Mumbai, April 1 (IANS) Not one of those lucky enough to watch India play Sri Lanka in the World Cup final at the Wankhede Stadium here? Worry not, because pubs and restaurants have pulled out all the stops to make it a memorable night with big screens, good food and flowing alcohol to ensure maximum enjoyment in this maximum city.
The excitement is reaching fever pitch ahead of the India-Sri Lanka match Saturday. And eateries and their like are ready to cash in on the craze by offering special packages for those who couldn't manage a seat at the Wankhede stadium that can accommodate only 35,000 people.
The commercial capital of India is known as the city that never sleeps, a line that Mumbaikars are sure to live up to. After the pulsating semifinal against Pakistan, the excitement has only escalated.
"Weekends are always good business for us. And now, with India in the finals, we are expecting many more people to come. We are putting up a projector, so that people can enjoy the game thoroughly," Salman, the manager of Mangii Ferra located in Ville Parle West, told IANS.
A spokesperson for WTF, a popular pub in Khar, said: "We are putting up two big screens and a 60 inch television screen specially for the match. Usually we have one television set. We will put these in the open area of our pub."
"We are also introducing a special Rs.2,000 cover charge, which will include unlimited food and drinks for that day. Usually we don't have this facility," she added.
There are around 16,000 restaurants in Mumbai, a city that is home to about 14 million people. Of these, 326 are registered pubs.
"Overall, pubs and even restaurants will be expecting and will generate a lot of business on Saturday because most people like to see these high octave matches in public places. In order to get in more customers, some will make special cocktails and some will name their dishes on the matches, just to create that atmosphere," Sukesh Shetty, secretary of Ahar, an organisation of over 7,000 restaurants and pubs in the city, told IANS.
"On the whole, there will be vibrancy and full houses at most pubs in the city, big or small," Shetty added.
Most pubs are geared for an overflow of people on Saturday.
"We can usually accommodate 200-230 people in WTF on an average. During the semifinal match, we were expecting around 130 people to show up, but we had 240 customers. So for the finals, we are expecting more than that," said the WTF spokesperson.
Jessica of Not Just Jazz By The Bay at Nariman Point in south Mumbai said: "We have kept a cover charge of Rs.3,000, where people will get unlimited drinks and food and we are expecting more than 150 people to come on Saturday, which is quite a lot for us."
There are many other pubs in the city including Toto's, The Ghetto Pub, Water's Edge, Tavern, Blue Frog, Hard Rock Cafe who are making similar arrangements to entertain cricket lovers and also to do good business.