Duo realizes a dream
Paul Sohi and Sam Semwal get ready to open Taste of India on Kent Street in Charlottetown
They met by accident and discovered they shared the same dream in life – to own their own restaurant.
Paul Sohi and Sam Semwal, both immigrants from India, are about to realize that dream in downtown Charlottetown.
They are preparing to open Taste of India on Kent Street in the same location once occupied by St. James Gate.
They came to Canada, settling in British Columbia five years ago. That’s where the seeds of this partnership would be planted.
“I was working at a restaurant and so was he, and we just met accidentally,’’ Sohi said.
Sohi eventually managed the restaurant while Semwal wore the chef’s hat.
“I’ve wanted to open a restaurant since I was 15, I’m very passionate about that. He wanted to open a restaurant, too, but we didn’t know about each other’s intentions,’’ Sohi said.
It all clicked one day as the two men were talking.
Then, Sohi started thinking about how much he’d like to see the Maritimes. So, he travelled east with his dream in mind.
Sohi and Semwal have only been in P.E.I. the past two months, although it should be noted Sohi’s initial visit was more than two months ago. Sohi came across the vacant St. James Gate property online and contacted the owner.
“I really liked the layout of the place and stayed here for a week and I fell in love with the city. I went back (to B.C.) and told him we’ve got to move to P.E.I. because I just love the city and the people.’’
The plan is to open Taste of India by the end of this month.
“What people can expect from us is real, authentic India food. We won’t be fooling around with food. My business partner, Sam, has been in this business for over 17 years and in those 17 years he has been working only in Indian kitchens so he has full knowledge.’’
Sohi says his five years of experience will come in handy when it comes to running things at Taste of India.
Knowing people’s tastes can be fickle, Sohi is confident an Indian restaurant can succeed in the downtown core.
“Everyone I’ve spoken to, they get excited when I tell them we are going to open an Indian restaurant.’’
And the one rumour he wants to dispel is that all Indian food is spicy.
“At our restaurant we will give people the choice of a spice level. It will go from mild, medium (and) hot so people who don’t like spicy food, they can order mild food.’’