A new Indian restaurant will soon be joining the existing Mexican and Brazilian restaurants calling Hespeler Village home.
Currynama is hoping to open its doors for its breakfast menu on Wednesday, with the lunch and dinner menu coming soon after.
While Indian food is nothing new to Cambridge, Nishant Raj noticed something missing about the cuisine options in the city.
"India has multiple states and each one has its delicacies," Raj said.
"The food available here is amazing but the emphasis I've seen has been on south Indian restaurants and restaurants with a northeast taste. We didn't see anything that was northern Indian."
Raj, along with his wife Joycee Nakra and friend Ajay Barot, are all from different north and west regions in India and have partnered in the restaurant that's taking over the space Sticky Rice once operated on Queen Street.
When it comes to the food selection, it's all about the spices, Raj said.
But the term spice doesn't necessarily mean hot as the the restaurant will feature various kinds of curry's, including ones with tomato, onion, cashew and spinach bases.
"Some of these spices we're getting back from Indian, so they're really authentic," Raj said.
"We bring it in, grind it and prep it. We wanted to introduce this region of India that is a north and west blend."
Having seen the influx of international students in the city, he's trying to keep the prices affordable, provide comforting food they're used to, all while introducing something new to the community.
Raj and Nakra's background in cooking has been passed down from generation to generation.
Nakra has been in Canada for eight years and still hasn't found the taste of home, so she decided to help create it herself.
"I've tried so many restaurants so far and every time I try them I feel like I'm missing the food I had growing up," Nakra said.
"I'm from Delhi and I haven't found that food here. I'm also passionate about cooking and I've learned from my mom."
For the Hespeler Business Improvement Area, having another international option for dining was a welcomed addition with Thai restaurant Choun Kitchen and Cyprianni’s Pizza already having roots in the area.
Cory de Villiers, chair of the Hespeler BIA, calls Hespeler's selection one of the most diverse in the region.
"The BIA has been discussing the international dining scene with Explore Waterloo and we're hoping they will promote us as a road trip destination that will appeal not only to residents but also people from Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph and beyond," de Villiers said
"Restaurants, bars and cafes are extremely effective as clusters. When an area achieves critical mass, the individual restaurants benefit from being part of a greater whole."
Raj said many residents are likely familiar with dishes like butter chicken and samosas but that's only a fraction of what they'll be offering.
He hopes customers will stop in and give something new a try.
"They should explore," Raj said of what he hopes the community takes from dining at their restaurant.
"The kind of spices we're using are different."
