Sometimes, all you need to do is step back and look at the big picture. And that's what co-owner Karan Shah did when he opened The Terrace in Juhu in March 2015. For their second franchise in Lokhandwala, co-owners Karan and Kaushal Shah decided to join hands with young couples Nishiket Parikh and Shivani Shroff, and Kalpan and Paulomi Shah, who were regular patrons at the original outpost, and keen to enter the hospitality industry. "When we saw the ideas that Shivani and Paulomi were brimming with, we decided to step back and leave everything to the women, and focus on including more women in the team," Karan tells us, as we are introduced to the new space, The Terrace – A Maiden Affair. "We had to convince him to allow us to paint the restaurant pink," recalls Shivani with a laugh. Saniya Kantawala has designed the Pinterest-friendly interiors; even their digital and PR team members include women. Shivani, a London College of Fashion graduate also runs a design studio that specialises in home décor, and has designed some of the crockery. Like the kettle that she designed used to serve the piping hot tomato and bell pepper soup (Rs 195) that tastes divine with chunks of smoked tomato.

Shivani Shroff and Paulomi Shah