New to the Baton Rouge food scene, Gunpowder Indian Cuisine is making a splash with its authentic food focused on quality.
Next to Drunken Fish in the Highland Village Shopping Center just off LSU’s campus, Gunpowder has attracted a steady stream of customers through its doors since soft-opening about a month ago.
As one of the few Indian restaurants in the area, owner Shahul Hameed takes pride in the fact that every item on Gunpowder’s expansive menu is handmade from scratch every day.
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“Nothing is premade. If it’s premade, I can send it out in five minutes. I don’t want that,” Hameed says. “I like (the experience of) the food.”
Gunpowder has been in the works for about eight months. Hameed came from New Jersey to scout the area for a potential restaurant after hearing that the Capital Region was a good market for food.
Originally, he set his sights on New Orleans but says he quickly decided to look elsewhere due to the lack of parking available near any of his potential locations. He says parking was a dealbreaker, as the experience for the customer was one of his top priorities.
“People want to spend their time and eat, not worrying about parking,” Hameed says.
It took a while for Hameed to land on the space Gunpowder now calls home, but ultimately, he decided on the location off Highland for the proximity to campus and the large parking lot. The location was once a Pizza Hut, but has been vacant for several years.
Gunpowder gets its name from the English nickname for milagai podi, a traditional Indian seasoning. Gunpowder makes its own seasoning by hand, but tends to tone down the spice level for Baton Rouge customers, according to Hameed.
“The real gunpowder is different. Gunpowder means we like a little higher spice, but we are not giving that here. The market is different,” he says.
When customers enter the newly finished restaurant, they’ll immediately spot a custom-made Gunpowder gold-lettered logo backed by wood paneling. Turn the corner, and the style is carried throughout the restaurant via the amber light fixtures, cozy booths, wood floors and leather chairs. With the low lighting and marble-style tabletops, the restaurant creates a warm, low-key atmosphere for customers to sit and enjoy freshly made dishes like chicken tikka and tandoori shrimp.
While most of the restaurant’s decor is set in place, Hameed has plans to improve the setting. He wants to add comic strips on the windows and throughout the interior, a design feature he says many Indian restaurants have in Jersey City.
“If you go to an Indian restaurant in Jersey City, how sad you’re coming doesn’t matter. You see those wordings and you will laugh,” Hameed says. “I want any customer that walks in and sees those posters to laugh. That’s my key.”
Along with potential changes to the restaurant’s decor, Hameed also plans to change the menu. While the current menu is extensive, Hameed says he is taking this time during the soft opening to get a feel for which dishes customers enjoy most. Hameed says he plans to scale down the menu in the coming weeks.
“I want to know what this market likes. This is a testing menu. After a month, everything will be changed,” he says.
And Hameed plans to continue evolving the menu, removing items and adding new dishes, over time.
“I want customers to keep coming (back), not stuck with one item, “ he says.
Hameed is also still working out some kinks, one of which is the wait time for diners. The current wait time for dishes at Gunpowder is 30 to 40 minutes, Hameed says. This is due to the process of making the food from scratch and not reheating items; and Hameed shares this fact with all customers who come in.
He is currently looking for more employees with knowledge of Indian cooking to better the restaurant’s efficiency while also upholding the authenticity of the cuisine.
Gunpowder Indian Cuisine is currently open Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m. and 4:30-9:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.; and Sunday, 11 a.m.- 9:30 p.m. Hameed says the hours are subject to change as he continues to adjust operations. Gunpowder is at 4410 Highland Road. Follow it on Instagram at @gunpowder4410 for updates.