A new Indian restaurant aims to break the pattern of short-lived eateries occupying a high-traffic corner near campus.
India Bistro will move into the former location of Kinder's Custom Meats and Deli on the northwest corner of University Drive and Forest Avenue later this month.
Workers could be seen Wednesday refurnishing the restaurant. New window dressings already greet passers-by, and owner Mujuburrahan Musafargani said he plans to open within 10 days.
Musafargani said he learned the location, unoccupied since spring, was available a month ago. He picked this spot because of its proximity to ASU's Tempe campus.
Students in the area Wednesday afternoon were noticeably excited about the new restaurant.
Industrial design sophomore Chris Koyama said he has missed Indian food restaurants since moving to Arizona.
"I used to live in San Francisco, and they had a lot of Oriental food there," he said, "I don't see much of that here."
He said India Bistro would "add variety to this area."
When journalism and mass communication junior Daniel Leach heard about the new restaurant, he immediately said, "I'm a curry man," referring to a spice commonly used in India.
Leach said he usually buys Indian food at the grocery store.
Initially, Musafargani said the restaurant would offer buffet-style dining for both lunch and dinner, featuring rice, lamb, tandoori chicken and other items.
Musafargani said the buffet would cost $6.99.
After about a month Musafargani said he plans to introduce a dinner menu, but it's still under development.
Tempe has three restaurants serving Indian cuisine -- Priya Indian Cuisine, Copper Kettle and Delhi Palace -- near campus, all east of Rural Road.
But Musafargani said competition doesn't concern him.
"I'm not going to worry about [other Indian restaurants] because I have a good chef [on] hand," he said.
Musafargani is also confident his restaurant will outlast the building's previous two tenants, both of which stayed open for only a few years.
Kinder's was plagued by health code violations in June 2004. But it ultimately closed last semester after an unsuccessful change in management, Rod Keeling, the executive director of the Downtown Tempe Community, told The State Press in April.
Jitters Gourmet Coffee closed in April 2002 after occupying the location for about three years.
India Bistro is "going to be here for a long time," Musafargani said.
Reach the reporter at brian.indrelunas@asu.edu.
