The Country’s Largest & Fastest Growing Indian Fast Casual Will Set Up Shop in Irvine in Spring 2019
Curry Up Now, the largest and fastest growing Indian fast casual restaurant in the country, has made its expansion into Southern California official with the solidification of its first site in Orange County. The store will be located in Irvine at 922 Spectrum Drive within the Irvine Spectrum Shopping Center, one of the area’s most popular entertainment, shopping, and dining destinations. Curry Up Now projects doors will open at the new locale in Spring 2019.
This is the first lease secured by Curry Up Now’s Southern California franchisees, who inked a multi-unit deal with the brand earlier this year. In addition to Orange County, the group of experienced restaurant franchisees have set their sights on expanding Curry Up Now into San Diego County.
“After being huge fans of Curry Up Now for a long time, it’s very exciting for us to be one step closer to opening our first franchised location with the brand, and to be introducing the concept to an entirely new market,” said Vishal Chopra and Manpreet Behl, two of the franchise group partners. “Most people may not realize how expansive or culturally-diverse Orange County’s food scene is, but even with so much variety, there is nothing like Curry Up Now’s innovative Indian cuisine. The city of Irvine is in many ways a central hub for the county, so there’s no better place for us to launch the Southern California expansion of Curry Up Now!”
Curry Up Now was founded in 2009 by husband and wife duo, Akash and Rana Kapoor, and ably supported by co-founder and Senior VP of Operations Amir Hosseini. From the beginning, the brand has been known for taking traditional Indian flavors and presenting them in friendly, recognizable formats. Their menu fan-favorites include the iconic Tikka Masala Burrito, Deconstructed Samosa, Sexy Fries, and Naughty Naan, as well as traditional items and street food offerings such as Kathi Rolls, Thali Platters, Bhel Puri, and Papdi Chaat. Ingredients are clean and sourced from local vendors whenever possible, and the menu is designed to support alternative diets, in an effort to accomodate all guests no matter their dietary preferences.
Experts in the hospitality industry project that Indian food will continue to be the fastest growing ethnic food segment in the U.S., making room for Curry Up Now to solidify its position as the largest and fastest growing Indian fast casual restaurant in the nation. Within the last year, Curry Up Now has been recognized by a number of the restaurant industry’s top publications for its innovative approach to Indian cuisine and huge potential for growth.
The concept was featured in QSR’s 40 Under 40, Nation’s Restaurant News’ 2018 Breakout Brands, listed as #38 in Fast Casual’s Top 100 Movers & Shakers, and named a Hot Food & Beverage Chain by the International Council of Shopping Centers.
In the last six months alone, Curry Up Now has solidified multi-unit franchise deals in nearly every major region in the country, including the Northeast, South, West Coast, and the Mountain States. The brand has around 50 franchised and corporate stores in development nationwide and pending franchise deals in over 13 states. They anticipate 100 units in development by year end, with an additional 200 in 2019. Curry Up Now currently operates three food trucks and six corporate brick-and-mortar locations across California’s Bay Area, as well as two Mortar & Pestle cocktail bars in San Jose and San Mateo. A new Curry Up Now restaurant and Mortar & Pestle Bar are slated to open in the first quarter of 2019 in San Ramon, CA. For more information on the growing Indian fast casual, follow @CurryUpNow on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter or visit www.curryupnow.com.
Curry Up Now is partnered with Fransmart, the industry-leading franchise development company behind the explosive growth of brands like Five Guys Burgers and Fries, The Halal Guys, and Qdoba Mexican Grill, as their exclusive franchise development partner to grow the brand. The concept is currently looking for experienced multi-unit foodservice operators to develop franchise territories in top 40 major media markets across the U.S. To learn more about franchising opportunities with Curry Up Now, visit http://go.fransmart.com/CurryUpNowApply.
Curry Up Now was established in 2009 by Akash Kapoor and his wife Rana, and ably supported by co-founder and now Senior VP of Operations, Amir Hosseini. The concept, which is known for its innovative spin on traditional Indian cuisine, has been recognized in publications such as Zagat: ‘5 Hottest Fast-Casual Chains,’ EATER SF: ‘SF’s Best Indian Restaurants,’ 7×7: ‘100 Things To Eat Before You Die,’ QSR: ‘40 Under 40,’ Fast Casual: ‘Top 100’ Movers & Shakers, Nation’s Restaurant News: ‘2018 Breakout Brand,’ and International Council of Shopping Centers: ‘Hot Food & Beverage Chain.’ Curry Up Now currently operates six brick-and-mortars and three food trucks in California’s Bay Area, and has both corporate and franchised units in development across California, New Jersey, Colorado, Utah, and the greater Atlanta, Georgia area. For more information about Curry Up Now, visit www.curryupnow.com.
Fransmart is the global leader in franchise development, turning emerging restaurant concepts into national and global brands for over 10 years. Company founder Dan Rowe identified and grew brands like Five Guys Burgers & Fries and Qdoba Mexican Grill from 1-5 unit businesses to the powerhouse chains they are today. Fransmart’s current and past franchise development portfolio brands have opened more than 3,000 restaurants in 45 states and 35 countries. Fransmart and their partner brands are committed to franchise development growth—as of 2015, over 1,000 new restaurants are in development across their current portfolio.
