Maurya Indian Twist: Meet Owner Sandhya
Meet Sandhya Nair, owner of Maurya Indian Twist, previously known as Maurya East Indian Roti. Maurya Indian Twist is a family-owned restaurant. Sandhya’s aunt opened the business 15 years ago in Toronto. They now have three locations downtown, one in Oakville and are now excited to announce a new location opening in Hamilton this year! The Bronte BIA got a chance to interview Sandhya to talk about her business and her thoughts on the future of the area.
How long have you been in Bronte?
“My aunt and I opened the Bronte location on Jan 18, 2020, on a very stormy day,” says Sandhya. She explains that she was nervous for the opening due to the weather conditions as it did not seem likely to get any customers. To Sandhya’s surprise, she says that the community welcomed their restaurant with open arms and she was overwhelmed with the opening day turnout.
What do you love about Bronte?
“I love the people, and the support from the community since day one,” says an appreciative Sandhya. She believes the only reason her business survived the pandemic was through the support of the people in the area, and that means a lot to her.
Sandhya wants to give a special mention to two people who helped her when they just opened. She thanks Bronte Councilor Sean O’Meara @omeara9638 and Kim McKinney, @bronteliving, for reaching out to sponsor Councilor O’Meara’s speaking event. “I want to say to them that I am very thankful for that opportunity and to Kim for reaching out and trusting us even though we were a new business. It gave us a lot of exposure early on and helped introduce us to the community.”
Furthermore, Sandhya wants to thank Walton Memorial United Church, @waltonmemorial, who allowed Sandhya to give away food gift certificates during a donation drive event in their early days of opening. Lastly, she wants to thank the Bronte BIA. “The BIA has been very helpful to us as well. I remember the first time Maureen [Bronte BIA Executive Director] came in and ordered food from us, showing us her support since that day and going forward.”
What can make Bronte even better in the future?
Sandhya says parking is something Bronte needs to improve. “I think more parking is needed in order for the area to be more accessible for customers and so they can enjoy the area as a whole. More parking means that businesses do not need to rely on local foot traffic, but can begin to grow cliental from people driving in from outside the area as well.”
What does Maurya Indian Twist offer?
“We offer a traditional Indian cuisine, wrapped in a West-Indian concept, hence the name ‘Indian Twist.’ Our spices and food-making techniques are not the usual way other restaurants make them, which is why I think people love our food.” The restaurant grinds their own spices in-house, giving a unique homemade flavour that people love.
Maurya is available on all delivery apps. “Pre-pandemic we were offering both take-out and dining, but now we are just take-out,” Sandhya explains. The location is expanding through the takeover of the salon next door. “We plan to serve liquor in our new bar after the pandemic is over, and are almost done renovation in the new space,” says Sandhya. She and her staff in Bronte are eagerly waiting for the pandemic to be over to invite customers back in to enjoy great food and drinks!