The Chai Cart has its root in the vibrant street-food culture of San Francisco.
Paawan writes about how it all started
Until 2009, I was a typical highly educated Indian immigrant in Silicon Valley. With a computer science degree and an MBA from one of the best schools in the world, I was employed as a Marketing Strategist at one of the largest tech companies. But, I was feeling unsatisfied and burned out at my corporate job. I wanted to be creative. I wanted to engage with people and have a direct impact in their lives. But how?
That summer, an underground street-food movement started to grow and gain popularity in San Francisco. These “carts” would pop up in different locations around the city and sell homemade delights. Many gained a huge following on Twitter and would tweet their expected location several hours in advance. Half the excitement was in finding these makeshift carts before the cops did.
There was already a thai curry cart, a soup cart, a gumbo cart and even a crème brulee cart. So why not a chai cart? I grew up in India where chai was an integral part of my everyday life, and chai carts on the streets were commonplace. When I emigrated to the U.S. in 1994 for school, finding a good cup of chai became a challenge. Some cafes sold chai lattes, but they never came close to the chai I was used to.
In 10 days I put together a bicycle trailer and loaded it with airpots filled with two flavors of my own homemade chai: cardamom and mint. I rode my Chai Cart to the park the next weekend. At first, I thought I’d do it for a weekend or two while I tried to figure out my next career move. But it became so much fun I started doing it every weekend. More and more people followed me on Twitter and Facebook. I started to get invited to cater events.
By the end of 2009, I was ready to leave behind a stable and cushy corporate life and undertake a tremendous personal and financial risk to become a food entrepreneur. The journey so far has been challenging and also very fulfilling.
I really enjoy the art of bringing together different herbs and spices and delicately balancing their flavors to create a perfect cup of chai every time. It brings me great pleasure to share a part of my culture and give you all a taste of the traditional chai that’s enjoyed every day across India.
