PurposeThis paper aims to explore tacit knowledge and managers’ supervision styles in a sample of Edinburgh's Indian restaurants.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reports a qualitative fieldwork of managers’ perceptions of their role in directing tasks, supervising operations and staff recruitment.FindingsThe research findings describe tacit knowledge contexts derived from restaurant owner‐managers directing operations.Research limitations/implicationsThis is an exploratory study of views and perceptions of a small sample of ethnic managers. It asks questions of tacit knowledge within Scottish‐based Indian restaurants, and attempts to place these within a cultural context of kinship networks.Practical implicationsThe research questions how academic researchers may make nebulous concepts such as tacit knowledge accessible to practical hospitality managers, policy‐makers, students and teachers.Originality/valueThe research findings describe the context to relationships in small ethnic hospitality businesses. Conceptual development emerges from deductions made from literature, fieldwork, shadowing, interviews, and by asking questions.