New Indian Restaurant Opens In Moncton
MONCTON – India King, a new restaurant and bar that serves South and Northern Indian cuisine, has opened on 369 St. George St.
The restaurant was formerly a Jean’s diner that later became Kinja Sushi. Now it’s been renovated to host the new business of Rupali and Sandeep Saini, newcomers from India.
“Our menu has North Indian food, a choice of South Indian food, and a choice of Mumbai street food. . . I think it’s a rare combination that a restaurant can offer,” says Rupali, who helps her husband run the restaurant.
The menu includes items like Mumbai Pav Bhaaji, Cream Chicken, Idli with Sambar, Butter Chicken Dosa, Dahi Puri, vegetarian dishes and many more. Rupali, who is from the state of Maharashtra, where Mumbai is the capital, helps Sandeep cook food that’s from her state, while he specializes in food from Punjab, his home state, and some south Indian dishes.
Sandeep had a successful career in the food industry in India for the last 23 years, including owning his own catering business, while Rupali was a school principal for over a decade. They decided to move to Canada approximately two years ago to be closer to their son, who decided to stay in Ontario after finishing his studies.
“We didn’t feel like staying there anymore without our son. So we came here,” Rupali said.
After living in Ontario for about a year, during which Sandeep worked at Indian restaurants to get some understanding of how to run a business in Canada, they moved to Moncton. The Sainis decided to open a restaurant because food is Sandeep’s passion.
“I’m married to him for almost 24 years and I’ve seen his passion for food. He can cook all the time, he can talk about food all the time. So I thought he must go pursue his passion and I should be helping,” Rupali said.
If the restaurant does well, they hope to open a second branch, and bring their son to Moncton.
While Covid-19 restrictions mean the restaurant can only use half of its 80-seat space, the Sainis feel it’s the right time to open.
“Even with Covid, I think food is something everybody has to have to be alive. . . and you have to look at the positives of life…I think [the pandemic] will be over very soon except we have to take extra precautions for it. And even during [lockdown], everybody was ordering food through take-out and delivery, so we thought this was the right time,” Rupali said.
India King is open every day for lunch and dinner service.