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Restaurant Development in NW Arkansas


mcheiss

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Good news: India Corner, an Indian restaurant, opened on Friday at 208 S. 8th Street in Rogers (on 71 B across from Acambaro).

The bad news: It is, at this point at least, a bare bones operation in a horrible location. My husband decided to try some take-out from there tonight, and was less than impressed. It is buffet only, and there were five items on the buffet, plus naan (bread). The tandoori chicken was so-so, the samosa was not good, but the chicken tikka masala and naan were a passable. We are hoping that this is just the start-up offering, and that more items will be added to the menu/buffet. Not sure that the location obstacle can be overcome, though.

My husband and I went to India Corner yesterday. They had six items plus naan on the buffet. I was disappointed. The food was okay, but the selection was pretty sad-- no dal (!), curry, or matar paneer. They had some veggies and rice, tandoori chicken (really dry), samosas (not very good), some kind of goat in a sauce, saag paneer (good flavor, but no cheese. maybe it melted?), and an apple and onion dessert-type thing. For $8.50 a person, it seemed a little pricy for what you get. Maybe they'll expand the buffet a bit in time.

There were rumors that Habibi, the new hookah lounge on Dickson, was going to serve Indian food during the day, but I've since heard that it's not going to be Indian, but some other ethnic food. Anyone know?

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My husband and I went to India Corner yesterday. They had six items plus naan on the buffet. I was disappointed. The food was okay, but the selection was pretty sad-- no dal (!), curry, or matar paneer. They had some veggies and rice, tandoori chicken (really dry), samosas (not very good), some kind of goat in a sauce, saag paneer (good flavor, but no cheese. maybe it melted?), and an apple and onion dessert-type thing. For $8.50 a person, it seemed a little pricy for what you get. Maybe they'll expand the buffet a bit in time.

There were rumors that Habibi, the new hookah lounge on Dickson, was going to serve Indian food during the day, but I've since heard that it's not going to be Indian, but some other ethnic food. Anyone know?

Maybe things have changed, but from what I heard Habibi was going to be doing some East Asia and Middle Eastern cuisine. Not a fusion, but having some of both. I got the impression it would just serve food during the day and have the hookah at night. I would think there will be food available at night as well. I don't know if they might serve different cuisine during the two times or how they'll do it. Someone else mentioned it having Indian food a little while back. So maybe they've changed plans since I first heard about the restaurant.

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My husband and I went to India Corner yesterday. They had six items plus naan on the buffet. I was disappointed. The food was okay, but the selection was pretty sad-- no dal (!), curry, or matar paneer. They had some veggies and rice, tandoori chicken (really dry), samosas (not very good), some kind of goat in a sauce, saag paneer (good flavor, but no cheese. maybe it melted?), and an apple and onion dessert-type thing. For $8.50 a person, it seemed a little pricy for what you get. Maybe they'll expand the buffet a bit in time.

There were rumors that Habibi, the new hookah lounge on Dickson, was going to serve Indian food during the day, but I've since heard that it's not going to be Indian, but some other ethnic food. Anyone know?

Thanks for the thorough review. The sad thing is that when this place doesn't make it, the conclusion of many will be that we don't want an Indian restaurant here. That is not the case--we just want a decent one!

M

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Guess NWA hasn't been very good for Fuddruckers.

I always thought the Rogers Fuddruckers was in too upscale of an area. It stuck out like a sore thumb. Hard for me to picture a couple bankers getting ready for lunch and saying, "Hey, let's hit up Fuddruckers. I feel like building my own burger!"

kind of funny, I was flipping through some old issues recently and came across one from 2004 where the Fayetteville Fuddruckers and both the Razorback 12 and Rogers Town Center theaters were announced. Obviously the Fayetteville Fuddruckers was counting on the mall theater being built just a wee bit sooner considering they built one of the largest Fuddruckers in the country on Mall Ave. Then Rogers gets two, 12-screen theaters built before Fayetteville gets one and the Fuddruckers goes out of business, possibly sucking the Rogers one down with it.

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Fuddruckers in Rogers is now also closed. Not a big surprise. Bonefish and Carraba's always had far more business.

The dining concept they used is "Fast Casual." That's where you walk up to a counter and order your food like a fast food restaurant but are supposed to get a better than fast food meal. It has not done well for Burger joints anywhere according to a friend of mine (Kirby Walker) who used to own Bizzy's (it was set up like that at one time) and who still owns Noodles. He belongs to a restaurant owner's group and this has been discussed there. The concept obviously can work for Mexican--witness Flying Burrito's success...

