Curry Up Now will soon be a part of Stanford University’s Tressider Memorial Union’s dining options for students and faculty. The second location is slated for the University of California San Diego’s (UCSD) Price Center, which serves as a busy campus hub for students.
Over the last 10 years, husband-and-wife co-founders Akash and Rana Kapoor have expanded the Curry Up Now empire to include three food trucks, 14 brick-and-mortar restaurants spanning coast to coast, and several digital kitchen outposts nationwide. These two leases mark the first on-campus locations for the popular fast casual chain.
“Curry Up Now is ready for its campus debut. We are honored to be a part of such vibrant communities and can’t wait to wow the student body. I know that our flavor-packed, playful menu items at an affordable price point will become a favorite among the students at UCSD and Stanford University,” says Akash Kapoor, Founder, CEO and Chief Troublemaker for Curry Up Now. “As Curry Up Now continues to grow, these campus locations especially demonstrate the flexibility of the restaurant concept. We can easily convert existing restaurant spaces and operate out of 300 square feet to 3,500 square feet. It shows how dynamic our brand is from a consumer interest and unit economics perspective.”
The UCSD location is operating within a 1,400-square-foot kitchen space with walk-up ordering and general seating available within the Price Center. The opportunity to open on campus stemmed from a special request from the student union several years ago. UCSD students identified Curry Up Now as a desirable brand and concept to include as part of on-campus dining options and the restaurant concept went through a formal nomination and voting process for consideration.
The Tressider Memorial Union is centrally located in the middle of Stanford University’s campus, within steps of Stanford Law School, Stanford Bookstore and Braun Music Center. Curry Up Now is converting an existing 300-square-foot space and making it its own. There is seating available within the student union and options to enjoy the nearby outdoor green space of Stanford’s Kennedy Grove.
Since day one, Curry Up Now has been on a mission to serve Indian flavors and ingredients in a way that is approachable for the everyday American consumer by utilizing formats that are recognizable to the mainstream. Their signature dishes include Burritos, Bowls, Tacos, Poutine they call Sexy Fries, and Naughty Naan, as well as a wide variety of Indian street food snacks and traditional dishes like Thali Platters, Kathi Rolls and family style entrees that create the perfect Indian spread for the whole family. Ingredients are clean and sourced from local vendors whenever possible, and the menu is designed to support vegetarian, vegan, gluten free, and Halal diets in an effort to accommodate all guests, no matter their dietary preferences.
Working with industry-leading franchise development company Fransmart, Curry Up Now is seeking experienced, multi-unit foodservice operators to develop additional franchise locations in major markets across the country. Now through September 30, Curry Up Now is offering a limited-time franchise development incentive that allows experienced, multi-unit operators to sign a deal for a minimum of three Curry Up Now franchise restaurants rather than the typical five-unit commitment. In addition, the craft cocktail bar Mortar & Pestle is housed within select Curry Up Now restaurants and is available as a sister brand for franchisees to establish based on local market dynamics.
In the last 18 months alone, Curry Up Now opened seven new locations and signed multiple, multi-unit franchise deals to expand in the Dallas, Austin and Fort Worth, Texas, areas. Curry Up Now plans to open seven additional new locations in 2021 with lease signings confirmed in California, Georgia, Indiana and Texas, and more than 50 restaurants in varying stages of development.
Stanford University’s Tresidder Memorial Union is located at 459 Lagunita Drive in Stanford, California, and is slated to open when students return after Labor Day. Planned to open in November, the UCSD Price Center is located at 9500 Gillman Dr. in San Diego, California.