BY SONAM MIRPURI
SAN FRANCISCO, CA- In the summer of 2009 after reading about Roi Choi’s Kogi BBQ trucks, Akash Kapoor, his wife, and a few friends were talking amongst themselves one evening and it sparked a brilliant idea. “By the end of the evening, we came up with a name and 4 menu items that are still on the menu.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA- In the summer of 2009 after reading about Roi Choi’s Kogi BBQ trucks, Akash Kapoor, his wife, and a few friends were talking amongst themselves one evening and it sparked a brilliant idea. “By the end of the evening, we came up with a name and 4 menu items that are still on the menu.
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We made the food the same night we thought of the idea and everything just felt right,” said Kapoor.
The incredible idea started small and gradually thrived. The consensus was that the name had to have a way of attracting the customer.
“It came from the idea that we were launching the concept as a food truck. Started as HurryUp, became CurryUp and then that didn’t feel right and we added a call to action word, `Now’ and it flowed beautifully,” said Kapoor.
Endeavoring into a field in which Kapoor and his wife had no previous experience, the two wanted to have some aspect of familiarity with what they were about to do.
“There’s a comfort factor with Indian food which is why we do Indian. However, we didn’t want to do it the way it’s always been done. We wanted to be sexy, naughty & risqué,” said Kapoor.
So the duo took their love of food and began an adventure of a lifetime. The truck was purchased a little while after and was originally launched as a weekend only food truck in Burlingame in September of 2009.
“With no culinary training, experience, or experienced staff to help, Rana, Amir, Marisol (our #1 employee who is still with us) and I set out selling food, and the day we opened we had a few hundred people in line and crazy long wait times,” said Kapoor.
Curry Up Now, the food truck, garnered an overwhelmingly loving response. In the beginning, the experience was all about learning from mistakes. Trial and error resulting in either failure which meant modifications or direct success.
“We couldn’t keep up being that we weren’t trained chefs or food managers. Everything we’ve learned is by making mistakes and screwing up multiple times, but those early days made our food what it is today,” said Kapoor.
Since its inception and throughout the years, Curry Up Now has had many expansions. It has gradually grown into more and bigger opportunities with additional food trucks and physical locations.
“In 2010 we brought in two more trucks, and then we opened our first restaurant in April 2011 in San Mateo, followed by another truck later that year. In November 2012, we opened our second restaurant in Palo Alto, followed by our San Francisco restaurant in March 2013. In 2013, we brought in our 5th truck,” said Kapoor.
The Chicken Tikka Masala Burrito (also known as the CTM Burrito) is Curry Up Now’s best-seller. It consists of rice layered on top of a tortilla with chana masala and chicken or paneer tikka masala, then it is mixed for consistency in every bite.
Kapoor’s personal favorite item on the menu is the Hella’ Vegan. A samosa inside a tortilla and made like Samosa Chaat.
Some of the other popular dishes are the Sexy Fries, our Indian-inspired poutine with criss-cut sweet potato fries, cheese, and paneer or chicken tikka masala; and The Naughty Naan, an open-faced sando (sandwich) of sorts with caramelized onions, jalapeños, cheese, and paneer or chicken tikka masala.
“Our food is, and will always be, authentic at its core. Half of our menu is traditional in all formats except for how we plate and present. The rest of the menu is naughty and sexy and risqué,” said Kapoor.
Subsequent to the success of Curry Up Now food trucks and physical restaurant locations, came the concept of craft cocktails. Therefore, parts of already established restaurant locations were transformed to turn that idea into reality as well.
“We then converted our trash room in our San Mateo restaurant into our craft cocktail concept, Mortar & Pestle, in January 2014, followed by our San Jose restaurant in September 2015,” said Kapoor.
Bangalore Old Fashioned is one of their best-selling cocktails. Other customer favorites include the Junkyard Heart, similar to a Moscow Mule; and the Green Isaac’s Special.
