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Curry Up Now, a fast-casual Indian restaurant chain based in San Francisco, is headed to Atlanta, according to a press release and reporting by Eater San Francisco. The Bay-area chain began as a food truck and currently operates six locations in northern California. However, that is about to change.
Curry Up Now has struck a franchise deal with Fransmart to open several more locations, including five in Atlanta. Hemant Suri (former owner of Midtown Tavern) is on board as the franchisee for all of Atlanta’s Curry Up Now shops. The first of the five locations planned could open by the end of the year.
“Atlanta has a great up-and-coming food scene, but no one is doing Indian the way Curry Up Now is,” Suri said in a prepared statement. “When we heard about Curry Up Now and saw what they were doing, we knew we had to be the first ones to bring the brand and their unique and innovative cuisine to Atlanta.”
The owners and fans of popular Indian street food restaurants Chai Pani in Decatur and Botiwalla at Ponce City Market may beg to differ with the first part of Suri’s rather bold statement. And, calling Atlanta’s prolific food scene “up-and-coming”.
Curry Up Now’s menu includes traditional Indian dishes like kathi rolls, biryani, and thali platters as well as riffs on tikka masala made into a burrito and the flatbread naan called the “naughty naan” with cheese, caramelized onions, jalapeños, and chicken or paneer. There’s even an Indian-inspired variant on poutine called “sexy fries” made with sweet potatoes and topped with cheese and a choice of chicken, lamb, or paneer. Several items on the menu such as the curries and chutneys are gluten free and a few dishes can be made vegan.
Curry Up Now was founded in 2009 by Akash and Rana Kapoor and co-founder/senior vice president of operations Amir Hosseini. Other restaurant brands under the Fransmart umbrella located in metro Atlanta include Five Guys Burgers and the Halal Guys.
