Curry in a Hurry, the Minneapolis restaurant built in the long shadow cast by the former Gandhi Mahal, is inviting diners in for one more meal before it closes sometime this summer.
Chef-owner Hafsa Islam shared the news on Instagram, writing in part, “We are not sure what the future holds, but we do know how grateful we are to all of you who helped us start Curry in a Hurry after we lost Gandhi Mahal in the uprising of 2020.”
It was Hafsa who shared her father’s words on Facebook in 2020 — “Let my building burn. Justice needs to be served.” — that thrust the beloved family restaurant into the national spotlight. Hafsa wrote what she overheard her father, Ruhel Islam, saying it on the phone as his restaurant, near Lake Street on 27th Avenue, was burned down amid the uprising that followed George Floyd’s murder.
Gandhi Mahal was largely beloved for its Indian and Bangladeshi dishes as well as its sustainability innovations, including a rooftop apiary and an aquaponic garden in the basement. As Ruhel Islam’s statement was repeated in news outlets around the world, the glare of the spotlight was bright as they tried to find new footing.
“When that happened, we were overwhelmed with the attention,” Hafsa said in an interview on Friday. “It didn’t give us much time to process.” She said that at the time it didn’t feel like the processing was hers to take in, but now she recognizes that the weight of the devastation and spotlight may have affected her, too.
Just months after the demise of Gandhi Mahal, Curry in a Hurry opened at 3025 Franklin Av. in Minneapolis, selling curry in a more casual setting. The goal was to create a business model that served the community in the pandemic and allowed the family to recoup losses with the hopes of rebuilding Gandhi Mahal.
“The insurance company didn’t give us enough money to replace the equipment, let alone build a new building. We had a mortgage that had to be paid,” said Hafsa. And while they did qualify for some grants, “Grants require a match. To get a million dollars, we would have to spend a million dollars.”
Hafsa has been immersed in day-to-day operations at Curry in a Hurry; the baton was officially passed from father to daughter in April 2023. The restaurant staff has been at a bare minimum lately, with just one person working the front of house while Hafsa and her partner run the kitchen.
