Walk into Echoes and you notice something different. Each table has a light bulb, like those in aircraft, to call servers. Notepads sit ready for orders. Sign language charts hang at the entrance. Placards communicate frequent requests. And every staff member, except the manager, is deaf and mute.
Entering Echoes, you’ll notice some differences. All tables have a light bulb, similar to one used in airplanes, to summon the waiters. There are also note pads for placing orders. There are signs for sign languages displayed at the entrance. Sign language boards convey common needs. And all employees, except the manager, are deaf-mutes.
It isn’t a joke. Echoes is a restaurant that came into being in Delhi’s Satya Niketan in 2015. It operates based on a philosophy that differently-abled people should be given an equal chance and good food and social purpose can go hand in hand.
Born from Friendship and Vision
Echoes began with a group of friends who wanted to do something for social upliftment alongside building a legitimate business, according to Curly Tales. Co-founders Sahib Sarna, Prateek Babbar, and Kshitij Behl started with a 40-seat space in Satya Niketan, employing six to seven differently abled staff members.
“We all wanted to pursue our dreams and set up something that reflected our vision. We wanted to motivate people to follow the path they choose and hence came up with Echoes. We worked on building a place with a high level of interactivity, motivating interiors, scrumptious food and a social purpose,” Sahib explained to The Better India.
The name carries meaning. Echoes suggests communication that transcends words, reverberating beyond conventional sound. As their Facebook page states: “From the very beginning, our mission has been simple: to bring people together over good food and great conversations.”
The Early Challenges
Setting up a restaurant staffed entirely by people with hearing and speech impairments required rethinking every operational norm. “Initially we faced a lot of difficulties due to which we had to define our procedures in a manner that the customers do not feel that there is a disability in any of our services,” Prateek Babbar, Co-Owner, told Curly Tales.
The communication gap posed the biggest challenge. As Sahib told The Better India, designing a system that allowed customers and staff to interact efficiently required innovation. They developed a comprehensive communication framework: sign blocks at the entrance showing alphabets and corresponding signs, code systems for dishes, notepads for written orders, light bulbs at tables to summon servers, and placards for common requests.
“We wanted to start with this market so that our message reaches the right ears. However, we don’t serve any specific community or age group. The place is open to all and we managed a place where all age groups can have a good time together. From families to corporate staff to students, you can see all enjoying at Echoes,” Sahib explained to The Better India.
More Than an Experience
What could have been merely novelty became something profound. Customers began learning sign language from staff. The employees gained confidence and happiness, especially when guests communicated with them in sign language, according to The Better India.
One Tripadvisor reviewer captured the essence: “I think it’s the best theme based restaurant I have ever visited, Echoes name of the place has a deep meaning, all staff is special except the manager and food and service is just awesome.”
Another noted: “A fantastic cafe with some really good food. But, you go there for the experience. You literally have to write your order down yourself (using the different codes for different food items) and then provide it to the staff as this cafe is for the specially abled. It is really good to see the kind of hard work that the entire staff puts in order to make sure that their guests don’t leave the cafe unsatisfied.”
The Food Philosophy
Echoes isn’t just about the concept. The food matters. The menu spans North Indian, Continental, Chinese, and Italian, with signature items including kebab platters, mezze platters, momos, pasta, burgers, and elaborate shakes.
As stated on their Instagram, “Good food fixes everything.” The cafe positions itself as “Delhi’s Dopest & Cheapest Bar,” offering full bar service alongside food at approximately Rs. 1,200 for two.
Reviews consistently praise the quality. One Tripadvisor visitor wrote: “I totally loved the theme and concept of this cafe. It is one of the best cafes I have visited. Lovely environment, comfy seatings, Sign language, ringing bells. All this gives a unique aura to this place.”
The Ferrero Rocher shake became particularly famous, described by one guest as “very thick with ice cream and one Ferrero Rocher on top. Very tasty, the best I had.”
Expansion Beyond Delhi
From that first Satya Niketan location, Echoes expanded rapidly. Today, according to their Instagram presence, the brand operates in Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bhopal, with multiple outlets in Delhi NCR including Hudson Lane, Kailash Colony, Paschim Vihar, Rajouri Garden, and locations in Dwarka, Rohini, Rohtak, and Dehradun.
In 2017, the brand announced expansion to Bangalore’s Koramangala area with a 70-seat capacity, according to The Better India. A Rishikesh location opened in Tapovan in 2023, as reported by Garhwal Post, with Kshitij Behl and his father Ravi Behl present at the opening.
Curly Tales reported in 2020 that “Echoes has its presence in Bangalore and Calcutta too and aims to open more outlets in other cities as well.”
The brand now employs over 40 differently abled staff across all locations, according to Curly Tales.
Recognition and Impact
Echoes earned Tripadvisor’s Travellers’ Choice award, placing it in the top 10% of properties on the platform. In Delhi, it ranks #278 out of 4,637 restaurants with a 4.5 rating, according to Tripadvisor.
But the real measure of success isn’t awards. It’s the lives changed. As one review on Magicpin noted: “Amazing place managed by deaf and mute staff. Delicious food and great service!”
The model proves that inclusive employment can work at scale, that accessibility can be designed into operations, that customers will embrace concepts built on genuine social purpose.
The Broader Mission
Echoes positions itself as more than a cafe. As their Instagram bio declares: “Proudly run by a team of talented individuals with hearing and speech impairments.”
The brand has opened franchise opportunities, recognizing that the model can replicate across cities while maintaining its core mission. Each new location carries the same operational framework: light bulbs, notepads, sign charts, trained differently abled staff, and a commitment to service excellence.
Garhwal Post described the Rishikesh opening: “The staff may be deaf and mute, but there are a million conversations that await visitors.”
What Echoes Teaches
Nine years down the line since Echoes opened its doors in Satya Niketan, the business has managed to demonstrate quite a number of things. For starters, disability does not equate to inability. Additionally, social enterprises can run profitably. Besides, customers will patronize businesses that operate for purposes beyond making money. Furthermore, communication goes beyond language. And finally, smiles and exceptional service matter more than listening and speaking.
As one TripAdvisor reviewer put it succinctly, “Echoes is not just a cafe but a feeling we have to experience.”
The establishment exists to prove the point that restaurants are instruments for creating social change. Besides, employment processes should undergo reform to promote inclusiveness. Most importantly, there is no need for compromise between profit and social impact in businesses.
In a nation where job opportunities for disabled people are scarce, Echoes provides something revolutionary, dignity through employment, confidence through capability, and the demonstration that with the right opportunity and system, anyone can shine.
Instead of being call buttons, the lights on the tables in the restaurant represent the unique establishment’s capacity to hear out the whispers of silence, create conversations beyond language, and foster communities regardless of the presence of disabilities.
