New Indian restaurant debuts in Champaign
Feb. 12, 2009 - by Chelsea Besalke – buzz Writer
Owner of Zyggyz, Jay Patel, and chef, Barveen Bui, prepare an order for a customer. Photo by Abby Toms
Zyggy’z, a local Indian restaurant, launched its grand opening in CU during Super Bowl Sunday on Feb 1 at 410 E Green St. Even though the restaurant has been open for barely a week, owner Jay Patel said he is already looking to expand his business to other campus towns within the Big Ten and eventually aspires to establish Zyggy’z as a national chain.
“My vision is to make Zyggy’z a large national fast food or casual food chain,” Patel said. “ Our location in CU is a test as a pilot for this program. However, I don’t want to take away the quality in food and service that we are able to provide as a local restaurant. I think the combination of good food and service aren’t available on a national scale and is something that’s lacking today.” Patel said Zyggy’z attempts to fill the void of tasteful and reasonably priced Indian food in CU. However, Patel had college students in mind as he opened his restaurant, he said. “My heritage is Indian, so I grew up in a home with a lot of Indian food,” Patel said. “The irony is when I was younger, I tried to get away from Indian food. When you’re older and out on your own though, you crave what you used to have; you miss mom’s home cooking. I recognize a lot of college students away from home miss that, so we give them food with a lot of care in preparation. We’ll cater to people’s personal preferences of spice levels.”
Patel opened the initial location of Zyggy’z in CU because the city was ideal for him, Patel said. “I chose CU as the launching location for a number of reasons,” Patel said. “I’m from Chicago so it was close to home. Also, I knew people here to help me get the word out. Additionally, the University is demographically ideal as a large and diverse state school. I want to use this location as a cookie cutter concept for the other Big Ten locations, eventually hoping to have locations all across the Midwest and then the United States. I want to leave a much larger footprint in the food service.” Patel’s first step in expansion would be adding locations to Purdue, Indiana and Michigan’s campuses. Patel said he also plans to add a location in his hometown of Chicago but will steer away from the financial district to ensure that the flexible hours of Zyggy’z would remain a benefactor to his customers. He plans to open the Chicago location in metropolitan Chicago near DePaul.
Patel said that he has approached backers and their concern is the survival of the business in a downward economic spiral. However, with the economic climate as it is in the United States right now, Patel is actually encouraged to expand on his endeavor right now, he said. “Believe it or not, the economic climate is actually helping us right now,” Patel said. “The trend in the fast food industry is for it to do extremely well when the economy is down. People are not spending on big budget meals … they want to feed their families for less. Four people can come into Zyggy’z and easily eat for under 30 dollars and leave satisfied. My only concern is the capital that it takes to launch it.” Zyggy’z has experienced a considerable amount of success in its pilot location so far not necessarily based on numbers but on customer satisfaction, Patel said.
“It’s only been a week and people can walk in and we’ll recognize them,” Patel said. “It’s encouraging; they’ll feel like they are a part of the restaurant and refer their friends. I want to make this location a cookie cutter concept and prove to my partners and to other franchises that this is the way to go about running a food service. I want to have the quality and service of a ma and pa type shop at the national level.”
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Elle Destree says:
Venue info is above!
says:
I was in Champaign for less than 72 hours and ate there at least 5 times! The atmosphere was cozy and casual and the staff is very warm and friendly- i wasn't the only one who ate there multiple times, there were many customers who had been there at the same times I had been on my previous visits! The food is fresh, tastes flavorful, it's cheap, and fills you up- what more can you ask for?
Iggy says:
Zyggyz is great-I love the Zyggy rolls and the spicy fries are to die for. The tropical atmosphere is delightful and both times I was there, everybody seemed to be having a great time. Nice to have something different in CU instead of more of the sam old, same old. I recommend Zyggyz-Give it a try. You won't be disappointed.
says:
I went a few times now and imho ... The Zyggy Rolls are okay, not as good as ones i've had before, but not bad, and the fries, I have tasted better- these had too much paprika and cumin and something is missing in the seasoning. I tried the falafel and the sauces did something weird to my stomach, so falafel no sauces would be a much better option if you ask me. Lastly, I tried the veg sloppy joe and I thought it was pretty good, but it had a weird after taste, and finally, the hummus, that was terrible- I just had it and it was awful to tell you the truth. I think if they work on the Mediterranean food and actually tasted authentic Mediterranean before slapping it together, it would taste much better. Don't get me wrong, my friends and I eat there because it's cheap and open late but I think the food needs more work and is getting a lot of rave because the place is new.
says:
I read some of the reviews and tried it out...the atmosphere is super chill- totally laid back, like you're hanging out at a friend's place. Food's good, people are friendly, it's open all crazy hours so when you're craving good food and a family like setting, stop by because the owner is the sweetest and most charming guy ever! I like going in there because he's so accommodating- he even stayed open later than he had to just to feed me. I give this place 3 thumbs up!
Elle Destree says:
I just had the paneer Zyggy roll and I loved it! Definitely some of the best vegetarian food I've had in CU in a while. The masala fries are pretty good too. They would be great with some kind of dipping sauce.
says:
Late last Thursday night, February 12th, was when it all went down. Me and my boyz were walking by this place and saw this hottie sitting at a corner table so we went in. We ordered Zyggy rolls and were chillin waitin to talk to the cutie in the corner. Since we weren't ready to go talk to her, we ordered more food and sat there plotting how to approach her. That night we ate Zyggy Rolls, Plain Fries, and Masala Fries. The rolls were good and so were the Plain Fries- we didn't really like the Masala in the Fries. Friday night, we went back to see if the hottie was there and since she was, we ended up ordering Veggie Sloppy Joes, and Combo Plates which were off the wall. We thought we'd offered dessert and it was rockin. Me and the boyz have gone back a few times but there was no hottie and the food wasn't that great either. The falafel had whole peppers in them which we didn't know wer ein there and my boy was allergic to them and he got sick. It also had some Indian tasting dressings so it didn't taste like real falafel but if you like falafel with an Indian twist, it's aight. We ended up eatin some hummus too and chillin hoping our hottie would come in but no luck and no good hummus. I think the owner had the hottie hang out at the corner table to lure us in on Thursday and Friday but don't know where she's been and the food hasn't been the same ever since. All in all, the food's tyte!!!!
says:
I never used to go and eat anywhere by myself. This is the one restaurant that the owner takes your order, makes your food and serves it to you but he doesn't stop at that, he actually takes time to get to know each customer. It's like having an extended family at school. I don't mind going there by myself and grabbing a bit...its quick, its super cheap, and the food isn't bad for the price- and it fills you up. I recommend going and hanging out with J- he's the owner and me and my girlfriend's love hearing him talk to us as he cooks for us....ask for him and you'll be sure to have a great time.
says:
Um. Where is this place? Like, you know, basics and shit...