Cateys 2024: Restaurateur of the Year - Group: Nisha Katona, Mowgli Street Food

After 20 years as a child protection barrister, Nisha Katona opened Mowgli’s first Liverpool restaurant in 2014 to share her love of the light and flavoursome Indian cuisine that had been part of her family for generations.

 

Launched at the height of the ‘dirty’ burger craze, Mowgli’s predominantly vegan menu features both authentic dishes and newer creations, such as a take on a chip butty and gunpowder chicken, inspired by Katona’s daughter’s love of KFC.

 

The success of the business attracted investors and, at the start of 2023, TriSpan’s Rising Stars restaurant fund took a stake in Mowgli, which then had 15 sites, with Katona retaining a significant interest.

 

Mowgli has opened over five new restaurants in the past year and now has 21 sites around the UK. Throughout the growth of the business Katona has remained hands-on in all areas, including personally training chefs and maintaining total control of the group’s social media output.

 

Her vision for Mowgli is for it to enrich the cities it goes to, starting with its teams. The group’s motto is for staff to display ‘grace, intelligence and graft’, and there is a focus on turning jobs into long-lasting careers.

 
Employees are supported with bespoke leadership and development programmes, apprenticeships and external coaching. 

 

The group’s pay and benefits package is designed around creating a healthy work-life balance, including offering time off over the festive season and New Year’s Day.

 
A great source of pride for the business is that the annual staff turnover is less than 50%, proving that teams are happy to stay. 

 

Mowgli believes in developing a grounded perspective by appreciating the lives of others across the globe, and by working with international charity partners, it sends up to 40 employees a year to supported Indian communities and takes part in regular charity events. 

 

As well as leading Mowgli, Katona has stood out as a passionate advocate for the hospitality industry and received an MBE for services to the food industry in the 2019 New Years’ Honours. In 2021 she was appointed to the government’s hospitality council and in the same year she became a judge on Great British Menu. 

 

This was a highly competitive category that one of our judges said was “the best cohort of nominees in recent years”. As another judge said: “I have no doubt Mowgli will go on to even bigger and better things.”

 

What the judges said

 

“An amazing business led by pure passion.” Iain Donald

 

“Food passion, elevating great teams and a strong growth trajectory made this entry a great winner.” John Nugent

 

“Nisha has built an incredibly respected brand and concept which has succeeded throughout the UK and has a huge and diverse following. Her eye for detail in design and consumer desire around menu innovation is so impressive.” Mark Selby

 

The shortlist

 

Marcello Distefano San Carlo Restaurant Group

 

Thom and James Elliot Pizza Pilgrims

 

Nisha Katona Mowgli Street Food

 

Jyotin, Karam and Sunaina Sethi JKS Restaurants

 

The judges

 

Iain Donald Iain Donald Restaurant Consultant

 

John Nugent Green & Fortune

 

Robin Rowland TriSpan

 

Mark Selby Wahaca