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A five-time semifinalist for "Best Chef: Southeast,” Meherwan Irani was elated when his eatery Chai Pani, located in Asheville, North Carolina was declared "Outstanding Restaurant” at the James Beard Restaurant and Chef Awards ceremony in Chicago on June 13, 2022. Chai Pani won over four other semifinalists – Brennan’s in New Orleans, Butcher & Bee in Charleston, South Carolina, Parachute in Chicago and The Walrus and the Carpenter in Seattle. The results were announced on the website of the James Beard Foundation, jamesbeard.org, "a nonprofit organization with a mission to celebrate, support and elevate the people behind America’s food culture and champion a standard of good food anchored in talent, equity and sustainability.”
The Chai Pani Restaurant Group (CPRG) founder, chef and chief executive officer Meherwan, and his wife Molly, lead a team of more than 300 members at their restaurant empire that now includes eight restaurants. Another venture, Spicewalla, sources, blends and promotes spices specially curated by Meherwan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was during the 2009 recession that the Iranis introduced Asheville, a small mountain town in western North Carolina to the colors, flavors and faces of Indian food. "Chai Pani literally means tea and water. It’s slang in India for going out for a cup of tea, a tasty bite, a snack, or a little something (often a tip or a bribe). (But) in Downtown Asheville (and now in Downtown Decatur) it means innovative, fun, affordable and delicious Indian cuisine… Some of the best food of any country is its street food and Chai Pani features chaat — crunchy, spicy, sweet, tangy, brightly flavored Indian street snacks. And because there’s nothing more comforting and delicious in any culture than a home cooked meal, Chai Pani also brings you thalis, highlighting India’s amazing culinary diversity,” notes their website chaipanirestaurantgroup.org.
In the last 13 years, CPRG has grown to include Botiwalla Atlanta, Botiwalla Charlotte, Buxton Hall Barbecue and Buxton Chicken Palace in Asheville, Nani’s Rotisserie Chicken in Asheville and Nani’s Piri Piri Chicken in Atlanta. Botiwalla is considered Meherwan’s "homage to his lifelong love of kababs and Irani cafes. In Ahmednagar, his hometown, Meherwan’s grandfather owned Sarosh Canteen, the only Irani café in the area. Buxton Hall Barbecue, a joint venture between Meherwan and Elliott Moss, is famous for its fried chicken sandwich which was declared the best fried chcken sandwich in the country by bon appétit magazine… Nani’s (maternal grandmother in Hindi) was conceived when the pandemic began and Meherwan saw a need for comforting, take-home food. The restaurant is dedicated to Meherwan and Molly’s daughter Aria’s maternal grandmother.
CPRG has earned considerable media attention featuring in The New York Times list of "America’s Favorite Restaurants,” bon appétit’s "Best New Restaurants,” Thrillists’s "Best Indian Restaurants in America,” and Eater’s "The South’s 38 Essential Restaurants.” While Parsiana’s efforts to directly connect with Meherwan were not successful, his public relations team has been very prompt in acceding to our request for information.
A self-taught chef, Meherwan came to the US at 20 years of age to study for a masters in business administration at the University of South Carolina. To earn extra cash, he was waiting tables at the restaurant, Latif’s in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, owned by Molly’s parents. Following his degree, he applied for a Lexus dealership and spent 12 years selling cars until he decided to quit his job in 2009. "Whether it was a midlife crisis or a stroke of genius is debatable!” notes an introduction to Meherwan on the CPRG website. He credits his business success to Molly and the "amazing people” he works with each day.
While Molly has always been in and around food, kitchens and restaurants, her primary responsibility now is director of hospitality for the Group where she helps build "a deep and intuitive understanding of service, hospitality and customer care to the culture of the teams… Her favorite role will always be the Chai Pani ‘mom’ – delivering hugs and chocolate when most needed!” Meherwan’s visually impaired father Dara was an audio engineer while his mother Amrit was the "original Chai Pani chef, the one who trained CPRG’s American chefs.
The internally created Chai Pani University provides formal training in leadership and management skills to their managers and employees. In 2018 they launched an initiative to annually send eight of their employees to India for cultural immersion and volunteer work. As part of Chai Pani Giving, one Wednesday each month, Chai Pani partners with a local charitable organization to raise awareness for their cause, be it hunger, poverty, socioeconomic inequalities faced by immigrants, when 10% of the day’s sales are donated to them. CPRG has also made a long-term commitment to financially support the education of two students in India in partnership with the nonprofit, Dharavi Diary.