Hotel Saravanaa Bhavan is the largest South Indian vegeterian restaurant chain in the world. It was founded in 1981, with more than 33 outlets in India (20 of those in Chennai) and 47 across several countries like Australia, UK, France, Germany, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and in the United States, Canada and the Middle East. It is one of the top vegetarian restaurants in Sydney, Melbourne and Wantirna offering world class vegetarian and vegan South Indian cuisine.

Till the 1970s Chennai had very few restaurants. This changed in 1968, when Rajagopal opened a tiny grocery shop on the outskirts of the city, the beginning of a remarkable culinary adventure which would eventually bring the flavours of South India to global taste buds. By the 1990s, Saravanaa Bhavan restaurants dotted the neighborhoods in Chennai and in 2000, the chain inaugurated its first branch outside the country with a franchise in Dubai. Rajagopal's vision of a global brand for South Indian cuisine was finally realized when the chain expanded to cities like Paris, Frankfurt, London, New York City, Dallas, Toronto, Stockholm, Doha and Auckland