New Indian restaurant to occupy old Tahoe Ridge space at Carson Mall

The aromas of Indian cuisine will soon be wafting from the restaurant space at 1105 South Carson Street once Flavors of India opens for business in early December.

Owner Manpreet Kaur said Flavors of India will be her first large-scale restaurant venture, something she has always wanted to do.

"I've always wanted to have my own restaurant," she said. "An Indian restaurant has been my focus, because I grew up cooking with my grandma and my dad. Those fond memories are where my passion and love for cooking come from."

Manpreet and her mother, Dolly Kaur, are gradually making the transition to Northern Nevada from San Jose, CA, where she experimented with her first restaurant concept.

But Kaur said she had decided a small town was best for her, so she began looking for a place to make her dream come true.

Her search stopped in Carson City on just the first trip, Dolly Kaur said.

"The very first time we drove here, she said this was it," Dolly said. "This was where she wanted to settle."

Manpreet said Carson City's historic charm caught her attention first. Then everything else fell into place.

"I absolutely love this place," Kaur said. "I've always wanted to live in a town where everyone pretty much knows everybody. It's such a preserved and historic town. Here I feel like I'm in a different time."

The first time Kaur saw the old Tahoe Ridge Winery and Bistro space at 1105 South Carson Street, she knew that's where she wanted her restaurant to open.

"As soon as she walked into this building, she was literally on the floor saying I want this place," Dolly Kaur said. "This girl is so adamant about being in this city."

After being vacant for more than a year, the 10,000 square-foot building on the northwest corner of the Carson Mall property will feature fine dining, a lunch buffet, full bar and eventually banquet facilities for large gatherings, the Kaurs said.

The sun-lit atrium on the building's west side will feature an informal lunch buffet from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. apart from the sit-down dining in the main restaurant.

The space will also be reserved for special occasions and more intimate dining in the evenings, the Kaurs said.

Between the main dining area, the atrium and the bar, Flavors of India will feature seating for about 80 to 100 patrons.

But despite the restaurant's size, Manpreet Kaur said her focus is on creating a dining experience where people feel comfortable and at home.

"What I want to bring out is the feeling that you are having lunch at a friend's house rather than at a restaurant," she said. "I want people to come in and feel at home."

Kaur said she wants her customers to feel the zeal and positive energy of people who love what they do once they walk through the doors of the restaurant.

"I've been to many Indian restaurants, and they lack that passion and love that goes into cooking," she said.

The Kaur family's culinary experience stretches more than a quarter century, Dolly Kaur said.

Menu items will include traditional and family recipes as well as Indian dishes with a few unique twists, Manpreet said.

Indian cuisine, she said, is naturally flavorful, bursting with spices and featuring a lot of tumeric, ginger, garlic and onions that form the bases of many sauces and gravies.

But spicy doesn't necessarily mean hot in the context of Indian food, Kaur said.

"It just means there's more flavor," she said. "Each dish is custom-made. If you are custom ordering, we have mild, medium and spicy heat."

Kaur said she expects Flavors of India to fill a unique niche in the Nevada state capital, where Indian cuisine is hard to come by.

"I know that we don't have Indian cuisine here," she said. "I know that people do travel quite a ways just to get Indian food. I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to open here."

The Kaurs said they are excited about being woven into the fabric of Carson City's close-knit community.

"The people here are great," Dolly said. "That's what I love about this city. People are so helpful. We want to make friends, and give back to a community."

Flavors of Indian will hold a grand opening celebration and ribbon cutting party on Dec. 2 from noon to 5 p.m. Regular sit-down dining opens Dec. 3.