun Verma, Rahul Bajaj, Saksham Bhatia, Kavan Arora, Anjuri Tandon and Raghav Shrivastava, created The Racquet Club in Gomti Nagar, bringing sport, wellness, food and socialising under one roof, along with the pet-friendly cafe Slab. With more young professionals and first-time founders in the city, people are looking for more than a meal out. They want fitness, sport, good coffee and community. We wanted to create a space where you could play paddle, grab a matcha, meet people or join group wellness activities like Pilates.
Today, when an outsider steps into the city, that image of old-world Lucknow sits alongside a growing landscape of contemporary food and leisure spaces. “Lucknowites today want to spend their time more intentionally rather than simply going out for dinner on weekends.
Sisters Divya, 25, a graphic designer, and Khushi, 23, a pastry chef, brought their creative backgrounds together to open Brekka, a minimalist café reflecting the changing tastes of Lucknow’s younger generation. Because a space can have a personality of its own,” says Khushi. — Divya sees the same shift in Lucknow’s food culture, the aesthetics, music and small details matter.
We wanted a space within an old setting where both generations can feel at home,” says Richa. In Hazratganj, siblings Richa and Shubham have brought artisanal gelato to a part of Lucknow long associated with its old-world character. Located next to the Indian Coffee House, Mio Marito Gelato serves Italian-style gelato, fresh sorbets, speciality coffee and affogatos. “Lucknow has always had a strong food culture and people here know and appreciate good, ingredient-led food. The café sits inside an old building, and Hazratganj has this beautiful mix of European and Anglo-Indian influences, with an old-world charm that still feels very alive. We see older generations coming in and enjoying newer flavours, while younger people are finding new reasons to spend time here. Ganjing is also evolving, and young people are finding their own ways to connect with the city. “With so much pressure to compete and stay productive, people also need places to slow down. For Gen Z, a cafe is about more than food and coffee, but they want to know what they are consuming, where it comes from and how it is made.
Richa, who previously worked as an AI automation consultant, travelled across different parts of the world and picked up food experiences along the way.