“Our cocktails are very old school, made from scratch, and made with love and care. I would call our cocktails worldly. We take spices and ingredients from all over the world. This is the most fun part of our business. Our eclectic signature cocktails are brilliantly crafted, while still preserving the art of classic cocktails as well,” said Kapoor.
Curry Up Now has been able to successfully and continuously thrive with additional locations.
The incredible idea started small and gradually thrived. The consensus was that the name had to have a way of attracting the customer.
“It came from the idea that we were launching the concept as a food truck. Started as HurryUp, became CurryUp and then that didn’t feel right and we added a call to action word, `Now’ and it flowed beautifully,” said Kapoor.
Endeavoring into a field in which Kapoor and his wife had no previous experience, the two wanted to have some aspect of familiarity with what they were about to do.
“There’s a comfort factor with Indian food which is why we do Indian. However, we didn’t want to do it the way it’s always been done. We wanted to be sexy, naughty & risqué,” said Kapoor.
So the duo took their love of food and began an adventure of a lifetime. The truck was purchased a little while after and was originally launched as a weekend only food truck in Burlingame in September of 2009.
“With no culinary training, experience, or experienced staff to help, Rana, Amir, Marisol (our #1 employee who is still with us) and I set out selling food, and the day we opened we had a few hundred people in line and crazy long wait times,” said Kapoor.
Curry Up Now, the food truck, garnered an overwhelmingly loving response. In the beginning, the experience was all about learning from mistakes. Trial and error resulting in either failure which meant modifications or direct success.
“We couldn’t keep up being that we weren’t trained chefs or food managers. Everything we’ve learned is by making mistakes and screwing up multiple times, but those early days made our food what it is today,” said Kapoor.
Since its inception and throughout the years, Curry Up Now has had many expansions. It has gradually grown into more and bigger opportunities with additional food trucks and physical locations.
“In 2010 we brought in two more trucks, and then we opened our first restaurant in April 2011 in San Mateo, followed by another truck later that year. In November 2012, we opened our second restaurant in Palo Alto, followed by our San Francisco restaurant in March 2013. In 2013, we brought in our 5th truck,” said Kapoor.
The Chicken Tikka Masala Burrito (also known as the CTM Burrito) is Curry Up Now’s best-seller. It consists of rice layered on top of a tortilla with chana masala and chicken or paneer tikka masala, then it is mixed for consistency in every bite.
Kapoor’s personal favorite item on the menu is the Hella’ Vegan. A samosa inside a tortilla and made like Samosa Chaat.
Some of the other popular dishes are the Sexy Fries, our Indian-inspired poutine with criss-cut sweet potato fries, cheese, and paneer or chicken tikka masala; and The Naughty Naan, an open-faced sando (sandwich) of sorts with caramelized onions, jalapeños, cheese, and paneer or chicken tikka masala.
“Our food is, and will always be, authentic at its core. Half of our menu is traditional in all formats except for how we plate and present. The rest of the menu is naughty and sexy and risqué,” said Kapoor.
Subsequent to the success of Curry Up Now food trucks and physical restaurant locations, came the concept of craft cocktails. Therefore, parts of already established restaurant locations were transformed to turn that idea into reality as well.
“We then converted our trash room in our San Mateo restaurant into our craft cocktail concept, Mortar & Pestle, in January 2014, followed by our San Jose restaurant in September 2015,” said Kapoor.
Bangalore Old Fashioned is one of their best-selling cocktails. Other customer favorites include the Junkyard Heart, similar to a Moscow Mule; and the Green Isaac’s Special.
“Our cocktails are very old school, made from scratch, and made with love and care. I would call our cocktails worldly. We take spices and ingredients from all over the world. This is the most fun part of our business. Our eclectic signature cocktails are brilliantly crafted, while still preserving the art of classic cocktails as well,” said Kapoor.
Curry Up Now has been able to successfully and continuously thrive with additional locations.
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