M

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The dining concept they used is "Fast Casual." That's where you walk up to a counter and order your food like a fast food restaurant but are supposed to get a better than fast food meal. It has not done well for Burger joints anywhere according to a friend of mine (Kirby Walker) who used to own Bizzy's (it was set up like that at one time) and who still owns Noodles. He belongs to a restaurant owner's group and this has been discussed there. The concept obviously can work for Mexican--witness Flying Burrito's success...

M

Yeah I've noticed there's lots of examples like Flying Burrito around the country. Luckily we have a local version of it.

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The dining concept they used is "Fast Casual." That's where you walk up to a counter and order your food like a fast food restaurant but are supposed to get a better than fast food meal. It has not done well for Burger joints anywhere according to a friend of mine (Kirby Walker) who used to own Bizzy's (it was set up like that at one time) and who still owns Noodles. He belongs to a restaurant owner's group and this has been discussed there. The concept obviously can work for Mexican--witness Flying Burrito's success...

M

It works better for Mexican primarily because of the reduced overhead when calculating product freshness into the equation. Most of the individual things at FB can sit around for quite some time and still be perfectly tasty, a burger really needs a cooked to order burger and that is 90% of the cost. Plus there is a HUGE drop from places like FB to Taco Bell and not that big of one from Fuddruckers to Hardees or the like (McD's is in an even lower category...).

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Boston Mountain Grill on College Ave in Fayetteville closed a couple of weeks ago. Anyone else bummed about this? Their burgers were pretty good, plus just about everyone in my office used to partake of their "Two for Tuesday" specials.

Thanks for the update. I can't say I ever tried them out. I wasn't sure what they're status was. It just seemed to me every time I drove by there was no one there.

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There are a few fast food restaurants going up on 412 near Harber. There is an Arby's and a McDonalds but I'm not sure of what is going up next to the Arby's. Anyone know? I'm guessing these places are hoping for some baseball game crowds plus that side of town needs more restaurants anyways.

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There are a few fast food restaurants going up on 412 near Harber. There is an Arby's and a McDonalds but I'm not sure of what is going up next to the Arby's. Anyone know? I'm guessing these places are hoping for some baseball game crowds plus that side of town needs more restaurants anyways.

I checked the records on the Wash. Co. website -- looks like First Western Bank owns the lot just to the east of the lot that Arby's (a.k.a. United States Beef Corp.) bought on hwy 412. But that could be a repo maybe....

I also heard that a Walgreens may be going up on the SE corner of Hwy. 412 and Hwy 112. Just a rumor, tho.

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Boston Mountain Grill on College Ave in Fayetteville closed a couple of weeks ago. Anyone else bummed about this? Their burgers were pretty good, plus just about everyone in my office used to partake of their "Two for Tuesday" specials.

I liked them. Good chicken fried steaks and they frequently had buy one/get one entree free offers.

I guess too frequently...

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There are a few fast food restaurants going up on 412 near Harber. There is an Arby's and a McDonalds but I'm not sure of what is going up next to the Arby's. Anyone know? I'm guessing these places are hoping for some baseball game crowds plus that side of town needs more restaurants anyways.

I knew about the Arbys, and I've heard that the other one was possibly a Taco Bueno (although I am really hoping for a Starbucks - we really need a coffee shop around here (and not another Mexican restaurant) and Bell Corley has all the Starbucks builds in this area, so...). We shall see. On a similar note, what's with places all over NWA building and NOT putting up a "coming soon..." sign? This is the only place I've ever lived where businesses don't advertise well before they open. Any thoughts?

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On a similar note, what's with places all over NWA building and NOT putting up a "coming soon..." sign? This is the only place I've ever lived where businesses don't advertise well before they open. Any thoughts?

I'm not sure what's going on with that either.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Arkansas Business Reporting Restaurant Updates :

Johnny Brusco's going in at the Old Moe's Location in Bentonville http://www.johnnybruscos.com/

More than 13 new restaurant projects are in the pipeline or under way in the two-county area.

http://www.arkansasbusiness.com/article.aspx?aID=104107

I wonder where Flying Burrito is opening their next location. The article didn't really specify.

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I read it as if it was going to be in Har-Ber Meadows...

They will be going in Har-Ber, near the Harps and Buffalo WW. You are correct.

I knew about the Arbys, and I've heard that the other one was possibly a Taco Bueno (although I am really hoping for a Starbucks - we really need a coffee shop around here (and not another Mexican restaurant) and Bell Corley has all the Starbucks builds in this area, so...). We shall see. On a similar note, what's with places all over NWA building and NOT putting up a "coming soon..." sign? This is the only place I've ever lived where businesses don't advertise well before they open. Any thoughts?

Starbucks will not be opening any new Northwest Arkansas stores for a while. They are slowing their growth in smaller markets to a screeching halt.

US Beef is the franchior for Arby's and Taco Bueno. You will be getting more Mexican food at Har-Ber...

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